Across the Ages Blog
Across the Ages is a personal blog dedicated to medieval reenactment research and crafting. The site serves as a hub for historical research, personalized patterns, teaching resources, and visual inspiration for those passionate about bringing history to life. The blog is designed to create a functional, visually engaging website that combines personal research, crafting archives, and resources into one easy-to-navigate website.
Tools & Technologies
Platform: Squarespace
Technologies: HTML, CSS customization, Squarespace features
Other Tools: Image editing and pattern drafting tools (e.g., Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator)
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Key Features
Clean Design: Parchment-inspired backgrounds combine with modern fonts to subtly evoke the historical theme without compromising readability or usability.
Responsive Design: Optimized for desktop, tablet, and mobile devices for a seamless user experience.
Blog Section: A space for sharing detailed personal research, tutorials, project progress, and reflections on medieval reenactment. Topics range from garment construction techniques to medieval food recipes.
Digital Research Resources: Curated links, PDFs, and references for historical clothing, textiles, and crafting techniques.
Pattern Archive: A collection of downloadable historically inspired patterns for medieval clothing, including notes on materials, construction methods, and fit.
My Role
As the designer and developer for this project, I:
Designed and developed the site structure to balance visual appeal and functionality.
Organized the content to highlight key areas: blog, resources, patterns, and gallery.
Integrated an intuitive navigation system to ensure readers can easily find research, patterns, and images.
Added visuals to make the archive and blog more engaging, including gallery photos, diagrams, and downloadable resources including digitizing all patterns using Adobe Illustrator.
Main Landing Page
Learning Resources Page
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge: Figuring out how to combine the blog, which is the main content, with additional pages of curated learning resources without overwhelming the user.
Solution: I designed the landing page to feature blog posts categorized by topic (e.g., patterns, historical research, tutorials). I then created separate pages to house collections of learning resources, ensuring the site is organized and user-friendly.
Challenge: Balancing a clean, modern design with the medieval theme of the blog.
Solution: Used parchment-inspired backgrounds and many medieval images combined with modern fonts to subtly evoke the historical theme without compromising readability or usability.
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