Search Results For: pattern

Graphics / 16 Jun 2015

Can You Fix a Bad Design? Here’s Where to Start

It’s an hour before deadline and your boss just handed you a design project to finish up. And it’s bad. Very bad. It has problems ranging from poor images to crazy color, typography choices to general sloppiness. What should you do? Can it be fixed?

There are a few things you can do to help salvage a bad design with the understanding that it won’t be perfect. But making it passable as a design project for your company might well still be an option. Here’s how!

Layouts / 3 Jun 2015

Asymmetrical Design: Creating Beautiful, Balanced Layouts

How do you feel about asymmetrical design? That simple question can sometimes spark a lot of debate among designers. Asymmetrical design can be one of the more complicated techniques to pull off, but when done well results in beautiful and eye-catching designs.

While the definition of asymmetry is the lack of symmetry or equality between two halves; it is not a lack of balance as some wrongly assume. Designers can use asymmetry to create balance and harmony even though two sides of the design do not mirror one another. Here’s how to get started.

Tumblr Themes / 29 Apr 2015

30 Premium Tumblr Themes With Beautiful, Minimal Design

There are thousands of Tumblr themes all over the web. To be perfectly frank, most of them aren’t great, and won’t do your creative work justice. Today we’ve collected thirty of our favourite premium Tumblr themes from across the web.

All of these cost a few dollars, but all of them will take your Tumblr blog to another level. From stylish, minimal Tumblr themes, through to those featuring big colours and bold images — we have a full selection. All of them are available to buy straight from Tumblr directly, and can be set up on your blog in a few minutes!

Inspiration / 25 Mar 2015

10 Tips for Delicious Menu Design

Have your ever thought about the way food items were presented to you on a menu? Can something as simple as a menu design determine what and where you will eat? Creating a design for a restaurant menu – paper copies for the table and online versions – is a vital part of the food industry because the way things look can impact sales.

The topic got recent attention thanks to Brian Wansink, who wrote “Slim By Design” and a recent paper for the International Journal of Hospitality Management, asserts menu design can impact exactly what someone orders. And it is all based on simple elements that we use every day from bold lettering to images to creating hierarchy on the canvas. Here are 10 ways you can use some of that information and other techniques to create an absolutely delicious menu design.

UX Design / 24 Feb 2015

Google Material Design: Everything You Need to Know

You probably keep hearing the phrase “material design” popping up in conversations. The concept is pretty new; it was introduced in the summer and references a new design language from the folks at Google.

But material design is more than just an idea; it is likely to cause designers to completely rethink web and app design processes. Sites are already beginning to role out design schemes using Google’s material design documentation. So now is the time to learn what it’s all about and if a material design framework is in your future.

Graphics / 21 Jan 2015

10 Tips for Designing Static Ads

Designing the perfect static ad is no easy feat. It might even be impossible. Designing ads can go against many of the things you think as a designer. Many companies want to cram as much information into a space as possible and many users put up roadblocks when it comes to viewing ads.

The catch is creating something that people want to interact with, despite the fact that it’s an ad. The advantage of a static ad is that is seems less obtrusive than some animated, audio or video options. They also have a classic style about them that makes designing fun. Here are 10 tips for creating an ad that people will look at, with some ads as they actually appear on popular websites.

Graphics / 9 Jul 2014

How to Create an Emotional Connection With Design

Every project you complete connects with users in some way. The design communicates a message and a tone. The emotional tone is what we are going to take a deeper look at and try to better understand.

Emotional connections fall into four basic category pairs – joy and sadness, trust and disgust, fear and anger, and surprise and anticipation. Understanding this range of emotion and how it relates to a visual message is important so that your design projects are received as they are intended. As you read through this post, take a look at the featured websites and think about how each one makes you feel and what parts of the visual aesthetic contributes to that emotion.

Graphics / 7 Jul 2014

Using Lines and Curves in Design Projects

Some of the most subtle parts of a design can be the most important. Think about some of the details in design projects such as lines and curves. These simple shapes can be used in the foreground, background lettering or as a dominant art element.

Not every line is created the same. From thickness to orientation to amount of curvature, these simple shapes can have quite a bit of meaning. So before you draw that first line, here’s a primer and tips for using lines and curves in design projects.

Inspiration / 18 Jun 2014

Design Science: What Is Gestalt Theory?

If you are like me, it’s been a while since you finished you last formal design class. (And some of us never had any formal design classes.) So a refresher in some of the science behind design seems important. What is gestalt theory and do I really need to understand it?

Today, we’ll focus on one of the guiding principles of design. Gestalt theory is something you likely encounter and use almost every day. But do you understand the theory behind your actions? And how can you make even better use of this concept in your design work?

Inspiration / 19 May 2014

5 Tips for Creating a Fun Summer Color Palette

The official start of summer is just around the corner. Longer days, warmer temperatures and splashing in the lake or pool are just a few of the things that come with the change in season. When it comes to design, a change in seasons can create the urge to update your color palette as well.

With warmer days, warmer colors, brighter hues and even the use of more color are popular. And while you may not want to change the color scheme of an existing project — although you can – this season can be a great inspiration for designing a project with a summer-inspired color palette. Here are five tips for creating a great color palette with a few swatches to try based on each concept. Happy summer!

Typography / 3 Mar 2014

Creating Visual Hierarchy With Typography

Visual hierarchy is an important element in any design project. It tells people where to look and what things on the screen or printed page are most important. Hierarchy gives readers a sense of how to actually read material from start to finish with visual cues and flow.

While you can create visual hierarchy using a number of different tools, today we are going to look at ways to create structure with just typography. (And take a look at the images used throughout this post; they are all examples of great type hierarchy in action.)

Inspiration / 19 Feb 2014

Making Vintage Design Work for You

Vintage textures and palettes are in. They are popping up in a variety of uses from large-scale design projects to small details in a logo or background texture. This dated-style technique has really made a comeback.

Today, we will look at how you can create and establish a great palette for a vintage-style design from color to type to texture choices.