Talk to Me Tuesday, April Durham

Meet April, of April Showers Design Studio! We were going to save this interview until the month of April, for kicks, but we just couldn’t wait! April is a ridiculously talented web/blog designer who even offers workshops where she generously shares her knowledge! She’s brilliant, funny and super cute to boot! know you’re gonna like this… enjoy!
 
   

Pearls: Your blog designs are stunning, where/how did you learn to create such amazing layouts?

April: Awh, thanks!  I am pretty much just self-taught!  I create my layouts in Photoshop and Googled the rest of my way through everything I needed to know! LOL!

Pearls: There is so much to know about blog design and html... if someone were just starting to dabble in it, which of your workshops would you recommend?

April: Oh, I think "How to Design Your Own Blog" for either Blogger or Wordpress is perfect!  Sometimes I forget that bloggers really are newbies when it comes to design, so I tend to cover a lot of material and go fast.  Luckily the video is available after class, ha, ha!

Pearls: What is one thing (or two or three) every blogger should know?

April: Content is key.  No matter how great your design is, the blog posts should be  interesting, intriguing, or at least grammatically correct!  Also, de-clutter your blog like you would de-clutter your home. (Decrease sidebar widgets, blinking thing, crazy fonts, etc...)  Last tip - keep it fun.  If you end up getting sponsors or getting paid to blog, the most important thing is that you LIKE what you do.  So never make it a chore!

Pearls: Besides designing blogs, what else do you enjoy doing?
April: Oh, before I started working from home I had "hobbies." LOL!  The hubbs and I love to play tennis and workout at the gym.  On a day (or few hours) off you can find me shopping for cute clothes and accessories, going to the movies, going out to dinner...  But if I could take a vacation, we would use our SCUBA certs and go dive somewhere! (We really need to move somewhere with an ocean!)


Pearls:Do you have a ward calling? What is it? What is one suggestion you have for anyone else who may ever get that calling?
April: I actually don't right now!  I'm in a pretty new ward!  Even if I got one though, my schedule is so overwhelming right now I'd fail epically! LOL! I used to be a Young Women's advisor, and my suggestion for anyone else who gets that calling is to ENJOY it!  It's probably one of the most fun callings you could have - and when you go over to the nursery instead....you'll know why :P

Pearls:How do you find balance between work, being a wife and having a social life?
April: I'm not very good at balancing, but luckily those three things are all I really have to deal with.  I can't imagine throwing KIDS in there yet! (Though I would still LOVE IT!)  I just have to tell myself that no matter HOW much work I have, my husband and everything in the "real world" (i.e. not online) is more important than cyber space.

Pearls:Do you have any suggestions for a healthy marriage?
April: Forgiveness and compassion are overly used words, but honestly have saved our marriage amidst many horrible things that have happened in our lives.  Always meet your spouse with compassion and kindness, rather than hostility - and remember that there is nothing that can't be forgiven.  Marriage means falling in love over and over again with the same person! Oh, and read "The Love Dare."  It's GOOD.


Pearls: Where would your dream vacation be?
April: We have both been a lot of places - Paris, Hawaii, Belize, etc... but I think our favorite destinations are always tropical.  Like I said, we haven't had a chance to use our SCUBA gear yet!

Pearls: One thing we love about you is that not only are you ridiculously good-looking, but you know it. How can women develop a higher self esteem and not allow media to dictate how they should look?

April: *hairflip* LOL!  Well, hopefully my readers know that I'm not 100% serious when I say things like that!  I feel like women are afraid of being too "vain" or "narcissistic" especially in this age where everything online is "ME! ME! ME!" (i.e. Facebook) - but I think all women should embrace their OWN unique beauty and display it in a way that THEY see fit.  Because in the end, our blogs and our Facebook, and everything we are online IS the media.  So if we can portray beauty in different lights, then future generations will see that it's okay to be comfortable in your own skin and celebrate how different we all are.

Pearls: How do you maintain your relationship with Heavenly Father?
April: I think the only way to do that is through Prayer. Whether your faith is faltering, or is perfectly strong - prayer is the one thing that connect you to Him personally.  I've had many times where my faith has wavered, or I got "mad" at the struggles in my life...  The only way I made it through was to pray - especially when I didn't want to!

Join April over at April Showers Design Studio and learn a thing or two (or 20!)