Creating a Custom Sort Order for a Category Archive Page

[MediaServices]

I've googled a lot and not found exactly what I'm looking for and here in the forums I also cannot find this ... maybe I'm not searching right. I'd like to...

• create a custom category page for any one category I choose
• show the post titles, 150x150 thumbnail, and excerpt of customized length
• choose the order the posts appear in
• (optional) have several groups of these posts show up as they do on the home page of our Magazine Pro site http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/ which would also mean being able to choose larger thumbnails
• I'd also like to be able to do this using any StudioPress theme, regardless of whether or not the theme has StudioPress Genesis Featured Posts or Genesis Featured Pages widgets, but I think that's .

Whether I create a category-#.php file or add code to functions.php I'd like to take a page like http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/department/love-marriage/ and re-order the posts - not ASC or DESC by date or ID number, but a totally custom ID number order where I can include only the posts I want in any order I choose.

So on the page I've chosen above we have these articles, in their current order:

150x150 thumbnail: CharlestonBrides.com, Packed with Essential Resources + Excerpt
150x150 thumbnail: Celebrating Galentine's Day: Put Yourself at the Top of the List + Excerpt
150x150 thumbnail: All You Need is Love: Mount Pleasant Has Many Manifestations + Excerpt
150x150 thumbnail: Tips for Planning Your Wedding Date: "If We Took a Holiday" + Excerpt
150x150 thumbnail: Bridal Boutique of Mount Pleasant: The Highlight of Every Bride's Experience + Excerpt

Maybe the new order would be:

TOP, LEFT COLUMN
LARGE thumbnail: All You Need is Love: Mount Pleasant Has Many Manifestations + Excerpt

TOP, RIGHT COLUMN
LARGE thumbnail: Tips for Planning Your Wedding Date: "If We Took a Holiday" + Excerpt

NEW ROW, NEW COLUMN
150x150 thumbnail: Bridal Boutique of Mount Pleasant: The Highlight of Every Bride's Experience + Excerpt
150x150 thumbnail: Celebrating Galentine's Day: Put Yourself at the Top of the List + Excerpt

So essentially this new layout of http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/department/love-marriage/ has 2 posts I choose in 2 columns with larger thumbnails, and some of the other posts below that go back to the regular layout, but again I select the order I want the posts to appear in, and exclude or include only the posts I want.

Here's a very rough sample of what it may look like: http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/00/mockup.jpg

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– George (MediaServices)

http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/department/love-marriage/

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