RS Designs

My apologies for the weird character that follows every period in older posts right now. Our host is migrating servers, and this seems to be one of the glitches from that process. They are also changing e-mail programs, and we do not have access to our normal e-mail at this time. Until further notice, please direct inquiries to rsdesigns@embarqmail.com. I am changing all contact links to that address until everything gets sorted out.
Again, I apologize for these problems, and we hope to have everything sorted out shortly.

Thank you, Alan, for fixing our problems.  We love the new e-mail program, too!

I have missed RS Designs and my work, but I am glad I did take a break. I can’t believe how quickly these past 4 weeks have flown by! Buddy Bear is growing quickly; his little cheeks are getting plump, and his legs are starting to get those delicious baby fat rolls. It’s amazing how much he looks like his sisters did at his age. The girls absolutely adore him and shower him with love, for which I am both thankful and nervous.

I have a couple of design projects I am working on right now, but we are still taking orders. Right now, both Linda and I have a two week waiting period, which is not very long. If you’d like to spruce up your blog or take advantage of our other services, just e-mail us at admin@designsbyrs.com.

Linda and I have decided to become affiliates for some of the service providers whose services we have used and which we feel offer great value for our readers. One such provider is bluehost.

Bluehost offers hosting services and ranks highly for customer service and satisfaction. (If you wish, you can even view their impressive array of awards and read customer comments.) Bluehost offers their clients welcome features such as unlimited disk storage, unlimited domains on one account, 2,500 e-mail accounts, free domain with a 12- or 24-month subscription (as long as they host your site), free e-commerce/Cart, free blog/forum/message board, and more. If you already own your own domain name or website, bluehost will help you transfer it.

If you are looking for a hosting provider, bluehost could well be the one for which you are searching. If you are ready to make them your host, click the link to sign up with bluehost now.

What host do you recommend? Why?

Not too long ago, we featured Giggle Bug Boutique in our first In the Spotlight post. A contest offering a pair of Bugaboo Shoe Company shoes was part of the post, and many of you eagerly entered for your chance to win. If you didn’t win, you’ll be happy to hear that A Bookworm’s Diary is currently holding a contest in which Bugaboo Shoes has generously offered the winner a choice of Josie, Sherry or Otto pair of shoes.

To enter the contest, all you have to do is leave a comment at the giveaway post no later than 5:00 a.m. CST on July 14, 2008. You can earn extra entries by blogging about the contest, subscribing to the blog via RSS/e-mail subscription, or having another entrant mention that you referred them. (If you enter the contest, can mention that Revka referred you? I’d love to win the shoes. *smile*)

I wish you all the best.

Hi, guys! I’m just popping in real quick to let you know that after a lengthy labor, my son was born last Friday, June 20. You can read his birth story and see some additional photos at my personal blog, The Porch Light.

I had expected to take the month of July off, but I guess I’m going to be absent a bit earlier. I may post a couple of times, but if I don’t, I’ll be back no later than August. I will still be checking my e-mail and answering messages directed specifically to me, but Linda is taking care of the majority of business operations. I know she will do a great job and that you will be happy with her customer care. She’s a great girl.

Thank you for your continued interest in RS Designs. I’ll be back before you know it!

Linda has added 8 pre-made Mommy Cards to our collection, and I furnished the remaining 4. You can view our whole selection at our Pre-Made Mommy Cards page. If you order cards from us, you might want to take advantage of VistaPrint’s current special to get them printed: 75% Off Premium Custom Business Cards at VistaPrint.com.

If you have been wanting a custom blog design, this is the offer for you. Summer has come to the northern hemisphere, and with the advent of summer comes the dispersal of children - to summer camps, to visit relatives, and to numerous other destinations. In an effort to help parents keep in contact with their absent children, we are offering a special Summer Custom Design Package. (Please note: this offer is available to everyone, not just parents.) This package includes the following:

• set up blog on Blogger (if needed)
• custom header
• custom background
• custom signature

No substitutions are allowed; any other elements desired must be purchased from our A La Carte menu. This special offer is available only from June 16 - July 15, 2008. To order this package, simply e-mail us at admin@designsbyrs.com and ask for the Summer Custom Blog Design Package.

Last week Revka told you about Colorzilla which is a wonderful thing for web designers especially. Well unless you use FireFox as a web browser this little tool won’t do much for you.

As a FireFox enthusiast I thought I’d tell you why I like it so much (and hopefully convince you of getting it)

According to Mozilla, the developers, FireFox help you stay safe on the net, helping you avoid scams. The other feature which makes FF very popular is the option of personalizing your browser with different themes and add-ons, FF is so much more than just a browser! While I’ve left the themes behind I have added a whole lot of add-ons that I use daily.

When I started using the Internet 10+ years ago I was introduced to Netscape. Everyone seemed to be using Netscape or at least it seemed like that. Then Internet Explorer became the standard browser and nowadays comes with every PC. Starting to use FF was a scary thing for me, I had only heard about it and was a bit reluctant to download it. “What if it was difficult to use? And what about that tabbed browsing - what is that anyway? And why would I need add-ons?” Those were questions I asked myself.

Because I am a very curious person in regards to new things I decided to give it a try. Sure it took me few days to get used to it but I have never looked back and now I prefer FF over IE.

The tabbed browsing: The latest version of IE does have this feature now as well however FF gives you options to color your different tabs, separating them, easy closing using only the keyboard and an easier overlook of your tabs.

Pop-up Ad blocker: Have to love this! No pop-ups - ever!

Toolbars: FF lets you add toolbars to your browser that can be easily hidden if you don’t want to see them. Example of toolsbars could be StumbleUpon, PayPerpost.

Add-ons: There are too many add-ons available to mentioned here, some are SEO tools, web designer tools, screen grab tools, finder tools, clocks, and much more. You can read more on what add-ons I like here. When adding add-ons they go either up on your current toolbars or create a new., which you can hide and customize the way you want. Many add-ons are added to the bottom of the browser.

Twitter: For those who like twitter there are various options available, TwitterFox or Tweetbar for example.

Additional goodies: I really like how you can use keyboard shortcuts for almost anything. Just a simple way to copy and paste saves time.

I highly suggest you give FF a try unless you already have. You will not regret it! To download FF click here.

I have been having fun creating these pre-made Mommy cards. I created three new ones in the past 24 hours. Linda and I plan to create 30 designs total. We will see how those sell before creating any more pre-made designs. To see all available designs, visit our custom and pre-made cards page.

The Sunny Johnson card is designed to coordinate with our Strawberry Ice Cream Exclusive Design.

The light blue border on the Stacy Jones card will not appear on the actual card. It is there only to define the card’s edge in the image; however, if you would like to keep the border, please state that when you order this card, and we will make sure the border coordinates with the other blues in the card and is included in the print area.

Click image to view full size.

I am excited to announce the release of our first Exclusive Design. Strawberry Ice Cream was inspired by that favorite summertime treat and was designed using shades of pink and brown. This Blogger design is loaded with special features:

• 2 columns
• Widget ready
• Custom header
• Customized background
• Customized content area background
• Customized sidebar boxes
• Customized blockquotes
• Custom Navbar
• Custom signature
• Custom 125×125 button
• Recent Comments widget (will be added directly to your blog)

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• Subscribe to Blog widget (will be added directly to your blog)
• Customized comments link (will be customized at your blog using your choice of wording)

Pricing and available Add-ons are as follows:

Template Pricing:

• Blogger template: $100
• Adapted for a platform other than Blogger: $120

Add-ons (the cost of each add-on selected is added to the base template price):

• Replace the header image with your logo or another image (or add your logo/other image): $15
• Color change: $30 (choose this option if you like the design but would prefer it to have different colors)
• Coordinating banner (468√ó60 - shown in screen shot): $15
• Add a column: $20
• Coordinating Mommy/Blog card - $10

Since this is an Exclusive Design, Strawberry Ice Cream will only be sold one time. To purchase this design, e-mail Revka. Please specify which pricing applies and if you would like to order any add-ons.