In this part of Project WordPress, we are creating a layout for our customized WordPress blog. The blog layout strongly depends on the niche you’re in and how you want to appear to your readers. Every niche has its own preferred blog style that you have to consider before you start blogging.

Until now, we’ve already covered these parts of Project WordPress:

Part 1: How to install WordPress, set it up and do basic customization;

Part 2: Eight dead essential WordPress Plugins;

Part 3: 10+ recommended WordPress Plugins to make your blog prettier.

Part 4: Create Your Blog Layout

Are you starting a new design blog, or are you going to write about cool gadgets? Do you want to blog about your personal life, or are you in the make money online niche? Knowing how you want to position yourself in your niche is the first step for creating a custom WordPress theme, and should be considered before we go any further.

To show you what we mean, let’s take a look at four blog layouts that are very different from each other. We picked a blog from every one of the above niches. Click on the screenshots to enlarge the images - we noted a few things for each. We also provided a link to each blog. Read on…

This is the third part of Project WP, and the last one where we play pretty. After this, we’ll get into customizing a basic theme with PHP, HTML and CSS, and creating a blog identity with logo, icons & header. Expect Part 4 here next week, but for now:

Give us the Pretty one more time! 10+ Recommended WordPress Plugins to make your blog prettier

In our last post, we listed the 8 dead essential WordPress Plugins for you. Take a look at these non-essential, but still highly recommended plugins today. Note: all plugins have been tested by us for use in WordPress 2.5+. Read on…

In the first part of Project WP, we installed WordPress and set it up for our convenience to improve visibility and attract more visitors. Today, we’re going to look at 8 absolutely essential plugins that significantly contribute to our efforts of creating a successful WordPress blog.

Part 2: Eight dead essential WordPress Plugins

WordPress is a fantastic platform for bloggers. If you’ve been thinking about getting into blogging, but you don’t know what awaits you, rest assured, for we are here to help. In the course of this series, we’ll take it step by step and explain how to create your own blog - with your very own custom theme. This involves the design part as well as the part working with PHP and CSS. Read on…

Project WordPress is a series of in-depth tutorials on creating a custom blog - step by step, and from scratch. Read about how to tweak WordPress to your liking, about useful and must-be plugins, working with PHP and CSS, and using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator professionally to create beautiful results: your very own, brand new WordPress Theme.

Part 1: WordPress Install, Setup, and Basic Optimization

In this first step of creating a whole new blog, we’ll take a look at wonderful WordPress and how we can set it up do do what we want. The standard install of WordPress is rather rudimentary, thus requires us to do a couple of adjustments, which, in our opinion, are crucial to creating a professional WordPress blog. Read on…