Colored fonts generally = bad, and that text below the header image is too hard to read.

I'm working on the header image and link colour, but... I don't understand what you mean by coloured fonts being bad.

i like the color scheme. beige and maroon are great together and the gold accent's are a nice touch to blend the two together. the lines are a distraction tho.

a way you could fix it is by putting the lines in a different way like in the background going off in different directions and fading toward the middle of the background. you could add them as a separator between categories and such.

another idea is perhaps getting rid of the rounded cornors and putting it as uneven lines intersecting each other.

good luck

Nice advice there Mad Hatter. I'll try to incorporate it. But for now can anyone provide more opinion?

Adding on what was already said, never EVER use colored fonts in web or print design, anything that is meant to be read. Colored fonts can be pleasing visually, but they generally cause eye strain. It is possible to make it work weel, but it is incredibly difficult to do so.

Stick to monochrome font colors - white, gray, and black. It's just easier for everyone that way.