Articles - Page 162

Reviews / 13 Apr 2016

How to Create a Website With Simbla

With so many different website builders out there, it can be tough to find the right one. Simbla helps you create a professional, responsive website without any code. (It’s a win-win.)

That’s what makes a website building tool so great. They can help you save time, create a website that functions without a lot of backend know-how and get your site off the ground quickly and easily. Today, we’re going to look at how to create a website with Simbla – one of these website builders – and how you can make it work for you.

Layouts / 12 Apr 2016

Designing Interesting Websites With Space & Asymmetry

When an element uses asymmetrical space, it stands out against other surrounding elements. It will appear more vibrant, which is particularly helpful if you’re designing areas of a page where one link/button demands more attention than others.

Today we’re going to take a closer look at asymmetry expressed through contrast, spacing, and layout. We’re thinking about observable contrast, and how space drives attention.

UX Design / 11 Apr 2016

5 Tips for Designing Personalization

Are you delighted when your favorite online shop makes a wonderful suggestion for an item you didn’t know about? How about when your cart is stored even if you log off for a while?

If so, you are just like many other users that like and have come to expect personalized web experiences. Personalization extends to all of our devices – from those virtual shopping carts, to voice activated calling on a mobile phone, to a game that knows exactly where you left off. But how do you design something so particularly individual? Let’s take a look.

Typography / 6 Apr 2016

What Does That Say? How Typefaces Add Meaning to the Design

Can something as simple as a typeface change the meaning of words and an entire design. Of course! A typeface can add a new level of emphasis or meaning to your message.

It can help you connect with users, establish brand, and set the tone for your entire project. The wrong typeface can leave a design feeling flat, disjointed or even give users the wrong impression about your brand. Now let’s take that knowledge and add a little practical application. (And look at a few examples of beautiful typography from the Design Shack gallery.)

Minimalist Graphic Design / 5 Apr 2016

Web Design Best Practices: Minimalism & Typography

When talking about design we need to consider text from a designer’s perspective. Text must be legible and readable while fitting nicely with the website’s style. But it also must relate to a hierarchy of content.

Building hierarchies is the “big picture” of a website’s composition. But as you move into typography, you also must create hierarchies related to specific text on the page. In this piece, we’ll explain creating relationships with your headers and how to use white space to make lengthy paragraphs visually digestible.

Accessibility / 30 Mar 2016

Designing for the Web: Are There Colors You Should Avoid?

The web is a rainbow of color options. Color is a great tool for grabbing the attention of users, providing visual interest and impact and creating contrast for readability. Color is also at the center of many design trends, including flat and material styles.

But can you go wrong with color? Are there hues or combinations that you should shy away from? In a word … yes! Today we’re looking at colors or color combinations that you should avoid when designing websites and apps. (And on the chance that you’ve already made one of these mistakes, we offer alternative suggestions as well.)

Inspiration / 29 Mar 2016

50+ Best Portfolio WordPress Themes

Every designer, artist and creative person needs a platform to showcase their work.  WordPress is the ultimate platform for making an effective portfolio website, giving you complete control. Today, we have gathered an outstanding collection of top notch portfolio WordPress themes for designers, photographers, artists, creative professionals, creative business and anyone else looking to showcase their work.

All these are responsive premium quality WordPress themes with advanced theme options, dozens of shortcodes, various portfolio pages and much more to build your own unique and professional website. You can get your hands on all of these wonderful themes in no time and showcase the best you’ve got to your clients and audience!

Interested in something specific for graphic designers? This collection of WordPress themes for graphic designers might be a good alternataive post to review.

CSS / 28 Mar 2016

Everything You Need to Know About HD Design

If you haven’t already taken note, the web is going high def. From images to backgrounds to user interface elements, high definition is the new normal.

It started with some of the retina and high-resolution screens, but access to faster connections has also emphasized this phenomenon, providing greater access to HD websites from any device. Are you thinking about and designing in high definition? Here are a few things to consider.

Competitions / 24 Mar 2016

The PSD2HTML Easter Egg Hunt

With the start of Spring comes Easter — a great time to celebrate the changing seasons, and a time that is never complete without a good Easter Egg treasure hunt! With that in mind, we’re excited to tell you about a special treasure hunt for some awesome discounts from top web design and development companies.

To get started, just visit the PSD2HTML site and take a look through each page, hunting down those secret eggs. They’re scattered around the website on different pages, hidden in some fun and crafty ways. You’ll need to get your thinking cap on! Read on to find out more!

Graphics / 21 Mar 2016

Design Theory: The Rule of Three

One. Two. Three. Now stop counting and think about how elements grouped in threes can work for your projects. It’s an interesting concept but one that crosses multiple disciplines.

In public speaking, three points in sequence are crafted to drive home a point. In photography and art, the rule of thirds helps you visualize the canvas differently. Even the American Declaration of Independence is rooted in three rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. How can you think more about groupings of three and implement this magic number into your projects? We have a few suggestions.

Navigation / 21 Mar 2016

5 Alternatives to Drop-Down Hover Menus

Is the era of drop-down hover menus over? It might well be. This design pattern doesn’t work for today’s users. The concept is clunky and doesn’t always translate well to smaller screens.

Users want menus and navigation options that are easier to use, simple to understand and don’t come with more options than they can think about in a few seconds. Navigation menus should be device-agnostic and work in the same way, creating a single experience, across device types. So what can you do to say goodbye to those drop down menus? We have five alternatives.

UX Design / 14 Mar 2016

7 UX Tips You Might Not Have Considered

Great user experience starts early in the design process. It is in no way a last minute add-on — it’s something you need to consider right from the outset!

Creating experiences that users want, and that they will stay engaged with, is a delicate balance between giving users just what they want and a little something extra they didn’t even know they needed. Here are a few ways to think about UX that you might not have considered.