BusyDoggie
A long-running dog blog rebuilt as an explorable publication with a new editorial identity.
From chronological blog to structured publication
BusyDoggie is my long-running dog blog, which I completely redesigned as a publication about the science and everyday life of active dogs. The project included a new editorial identity, palette, typography, visual direction and family of custom spaniel icons.
I reorganised the archive into seven subject areas: structure and movement, breeding, health and nutrition, puppies, behaviour and training, life with dogs, and enrichment and activities. This changed the site from a chronological stream of posts into something readers could explore according to what they wanted to understand.
The WordPress part
AI helped me develop and implement the new design, but the site remains in WordPress. Existing theme behaviour, block styling and competing CSS repeatedly overrode the intended result, requiring several substantial rewrites.
The redesign took roughly ten times as long as one of the static GitHub Pages sites. AI can accelerate implementation; it cannot persuade WordPress to relinquish a bad decision without a prolonged argument.
Skills in this project
| Skill | What it involved |
|---|---|
| Editorial identity | Created a new publication identity, including palette, typography and tone. |
| Information architecture | Reorganised a long-running archive into seven durable subject areas. |
| Content design | Changed the browsing model from reverse chronology to topic-led exploration. |
| Art direction | Developed the visual system and a family of custom spaniel icons. |
| AI-assisted implementation | Used AI to develop and refine the design and CSS. |
| WordPress troubleshooting | Repeatedly corrected inherited theme, block and CSS behaviour. |