Tools & Resources articles

The right typeface can make or break your website. As designers, we will always be naturally drawn towards the premium fonts such as Circular, DIN, or Maison Neue; Before you know it, your website is racking up a font bill larger than your hosting bill. We’ve put together a list of open-source fonts that will rival your fancy fonts, and might even persuade you to switch them out. All the fonts listed here are completely open-source, which means...

I think of a creative practice as a combination of an approach (a design philosophy) and a series of techniques (craft skills); a good tool facilitates a technique, which in turn supports an approach. It wasn’t until I sat down to write a list of tools I can’t design without, that I realized just how many tools I rely on as an integral part of my creative process. The danger of tools is that they promote certain techniques, and that bias can alter...

Some of the changes we are seeing with where we work are starting to pop up in the type of new tools made for designers and developers. More tools with remote collaboration as a key feature are increasing in popularity. (You’ll find a few of those here.) Here’s what new for designers this month. Webdesign Toolbox Webdesign Toolbox is a collection of tools, apps, and resources all in one location for designers and developers. The best part...

No matter how skilled you are as a designer, you need tools. A surgeon can’t operate without a scalpel; the same goes for designers. To get the job done effectively, you need to right tools in your arsenal. Tools certainly don’t make the craftsman, but they do make your job easier (and mostly fun). There are so many tools available today, it can be daunting to start seeking out the right tools for you. In this semi-regular series, designers...

Whether Adobe’s focus on collaboration and remote-working was prescient long-term thinking, or if this direction of development is a reaction to the Covid-19 pandemic is unclear; what is clear is that the timing of this release is ideal for the new work environment we find ourselves in. Adobe CC June Update Highlights Adobe’s move from an 18-month release cycle, to multiple releases per year thins out the excitement surrounding these...

The best new tools for designers are ones that make your life easier and your workflows faster. You’ll find some of those in this list this month for sure. From tools to help you capture and manage color palettes to AI-powered design analytics to simple animations, there’s something for almost every designer or developer. Here’s what new for designers this month. The Hero Generator The Hero Generator is a fun tool that will help you create...

Typography is an integral part of website design. The typography and fonts you use play a huge role in multiple aspects of a website design. It affects factors such as readability, user experience, and even the perceived length of an article or page. It is very important that web designers get it right with typography to adequately convey the purpose of the website and its content.  As with almost every part of web design, there are several...

There are plenty of new tools to speed up your work available now. From background patterns and icons to landing page templates and new fonts, we’ve got something for almost everyone here. And while some of these tools are premium options, almost everything is free and open-source. Here’s what’s new for designers this month. Pattern.css Pattern.css is a CSS-only library that you can use to fill empty backgrounds. There are tons of pattern...

Content Management Systems are arguably the internet's most powerful web development tool. In a rapidly growing market where every business under the sun requires a website that is not only fully functioning, but optimised, easy to update regularly, and implement the latest features, the right CMS is important. As a web developer it can be easy to stick to the CMS you know – even if there are potentially better ones out there. With such a busy...

Since you are dealing with customers — even if it’s just a few, it is important that you offer them the best possible experience. This is especially important for freelancers and small design agencies with a few clients because they don’t have the luxury of losing clients. In fact, 73% of clients say that having a positive experience is one of the key factors that influence their brand loyalty. One way to improve your client experience...

While there’s a lot going in the world with the COVID-19 pandemic, the design world is also reacting. You’ll notice that some of the newest tools and resources for designers are for working through or with the virus’ impact or are inspired by this change to our lifestyles. Here’s what new for designers this month. Snapfont Snapfont is a browser extension that lets you test any font on any website in a snap. You can preview differences...

One of the biggest perks of a career in Web Design is the potential for working remotely. As long as you have access to Wi-Fi, you can basically work from anywhere, whether it be from home, a co-working space, or even the beach — the world is your proverbial remote oyster. Whether you’re new to the telecommuting game or a seasoned veteran, working solo comes with its own set of challenges and roadblocks. Design work, in particular, is a collaborative...

It’s April Fools’ Day, and each year on the 1st of April we normally join the rest of the world in posting a humorous, and entirely fictitious story. But this year, we decided to go a different way. These aren’t normal times. Around the world, millions of people are struggling with the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. Many people have lost family members, and many more are struggling to support themselves and their families....

Spring is in the air. As the season changes, many designers are looking for a little refresh of their own. Hopefully some of these new tools and resources will do the trick. Here’s what new for designers this month. Visme Visme allows you to quickly create and share content with tools to build presentations, infographics, documents, videos, and graphics — with little to no design skills. But it’s for designers too with features that...