Articles - Page 129

Browse hundreds of articles, tips, and inspiring design collections. Find helpful design advice, or the perfect resource for your next project.

Flex Your Design Muscles With These 10 Creative Exercises

Business / 23 Jan 2017

Flex Your Design Muscles With These 10 Creative Exercises

Are you already over all those New Year’s resolutions? Now that we are a little further into the year, it’s time to pause and refresh in a way that will last longer than a fad diet or 30-day gym membership. You need to flex your creative muscles.

You might be surprised at the value of simple design workouts. They can help you forget problems you are actually working on (maybe helping you solve those design dilemmas), and even learn something new.

It only takes a few minutes a week to work through an exercise or two, and really stretch those creative muscles. Pick an exercise from our collection below – each one includes just three steps — and make a date to get in design shape!

7 Rules for Creating a Simple Design

Graphics / 18 Jan 2017

7 Rules for Creating a Simple Design

Keep it simple, stupid. This concept dates to 1960 when the U.S. Navy implemented the KISS principle, which maintains that most systems work best if they are simple, rather than complicated. The same is true of pretty much any design project as well.

Most graphic designers learn about KISS early in their careers. So how can you do it? Creating a simple design is a little more complicated than you might think. Here are seven rules to design by, that help you cut away all the clutter and create a beautifully simple account.

Build a Website Today With Squarespace

Reviews / 17 Jan 2017

Build a Website Today With Squarespace

There are a lot of ways to build a website. If you are new to creating and managing a website, a site building tool can be one of the best and easiest ways to get started.

The benefit of a site building tool is that you don’t have to know code to create a beautiful design that works seamlessly across devices. Squarespace is one such option. Squarespace is designed to help you get a professional-looking website online in a short time. It’s a great option for creative professionals with plenty of template options that can make your portfolio shine.

Here’s a look at Squarespace, plus a discount code if you want to give it a try!

How to Break the Grid Without Making a Mess

Layouts / 16 Jan 2017

How to Break the Grid Without Making a Mess

A grid is the foundation of almost any website design. These invisible lines help create rhythmic space and visual flow, so each project carries a sense of organization and harmony.

But you don’t have to stick to the grid 100 percent of the time. You can even break the grid from time to time without making a total mess. Here’s how you do it, while still keeping a website that’s a pleasure to use!

7 Tips for Effective Use of Icons in Design Projects

Graphics / 11 Jan 2017

7 Tips for Effective Use of Icons in Design Projects

Designing icons can be a lot of fun. But once you have a good set, what do you do with them?

Icons are not just miniature links for Facebook or Instagram — they can be fully interactive cues that help lead users through a design and provide extra visual spark. Icons can be small or large, black and white or colored, flat or intricate. No matter what style appeals to you, effective use of icons can enhance usability and the aesthetic value of almost any design project.

5 Modern Website Background Ideas for 2017

Graphics / 9 Jan 2017

5 Modern Website Background Ideas for 2017

White, stark backgrounds are so 2016. It’s time to give your website a quick refresh with a new, more modern background treatment.

While many minimal styles are still in, the lack of color is not. Designers are opting for grays and bright colors instead. Background effects are also pushing more boundaries with cool geometry, asymmetrical patterns and abstract art. Today we’re delving into modern website background trends, packed with examples and inspiration!

7 Web Design Trends to Watch Out for in 2017

Inspiration / 4 Jan 2017

7 Web Design Trends to Watch Out for in 2017

This is the time of year where everyone starts to think “new.” New year. New resolutions. New design trends.

While we can’t say for certain what the biggest concepts of 2017 will be, there are some indicators. Late year trends often signal things to come in design. Some of it will be device-driven, other trends are recycled bits of things we’ve seen in the past. Either way the new year is a great time to step back and think about what fresh design elements you plan to try this year.

6 Characteristics of Successful Freelancers: Do You Have Them?

Business / 2 Jan 2017

6 Characteristics of Successful Freelancers: Do You Have Them?

So you want to be a freelancer. It’s no surprise that more and more people are making this career choice. The work from home, work for yourself option is appealing for many reasons. But not everyone is cut out for the job. Are you?

Most freelancers – regardless of industry – exhibit a few characteristics that help them create the right business culture for themselves, stay motivated and keep clients happy (and new working coming in). We’re going to look at these traits and how they can influence your decision to tackle a freelance career in a creative field.

How to Design With Pantone’s Color of the Year

Graphics / 27 Dec 2016

How to Design With Pantone’s Color of the Year

Drumroll, please. It’s the design geek Grammy’s. Pantone recently named its color of the year – 15-0343, more commonly known as Greenery.

The natural hue is bright, clean and fresh. Pantone says the zesty yellow-green shade “evokes the first days of spring when nature’s greens revive, restore and renew. Illustrative of flourishing foliage and the lushness of the great outdoors, the fortifying attributes of Greenery signals consumers to take a deep breath, oxygenate and reinvigorate.”

How can you use this design trend in upcoming projects? This year Pantone made it easy with a “new neutral” that’s relatively easy to use. Here are a few ways to do it.

Do You Really Need to Build Your Own Website?

Business / 21 Dec 2016

Do You Really Need to Build Your Own Website?

Everyone has a website, right? You’d be hard-pressed to come across a business, freelancer or pretty much anyone without some sort of home page.

But what happens when you need a new website design? What happens when it is time to develop a website for a new organization, person or business? What options do you have when that current web contract expires?

You have a couple of options. You can hire someone to do it for you. (But that’s no fun!) You can also do it yourself, either from scratch or using a website building tool. Here’s we’ll take a look at those two DIY options to help you figure out which alternative is best for you.

30+ Best Keynote Templates of 2016

Keynote Templates / 20 Dec 2016

30+ Best Keynote Templates of 2016

Preparing for a last minute presentation? Don’t know how to design beautiful slides with Keynote? We’ve got you covered!

Whether you’re trying to put together a slideshow for an unexpected presentation or simply can’t afford to hire a someone to design your slides, we have a solution that’ll save you hours of your time and money: Keynote templates!

The key to winning over the audience and your clients with your presentations is making your slides clear, precise, and visually appealing.

These Keynote templates, designed by professionals, will help you to easily wow your audience.

Typography in Shared Spaces: A Trend You Need to Know

Trends / 19 Dec 2016

Typography in Shared Spaces: A Trend You Need to Know

It seems like such a simple concept, but this trend is just starting to take off. Designers are allowing typography to cross planes between elements.

The trend is exemplified by type starting in one part of the canvas and then it extends into the space of something else, such as overlapping part of a photo or encroaching on another colored box or image. The layering technique is interesting and can help add a bit of creativity to a design in a number of ways. Here’s a closer look at ways to use typography in shared spaces.