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Carrie Cousins

Carrie Cousins

Carrie is a freelance writer with years of experience in web and graphic design. Sports fanatic. Information junkie. Designer. True-believer in karma.

Accessibility / 5 Jan 2015

Designing for the Interstitial Experience

Yes. Those little pop-ups matter, and are starting to matter more every day. Interstitial space – and content for it – is becoming an increasingly popular part of designing for the web. From ads, to forms, to bits of information, the interstitial experience is a vital part of the design process.

The dilemma for designers is to create something that users want to look at and not feel annoyed by. Here we’ll work to gain a better understanding of interstitial space and how you can work within it well.

Mobile / 24 Dec 2014

Designing Hover Styles and the Future of the Technique

Despite arguments that hover styles are dead, these small boxes that pop-up over images, text or other elements on websites are still found all over the web. Designers like them for an added bit of style and information; users like them for functionality. (They are only “dead” because hover styles don’t work without a mouse-over).

The UI function is still there for now. And if you opt to use it, you’ll want to create well-designed hover styles that engage users. You’ll also want to think about how to alter these areas of your website for responsive sites.

Layouts / 22 Dec 2014

How to Balance Text and Visual Content in Design

We’ve all heard the phrase “sex sells” but when it comes to design, what does the selling? Text or images? The reality is that both are essential parts of almost every design project. What makes the difference between a project that works and one that falls short is striking the right balance between the two.

While visuals are often processed faster, text can provide greater understanding. Creating balance between text and visual content is a combination of understanding your project and the best method of delivery for content, audience expectation, weighting of elements and delivery.

Business / 1 Dec 2014

How to Design a Brand Persona for Your Product

They’re on hundreds of websites, in advertisements, and fill the airwaves – fictional characters that help you relate to a brand or company. These personas are representations of the type of people who use products or services, and are designed to relate to potential users or buyers.

A persona is more than just a face in the design. It is a well-planned and thought-out part of the design process. Designers have to think about the persona during all aspects of a project so that the personality matches the brand and design. From copy and how the persona “talks” to color, typeface choices and other design elements, creating a persona can be an important part of design projects.

Graphics / 26 Nov 2014

7 Tips for Designing a Better Checkout Page

With the holiday season right around the corner, many of us will be doing some shopping online. (OK… maybe a lot of shopping!) The checkout page of a website can make that experience one to remember, or one you wish you could forget.

If you are designing a checkout page, there are so many considerations – functionality, usability, security and design. The last element is something every designer can have impact on. A checkout page should not be designed as an afterthought; it is arguably the most important page in the online shopping experience.

Accessibility / 24 Nov 2014

Website Design for Kids: Tips and Advice

Designing a project for children is a rather common assignment. From websites to packaging to other images, creating something that is kid-friendly will likely be asked of most designers at some point. But how can you make something kids and adults will appreciate?

That’s the real trick. Kids and adults have to feel engaged by what they are seeing. There are some things that you can do in the design process. Consider elements such as color, typography, gamification, language, animation, storyline and age group for the best success. Today we’re offering some advice and insight into this very topic!

Software / 19 Nov 2014

Getting Started With BootstrapBay (Plus 3 Theme Giveaways)

BootstrapBay is a new theme marketplace where you can buy and sell premium themes and templates. Every theme on the site is packed with features, customization options and features a fully-responsive design.

Here we’ll take a look at BootstrapBay, and what you can find on the site from available themes to pricing to selling your own designs. Plus, BootstrapBay is giving away three themes to three lucky winners. Read on to find out more!

Accessibility / 17 Nov 2014

What Makes a Great 404 Error Page?

No one wants to think website visitors are spending time on error pages, but it happens. The 404 error page is one place that these interactions happen rather frequently. Design it in a way that speaks to users rather than encouraging them to leave your site.

More memorable and less frustrating 404 error pages are the most successful. They can also be the most fun to design. So what can you do to create the best 404 page for your site? Here are a few tips, tricks and gallery of great examples.

Graphics / 3 Nov 2014

The Designer’s Guide to Visual Punctuation

Punctuation is more than just periods and exclamation points. In terms of design, punctuation can be anything that causes a reader or user to stop or pause. It can happen while reading text or as the eye moves from one element to another. These bits of visual punctuation are everywhere and are vital parts of any design concept.

The key elements of visual punctuation include common readable punctuation marks as well as space, lines, rules, icons and color.

Business / 29 Oct 2014

Do You Have a Design Checklist?

While every project is unique, every project also has a set of things and processes that are always part of your workflow. That’s where having a good design checklist comes in. This guide can help you manage projects and workflow, delegate tasks among team members and ensure that everything is complete before a design project is handed over. A good design checklist can help keep you from going astray during a project.

You may need several types of checklists in your toolkit: project design (print or digital), planning, execution, and printing and delivery. These lists can have overlap or not and can serve as starting points for you to create a checklist tailored to your design work.

Reviews / 13 Oct 2014

Readymag Can Help You Build a Portfolio Website

If you are anything like me, you are always looking for tools that make your work easier and faster. Readymag is a tool that allows you to create websites, specifically microsites, presentations, magazines and portfolios in a responsive digital format without coding.

The platform is designed for creative professionals who don’t have the knowledgebase or time to create a site from scratch. It is further made for creative because of the format options – microsite, magazine, photo stories, portfolios, presentations – that come with Readymag. And you can create a site and publish it quickly using included design tools. Here’s a look at Readymag and how it works.

Software / 30 Sep 2014

X Is the Ultimate WordPress Theme

The WordPress blogging platform is arguably the most well-known in the world. Millions of websites are running on WordPress and tens of millions of users per day visit those URLs. The key is designing and developing a WordPress site so that you can make it your own.

That’s where tools such as plugins and themes really come in handy. WordPress is easy enough that almost anyone can get a site up and online. The new X WordPress Theme has taken that ease of use and customization to another level. With just one theme you can build a great site with a single set of tools. Here’s how it works.