Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Now, onto something really important!

If I hadn't become a librarian, I would have gone to culinary school and become a pastry chef. I may still do that, but in the meantime, I'm tossing together a food/baking blog.

Not that this has anything to do with library life, but while looking at the bevy of food blogs out there, I have noticed that the majority of the ones I have seen use either the Minima template (Blogger) or one of the popular spare, white background templates on WordPress. I found this funny because, before even looking around, I was leaning towards the same idea.

So, I just wonder why this is. Is there some design sensibility shared by those who love to bake? Is it a matter of copycatting? Did someone send out a memo to food bloggers saying, "If you want to be cool, you need a white background?" I read blogs in many categories, but I don't think I have seen anything like this. Interesting. Thoughts?

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Now playing: Guster - Center Of Attention
via FoxyTunes

4 comments:

jdscott50 said...

White is a cleaner background. Plus, if you want to use a banner, you don't have to worry about coordinating the colors, or cluttering up your page.

The banner is what makes it unique. That's your brand.

jess said...

Oh, I certainly agree that white is a cleaner background. This blog is a tweaked Minima template, the banner I had professionally designed, mostly because I wanted my "professional" blog to be readable and look nice. My other blogs are all very readable, but not nearly as "clean."

I just thought it was odd that so many baking blogs have SUCH similar designs. I don't see that with library blogs.

Ryan Deschamps said...

I moved into a house that had been previously owned by a children's book illustrator. Same thing -- white walls.

The reason (I guess) is this: You do not want the design template to override the key elements of your blog: pictures of food! Lots of colours would detract from all those pictures of lovely dishes of food!

I would guess this is the same reason that walls are white in art galleries as well.

Library blogs have lots of posts that are all text. You need something pretty for people to look at. :)

Anonymous said...

Gee Jessica,
When I left a comment that you should be a baker professionally on your Flickr photo of the most wonderful looking scones I had ever seen, I guess I was on to something. I actually love the photos of food in various stages of preparation in your Flickr album a lot. So is Johnson & Wales beckoning?