Welcome to the new and improved Dalmatian DIY blog website. We’ve been very busy for the past few months getting ready behind the scenes for a big move. I’m excited to invite you all in to explore our new site and join us for more doggone great recipes, creative projects, and other pet-loving fun. Here’s the scoop on the new Dalmatian DIY website and why we’ve had a major makeover.
Our Website Changes
Fresh and Functional
What’s new? Well, most of the work is behind the scenes and aesthetic upgrades. Our content is still the same and we’re still the crazy blog dog team you’ve come to know over the past five years. The new Dalmatian DIY website has a different operating and hosting system running under the hood, which will (hopefully) make your experience visiting, reading, and navigating through our website better.
Our old site was mobile responsive, but it was nowhere near as nice to use on a phone as it was on a computer or tablet, and around half of our visitors are on mobile. Hello out there, mobile furfriends! Our new Dalmatian DIY website is designed to be more responsive and user-friendly no matter where or how you’re visiting our blog. It’s also designed with an easier to navigate structure of categories and tags to help visitors better find their way around the blog. The format is also easier to read, with larger font and bigger photos. Pawesome.
Under the Hood
When Dalmatian DIY first started, it was created and hosted on Google’s free Blogger platform. Thanks to a whole lot of fabulous readers, the time came when we transitioned to a custom domain, but stayed with the underpinning hosting platform of Google’s blogger. In hindsight, I should have taken the big plunge all at once. As time went on, the blog continued to grow and I wanted more flexibility over formatting and sharing. It was also time for a complete structural refresh, especially to make things better for our mobile readers. With some trepidation, I took the big step of changing the entire construct of our website, from branding to platform (currently ongoing). You can read more about our construct on our resources and tools page.
Shaking Out Our Spots
Existing posts have all been transferred, but some are not yet live here on the new Dalmatian DIY website. We’re working through them slowly to ensure that the formatting, images, and links are all a-ok for the best possible reader experience. They’ll go live one-by-one as once ready. In particular, many of our older recipes need to be updated and refreshed. Some posts also need fresh photos or diagrams to be more user friendly. Apologies for the disruption in availability. Favourite posts (both ours and reader favourites) are being prioritised.
NOTE: Redirects from the old site directly to corresponding pages/posts are not yet completely up and running, sorry! We’re working to get everything in place for you as quickly as possible. Woofs!
We wouldn’t want any lost dogs wandering around looking for our posts. Redirects will be put into place so that existing bookmarks and pins will (hopefully) go straight to your favourites. Click on an old link and presto! You’ll magically arrive here. Yay! Unfortunately, because we’ve totally overhauled the way our site is formatted, some redirects may not be active. Additionally, some outdated or superseded content won’t be transferred. Those redirects will take you to our home page or, where better suited, a related page, post, or category. If you hit a 404, please wander onto the main site and use the menus or tags. Apologies for the inevitable speed bumps along the way.
Start Exploring
Categories, tags, feature post galleries, recent posts, popular posts, and navigation menus are ready and waiting to help you explore the blog. Within individual blog posts, there are category navigation links at the post header and tag navigation links at the post footer. There is also a related posts feature on the footer that will suggest other content that you might enjoy based on the article you’re currently reading. If you’re looking for something in particular, you can search the blog from our header or sidebar (footer on mobile devices).
There are also pages on the new Dalmatian DIY website to help visitors find key information and detailed site policies. Site information is available via About | Work with Us | Resources and Tools. Detailed site Dalmatian DIY terms and policies are available via Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Disclosure Policy | Copyright Policy.
Social Media
Although the Dalmatian DIY website has moved around, our social media links remain the same. If you’re not already following the fun, I’d love for you to join the blog dogs of Dalmatian DIY. It’s a great way to stay on top of our latest news, posts, updates, special events, photos, and to get a behind the scenes look at life with Dalmatian DIY. You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Hope to see you here, there, and everywhere! You’re what this whole blogging adventure is all about. Sharing with you is the reason that Dalmatian DIY exists. Thanks for being part of our crazy blog dog world and for all the love you share with our furfamily.
