Your first skins and skinning innovation

When did you get started and what did they look like?

from WinCustomize Forums

the obvious question is, how long have you been skinning? But also, what did your first works look like?

My first ones were pretty painful looking. Though, on the other hand, I wish more skinners would do things a little more out of the box than what we have nowadays.

Here's some of my first skins:

I did this one nearly 9 years ago.  Note the title bar buttons are on the left border.

This is a WindowBlinds skin I did a very long time ago. It had rollup buttons on the title bar and on the left side I had short-cuts to various parts of CNET.com

This Solaris skin is probably one I used more than any other skin. For many years, I used it as my main desktop.  I did this one back in 1999.

How about you? When did you get started and have you tried to do anything you felt was particularly innovative and interesting?

 

skinning
11,753 views 25 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Not in terms of WB. But got a little something brewing in DX that'll be quite different from you everyday weather and clock gadget.
Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
The skin on the left was my first WB...and THATS the second version...PU!  

One on the right is almost done.  



Note the difference in taskbar height.  
Groupy 2 - Organize multiple applications into grouped tabs on your Windows desktop
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Started my first skin back in 1998, for WinAmp...... its still not done hehe
And after 425 skins/themes for 50 different applications, I called it a day in February 2006.
It just wasn't fun anymore.

Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
aawwwww...Snowman.  Maybe inspiration will return...I hope.  
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Maybe inspiration will return

No chance in Hell of that ever happening. Dead and gone. Just can't be bothered anymore.

Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Sorry to hear that Snowman...I'm just getting to the point of excitement of the true possibilities of skinning.Vista is something of a disappointment so far,I had high hopes for it.I have faith that Stardock will make skinning it fun,just like they did XP.  
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Started sometime in 2000 and haven't stopped since...literally.   

and I refuse to even look at my first creations..*shiver*


Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Well,
Here is my first DesktopX theme that was ALL original artwork.


Here is the last DesktopX theme that I did. The wall is not mine, but it wasn't part of the theme..


As for my walls... well, the first ones I submitted were turned down... ( back in the day when WC had STANDARDS)and rightfully so. I think that was around 2001 or 2002. It's been a long journey. . . .

Worth it? That depends...
Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
My first foray into skinning was with WindowBlinds.
I became enamoured with all the funkyness one could achieve on the Windows 95/XP OS.
Then one day, after I saw Subterfuge by MikeB314, I just had to make one.
And thus was born .blue phlame.


That was the most fun I had creating a skin and I delved right into probably some of the hardest areas a newbie could go into. Luckily, it turned out half decent.
Reply #10 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I used Blue flame,it was one of the first skins I ever saw...still cool.  
Reply #11 from WinCustomize Forums Top
This is the only pic I have of my first called "Caffiene" it got wiped from the boards when the servers crashed in 2005.


notice the really cool website........
Reply #12 from WinCustomize Forums Top
i made many different kinds of skins when i came here at wincustomize.., i did first start with logons and bootskins, at the end i start doing cursor themes, and since i continue with that i guess i should show two skins:

Red Dot : maybe the second or the third cursor theme i did back in Feb. 13, 2006...~




----------------


Red Flame : the updated vertion of Red Dot., but well, maybe that was my original plan.., at the end it end up into one of the Elements proyect cursor themes...~






...i guess i did a big jump since then  
Reply #13 from WinCustomize Forums Top
This a really cool thread to me because it is where I find myself lately as far as skinning. Looking back at my first skins and wanting to try them again with new skills. Tach 2 was my first refurb.

I submitted my first WB April of 2003 after doing a bunch of Cursors for CursorXP and I agree with Brad... "Painful" looking back. I like to think I have improved but so has everyone else. Kinda what makes it cool. Always something new to strive for. So many different concepts and awesome skinners out there.

I also agree about "out of the box". I have some ideas but lack the skills to implement them fully. When I did the first Tach I thought the buttons were pretty unique as indicators instead of changing color. And I saw a screenshot of a skin that vStyler is working on that looks wild. I am working on 2 skins now that I think will be unique if nothing else.    One is an animated remake of Machine.

Reply #14 from WinCustomize Forums Top
You dont want to see my first skin, it would make your eyes bleed. I myself pride myself and am motivated by innovation, I think it is the heart of skinning, There's nothing better for a skinner than to see people saying..WOW.. never seen that before!. Having said that, if the quality and useability is not there, it really doesn't matter how innovative you are.

I plan to continue trying to take the skinning of windows to new heights in anyway possible. in fact.. I live for it.  
Reply #15 from WinCustomize Forums Top
My first skin was back in '03.  My first attempt at a cursor and I thought it came out pretty good for my first attempts at skinning.




It's cool to look back and see where you started and see what you have done since then.






Reply #16 from WinCustomize Forums Top
My first real "Skin" besides some really crappy DXZoomers was never uploded because the Icon Creator (A japanese called "D.O.T.) dissappered from the web and I could never reach him. It was based on the great DX on W2k theme. The shot won a Stardock Competition on deviantart back in the beginning of 2001, I even can't remember, what version of DesktopX that was, must have been pre 1.0 (?) :

Reply #17 from WinCustomize Forums Top
My first skin was Blueness, which isn't around any more, made for the first GUI Olympics. Came in last place.
My second skin was BlueNite. This is the old version:


And the recent update:


I did a sysmetrix years ago, that was for the corner, that would go with anything. I really need to update this:



And lastly, I had a hand in helping create the first compact startmenu for windowblinds.
It had been done for Visual styles, but never for windowblinds. Not much of an innovation but it seems to be the norm now.
Reply #18 from WinCustomize Forums Top
No chance in Hell of that ever happening. Dead and gone. Just can't be bothered anymore.


danilloOc slaps Snowman \o/
Great to see you around Snowy!


I start skinning after buy a PC magazine that came with a WB shareware version.
I installed and started painting over a Treetog skin ...... was in 2000 or maybe 2001
Reply #19 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I started skinning after I was looking for some WMP skins(from the Skins Factory) so I found Wincustomize and never left since then

My first skin was this horrible OD background in 2006. I had no clue how to make good graphics.


After that I did my first cursor (horrible also hehe)


And my latest skin is the SG1 cursor


It's very cool to see how you've been improving yourself.

No chance in Hell of that ever happening. Dead and gone. Just can't be bothered anymore.


That sucks man, you made some awesome skins.
Reply #20 from WinCustomize Forums Top
My first skins were lost during the old skinz.org fiasco. Some of my early stuff was for programs that no longer exist.... but here's a old suite, I had help with from some pretty classy guys.... one of them being Snowman.

Please forgive the awful page layout, I had no idea what I was doing back then..... and even less now.


LINK
Reply #21 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Litestep theme....February, '98....

....eek...10 years ago...

Reply #22 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Both 1999





It suffers under bad compression, but yeah it's that bad. If you look more, you will find my original windows 2 skin. The current version rocks compared to that version.
Reply #23 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Litestep theme....February, '98....


anyway I can get you to slim that taskbar ?   

  
Reply #24 from WinCustomize Forums Top

but here's a old suite, I had help with from some pretty classy guys.... one of them being Snowman

Ahh yeah... I remember that fine suite quite well Randy!   

My first skins were lost during the old skinz.org fiasco.

Remember any of their names? I might just have'em in my "lill'" collection http://www.skinventory.dk
Gimme a shout if you need/want any help recovering them.

Reply #25 from WinCustomize Forums Top

This my first WB skin not so old
I have been here since few months and my first skins were bootskins