Former_Member
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Need a Critique??

I can critique and even edit shop banners! This is totally voluntary, totally free, and a simple service from one etsy seller to another. I'm a sophomore student of Graphic Web Design, so I'm learning tons of simple tricks and advice that I can give away! Both the banner of my shop and my avi I've made myself, and I've very proud of both of these.

For a critique, please post below in the comments, and someone in the shop or I will get right to it.
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Re: Need a Critique??

I would love for you to critique my shop and help with a banner. I tried to make one myself and gave up, and went to the ones that Etsy had. Thanks so much
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Sorry about the wait back for a response!

I do believe that you have quite a collection of stuff in your shop, and they all look like wonderful items! There's even some things I'd be tempted to buy!

The Etsy banner serves it's purpose, but only to that extent. What you really need is more color, and some imaging that can really tell people what your shop has for them.

There are several free and freeware programs that can do a few of the same things are expensive programs, such as Photoshop. Here's a short list (I started with what I would most recommended):

Gimp (www.gimp.org)
Paint.Net (www.getpaint.net)
Picassa (picasa.google.com/)
Photoscape (www.photoscape.org)

Also, make sure that the area that you are starting working with in any of these programs is exactly 760 pixels wide and 100 pixels high. This way if you get partway or all done with your project you don't have to shrink or distend or cut off any parts of what you made. I say this because I noticed that in the name of your shop the font is very pixelated around the edges. Another way to avoid this is to make sure that you save your work in the highest .Jpg or .Gif quality, even if it means a larger file.

Since would be most likely starting from scratch I suggest that you stay with the same blue color wave shape, so that people can still recognize the same shop. People tend to remember patterns and shapes more than they remember a name. Another good change would be to introduce an off-white or tan into your background. The white of the banner seems to blend into the white background of the site, and an off-white would help to convey that your shop has lots of antiques. Nothing stays white forever, and people tend to associate things that are not quite white with things that have some age to them.

Any questions with anything more specific?
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I finally got together with my wonderful techy guy who helped me make this banner. I am really happy with it. Let me know what you think please
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Re: Need a Critique??

Well, the first thing I noticed is that you have some awesome artwork!! ^-^ That beside, I love the fact that your artwork is in the background of your banner, and the the words that you use get right to the point. The color scheme is very in touch with the theme of your shop, and that is a great selling point also.

Now, all I can really say to improve your shop banner, and make it even more aesthetically pleasing, is to examine how your fonts are set. I love that your 'earth love' is in a font that looks actually handwritten, which goes with the handmade quality of your shop; however, when I look at your second line, 'really cool upcycled stuff... and awesome art too,' I see a problem. In order to blend it more with the color scheme of the art that is behind it, I would recommend a similar shade of blue as to the streak of light blue that is to the left of your phrase. I also notice that you're using a pseudo-serif type of font.

Quick lesson: a serif font is the kind that has little 'wings' like in Times New Roman and Georgia. Although this type of font is very common in printed materials, like newspapers, it is more difficult to read on a computer screen due to a computer screen being a lower resolution. If you take a quick look around your screen here you'll no serif fonts. They're harder to read on the web, so are rarely used. That second line in your banner, as a result, is hard on the eyes.

This brings me back to my point: your second line may be a little difficult to read, but character spacing may also be at fault. Character spacing is the blank space between each letter in a word. Most modern word processors are designed to avoid inconsistent spacing, which looks odd and unprofessional, but some design programs, like Photoshop, don't do this automatically.

Take a look at the word 'awesome' in your second line, and then compare it to the 'awesome' typed on this page. Specifically, look between your a and w. That's a large space there... and it's a bit disconcerting.

The only other problem I have with that line is that it's also too small. No particular reason, but the easier I can read it the more likely I am to read more.

These should be easy fixes for your tech guy!

Reference: http://dev.opera.com/articles/view/fonts-for-web-design-a-primer/
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I would love any kind of feedback on my banner/shop! I didn't (and still don't) know what I was doing or even how to put one together! No sales yet so I'm not quite sure if I'm doing something wrong or if my stuff really does suck (lol). I do have a lot of views for the most part, but no bites-- YET! :) Any critique would be great! Thanks in advance!
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Re: Need a Critique??

i just changed my tonight and would love a critique.....i always have a problem with the "fuzziness" of the font; any thoughts?

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Re: Need a Critique??

A very nice lady saw my post that I needed a banner, and made one for me. It is very nice and I really like it.
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Please critique mine..
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I need help creating a banner from my apple computer. It seems all
the information is not compatible with my apple. Any advice or help
with this would be wonderful. Any other advise on my shop is well
received. Thanks so much and much success in school! barb
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I would appreciate any critiques you have for my shop, as I am always looking for ways to improve. Thank you.
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Please critique

Thanks!
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I know my banner probably isn't up to snuff, but I found a really easy tutorial from the book "How to sell your crafts online" by Derrick Sutton. I did SO much research before I finally opened my shop. The banner thing worried me, but his tutorial using www.pixlr.com was SO easy!!

I wasn't sure if you were also doing critiquing of shops as I didn't understand your message well enough..But a critique on anything you choose would be wonderful! You are so kind, generous, and helpful to be offering this to other Etsians for free. Good work! You're really putting your time, effort, and expertise into it too!
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Hi there! what a great thing your doing! I would love to have my shop critiqued....Please!
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Whatever you can suggest, provide as guidance, critique, etc. would be greatly appreciated....I am not tech savvy but would like to join the 21st Century and its booming digital age.

Thanking you in advance for your attention to this request.
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

I would love and welcome feedback. Thanks for the support!
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

OK...I have a new banner and I am not happy with it. The artwork comes from a notepad I have that I scanned. I know the problem is with the required dimensions for the banner, it gets all stretchy when I upload it. How can I avoid the stretchiness?
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Please help me! :) I have a design I wanted...but its on my business card that was created for me by someone else..and I don't know how to make it into a banner...I would really appreciate the help! Thank you!
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Re: Need a Critique??

Would LOVE your help!!!!!
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Former_Member
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Re: Need a Critique??

Hi Seraphina. That is very kind of you to be willing to offer up some constructive criticism. Would you do the same for my shop?

Much appreciated.

All the best,
Christopher, The Papa
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