Custom or Off The Shelf Themes?

[Gaystoryman]

I am curious, how many people here, that have blogs, use a custom made theme for their sites, or how many use the 'off the shelf' blogs from Wordpress itself? Even if you modify them, do you use the 'wordpress' variety or go hiring a web designer to make you one?

Should probably be a poll, but hell, I'd rather here why you go one way or the other, and I am nosy.

Keep in mind, everything said is a potential story fodder, so careful now :bad:

Myself, I use an 'off the shelf' theme, because as Wordpress upgrades keep rolling out, I am just too damn cheap to pay for having them upgraded, specially as it seems the current mode is to make wholesale changes in the database or codes being used. :bang:

[gaydemon]

I've done my own design, i had to make Movable Type fit into the whole gaydemon site rather than stand out.

But to be honest, there are such a lot of very nice themes or skins for both wordpress and movable type that unless it has to fit in with the rest I would be tempted to use those instead.

[Fister]

My two blogs have themes I created myself...so for future blogs, I'll make a new theme as a variation off what I already have.

[gaydemon]

Thats true, once you have customized its much easier the next.. Until that is like Movable Type they change the templates! :bang:


My two blogs have themes I created myself...so for future blogs, I'll make a new theme as a variation off what I already have.

[InsaneSimon]

In my opinion a custom design is good for branding. You have a site and want to brand it so you need something to make people remember your site and then come back.

Pre-made free designs work. Think that one of biggest gay MGP - www.hotgaylist.com - uses a free WP template. It's not a blog, I know, but in my opinion it's the same talking about design.

[Hammerhead]

For my first blog, I started with a non-exclusive, paid template from XLWebStudios.com. But I'm currently re-doing it as a custom design from scratch. I want to be able to brand it, giving it the same look-and-feel as my TGP.

For other quick blogs using RSS feeds, I'm using the free Wordpress themes. Some of these are extremely well done and have been "stress-tested" by dozens of other users before me.

[Chubbs]

I had MrJD from monstersofblog.com design all my blog temps. I agree that it helps a bit for branding to have something a little more unique.

--Chubbs

[Gaystoryman]

Interesting comments, see, I always thought, still do really, that the logo was better suited to branding the site, than the design itself, like Gaydemon with the demon graphic, more than the entire site design, because well, different sites, different designs.