Portfolio
These are a few examples of my web development work:
Watercolor
Artist Linda Striedieck
Linda Striedieck is a celebrated
artist living in the beautiful
state of Vermont. Her abstract
watercolor paintings are organic
in the sense that they emerge
and evolve out of themselves.
They are, in part, a reflection
of the organic forms in nature.
Linda was new to the Internet
but felt that an online exhibit
would be a great tool to help
increase her exposure to galleries
and commissioners outside of her
area.
We worked closely with Linda in
developing a site that is deserving
of her exceptional command of
color and form. Along with the
look and feel, the site features
a full image gallery and special
coding that randomly switches
the image on the home page with
an image from the gallery section
to keep the site fresh on every
visit. "Steven Hoffman has designed a clean, interesting, informative website for me that shows the world my paintings to full advantage. His help in setting up the site has been most creative and comprehensive." Linda Striedieck
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Ariel Jones
Fine Art Photography Studio
For the past ten years, Ariel
had worked in a New York city
studio as a digital designer and
portraiture photographer. In 2000,
she relocated to Western Massachusetts
and needed a venue to exhibit
her works and services as well
as offer photographic prints for
sale.
We developed a site that does
all of that and more. Categorized
thumbnail galleries display the
talent behind the lens. A "Print
Shop" section acts as a gallery
and a retail outlet with transactions
processed through a secure shopping
cart. Clean design, so as not
to compete with the art of Ariel's
photography, and simple navigation
help make each visit an inspiring
one.
"Steve has been great to work
with. He listens to what I want
and is sensitive to the image
I need to project on my web site.
Combining those needs with his
own talent has produced a web site
I am very excited about. He has
also been great with follow-up
changes, tweaking and adding pages
as my studio evolves. I recommend
him constantly to friends ready
to set up professional web sites."
Ariel Jones
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Garden Hands - Pacifico Palumbo
Originally hand carved by
stone sculptor Tim De Christopher
and reproduced in a stone composite,
Garden Hands have been featured
in major gardening/landscape magazines
including English Gardens.
We created a site that captures
the look, feel, and essence of
the product. Image-swapping techniques
help to demonstrate the multitude
of uses for this unique line of
sculpture. A large catalog section
with a secure shopping cart easily
facilitate the transactions.
Grey Gardens - Pacifico Palumbo
Internationally recognized neon
artist Pacifico Palumbo needed
a venue to exhibit his works as
well as make them available to
the public for purchase.
The result is an e-commerce/gallery
site that does just that. We've
coupled ease of navigation, complementing
design, and a secure shopping
cart system into a site that's
a work of art in it's own right.
The Basil Festival
Consortium - Pacifico Palumbo
Celebrating the delights of the
herb basil, farmers, artists,
chefs, restaurants, and friends
come together in Western Massachusetts
for a very special annual event
- a Basil Festival.
We developed a tasteful site for
the festival highlighting the
schedule of events and programs
taking place throughout the weekend
along with links and directions
to participating vendors and sponsors.
Green Emporium Restaurant and Gallery - Pacifico Palumbo
The Green Emporium is a restaurant of fine dining, an art gallery,
an events center, an outlet for locally produced goods, and a
community gathering place.
The challenge was to create a site that was large enough to encompass
all aspects of "That Special Place" while balancing a country-metro
look and feel.
We did it. Ease of navigation, fast-loading, search engine-friendly
design, and a secure shopping cart system help make this business
a success story.
The Boys of Taormina - Pacifico Palumbo
Internationally recognized neon
artist Pacifico Palumbo needed
a venue to exhibit his works as
well as make them available to
the public for purchase.
The result is an e-commerce/gallery
site that does just that. We've
coupled ease of navigation, complementing
design, and a secure shopping
cart system into a site that's
a work of art in it's own right.
Fine Art - Pacifico Palumbo
Internationally recognized neon
artist Pacifico Palumbo needed
a venue to exhibit his works as
well as make them available to
the public for purchase.
The result is an e-commerce/gallery
site that does just that. We've
coupled ease of navigation, complementing
design, and a secure shopping
cart system into a site that's
a work of art in it's own right.
Neon Artist - Pacifico Palumbo
Internationally recognized neon
artist Pacifico Palumbo needed
a venue to exhibit his works as
well as make them available to
the public for purchase.
The result is an e-commerce/gallery
site that does just that. We've
coupled ease of navigation, complementing
design, and a secure shopping
cart system into a site that's
a work of art in it's own right.
"It
is truly a pleasure to work with
a professional when it comes to
creating web sites. Steve at Idealonweb
knows what he is doing, and he
takes the time to explain and
help you. His business should
not be called Ideal on web
but rather: I know how to deal
on the web." Pacifico Palumbo
|
Artist Linda
Hoffman
Linda Hoffman, an internationally
trained and renowned visual artist
and poet, wanted to expand her
online presence. Her old site
did not receive much traffic;
it loaded slowly and did not rank
well in search engines.
We worked closely with Linda and
developed a new site that is search
engine friendly and visually appealing
yet unobtrusive to her works.
Our design incorporates an informative
and fast-loading, text-based
navigation system that aids both
visitor and search engines throughout
every corner of this online gallery.
Carefully selected color schemes,
layout, and a variety of gallery
presentation techniques compliment
our client's work. For example,
we used Flash animation and careful
timing in delivering the lines
of poetry, random image display
on page loads, thumbnail image
galleries and more.
After successfully creating Linda's portfolio site, I worked with Linda on two other web sites: Old Frog Pond Farm and Wild Apples.
Old Frog Pond Farm - Linda Hoffman
Old Frog Pond Farm is a 25-acre certified organic farm with a 'pick your own' raspberry patch, apple orchard, and the sculpture studio of Linda Hoffman. In the fall, fruit pickers can see Hoffman's work along with the art of other sculptors on the outdoor Sculpture Walk. In addition, the farm houses the office of Wild Apples, a journal of nature, art, and inquiry.
Wild Apples - Linda Hoffman
Wild Apples: a journal of nature, art, and inquiry is a new twice-yearly arts and literary publication. Taking its name and inspiration from Henry David Thoreau's essay, "Wild Apples," the journal brings together the work of artists and writers who are connected by the common threads of care for the environment, engagement in social concerns, and commitment to the arts and the way they shape our world.
"Working
with Steve Hoffman on my website
was wonderful! He was quick both
to make suggestions and to implement
my suggestions. He is sensitive
artistically and a computer whiz
at making the site run effectively.
I couldn't recommend him enough.
It was a pleasure!" Linda Hoffman
www.lindahoffman.com
|
Fabric
Artist Deborah Kruger
"Kruger is an award-winning
fiber artist and nationally recognized
speaker. Her presentation explores
the overlap between the work of
fiber artists and the work of
feminist activists."
Amherst Bulletin 10-24-03
Working with Deborah has been
a real treat. Her beautiful pieces
and sensibility for color resonate
with my design styling. I used
hand-coded HTML, CSS, and PHP
navigation. Additional image work
was done with Photoshop, removing
the backgrounds from all the images
of her work and then laying in
a drop shadow to pop the pieces
off the page.
"As a non-technological person, I dreaded the task of making a website. Steve Hoffman was a pleasure to work with and made the undertaking easy. He de-mystified the process and gave me a step-by-step list of tasks as well as explaining exactly what he could do for me. As a result of our collaboration, I feel my website is an extension of my artwork. I look forward to having a long working relationship with Steve and Idealonweb.com as my art career grows." Deborah Kruger |
Sue Katz -
SCNK Studio
Sue Katz is a successful graphic
designer and fine artist with
works all over the nation.
We were contacted by Sue to help
her re-design her existing web
site. We decided to build new
from scratch. We worked closely
on the design, and the result
is an extensive portfolio site
featuring her most recent works.
This hand-coded site is fast loading,
search engine friendly, and easily
updatable (to keep up with her).
"Steve
was the best in a very talented
class of graphic design students
at Greenfield Community College.
I recommend him to everyone and
I am hiring him to redesign my
own web site! Not only are his
designs clean and attractive, but
his ideas are very clever and
creative!" Susan Katz
|
Oh My Soul
- The Cathedral Project
On this project, we were hired
to take an existing site primarily
made up of images and convert
it to a faster-uploading, easily-updatable,
search engine-friendly, text-based
version without changing its appearance.
This was a challenge as the text
contained within the original
images often overlapped a complex
background.
We "Photoshopped" the text out
of the original images, often
having to recreate the background
that was erased in the process,
re-wrote the code eliminating
the original frame-based design,
placed the modified graphics (text
removed) in the background, then
retyped editable text in the foreground.
It looks just like the original
site, but it's a completely different
animal. "Steve
is always ready to help. Efficient
and affordable, he consistently
goes the extra mile to make sure
you get what you're looking for
and what you want. His personal
attention is a welcome relief
in this age of nameless and faceless
"service" providers." Tim De Christopher
|
The Bobby Darling Show
East coast entertainers "The Bobby Darling Show" needed a site
that would match the professionalism of their performance. Their
old site had gotten stale, and it lacked cohesion as it was worked
on and updated by multiple designers/coders.
We provided a new layout/design template which the client is using
to create a new site himself. It's a fast-loading, hand-coded
design utilizing pure HTML and CSS.
"I first
contacted Idealonweb after being impressed with their site designs
on the web. After discussing and assessing my needs and growth
goals, Steve not only created a new design, he also gave me valuable
information about efficiently running and maintaining my web site.
And he did this faster than a speeding byte. I highly recommend
Idealonweb." Joe Lada
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The Shoe Shoppe
Located in Folsom, California,
The Shoe Shoppe offers quality
footwear and specializes in ensuring
that it properly fits your lifestyle
as well as your feet. They understand
foot problems such as malalignment
and compliance issues, which enables
them to provide expert advice
and foot beds to address specific
situation.
I was contacted by the proprietors
of the The Shoe Shoppe with a
specific challenge. Their store
was going to be featured in a
special segment on TV News 10
(California) and was to receive
regional and possibly national
exposure. They knew that marketing
a web site within that news segment
would turn some viewers into new
customers. The problem was they
didn't have a web site and the
segment was to air in less than
a week.
To make a long story short, we
made it. This is a simple web
site built with expansion in mind.
Its hand-coded, text-based design
loads fast and is search engine
friendly.
"I appreciate all of your efforts
on such short notice." Julianne
Staub
|
Holistic Design and Space Planning
Holistic Design and Space Planning assist their clients in achieving a healthful living space and a balanced lifestyle while minimizing their personal impact on the Earth and its natural resources. Through proven principles in sustainable design and the application of best practices in green construction they seek to improve the environment by fostering healthy and harmonious habitats, one home and one workplace at a time.
We mirrored the importance and benefits of space planning when constructing this site. We worked closely with the client from inception to finish resulting in a harmonious web experience.
"Idealonweb gave us a site that is both beautiful and functional. It has the spatial depth, clarity and ease of navigation we were seeking. Working with Steve was especially rewarding in the way that he produced and modified our design quickly and carefully. He worked tirelessly with us in capturing an appropriate domain name. He kept us on track and on schedule, and delivered a site which will serve us well for quite some time to come. We wholeheartedly recommend him to anyone looking for a highly professional, equitably priced and very talented website developer." Laura
Catanzaro
|
Godwin Legal Associates
Godwin Associates, a legal consulting firm specializing in medical
case review, needed a venue to communicate new medical findings,
spotlight legal cases, and advertise their services to the law
community of Massachusetts.
We developed an appealing, simple site that does just that. With
careful tweaking of the elements within the page, our search engine
results are remarkable for a relatively new site.
"Steve has
always been responsive to my business needs and is very creative
and giving with his plans for my website and E-mail management."
Missie Godwin |
Safari East Multicultural Presentations
Vishnu Wood, jazz bassist and music educator, has performed and/or
recorded with jazz greats including Dizzie Gillespie, Freddy Hubbard,
Thelonius Monk and Charles Mingus, just to name a few. He needed
a site which promoted his educational Safari East Multicultural
Programs as well as documented his rich musical career.
We created a clean, fast-loading layout which opens with an audio
splash page then proceeds to individually customized information
pages. Soon video clips of recent performances will be added to
round out the site.
"I'll tell
the world how wonderful you are." Peggy C.
|
J &
M Futon
A long time retail outlet for
quality futon frames, mattresses,
and covers, J & M Futon entered
the online marketplace with a
homemade web site when the Internet
was just getting started. As their
online business grew, they needed
a professional grade site that
would expand with their business.
We developed a stylish site that
has now grown to over 150 product
pages. We've incorporated many
techniques to make the shopping
experience a pleasant one. This
site incorporates both a text and image-driven navigational
scheme, professional product imagery,
effects to zoom in for a closer
look at fabrics, and a secure
shopping cart to facilitate a
smooth transaction.
"Our
site has been up for five years
and generates as much income as
our retail store. We couldn't
have done it without Steve Hoffman
and Idealonweb. Steve set up the
shopping cart, helped with the
design and graphics, set up a
system so that I can update parts
of our web page from the Internet,
optimized the file sizes for easy
viewing, and mainly allows me
to sleep at night knowing my customers
are seeing our products the way
they should. It's been a great
investment." Jeff Ainsworth |
Lapis Mountain
Apothecary
Lapis Mountain is an herbal pharmacy,
acupuncture center and teahouse nestled
in Western Massachusetts. A traditional
Chinese apothecary at heart, Lapis
Mountain is committed to offering
the best selection of high quality
teas, herbal remedies and supplements
from around the world.
Starting with just their extensive
selection of teas, Lapis Mountain
Apothecary needed a site that
would be easily expandable to
include their ever growing diversity
of products and services. The
overall look and feel needed to
be in harmony with their clientele
without being overly cliche'.
We continue to work closely with
the client in the continued development
and marketing of this unique web
site. "I continue to be impressed by the manner in which you have helped me take
initial unformed concept I had about bringing my business online, through
the creative and design hurdles to a working site. You have negotiated the
countless changes in direction that I have presented you, and created the
most direct possible path to a functional online presence. Your skills as a
designer are clear, but truly your talent resides in your ability to listen
to what others are struggling to develop - and help to build something real." Jake Mayer
|
The Merry Lion
Press
The Merry Lion Press is a publishing
company specializing in offbeat
cookbooks. A companion web site
to the "Pudding Hollow Cookbook"
was needed to promote the book
and upcoming related events. The
site would need to be updated
constantly with new recipes and
information as well as links to
other sites of relevant interest.
A shopping-cart system would need
to be added to sell the books
online.
We worked closely with the client
to incorporate existing color
schemes and styles from the book
into the delicious design. It's
built to be easily expanded as
business needs grow. Its fast
loading, search engine-friendly
design makes navigating through
the content a breeze. Check out
the tasty recipes.
"Steven
Hoffman, known to me as "Steve,
the Fabulous Web Guy," made my
entry into the Internet a snap
and has made my continued web
presence a joy. He is gifted at
turning amorphous verbal ideas
into vivid visual reality. He
is also easy and charming to work
with, reasonably priced, and quick
in his response to any queries."
Tinky Weisblat
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