After weeks of development and iterations, I’m excited to share the latest progress on my personal portfolio, built with Django and Django REST Framework. Here's a breakdown of the key improvements I've implemented before deploying the project to production.
🔐 1. Fully Functional Contact Form with Secure Email Integration
One of the core features I prioritized was enabling visitors to contact me directly from the website. I implemented a working contact form that sends emails securely using a Google App Password, protecting my credentials while ensuring deliverability.
🎨 2. Enhanced UI/UX – Visual and Structural Polish
To make the user experience smoother and more visually coherent, I refined the CSS styling, improved background color contrast, and reorganized image placements. These changes make the navigation feel more intuitive and professional.
📘 3. Embedded API Documentation (Swagger & ReDoc)
Since the backend is powered by Django REST Framework, I integrated auto-generated API documentation using Swagger UI and ReDoc, accessible directly from the site’s main interface. This allows other developers to explore all endpoints with ease.
⚙️ 4. Production-Ready Configuration
I’ve fine-tuned the project settings for deployment:
DEBUG=False to secure the environment
Proper configuration of STATICFILES and MEDIA handling
Optimized the settings.py file to separate development and production environments
🚀 5. Preparing for Deployment on PythonAnywhere
The final step is to host both frontend and backend on PythonAnywhere, which will allow seamless access and easier management under one domain. This transition is already in progress.
🔍 What’s Next?
Soon, I’ll announce the complete deployment and share the final hosted version. Until then, you can preview the current progress and code here:
👉 https://nicolasandrescl.github.io
Thanks for following along in my journey! If you have feedback, ideas, or just want to connect — I’m always open to learning from the community.
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Top comments (2)
congrats and best of luck on your final deployment!
Thank you so much! 🙏
I'm really happy with how the final deployment turned out. I actually wrote a full post breaking down all the steps I took to get everything working on PythonAnywhere — just in case it's helpful to others starting out with Django.
Feel free to check it out here:
👉 Successfully Deployed: My Django Portfolio is Now Live on PythonAnywhere
Let me know what you think or if you run into similar issues — happy to help!