Web site debate

I have a blog site that I have used to put information on me and my schedule of updated shows.  I really need to choose a web site but I have at looked at so many, talked to people and still can't make a decision.  I do have a Mac now, so I could at least do a simple web site with the Mac and have a Mobile Me account.  Anyone have some suggestions?  My blog is:
debsthreads.blogspot.com.  I am a textile artist.  Thanks.  DebsThreads

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  • Mmm, I'm kind of late for this post but try www.fineartamerica.com  If you don't have a budget for a designer, and logos, this site is an online gallery that also gives you your own site for 39.00 a year. Browse around, it has been very helpful for me, specially for this season that all my budget went into art show fees, materials, new canopy, new panels etc because I am re starting in this art fair business. Hope it works for you! You can also sell your art there! I have even shipped paintings to Europe that I have sold from my site. And if you have your original paintings that will make prints and note cards for you and sell them, you don't have to invest in that, they do everything for you.

    Check it out:

    www.carla-bank.artistwebsites.com

  • Wordpress is a very powerful blogging tool that has been expanded over the years to support website design. There are lots of tools available for wordpress and it is also very search engine friendly. Our main ecommerce site is full custom but our GalleryPouch website for our art transport bubble bags is on wordpress.

    Cheers,
    Mark
    • I am with godaddy and am very satisfied, they are not expensive. I have had a webpage for over 10 years and can keep track of how many hits i get a day and month. www.boltpeople.com I had a friend do one when the internet first came out, then redid the the site with a professional. Now someone maintains the site for me by changing some wording and pictures. I do not have time to mess around with my webpage, and i am not a webdesigner but a welder and designer. i tried a blog but never kept up with it, facebook i put pictures online but most of the people on facebook are friends and they rarely buy.
  • Weebly.com is a great FREE tool to build a website. They have tons of templates and it's pretty much a drag and drop process. What you see is what you get. You can add a slide show, photo gallery, even buy now buttons. I highly recommend it. check out www.visionsbyrc.com for a better idea.
    • The problem to me about weebly is that you can't own your own domain name right? Someone recently told me their website and it was something like www.janejonesweebly.com....pretty unwieldy
  • Whew! Thanks everyone for the comments. In between my studio time, which is rather hectic at the moment, I think I am leaning towards Wordpress. I like the design and user friendly for someone who doesn't have time to spend a lot of time on their web page. After all, we are artists not web-designers, right?

    Very useful information from everyone who commented.
    Debbie/DebsThreads
    • Debbie, if you have mobile me on your mac, you can set up a free web site with easy to use templates. That's how I did mine. You aren't supposed to do a commerce site, but it sounds like you just want a brochure site for dispensing info, right? My site is ww.simplesongstudio.com It's not the most sophisticated and it needs updating (had some health stuff) but it was so easy. And free.
  • Have a blog/website with plugins for a gallery of photos. The photos that go up will show your work, and the text is what the search engines look for. I recommend WordPress for the blog platform, but host it at a web host company. You'll be able to do more with plugins. Images will show up as smaller pics first, then larger when someone clicks on them. I would (and do) also have a Facebook page - easy to setup and one points to the other.
    • I do have a facebook page and an etsy site. I bought my domain name from Go Daddy (today) and since I want an online store I still have to look at web hosting companies. I just am trying to figure out if there are big differences bewtween tham and what I should be looking for. I'm looking at 3D Cart, Fat Cow, GoDaddy, and Shopify. I don't know if there are others that I should look at. I am loking for ez set up - not very technically apt when it comes to those kind of things.
      • I use Fat Cow for hosting. I think it's around $100/yr. My husband does everything for my website, so I'm in the dark on the details. I don't have a shopping cart set up yet. I'm still debating on that one since I only make one of a kinds. My website is currently very out of date. The hardest part for me is finding the time to edit all the pictures & write the descriptions. I love making art but I hate writing descriptions so I procrastinate. It does require a bit of effort on my husband's part to upload everything.
        www.cloudhaledesign.com
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