Monthly Archives: March 2007

gorilla coffee

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gorilla coffee, originally uploaded by donovanhouse.

Fewer and fewer of my friends are working for Starbucks these days. Which means less and less free coffee for we Donovans. As long as we’re paying for it, we thought we’d play the field a bit – try some new beans.

Gorilla Coffee was our first pass – and a strong one at that. They’re out of Brooklyn, so you have to order on line, but their website is
awesome and makes purchasing a breeze. They personally confirmed my order within minutes of purchasing through paypal. MY beans arrived two days later.

Unlike Starbucks, the brewing instruction on the side of the package are dead on. The beans smell amazing, and the packaging ain’t tooo shabby either. DonovanHouse strongly recommends this product.

HELP!!!

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I seriously need it! Here’s my problem. Our little house guest is almost a whopping 16lbls! Honestly, he’s probably hit that. All I know is this guy is big and heavy!

These are my methods of carrying him. We have a double stroller that is a beast, it’s great for walks and the mall but not great for getting Jaimes into school, quick little trips into a place. Don’t get me wrong, I love it! His carrier is KILLING my back! I’ve tried making a wrap myself to save some cash but it is SO awkward putting on in public and sometimes he likes it others he doesn’t. Same w/ the Bjorn we’re borrowing. Hmmm.

I’ve never been a fan of the ring sling but it looks easy to get little ones in and out of and it’s adjustable. I’ve tried finding the rings but haven’t had luck. I like pouch wraps like Hotslings but will not be happy if this kid is feeling like he is falling off me or riding my knee. Honestly, does this guy look happy?
smtoddler.jpg

Ok, it’s not world shattering – if you don’t help I will live, but I need help. I am looking for the perfect baby carrier. Oh, and even more importantly the perfect price. :) Some of these things can be over 100 bucks! ugh.

Starbucks.com is ugly (continued).

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Criticism without explanation is just white noise. Thanks, Danielle, for asking for more on why I think the new starbucks website blows.

I should preface my criticism by saying that I really just expect a lot more from Starbucks. “Hideous” is more my reaction than a fair judgment.

I clicked around the entire site and could probably go on for paragraphs, but (for your sake) I’ll stick to the home page.

From the dop down:

  1. The top navigation doesn’t begin to contrast enough with the background, plus it all runs together.
  2. The main navigation isn’t centered, it’s not really left-aligned, and is part of no grid that I can find. It’s just floating up there.
  3. The product images in the flash have this bland 2-dimensional look because of the drop-shadows.
  4. The serif font (is that American Typewriter?) doesn’t really compliment the calm, peaceful look. Serif fonts – especially typewriter fonts – often read as work, action, productivity, and (sometimes) edgy.
  5. Lauren pointed out that the little leaf bullet is a packaged shape in PhotoShop.
  6. The three little squares in the bottom right of the flash don’t tell you where they link to. They also look more like “switch-style” icons than links. Confusing.
  7. Beneath the three link columns there is this big blank space. Why? If it’s going to be used for something later, why would you launch the site with it empty?

General layout mistakes

  • To start – the whole thing looks very late 90′s. Big rectangle template, 1px borders everywhere, next to no leading (line height) in the paragraphs, I could go on.
  • The logo is just hanging out there. It’s also tiny.
  • Not a fan of the giant, green, wood grain background. It’s a bold move in a bad direction. But that’s just my opinion.

I’ve been told that 99% of websites suck and that’s just the way it is. But from Starbucks? The old site wasn’t great, but it was better than this.