Just before the weekend – Andrew Mager asked if I could generate a new more subtle wordpress skin for his blog. Apparently, he had been having some issues with some of his larger images not fitting in his previous fixed width site, and was also hoping to go for a lighter and more simplified look and feel. At first, I sensed that he was a bit shy about telling me that he had taken the previous design down. But it did not work for him, and my feelings are never hurt by the concept of change. A design system is supposed to be functional, thus if it is getting in the way of serving in the way it is intended – then by all means it needs to be modified or in this case – scrapped all together.
When I asked him what he had in mind – He replied that he liked a blueprint sort of theme – He pointed to a recent Revision3 beta site, and suggested that he liked that it has a feeling of “being built”, but clearly is not complete. I liked this idea of generating a template that would house his content – but do so in a way that implies the notion of a constant work in progress.
This idea made me think of being back in art school – I used to use supermarket brown bags as drawing paper. Not only was it free and readily available – but is a great toned drawing surface with a lot of texture and paper tooth to build up layers of pencil lead. This really lent itself to being a quick and easy medium to develop ideas without being overly concerned by a feeling that I was creating a masterpiece. Thus, I stayed loose and really worked on trying new things without feeling locked into any one direction. This seemed like a place to start.
I pulled out all the color and depth to his logo to make it feel like a spot color print on an organic surface IE – brown bag. Splatters and stains are added to emphasize a “Re-used” surface. One intended specifically for the purpose of “quick studies” – taking your thinking through a process. The overall feel is intended on being a bit flat – and creating a monochromatic surface so that it is “his ideas and images” that standout rather then the shell itself. The edges of this design are kept at the top and bottom – thus any super wide images are not confined on the sides should it need to expand horizontally to 100%.
At any rate – this was a pretty simple design and I was able to build out pretty fast. I sent it to him this morning, and he had it up before 2pm. I am pleased with how it turned out, but more importantly am hopeful that it provides an easy base that allows his thoughts and ideas to grow through his constant motion.
I am an avid student and evangelist of user-centered design principles - I have created or overhauled some of the world's largest online Business & Technology properties. My focus has always been on building functional design systems that creatively solve business problems. Solutions that convey brand & messaging, but more importantly, are intuitive to maximize the possibilities of an interactive medium. 
