ok, ladies, here is my new website!

[ScarletBegonias]

i'm really nervous about this, but here goes.........i'm offering up my website for suggestions! i've never designed one before, and the only other people who have seen this are dh and my mom. they are both a little too optimistic to take very seriously, iykwim. i've been working on it for a couple weeks, and i still have things to do, but, to be honest, it will probably be a work in progress for a long time to come.

if you have time, please check it out and critique! thank you to all you who put in on my other thread about websites, and also to salmonbaydoula, for your fantastic sliding-up fee idea!

www.moonlightbirth.com

:

eta: for some reason, the birth services page is not up, i'm trying to fix that
now.

here's the link to that page, i just can't seem to get it to work......

http://nocache.homestead.com/hstrial...hServices.html

[wbg]

beautiful mama...good luck to you....

[MamaRabbit]

I LOVE the colors you chose. So different from the "babyish" doula and birth themes I see everywhere.

[JessicaE]

I agree, I love the "look" of your site!

I do think that you should say on your home page that you are a doula and apprentice midwife (or student midwife). It is not clear when you immediately find the site just what it is that you do.

Good luck with launching your lovely site.

[dewi]

Well Done!
It's really lovely and informative enough. I love short and sweet.
I like everything aobut it.

I'm wondering if there a big call for "unassisted birth" offerings as a doula in your area (from a business perspective) that you decided to put this on a the website? Very interesting indeed to include this.

It is a business website, broaden the offering under the UC area to a larger clientele base. Consider calling the category "Homebirth / Unassisted birth" as a ppdoula you are doing similar household tasks for the family after a homebirth with a midwife and there are many more clients you will probably have that are homebirthers then UC.
Just a thought!

Good luck it looks great!

PS. The whole website was working well and came in when I clicked www.moonlightbirth.com

[MamaRabbit]

I just went back to look again. I showed my DH and said, see THIS is what I my site to look like. Very classy indeed

[mamato3cherubs]

I love it!! One of the best iv ever seen, not even kidding. As you continue you will work out little things as far as information and such, as you change in your own business and goals.
It is absolutely beautiful

[olive&pimiento]

Wow, what a beautiful site! I love the colors. The only thing I would point out is that there is a typo under birth services, line 10- foe is written when I think you mean for. Good Luck!

[ScarletBegonias]

Originally Posted by wbg

beautiful mama...good luck to you....

thank you!

Originally Posted by MamaRabbit

I LOVE the colors you chose. So different from the "babyish" doula and birth themes I see everywhere.

thanks! it took me literally days to find those colors/patterns, well worth it though, because i found exactly what i was searching for.

Originally Posted by JessicaE

I agree, I love the "look" of your site!

I do think that you should say on your home page that you are a doula and apprentice midwife (or student midwife). It is not clear when you immediately find the site just what it is that you do.

Good luck with launching your lovely site.

thank you for the tip, i've been trying to figure out how to incorporate that information on the home page, instead of the "about me" page.

Originally Posted by dewi

Well Done!
It's really lovely and informative enough. I love short and sweet.
I like everything aobut it.

I'm wondering if there a big call for "unassisted birth" offerings as a doula in your area (from a business perspective) that you decided to put this on a the website? Very interesting indeed to include this.

It is a business website, broaden the offering under the UC area to a larger clientele base. Consider calling the category "Homebirth / Unassisted birth" as a ppdoula you are doing similar household tasks for the family after a homebirth with a midwife and there are many more clients you will probably have that are homebirthers then UC.
Just a thought!

Good luck it looks great!

PS. The whole website was working well and came in when I clicked www.moonlightbirth.com

i live in a pretty crunchy area, and most of the local hb mw's have retired or are on hiatus. there are only a couple mw's to choose from and they are either overbooked/very green/"med"wives with a not-so-shiny local reputation. i've been networking with local moms and my dh's family is fairly involved with the community, so my own UC has been the topic of many positive conversations, and many in my community are now seeing UC as an option.

thank you for the suggestion too, i think i'll add that in there!

Originally Posted by MamaRabbit

I just went back to look again. I showed my DH and said, see THIS is what I my site to look like. Very classy indeed

Originally Posted by mamato3cherubs

I love it!! One of the best iv ever seen, not even kidding. As you continue you will work out little things as far as information and such, as you change in your own business and goals.
It is absolutely beautiful

thank you!:

Originally Posted by olive&pimiento

Wow, what a beautiful site! I love the colors. The only thing I would point out is that there is a typo under birth services, line 10- foe is written when I think you mean for. Good Luck!

thanks! i am still learning how to type! i've taken a couple typing classes, but am soooo not coordinated in that way! i can type 50 wpm with one hand though.

[Sijae]

It looks great!

[BrooklynDoula]

Looks great!

One thing I would change is the about me section. I would sort of invert it with your professional credentials first, then how you came to the work, then other details about you "lives with dh and kids in xyz". It is just a preference but I think starting your about me with your marriage status and hiding the education and training at the end is odd.

I might also change the order of the header links in order of significance with about me, birth services, UC, then events, belly art, etc. Again, just my prefernce.

Last thing - I might include the state you are in, not just the counties. This is more for non-clients but it is a pet peeve about service websites for me. I like to know where people are!

Again, really good site. I like the colors and the border.

[ScarletBegonias]

Originally Posted by BrooklynDoula

Looks great!

One thing I would change is the about me section. I would sort of invert it with your professional credentials first, then how you came to the work, then other details about you "lives with dh and kids in xyz". It is just a preference but I think starting your about me with your marriage status and hiding the education and training at the end is odd.

I might also change the order of the header links in order of significance with about me, birth services, UC, then events, belly art, etc. Again, just my prefernce.

Last thing - I might include the state you are in, not just the counties. This is more for non-clients but it is a pet peeve about service websites for me. I like to know where people are!

Again, really good site. I like the colors and the border.

thank you for those very helpful suggestions!......off to change that.......

[dogmom327]

Looks great

[CawMama]

I love it!

[BrooklynDoula]

Originally Posted by ScarletBegonias

thank you for those very helpful suggestions!......off to change that.......

I really like how you redid it. Looks perfect and the About me section is so much stronger now!

[riomidwife]

It's beautiful! And you are a beautiful woman! Congratulations on your website!

[ScarletBegonias]

Originally Posted by dogmom327

Looks great

thanks mama!

Originally Posted by Carrin

I love it!

thank you!

Originally Posted by BrooklynDoula

I really like how you redid it. Looks perfect and the About me section is so much stronger now!

i agree! thank you SO much for your suggestion, that was the exact kind of help i was looking for. i really appreciate you taking the time to point all those areas of improvement out!

Originally Posted by riomidwife

It's beautiful! And you are a beautiful woman! Congratulations on your website!

you're sweet! thank you very much!

[NewMom0208]

Dear Scarlet

Your site is very inviting and warm, good job with the look at feel:
My comments
The links on the top go outside the borders, you might need to align those
The home page: Listing homebirth benefits belongs on your page but I wouldn't make it the first thing my customers see.

I had a regular doctor and was planning to deliver at a hospital. In browsing for options (mainly deciding which hospital I wanted) I ran into my midwive site and the rest is history, my son was home delivered on my bathtup.

I was not looking for benefits of homebirth, what call my attention were headings like:

Would you like to birth on a hotel like room?
Would you like to be allowed to walk, eat and drink while your birth?
Would you be like to be free from monitoring devises
etc
etc
Come for a tour to see what birthing in comfort is really like

I went to the tour and I was hooked

Hope this helps

[ScarletBegonias]

thank you for those suggestions!...........off to change those things too!

[eepster]

As everyone says, it's a gorgeous site.

I have only one concern, and I don't know if I'm just being paranoid, or it really is something you should worry about. Could offering services for unassisted birth so openly get you in legal trouble?