Friday, May 20, 2011

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday: Blog pet peeves (with a rebuttal)

The Friend Friday group by Modly Chic is a way for fashion bloggers to share more about themselves and join a friendly community of bloggers. Find out more about the group by checking out the Fashion Beauty Friend Friday Google Group. And don't forget to check out Modly Chic - it's such a great blog.



This week's Fashion Beauty Friend Friday questions are inspired by a post by Beautifully Invisible entitled ‘The 10 things that drive me crazy about your blog.’ Though blogging is by nature an incredibly personal activity, the public nature of it forces some attention on appealing content and design. However, what I consider attractive and tasteful might not be the same as what another blogger believes. Thus, I'm extremely hesitant to behave as if I have any right to subject my opinion on anyone else's blog.

I hold fast to the philosophy that regardless of public opinion, you ultimately need to make yourself happy. If you like lots of white space, few photos and an emphasis on writing (as I do), more power to you. Or if you prefer many pics, buttons galore and short descriptions, then you should embrace it. That's what blogging with courage means to me. Your blog is a reflection of you. It exists to make you happy. None of us are in a position to dictate how a blog "should" look. Your blog does not exist to make me happy, and naming the things that irritate me about it is kind of ridiculous.

Okay. That being said, instead of listing my blog pet peeves, here's a list of blog qualities that I find inspiring and refreshing:

A simple, clean design: I'm a fan of white space and a clean, straightforward design. I believe it makes a blog look focused and keeps the emphasis on the content of the blog itself. A clean design puts emphasis on the blog's pictures and words, and ensures the attention of readers.

A stable layout: Some bloggers are fantastic at HTML and graphic design. They spend hours constructing and editing and updating their blog. Personally, I like stability and consistency. I like being able to find previous posts without difficulty, email the blog author easily, and locate a blogroll without getting lost. I understand the need to keep things fresh, but too much change makes me confused.

Working links and buttons: I've found so many fantastic blogs just by scrolling through a blogroll. In fact, when I have the time, exploring new blogs is one of my favorite activities. This is why working links and buttons are so important.

Too many pics: Fashion is a terrific tool through which we can be creative, and I get so inspired by the outfit pics posted from my favorite bloggers. My favorite bloggers include four to five pics per outfit post, all with different angles highlighting specific attributes. Too many pics makes me a little overwhelmed.

Proper grammar and spelling: I'm a writer, and correct grammar and spelling are important to me. A beautifully written, eloquent post immediately draws me in and makes me want to read more. As a writer I understand how important proper grammar, spelling and punctuation are in ensuring the legitimacy of my own blog, and I appreciate it when a blogger takes the time to spell-check and reread their post.

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