Carrie Cousins

News / 22 Nov 2017

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Today, we’re excited to be featuring a special promotion from MightyDeals. Depositphotos offers one of the largest stock photo libraries on the web, and by taking advantage of this promotion, you can grab either 100 or 200 images of your choice for up to 75% off the regular price!

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Graphics / 20 Nov 2017

Design Trend: Obstructed Text

Some websites look great, even if they defy conventional wisdom or tenets of design theory. A new design trend is showcasing that very idea with elements that cover or obstruct some of the text in the design.

It’s an interesting trend because it goes against everything we commonly talk about with design – that it must be readable to connect with users quickly.

Needless to say, this can be a tricky technique to pull off effectively, but the designs are striking and impactful when done well. Here’s a breakdown of the trend and some ideas for how you can try it yourself.

Typography / 15 Nov 2017

Every Design Needs Three Levels of Typographic Hierarchy

One of the most important elements for people looking at anything you design is the type. It needs to be clear and readable and it should direct users through a design, from most important elements to least.

And that, in a nutshell, explains typography hierarchy. But to really master the art of type, you need to understand how to layer type throughout a design to achieve maximum impact. Read on to learn how to master typography hierarchy and create effective type in every project.

Layouts / 13 Nov 2017

Parallax Effects Compared: 5 Choices to Consider

Parallax effects remain one of the hottest web design trends. This animated scrolling technique happens when background and foreground move at different speeds while the user scrolls so that there are two independent layers moving at the same time.

This effect can be used for any number of website types and is a fun way to create – and increase – user engagement. The nice thing about parallax effects is that you don’t have to use them on every page of a design; parallax scrolling is a great homepage technique to help drive users to calls to action or other content.

Parallax effects create an element of depth and distance and a greater sense three-dimension than some other techniques, making users feel like part of the design.

The downside to parallax effects is that they don’t always work on mobile devices. (But there are some workarounds for that as well in the tutorial at the end of this article.)

Here are five parallax effects and styles to consider. (Make sure to click through the links to see exactly how each animation works.)

Typography / 8 Nov 2017

10 Rules for Perfect Type Design, Every Time

Do you ever notice that some projects just seem to glow with great type? Some designers have a certain knack for designing perfect typography for every project.

You can do it too. With a handful of simple rules, you can improve the look and design of typography in all your projects, digitally and in print. If you struggle with picking typefaces and pairing fonts, these rules will help you design perfect type, every time. (Just make sure to follow them.)

UX Design / 6 Nov 2017

7 Steps to Creating a Solid UX Strategy

Everyone knows that the first step in any business venture is research on the path to creating a strategy. This strategy determines how you’ll function and guide the decision-making process.

A website project – whether it is for a business or not – should follow the same concept. Without a solid user experience strategy, the design is likely to lack the features, elements and overall usability that make the website popular among visitors.

While the idea of creating a UX strategy might not sound like a lot of fun, it’s a valuable exercise. And when done well, and with purpose, can definitely be enjoyable!

Graphics / 1 Nov 2017

Design Trend: Dark Color Palettes & Animation

Have you taken note of all the super dark design patterns lately? Designers are experimenting with some funky, dark design patterns that feature animation in the same color scheme.

These animations include everything from simple movements that happen on their own, to hover effects and full cinematic experiences. Let’s dive into this website design trend and explore a few ways to make it work for your projects.

Mobile / 30 Oct 2017

The Anatomy of a Perfect Push Notification: 7 Tips

One of the top reasons users uninstall an app is because push notifications are annoying. You’ve probably done this yourself a time or two.

But one of the top reasons users love an app is also because of push notifications. So how do you create a push that users will love? That’s easy – you make it all about them.

Mobile / 25 Oct 2017

5 Design Tricks to Make Your Mobile UX Shine

Have you looked at your website analytics lately? Chances are a significant portion – maybe even more than half – of your users are coming to your website via mobile device.

Whether you are focusing mobile efforts on a website or app, you need to ensure that the design creates a stellar user experience for every one of those mobile users. You don’t have to start from scratch to do it either. Thinking about the mobile user and how they interact with the design will help shape the way your interfaces look and function.

Here are five design tricks you can use to help make your mobile UX one that users love.

How to Design a Logo / 23 Oct 2017

Is the Static Logo Dead?

There’s a bit of disruption happening in the world of logos. The single static logo isn’t enough to carry your brand anymore. You actually need a library of logos to meet all the needs of your brand.

This idea has been evolving for a while; just think of the variations for a website, social media and even that tiny favicon in web browsers.

It can be a lot to think about. So let’s try to organize those logo thoughts.

Graphics / 16 Oct 2017

Design Trend: Vivid Rainbow Colors

If nothing else, 2017 has been a year of color in website design. Color trends have dominated the conversation about design, with brighter, bolder hues as a large part of the landscape.

There’s a new color trend that combines a lot of those bright options into bigger color palettes that you might now expect – rainbow color patterns. That’s right, more designers are taking a change with a lot of color and incorporating vivid rainbow, gradient colors into design projects. And it’s pretty cool!

Here’s a look at the trend and some ideas for how to use vivid color that aren’t garish.

Layouts / 11 Oct 2017

Coming Soon Landing Pages: Tips and Best Practices

What do you do when your website is under construction and you aren’t quite ready for launch?

Whether you’re generating buzz to release a new product or app, or just waiting for a new website project to be ready, a coming soon page can be the fix.

When used well, coming soon pages can help generate leads (with an email signup form) and drum up some interest for your website.