I firmly believe if you are going to blog you should have a layout that really represents you.  That means either putting the time into ’shopping’ for that perfect, ready-made template, or being willing, as I am, to tamper with the template until it is exactly the way you want it.

Tampering, of course, leads to breaking.  There is nothing like putting a few hours into the code and then – ta-daa! – a blank page from a broken script, open tag or bad reference.

But if you persevere, you will end up with a blog that suits your idea of perfection when you look at it.  (Filling it with posts worthy of being read is another matter entirely!)

To tamper your template successfully, no matter what platform you are using, start with a template most like what you want your end result to be.  Seems obvious to me, but I suppose it’s worth mentioning.

Then, don’t be afraid to break it.  Keep a backup copy to replace the mess if you screw things up too badly.  Be bold with some changes so you can determine what affects which.

As you get comfortable with tampering, feel free to change colors, add elements from other templates, and generally have fun making your blog totally your own.

More to come on Template Tampering. :)