Articles - Page 134

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

Typography / 31 Aug 2011

8 Simple and Useful Tips for Kerning Type

Kerning is fun! All right, unless you’re a serious type nerd like me, that’s definitely not going to be a true statement. However, it is an absolutely essential part of your typographical education and implementation.

If you’ve been ignoring kerning or simply aren’t sure how to do it properly, take a look at these eight quick tips and get started on the road to becoming a kerning master.

HTML / 23 Aug 2011

Mastering Markdown: 30 Resources, Apps and Tutorials to Get You Started

If you’re like me, learning Markdown has been on your todo list for months. I finally took the plunge and instantly became addicted to sorting through the wealth of resources, apps and other Markdown related materials available.

The following is a collection of the best Markdown resources that I’ve found. Whether you’re a complete Markdown newbie looking to learn the syntax or a seasoned expert in the market for a new iPad app, you’ll find something here that’s perfect for your needs.

Typography / 16 Aug 2011

5 Typography Do’s and Don’ts Everyone Should Know

So you love typography, who doesn’t these days? The question is, how sloppy are you when it comes to implementing type in your designs?

Today we’re dishing up some great and simple typography tips that everyone who works with type should know. Whether you’re an expert or a beginner, read on to see if you’re guilty of any of these pitfalls.

Graphics / 9 Aug 2011

Tips for Designing With Multiple Photos

Photography is one of your most powerful resources as a designer. Here we’ll take a look at some clever and unique ways to create photo-centric designs using multiple images.

Graphics / 5 Aug 2011

Separating Content: 10 Ways to Draw the Line

The story is as old as graphic design itself: you have two different sections and you need a way to visually separate them. As a designer, I frequently spot myself reverting to the same old one or two tricks to pull this off. Why not mix it up a bit?

Today we’ll show you ten awesome ways to create two distinct sections of content. Each example is from a real website so you can click through to see it in action.

Typography / 4 Aug 2011

7 Quick and Easy Ways to Jazz Up Your Headline Typography

Headlines are one of the most important elements on your page and are often the starting point that sets the tone for the entire design. So why not make them great?

Today we’ll take a look at seven different design techniques that you can implement in a minute or less that will boost your headline from plain to awesome.

HTML / 27 Jul 2011

Embedding Google Maps Into a Web Page: A Beginner’s Guide

Google Maps is one of the best utilities to ever hit the web. It has become the standard way for people to get directions online, view satellite and terrain imagery and perform any other map-related task.

There are a number of reasons that you would want to embed a Google Map into your web page, whether it be for functional purposes, such as guiding users to your physical location, or aesthetic purposes, such as using map for a background graphic. Today we’re going to look at two ways you can go about this task: the quick and easy way and the powerful, flexible API route.

Layouts / 20 Jul 2011

Ditching the Grid: Alternative Layout Strategies and Tips

Are you tired of creating building websites using the same old grid-based layouts for every project? Have you been itching to break away from the norm and attempt something a little more organic?

Today we’ll take a look at a few sites that have done just that to see what we can learn about alternative layout methods and how they can be successfully implemented.

Graphics / 14 Jul 2011

Build Awesome Color Palettes Effortlessly in Illustrator

Here at Design Shack we can’t get enough of good color schemes. We recently discussed some Awesome and Unusual Places to Steal Color Palettes From and today we’ll follow up that discussion with some tips on how to build your own awesome color sets in Adobe Illustrator.

We’ll go over the extreme basics of working with color in Illustrator and jump into how to use the excellent built-in Color Guide to get you on the path to lightning-fast generation and manipulation of custom color schemes.

Business / 11 Jul 2011

How to Teach Someone Graphic Design

Do you have a friend, family member or colleague who is considering design as a profession and looks to you for guidance? Your instruction could mean the difference between a meaningful career and a non-starter.

Today we’ll offer up some basic advice that everyone should consider before attempting to teach someone to be a graphic designer.

CSS / 6 Jul 2011

Rolling Your Own Grid Layouts on the Fly Without a Framework

Do you hate CSS grid frameworks but love the rapid layout benefits that they provide? Do you struggle with the math and code necessary to create your own flexible multi-column layouts on the fly?

Today we’re going to walk you through creating your own basic, reusable system for creating multiple columns that you can implement anywhere any time with only a few lines of code. No bloated code or non-sematic class names required!