I think the top right looks rather empty.
Maybe you can move the whole social networking & contact box above the menu to fill in that gap.
I also think maybe you should copy the footer style (grungy & flat) to the header.
Good work though!
I think that the design has promise. It may benefit from inclusion of larger graphics and photos within the content area. Right not it is too text-heavy.
Consider moving the contact info into the dark area above the nav and the social icons to the footer. This is prime real-estate that could be used for more strategic content.
the background on the header and footer are drawing my eyes away from the content, could potentially be a issue.
You are definitely headed in the right direction here. The social box and footer bother me though. The footer feels like a completely different site and also doesn't line up very well. Try to bring some of the details from the content area down into the footer. The logo also feels a bit awkward and could be better. I think there is too much of a curl on it. Lastly, the torn paper effect you have at the bottom of the content area is inconsistent with the rest of the site. The easiest fix would be to just remove it.
i know that this is a free wordpress template, not sure if you created the original one or not. but here it is http://www.free-css.com/free-css-templates/page102/artificial-casting.php . if you have not created it, play with it and customize it.
Aside from what has already been said, you should take a look at some sites that specialize in typography design.
Here are a few... http://ilovetypography.com/ http://www.typographyserved.com/ http://welovetypography.com/
Hope this helps and good luck!
You're using a great color scheme; it's very different from the "norm" of blues and silvers.
I really like the use of the left sidebar as a news feed.
Besides the header needing something else to spice it up a little, I think you might want to try making a certain part of the page "jump out" at the visitor. Right now, it looks great but a visitor's eyes aren't drawn to a certain place right at first sight (besides maybe the logo).
Thanks! I am working on moving those social media icons right now. Those are on the list.... :)