Book Blog Makeover! Books Beside My Bed

It's MAKEOVER time again at Lea Christine Designs!! I love getting to share with you guys the latest design makeovers that I've done for some awesome book bloggers and their fabulous blogs, so here is today's:

Karen is a lovely librarian who has a cute blog called Books Beside My Bed. However, her design was more generic with a Blogger template and she really wanted to get something that reflected her personality more and also tied into her blog's name. She asked me if I could create for her a whole new design with an illustration of her lounging on a daybed, reading a book, with her favorite collie dog next to her. She wanted her blog to be really colorful, with pinks, purples, blues and greens, and then she also ordered some extras like a custom menu bar, custom sidebar titles, and a favicon. So I thought it would be fun to take a moment today for a little...

~How I Make Custom Vector Graphics~

OK! So today I am going to show you guys how I create these graphics for my designs-- and this is how I make all the graphics you see here at LC's Adventures in Libraryland, too. So when a blogger asks me to draw custom graphics for them, I first try to get as many details as I can-- what hair color, eye color, what kind of clothes do they want their character wearing, etc. Then, I typically sketch out the drawing on paper, and then upload it to my computer and into my image editing program.

Here is the drawing I did of Karen's collie:

So once I get it uploaded, I use what is called the "paths tool" to make a series of points that connect, and then I change the curves and adjust everything to the shape I want my final image to take:

It takes lots of practice and patience! When I first started doing this, it would've taken me hours (and LOTS of head-banging frustration) to create this collie, but now it probably took me about 45 minutes to get finished. Here is the collie drawing a little farther along...

Each different color and shape you see in this graphic is its own separate layer-- that way I can change, manipulate, and adjust the layers to make everything just the way I want. After I finish adjusting the colors and shading to how I want it, here is the final graphic! :)

Alrighty, so now you have a better idea of how I create my custom graphics-- now here is the MAKEOVER!!

~Old Design~

~New Design!~

I really love how everything turned out in this makeover, since we were able to take that basic, generic Blogger template and create something totally unique and colorful for Karen's style and personality! Now things are very bright and fun and, I hope, will make blogging an even better experience for Karen now that she has a one-of-a-kind look that is all her!

Be sure to stop on over to Karen's blog at Books Beside My Bed to say "hi" and let her know what you think of her new design-- and of course, show her some blogger love by following too! :)

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Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!

Happy Reading!