For the past year I’ve wanted to redesign my website — to create a space that feels more like me: cleaner, more visual, and more minimalist. Over three years online I picked up a lot about web design, site architecture, coding, SEO, and other technical skills. There are things you wish you’d known at the start, and lessons you only learn by doing.
That redesign kept getting pushed aside. Honestly, I think part of me resisted because a full site redesign is a huge project. New recipes, videos, and social posts always took priority, and before I knew it, the redesign was postponed again. Procrastination won for a while.
Three months ago I finally committed and began the process. I had a clear vision for how I wanted the site to look and function, and I’m excited to share what I’ve been working on.
The most obvious change is larger, more striking homepage images. I removed most of the old accent colors — like greens and teals — so the food photography can take center stage. The dishes are vibrant on their own, so the visuals now truly pop.
I also wanted to showcase video content. I’m creating a lot more videos now, both recipe and lifestyle clips, and I needed a better way to feature them. Videos can still be embedded in individual posts or watched on my YouTube channel, but now I can spotlight seasonal or featured videos directly on the homepage.
One feature many of you asked for — nutrition information — is live as well. You’ll find nutrition details at the bottom of recipe posts. A quick note: I’m entering these values manually, and with more than 200 recipes on the site it will take some time to update older posts. New recipes, however, will include nutrition profiles right away.
There are several more improvements, including easier search and recipe filtering. To make these updates clearer, I created a short walkthrough video that highlights the changes and how to use them.
Watch this quick video on my website redesign:
This community has grown so much over three years, and I’m already exploring ways to build deeper connections. I added a #Downshiftology section in this redesign because I mentioned earlier this year that one of my goals was to grow the community. This redesign is one step in that direction.
Downshiftology has always been more than my recipes and posts — it’s a place where you can inspire one another. After a recent Instagram story where I shared some hormonal health challenges, I received an outpouring of messages and emails. I was overwhelmed by your support and spent days replying to people. It reminded me how compassionate and encouraging this community is, and how valuable it is for members to connect directly with each other.
I’m considering ways to make that community connection easier. A private Facebook group is something I’m likely to launch soon — a space where I can be more accessible and where the collective knowledge of the community is available to everyone. I’ll share details when I finalize the plan.
I hope you enjoy Downshiftology 2.0. The site will continue to evolve as I do, and I’m grateful for your support that made this possible. Thank you for cooking from these recipes, sharing them, commenting, rating, and giving feedback. Thank you for reading, and for being the kind, thoughtful people you are. Much love.