Thursday, March 28

Author: Carrie Cousins

What’s New for Designers, August 2018
Web Tricks

What’s New for Designers, August 2018

What’s old is new again; that’s the theme this month with new tools for designers with a few new tools that are rooted in the “old” concepts of design theory. From working with typefaces, to a color wheel, this roundup is packed with goodies. And then there are some new “new” tools as well, including a couple of cool 3D elements. If we’ve missed something that you think should have been on the list, let us know in the comments. And if you know of a new app or resource that should be featured next month, tweet it to @carriecousins to be considered! Font Playground Font Playground is a tool to help you experiment with variable fonts and even export front-end code. Variable fonts, which are single font files that behave like multiple fonts, are gaining popularity, making this something y...
10 Ways to Design Your Website for Mobile Speed
Web Tricks

10 Ways to Design Your Website for Mobile Speed

Have you performed a mobile speed test lately? How does your website rank? A slow website can turn mobile users away. Ideally, you want your design to load just as quickly for 3G users on phones as it does for desktop users on Wi-Fi. (That’s a pretty big ask, but there are things you can go to make it happen.) First, test your mobile speed. And then use these tips to improve your performance, and keep more users on your site longer. 1. Optimize Images One of the biggest problems with website speed is image size. Images can actually account for most of the downloaded data on a page and by formatting and saving images the right way, you can seriously cut down on the number of bytes required to serve this information. The easiest way to optimize images is to work with them before uplo...
3 Essential Design Trends, August 2018
Web Tricks

3 Essential Design Trends, August 2018

From light and bright designs to complex data visualizations and a new take on polygons, this month’s design trends are anything but ordinary. And they are so practical you can deploy them on single pages or for a complete design overhaul. Each of these trends shows and evolution of styles that’s been progressing for some time: minimalism to white and light color schemes, data “everything” to data visualization for the web, and a fresh look at poly shapes. Here’s what’s trending in design this month: 1. White and Light Color Schemes White and light color schemes seem to be popping up everywhere. (We could probably have dedicated an entire post to this design trend because there are so many designs featuring this color trend.) The main characteristic of this design trend is an aesthetic th...
What’s New for Designers, July 2018
Web Tricks

What’s New for Designers, July 2018

What kind of projects are you working on? It might be the hotter days (with more time at a computer) that have me focused on ways to enhance productivity. In this month’s roundup of new design tools and information, you’ll find plenty of helpful items that relate to workflow. If we’ve missed something that you think should have been on the list, let us know in the comments. And if you know of a new app or resource that should be featured next month, tweet it to @carriecousins to be considered! UnDraw UnDraw is a curated collection of SVG images that you can use for free, without attribution. All of the images fall under the MIT license and the site is packed with scalable images for web projects. Embed tiny SVGs or edit the code and make each image your own before adding it to your design...
Help! I Can’t Stop Wasting Time…
Web Tricks

Help! I Can’t Stop Wasting Time…

There are so many distractions when you are a freelancer. From kids coming into your home office or time sucks like Facebook, you need to focus and be more efficient. The key is arming yourself with the right tools for the job. Here, we’ve gathered a list of online time savers (productivity tools for the win!) plus tips for managing distractions. Create the Right Working Space Freelancers, if you want to work from home, you need an actual work space. Using the kitchen counter or just putting a desk in your bedroom is a recipe for distraction. (You’ll see the dishes piled up or find 10 other things that need your attention when what you should be doing is working.) Create a dedicated workspace—preferably one with a door and that isn’t used for anything else. Look for a room with a window. ...
Should Freelancers Join a Professional Network?
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Should Freelancers Join a Professional Network?

One of the biggest concerns that freelancers have is that they can be isolated from others in similar fields. So can a professional network offer the additional resources you need to succeed? The answer is yes if you find the right group. Here are reasons why you should join a professional network and how to find one that’s right for you. You’ll Build Relationships The No. 1 reason to join a professional organization is to develop personal and business relationships. This can be vitally important to freelance web designers and developers because you most often work in isolation. A professional group can help you stay fresh in the design community as well as work with people who have different skills and strengths. You might find someone that you can refer work to when you are busy or a pe...
Essential Design Trends, July 2018
Web Tricks

Essential Design Trends, July 2018

With the heat of summer comes a little bit of a design slowdown, but there are still plenty of projects worth your attention. Most of the major design trends happening right now feature structural components of website design, such a interactive layers or multiple columns of text. And there’s also this “little” international event that’s having some influence as well – the soccer World Cup. Here’s what’s trending in design this month: 1. Interactive Layers Designers are constantly trying to develop ways to keep users interested in the design for longer period of time. Using more interactivity is one way to do that. Pairing that interactivity with layered effects is another way to do it that has high visual interest. (It’s like putting the best of the visuals and interaction together.) Muc...
What’s New for Designers, June 2018
Web Tricks

What’s New for Designers, June 2018

No summertime blues here. With so many new tools, the dog days of summer will be filled with playing with new elements and expanding your design portfolio. If we’ve missed something that you think should have been on the list, let us know in the comments. And if you know of a new app or resource that should be featured next month, tweet it to @carriecousins to be considered! Cool Backgrounds Cool Backgrounds is a pretty nifty tool to help you create a trendy background element with color and gradients and shapes. You can create images for blogs, social media and full website designs as well as desktop wallpapers. The options are beautiful without any changes but you can also create customizations in the still, and animated, background options. Just make what you like in-browser and downlo...
3 Essential Design Trends, June 2018
Web Tricks

3 Essential Design Trends, June 2018

  Sometimes the most fun part of looking at design trends is when you start to notice subtle shifts in trends that create new design patterns altogether. Each of the trends this month is an evolution of something that’s been pretty popular, with an interesting spin. Here’s what’s trending in design this month: 1. Full Screen Photo The oversized hero image gets even bigger with full-screen photo displays. The key element in this website design trend is that the home “screen” is stripped of other elements so that the photo fills the entire screen. There aren’t separate space for navigation or other elements outside the image area. All elements are actually contained within the image. This design concept works best with a great image. Only the best, most striking and interestin...
3 SEO “Hacks” to Boost Your Website Ranking
Web Tricks

3 SEO “Hacks” to Boost Your Website Ranking

  Looking to boost your search rankings? While nothing can help you reach an audience better than great content, there are simple habits that can help you boost search ranking and provide valuable information for users. And it doesn’t require a complete website overhaul or hiring an SEO expert. Here are three hacks to help you boost your website ranking and help more users find your website content. 1. Use Video and Transcription You might already know that video is a great way to engage with users on your website. From full-screen video headers to short clips to grab attention, moving images can provide information to users that still photos can’t. Video can be more than that as well. Use video for tutorials or how-to features to drive even more engagement. Often in webs...