Update #2: Re-Design and Goodreads Account

~ Beth (Reading Every Night)

It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for, judging from the comments on my last monthly recap. My new blog design for Reading Every Night has been unveiled and is now live on WordPress.

Re-Design

Ever since I started blogging back in November 2015 my design has stayed the same, so it’s about time it got a little bit of a make-over. I wouldn’t say there are any huge changes in terms of the content of my posts; the format is still the same and I’ll still be posting the same things. My book reviews and the Top Ten Tuesday feature I take part in each week have been exempt from this new design simply because at the moment I think they’re fine as they are.

Blog Header

Both the theme and the header for Reading Every Night have been changed, and I definitely prefer the new design. The header looks a lot cleaner and I guess a little more professional as well. You can definitely see how my style has changed over the past year and a bit of blogging.

Old Design

cropped-header-image1.png

New Design

cropped-blog-header.png

Book Tags

As I said earlier my book reviews and Top Ten Tuesday posts are staying the same, so the next biggest change is when it comes to my book tags.

Rather than creating/using a different header image for each tag like I have been doing I decided to create one for all of them, only changing the title as necessary. I think it works better, connecting all my book tags that I’ve posted and still have to post.

New Design

Rapid Fire Book Tag

Standalone Sunday/Waiting on Wednesday

I stopped taking part in the Waiting on Wednesday meme a little while back when I started running out of books I could feature, and when I found another weekly meme I wanted to take part in. What I’m planning on doing is alternating; one week Waiting on Wednesday, the next Standalone Sunday.

What I have tried to do with these header images is keep the same design, same font, and same colour combination. Just so you can easily identify they belong to the same blog.

Old Design

standalone-sunday

New Design

Waiting on Wednesday

Standalone Sunday

Discussions

Discussion posts are something very new to this blog. I’ve only posted three so far but I hope it’s a feature that will keep going for a while now. I already knew I’d be re-designing my blog when I posted the first one so I tried to come up with something I’d be happy with when it came to thinking up a new design.

The only difference in my Discussion post re-design is the colour of the header image. Literally everything else is exactly the same.

Old Design

Does 'Second Book Syndrome' Exist

New Design

Tropes in YA Fiction

Monthly Recaps

My monthly recaps are the only post that have already gone through a re-design. I think looking at the different incarnations it’s had you can see an improvement in my design for the headers; look at the earliest and comparing it to the newest.

Again the format of these posts will stay the same. The only difference will be the header images for the three sections I break my monthly recaps into; This Month, Book Haul, and Next Month.

Oldest Design

Reviews

Top Ten Tuesday

Old Design

this-month-on-my-blog

book-haul

New Design

March Montly Recap

Monthly Recaps - This Month

About Me

I have finally got around to updating my About Me page, which ideally should have been updated way before I did this re-design, and took the opportunity to create a Review Policy and Review Index for my blog.

My Review Policy has information on what each of my start ratings mean, and my Review Index has links to all the reviews I have posted on my blog to date. This will be updated monthly when I post my recaps and is sorted in alphabetical order by author’s surname.

About Me

Basically just have a look around and let me know what you think. This redesign was a long time in the works for me and actually finished two weeks ago, but rather than post it early I decided to post it in line with the announcement that I have a Goodreads profile.

Yes, you read that correctly. After a year and a half of blogging, and months and months on end promising I would create a Goodreads profile, there is finally one up for my blog. It’s still kind of in the works because I have over 150 reviews on this blog I need to upload to Goodreads but it’s certainly a start.

Come and add me as a friend, I’ll start working through my WordPress followers and add you if you have a profile, but it may take me a little while.

80 thoughts on “Update #2: Re-Design and Goodreads Account”

  1. Ahhhh I’m so behind on your blog!! I had noticed your beautiful redesign but didn’t get the chance to actually sit down and comment about it until now I’m so late omg but IT IS BEAUTIFUL. Changing up your blog theme after having the same one for so long must’ve been so exciting!! ❤ ❤ I loved your old design, but this one is just as lovely, if not more. That header definitely looks more tidy and professional though! 🙂 Ahhhh all those headers and graphics!! I'm in loveeeee, Beth, they're all amazing. And yayyyyy for the Goodreads account! I don't actually post many reviews on there, but my TBR is enormours for a good part because of Goodreads haha. 150 reviews! My gosh, that's quite a lot. Good luck! ❤ And once again, love your redesign!

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    1. That’s all right, I sometimes get behind on blogging and it’s easy to lose track I guess. But thanks so much Analee, I am so pleased with this new design and I’m glad everyone seems to like it as well.
      Definitely exciting. It almost feels like a whole new blog now! 😀
      I think everything looks a lot more tidy now, basically after having my old theme and design I felt like a re-boot almost.
      Goodreads has been a long time coming. I still need to update my reviews because at the moment I’ve only posted last months but that’s a work in progress I guess! 🙂
      Thanks so much Analee. 😀 ❤

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      1. Ahah I am terrible with finding time! 😂 It dislikes me. I missed reading your posts!! ❤
        Ahah I can totally imagine; it totally looks like a while different blog–in the best way possible, of course! 😍
        Aha yes, progress is still progress so that’s really good. 😊

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      2. I feel that way as well, for some reason I manage to maintain my blog despite never having enough time, but I’m not going to question that too much! 😀
        Yeah that’s what I think sometimes, though obviously I know it’s the same blog as well, but there’s a whole different design and even a new theme as well. Nothing stayed the same except the format of my reviews! 🙂

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  2. I’m a bit late Beth but I’m LOVING this new look and the additions! I myself need all the motivation I can get to writing my Review policy, I keep procrastinating on that task lol. So glad to see you’ve joined Goodreads, I’ve sent you a friend request, I’m actually logged into GR all day here at work, more so than my blog at times lol 😉

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    1. Oh thanks so much Lilly. Yeah this felt like a long time in the works but I am so so happy with the way everything turned out. It was something I kept procrastinating on as well, I think this is a case of better late than never though! 😀
      Yep, finally got around to GR as well, and thanks for the add. I’ve seen your request on GR so I’ll be approving it shortly! 😀 ❤

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  3. Congratulations on the upgrade, Beth!!! I had a feeling the blog got an update when I saw your display picture changed whenever you passed by on Bookidote! This is definitely amazing and I’m really glad for your big move!!! Oh, and let’s not forget about the addition of Goodreads!! 😛

    – Lashaan

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  6. Loving the new design! It’s so sleek yet simple. I really like that. I have to redo mine, but I’ve been really lazy. I was going to get my brother to design a logo for me since I am not good at the stuff, but he’s extremely lazy! 😛
    All in all, I really do like the new look! 😀

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    1. Thanks so much Meghan, and I definitely prefer my new design to my old one. It is definitely a lot of work re-designing everything but in the end so so worth it. I hope you manage to get around to it soon, and get your brother to design a logo soon as well.
      Again thanks so much Meghan! 😀 ❤

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  7. Your new design is soooooooooooooo pretty, I really love it and I’m eager to see all of these designs in the blog posts 🙂 And YES TO GOODREAAAAAAAADS I just added you 😀

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    1. Thanks so much Marie, I’m so glad I finally got around to posting it because while I’ve been working on it I’ve gotten tired of my old design.
      It took a long time but I finally have a GR profile, and thanks for the add as well. I have seen and accepted it! 😀 ❤

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  13. Loving the new design Beth! Great color scheme and very simplistic layout! I think you did a wonderful job 😀 Glad you finally managed to get that blog makeover done. Now I definitely have to get a move on with my own haha. Any advice on how to do that? Not sure how to set up designs/blog headers like that!

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    1. Thanks so much Azia, and yeah I was originally going to stick to the green/blue colour scheme but then decided to go completely different. This was a long time in the works but definitely worth it now it’s all done!
      Well I wish you luck, it’s a lot of work but a lot of fun as well!
      When it comes to my headers/graphics I used an app on my iPad called Word Swag. It has some amazing fonts/backgrounds and hopefully you may find it useful as well. 🙂

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      1. I love it! I love a dramatic change here and there 😉
        And I’ll try to carve out some time, but most likely the change will come after graduation in May!
        Yay! Thanks so much 😀

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  14. I’m liking the new designs!! I keep telling myself I should probably do a little blog make over – but when I go to actually do it… i really don’t want to 😂😂 and YAY! You have Goodreads!! I’ve already sent a friend request! 😀 I’m lauren hassan

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    1. Thanks so much Lauren. Oh I was telling myself ever since my one year blogiversary I wanted to do a re-design, still took me another five/six months to get around to it.
      Goodreads was a long time coming for this blog but I got there in the end. I’ve seen and accepted your friend request, thanks for the add! 😀

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  15. Beth. Seriously. This is freakin’ awesome! I absolutely LOVE your redesign of everything! Especially your new post images! They’re amazing! You did a fantastic job on all of this 🙂

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    1. Thanks so much Lauren, and yeah this took a fair bit of work but I am definitely so happy with the end result. 😀 ❤
      GR was a long time in the works but I eventually got there, and Twitter will be coming eventually but first I'm going to re-launch my Bookstagram! 🙂

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  20. I adore your new design, Beth! 😍😍 It’s so gorgeous and very minimalist. I’m having some major blog envy right now! Everyone has been changing their designs lately and it’s making me want to mess around with mine too. I may just have to in a few months lol. Also, YAY your Goodreads! I’m going to go add you on there right now. 😊

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    1. Thanks so much Melissa, and yeah this has been in the works for two months now. It literally took forever for me to find something I was happy with but now I really am happy with it all.
      Well I had the same design for over a year and eventually it was just time for a change! 🙂
      I’d love to see what you come up with if you did a re-design, it’s a fair bit of work but a lot of fun as well.
      I’ve seen your friend request on GR, thanks for the add! 😀 ❤

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      1. You’re welcome, Beth!! 💕 Well, it’s good that you ended up finding a new design that you loved.
        I’ve actually been eyeing another theme since my last re-design that I wanted more than my current one. Sadly, it isn’t a free one and I’m not sure if I want to spend the $50. 🙈
        I definitely plan on tinkering around with mine over the next few months.
        What program did you use to make your images?
        Of course! Also, I see that you liked Last Seen Leaving!! I’m so happy that you enjoyed that book. 😁🎉

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      2. Yeah I can be a perfectionist about things like this so I spend hours going back and forth on a couple of things before settling on something.
        Wow that’s a lot of money, but I guess you could always see it as more of an investment than anything else. If you’re planning on blogging for a while it wouldn’t work out that much in the long run.
        I used Word Swag, it’s an app on my iPad and it has some great backgrounds and fonts you can use.
        Yep, I read and loved it. I’m not sure when I’ll be posting my review for it though. It may be one I save for when I’m behind on reading or reviews or something! 🙂

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      3. I get that, I was like that with my last re-design. It didn’t take me as long but I know I stayed up day and night for almost a week just trying to get my logo right before I moved on to everything else.
        True. I’m still contemplating it. I even have to find the theme again because I lost the bookmark I had of it (evil google chrome). But I might in the next few months if I have the extra money to spend.
        I’ll have to look that up! I don’t have an iPad but I think they have it for the iPhone too.
        Either way I’m glad you ended up enjoying it! 😁

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      4. It’s always a big thing, a re-design, whether it’s one small part or the whole blog in a way. You want to make sure you’re happy with it and sometimes that can be the biggest thing to get past.
        Oh again with the evil Google chrome, but if you do find it I’d love to see the new theme you’re thinking of.
        Oh they have it for iPhone’s as well. I just use it on my iPad because. 🙂

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  24. EVERYTHING LOOKS AMAZING, BETH! I really loved your old design too but I can’t deny that there’s a certain sense of freshness when you’ve just updated your blog design. Loving the fun, bolder colours as well as the fonts that you chose. ❤

    I've also just added you on Goodreads, and I hope to see you there!

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    1. Thanks so much Reg, and yeah I kind of like the freshness of having a new blog design. I kind of had everything in the works for so long that I just wanted to change it weeks ago, but at the same time wanted to wait until everything was ready, and luckily it is now. 🙂
      Yep, saw you on Goodreads, thanks for the add! 😀 ❤

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  25. OMG BETH EVERYTHING IS STUNNING! 😍 I absolutely love it!

    And, yes, take the path of a pretty picture of books as backgrounds for graphics. I chose the best picture I’ve taken, in my opinion, to use as my background for pretty much all my graphics, and a different one for my reviews, and that seems to work out well. 😂 Can’t add you on Goodreads since I tried to do that, and promptly gave up again, so I think I’ve settled that it’s not for me, but I hope you enjoy it!

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    1. Thanks so much Mikaela, I’m glad you like my new design.
      Ha, yeah. I was originally just going to use one pretty picture of books as backgrounds for my About Me and Review Index/Policy pages, but I took a few pictures I liked, couldn’t choose between them, and decided to use another for my tags. I still have one left which I need to find something for someday, guess it’s nice to have a backup for a future date. 🙂
      Oh that’s a shame, but I guess if it doesn’t work for you then it doesn’t work. I’ve been meaning to create one for a while and finally got around to it now. Thanks again Mikaela. 🙂

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    1. Thanks so much Ellie, I’m glad you like my re-design. I use an app on my iPad called Word Swag, there’s plenty of fonts and background pictures on there. It’s pretty much what I use to create all the graphics on my blog. 🙂

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    1. Aw thanks so much Stephanie, I played around a lot until I found something I was happy with. Seriously there’s a reason it took me two months to get here! 🙂
      And yep Twitter will be next but it will still be a fair way in the future. Next I’m planning on re-launching my Bookstagram account. 🙂

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  29. Oh, I really like your new design! It looks really clean and fresh! And the colors are really pretty too! You guys and all your pretty headers and feature images for your posts definitely make me wanna step up my own game!

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    1. Thanks so much. 🙂 I spent a lot of time on this re-design because when I first posted my blog way back when it was the one area I put the least thought into. At least now I can say I’m happy with what I have.
      I really like the design you have on your blog, I definitely agree with the tagline because there is not enough time to read during the day (I wish there was more time) but hey if you fancy doing a re-design it can be a lot of fun! 😀

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      1. You’re welcome! 🙂

        Right? I also find myself usually reading at night and well into the night. I love the peace and quiet – even though I live by myself so it’s always quiet, but there is just something about reading at night!

        This is actually already at least the second theme this blog has had and we’ve only been at it for 3 months. xD But I might at least try working on feature images to keep things cohesive and stuff! 🙂

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      2. I’m more of a night owl than a morning bird. I find myself staying up way too late when I have work the next day but oh well! 😀
        Oh wow, I guess in that case you want to try and get it to as perfect as you can then. I always find it fun to work on things like this so I may be tinkering with mine a little in the near future as well. 🙂

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      3. Same! Like, even when I had to get up at 5:30 AM to get ready for school I would still stay up until at least midnight. Who needs sleep anyways? xD

        Yeah, that’s probably what I/we will be doing for the foreseeable future. 🙂

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