(never home)maker: You Have SO Many Looks!

That's right! We changed the site design . . . again. We promise to not make a regular habit of it. But this time, we were on a mission. We overhauled the entire layout, too. It's not just for looks, people. The results of our survey revealed that many of you thought the old navigation was OK. However, many others thought we could use a bit of TLC in the area.

You're smart. And we wholeheartedly agreed with your comments.

So, we've moved from a two column layout to a three column one. Mostly, it's because we want to create better ways to find our posts (as you'll notice, this part is still in the works). We hope to get it all looking far less busy than it did on the previous iteration.

BEFORE:


NOW:


Now, I know you're wondering about the colors. The new scheme is perhaps a symptom of the season. It's cold and grey outside today. The bright colors just didn't reflect what's going on right now. Plus, I had the opportunity to shoot some photos this morning and create a new header. (Those lights from our DIY lightbox really came in handy!) The result was a cool-toned picture that didn't exactly jive with a bold background.

The photoshoot? It was a disaster if we're being entirely honest.


But most of the clutter and filth (no, we have yet to purchase our mini dishwasher) was out of frame.

See?


Lots of props to play with. And after just a couple shots (I took only 20!), I settled on one I liked. Though, there was a close second. Unfortunately, it didn't reflect the whole fitness aspect of our site.

Here she is:


After adding some contrast and adjusting shadows, the header was complete. The next part went pretty quickly. I'd had the template picked out for a couple of weeks . . . just needed the courage to make the switch. Thankfully, it was relatively painless. And I'm pretty sure I like it. Takes some getting used to, but there's a lot more flexibility.

(Here's a trick for not-so savvy bloggers -- like me! -- out there. If you can -- set up a test site that mimics your "real" site. And just make sure you test everything before going live and changing the live page.)

So, that's the story of why we're looking quite different today than we did yesterday. We invite all you RSS followers to click through to neverhomemaker.com and check it out. Let us know what you think and if you have suggestions (Just leave a comment or email us at neverhomemaker [at] gmail [dot] com).


Obviously, we're listening . . . or I wouldn't have risked it all, gained a few grey hairs, and slightly freaked out during my morning break today. Let's just take a moment to look at the image above.

We've definitely come a long way in just over a year! Woah!!!

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iHerb $50 Shopping Spree Giveaway

What has Stephen jumping for joy? iHerb.com, that's what! OK. Back up. What is iHerb.com? Simply put: It's this awesome place that carries vitamins and herbal supplements (both vegan, vegetarian and even raw), cosmetics and personal care items that are organic and/or cruelty-free as well as over 1000 natural and specialty grocery items.

Now that we've got that straight, I can tell you why they are MORE than awesome. Not only did they recently give us a $50 shopping spree, but they are also giving one of you (yes! you!) a $50 shopping spree! In addition, you ALL benefit from a coupon code (NEV143) that ANYONE can use to get $5 off your first purchase.


There he goes again! Anyway, I'll be the first person to admit that we don't exactly live in the best area to find all the unique and healthy products that I often read so much about in other parts of the blog world. Enter iHerb.com . . . and, well, all that has changed. I could live in the absolute middle of nowhere and -- as long as I maintain an internet connection -- could still get the best ingredients, supplements, and other natural stuff (because there are a TON of categories on this website with anything from herbal teas to baking supplies to earthy personal care products and beyond). It's really that great.

What's better is that they have this fantastically vast inventory, and they've made it incredibly easy to search through. I'll admit -- it took me a while to pick out exactly what I wanted because there's so much. But everything is organized by product, brand, or health topic. It really helped me find what I wanted -- and fast.

Here's what 50 big ones bought me on the site:

• Kava Stress Relief Tea
• Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Flour
• Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Garbanzo-Fava Flour
• Bob's Red Mill Coconut Flour
• Bob's Red Mill Vegan Egg Replacer
• Living Foods Extra-Virgin Coconut Oil
• Soliga Forest Honey
• NuNaturals Cocoa Bean Extract

Not sure if you noticed -- but that's a lot for $50! One of the best features of iHerb is the price. But don't just trust my word, you'll need to check it out yourself. And now you can! Here's your chance to win your very own $50 shopping spree at iHerb!

• Just leave us a comment that says I heart iHerb! telling us what you favorite natural product is (be it for baking, beautifying, healing, etc.).
• I cannot stress enough that we need SOME way to contact you. Leaving an email address is most handy. If we can't find a way to get in touch with you, you can't win.
• Feel free to tell your friends, too (on your blog, on your Facebook, on your Twitter -- however you wish to spread the word).
• The giveaway deadline is next Tuesday, June 8th at 9PM EST.
• We'll choose a winner random using Tara's Random Number Generator. 
• (Also, please note: The giveaway is open to U.S. residents only, and the winner must register at iHerb.com to claim their prize (it's quick and easy, I promise! And they don't SPAM you.)

And remember: Even if you aren't the lucky winner, you can still receive $5 off your first order with iHerb by using the handy dandy code: NEV143.


So, go check out what has Stephen jumping for joy over at iHerb.com. By the time you get your swim trunks on and do a few dives of your own -- your order should be at your doorstep. Yup -- their delivery is wicked fast, too.

Like what you just read? You can subscribe to the feed of these posts or follow us on Twitter or Facebook to be the first to know what the (never home)makers are up to. And we’ll love you forever!!

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