Blog | Jane B. Website Help

Adding a Row of Image Links with the WordPress Block Editor

19th February 201917th February 2019

Some time ago, I wrote a blog post giving instructions for adding a row of image links to a WordPress website. The methods I described should still work, but now that the new WordPress block editor (a.k.a. “Gutenberg”) has been released, I would expect it to be easier to carry out this task without using the plugins I had looked at before.

I thought I’d write a new post to give an update in the light of the changes, and this accidentally turned into a mini review of some third party blocks plugins.

Creating a Mood Board with Milanote

8th February 201926th September 2018

Recently, I came across milanote.com which seemed to be a good tool for creating a mood board or style guide.

When planning a website, or other creative project, it can be really helpful to build a mood board so that you can visualise how certain colours, fonts, images etc might work together. A style guide can act as a useful reference to ensure that you, and others involved in the project, are consistent in your use of various design elements.

Flexible, Customisable WordPress Themes

8th February 20196th May 2018

There are a couple of different approaches to choosing a WordPress theme:
1. Try to find a theme that looks just how you want it straight out of the box (or with a few small tweaks). Then just add your own text and images
2. Choose a plain looking, but flexible, theme as a starting point and customise it to look just as you want it to.

I favour the 2nd approach, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone.

Self-hosted WordPress Versus the Rest

8th February 201910th April 2018

WordPress have an old article (The $64,000 Question: WordPress.com or WordPress.org?) with an analogy that I’m going to borrow. The original article was written in 2013, although I see that it has been updated to mention the WordPress.com Business Plan (more on that below). I’ll extend the analogy a bit and throw in some things that weren’t mentioned.

The idea is that self-hosted WordPress versus WordPress.com is a bit like buying a house versus renting one. I like this comparision and would extend it to include other platforms such as Squarespace, Weebly and Wix.

WordPress Website Checklist

8th February 201929th March 2018

Here are the steps I take when setting up a self-hosted WordPress website. I’ve included links to some of the plugins I use, and to helpful articles with more comprehensive instructions.

Instructions for Adding a Row of Image Links

17th February 201919th February 2018

UPDATE – Please note that this article was written before the release of the new WordPress block editor (a.k.a. “Gutenberg”). For a more up-to-date approach, see my article: Adding a Row of Image Links with the WordPress Block Editor.

It’s quite common to want a page layout like the example below, with a row of three images, each of which links to a different page of the website (nails, make up and hair, in my example).

A Look at WordPress Page Builders

29th March 201815th November 2017

My previous post, Alternatives to WordPress Page Builders, describes an exercise I carried out to build a simple web page without the use of a page builder plugin.

In this follow-up post, I attempt to build the same page with a few different page builders to see how much easier this makes the process.

Alternatives to WordPress Page Builders

19th February 201911th November 2017

UPDATE: This article was written before the release of the WordPress block editor (a.k.a. Gutenberg).

Page Builders have become so popular that sometimes new WordPress users get the impression that they are expected to use one. My own view is that it’s best to keep things simple and use a page builder only if you have a need for it.

More Places to Find Free Graphics

14th February 20183rd October 2017

My previous post, Where to Find Free Website Graphics, listed some of my favourite websites for downloading free images, backgrounds and other graphical resources. This follow up post contains a few more suggested sources of freebies. These ones are perhaps a little less well known and may not have such a great selection – but they are worth a look.

Where to Find Free Website Graphics

5th February 201925th September 2017

When you are building a website, you are likely to want to add some illustrations to make it look appealing to your visitors. It’s reasonable to expect to have to pay for website graphics as these have been created through the hard work of artists and designers.

Having said that, costs can easily mount up and, like most people, I love a freebie or a bargain! Here are some of my favourite sources of free graphics that can be used on websites.