Mary Seph's Digital Garden

Designing My Dream Website (Part 3): The Foundations

Last updated: 29 minutes ago

Previous: Designing My Dream Website (Part 2): Decorations and Community.

Wishes have been written, now it's time to put some braincells together.

I've always envisioned this website to have basic navigational links I was taught all websites should have:

This is bare minimum. This is what I'll build on top.

Other big pages that I feel should be in the nav are,

The big stuff. Big sections. Well except /now which is just a single page.

I guess this website is kind of like a city. Each link on the nav leads to different neighborhoods. The now page, a little water fountain that is redecorated every so often. Crafts? A vibrant market. Porfolio? An art gallery. Blog? The webmaster's office.

Let's expand on each.

1. /Now

A page about my current priorities. Currently, it shows what I'm reading, developing, thinking, crafting, and feeling.

It could be much more but I'm getting ahead of myself.

2. Crafts

An expansive section showcasing all my fiber crafts. From crocheting to sewing to whatever I feel like dabbling in next. I like the idea of displaying it as a gallery with the image of the final product and the title leading to another page with detailed information such as dates, yarn times, materials, and notes.

This section will allow me to keep a record of the things I make, how long it takes me, and reflect on each piece.

3. Portfolio

All websites should have a portfolio, or so I was taught. I would like to make a portfolio. Different from the Crafts section, this showcase leans towards the academic. Essays, reports, group projects that I'm really proud of and believe show what I'm capable of as a scientist and communicator.

4. Blog

This is my workspace. Messy. Chaotic. Unpolished. It's where I post long-form thoughts and ideas. Writing out loud. In public. A series of reflections and musings. It's intimate. Human.

With that, let's see what was left behind.

5. Media journal

Ah, my thoughts about various media. They have been gathering dust for a few years. This was a staple for personal websites back in 2019-2023. It's another attempt at mindful consumption and engage with the content.

I would like to continue keeping a media journal but I don't feel very enthusiastic about the prospect. My visual media consumption is quite low compared to years prior. However, I do have some very big thoughts that I would like to write down somewhere.

I could take a look at the entries I'm most passionate about and post them as a start.

Hold on, similar to entertainment media, I have notes from videos on various topics. These are a bit more educational than thoughts on films and series. I'm not quite sure if those would go here or in the next section.

6. Digital Garden

Ah, the beginning of my headache. After much planning, I don't know how I reached the same point of being dissatisfied with the execution.

When I talk about a digital garden, I talk about unfinished and underdeveloped impressions, thoughts, and ideas. A knowledge base. Perhaps I should call this a wiki instead. Or a commonplace book.

As I mentioned in the previous section, I have several files of what I call "media notes," which are scribbles about educational videos. I'm not sure if they should go here as the whole idea is it's being scrappy. But then a website is never truly finished. Aaaannndd my headache is returning.

I should hold on before making digital garden. I have been metaphorically banging my head against a wall for some clarity on how to tackle this section. Clearly, I'm not ready to build this and have other priorities.

7. Slash pages

Last but not least, the slash pages I have set up.

Considering taking a leaf out of Brennan's site and having these under Pages.

Most of these pages have a solid draft. Although /been is pretty sparse and incomplete, whereas /where needs some stylistic touch-ups.

WAIT, what about the footer? Do I have no thoughts about footer? Wrong, seems I do. This is where the previous part of this series comes into play.

Additionally, I want to drop links to key pages such as,

Also

Next: Designing My Dream Website (Part 4): Putting the Basics Together

#blog