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Posts Tagged ‘color’

Design for the color blind

Friday, January 15th, 2010

ColorBlindTest As a designer I tend to believe in the economy of form. Why make your web links a different color, bold and underlined when a simple color shift is enough to visually distinguish them? Isn’t it?

While I haven’t changed my “less is more motto”, I do think it is important to keep in mind that a color shift may not be noticeable to all viewers. About 8% of males have some form of color blindness.

When designing web sites, information graphics, maps or charts that use color to distinguish different pieces of information it may be helpful to test your design using a handy tool called the Color Oracle. The plug-in uses a menu that quickly converts your art (regardless of the program you are using) into a palette that simulates what colorblind people see. Very handy!

Tags: color, design, Tools, web
Posted in Design Love | 1 Comment »

Holiday Design Toolkit

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

We are hours from the winter shutdown, but we don’t want to leave you without any suprezzies. I’ve uncovered some fun holiday-themed design tools to get you through the upcoming weeks.

1. Make sure you download this fun free aged serif font series called IM FELL (used below). It’s the perfect addition to your holiday cards, table place-holders, and don’t forget the present tags!

2. If you don’t want to spend time drawing your own snowflakes for your holiday window display, just download this set of free snowflake dings for a wide variety of styles, that you won’t have to repeat.

3. Your holiday designs wouldn’t be complete without a few swirls and flourishes. These babies are a toughie to hand draw, so just download this free vector art to spice up your designs. Try overlaying over your seasonal photos for a fun holiday gift to grandma!

4. Need a little nature in your designs? Download this free vector branches and get rustic!

5. Have a craving to make your own special wrapping paper? Download this free demask wallpaper pattern (used below) to make your presents sing!

6. Need a festive frame for those custom cards (seen below)? Download this super collection of vector goodies. Don’t miss out on the deer, birdies, & flourishes. Nontradtionalist? This pack isn’t all just holiday, Create your own wrapping paper using the scull and crossbones as a pattern.

7. Stuck on picking a color theme for your party? Check out 50’s Christmas color pallet on Kuler.com. Or maybe the urban holiday pallet is more your speed?

8. Not a designer? Well, we wouldn’t leave you empty handed, check out these pre-made printable designs. They are way too cute. Also, this Spooky Bois Lime Green Paper and gift box isn’t just for Halloween, use it as a festive wrapping paper.

Now get creative and go crazy. If you do use items from the toolkit we would love to check them out, so don’t forget to send your pictures our way! Happy Holidays!

Image made from items in the Holiday Design Toolkit

Tags: color, design, Freebies, Illustration, Typography, Vector
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Winter Design Showcase

Friday, December 11th, 2009

The countdown to the holidays have begun, and with that we often get a handful of requests to create or revamp a design using a seasonal theme. The holidays are not only about snowflakes and Christmas trees anymore. New design trends and styles are always emerging and keeping us designers on our toes. This year, I found a use of unexpected color, form, and technique. Holiday design doesn’t always have to be extremely different either, traditional styles can be comforting to the audience and allow your designs to become timeless and long-lasting. Check out the showcase of winter designs to get you inspired this holiday season.

Winter_Showcase_01

Winter_Showcase_02 Winter_Showcase_03

Tags: color, design, holiday
Posted in Design Love | 1 Comment »

Turquoise Takes 2010

Tuesday, December 8th, 2009

Pantone just announced its color of the year for 2010, Turquoise 15-5519. Pantone describes this color as “an inviting, luminous hue… Combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigorating aspects of green, Turquoise evokes thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a languorous, effective escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while at the same time restoring our sense of wellbeing.” I couldn’t agree more. I love the use of Turquoise in design. It can be bold, fun and a little edgy and yet is also calm and tranquil. Here is a round up of some nice designs using colors in this family. Enjoy the escape!

Turquoise15-5519

Tags: color, design, Pantone
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Going Vintage

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Lately, I’ve been inspired by vintage photography. I love its naturally faded colors, vignettes, and soothing tones. I’ve been on the lookout for Photoshop tutorials that will add bit of that historical and airy elegance to my own projects. On my search I found two tutorials, one focusing on a vintage feel, and another recreating a Lomographic style that gives a blurry and colorful look that you often find in the original analog photography. Below are two examples using both tutorial techniques, one features a muted pink tone, while the other focuses on a more contrasting, blurred effect. If you would like to share any additional ways to achieve a vintage style, I’d love to hear it.

Vintage_Tutorial

Tags: color, photography, Photoshop, tutorial
Posted in Design Love | 1 Comment »

Totally Kuler

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009

Today I was introduced to Kuler, a web application by Adobe that lets you generate custom color themes. Kuler gives you the opportunity to experiment with color variations and also browse themes from other Kuler members. This is a great tool to gain inspiration for colors and assist in creating cohesive color stories. What I loved is the ability to import your own photos and pull color pallets directly from the images. All you need to do is create an account, upload a photo, and Kuler lets you “select a mood” (bright, colorful, muted, deep, dark), offering you a variety of different color pallets taken from the same photo. After you have chosen a combo that you are happy with, you can save it for later access, reference the color values for use in projects, or download a color pallet that is compatible with other adobe programs. The downloadable color pallet is really one of the site’s key features, because it lets you quickly start using the colors in your designs rather then wasting time pulling color values from Photoshop. Below is a custom pallet we generated from one of Tweedle C’s Hawaiian vacation photos and a basic design incorporating the colors demonstrating how very simple it can be to turn inspiration into artwork.

Kuler

Kuler_Example

Tags: color, design, Illustrator, Photoshop
Posted in Design Love | 1 Comment »

Aloha!

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

I’ve just returned from Hawaii, and am trying to get used to these gray Portland skies. Here’s a little taste of the islands to spice up this dreary day.

The Traditional

Traditional Aloha shirts (known as Hawaiian shirts on the mainland) are usually adorned with traditional Hawaiian quilt designs, tapa designs, and simple floral patterns in more muted colors. The Aloha shirts manufactured for local Hawaiians are considered formal wear in business and government, and thus are regarded as equivalent to a shirt, coat and tie. These shirts often are printed on the interior, a style called “reverse print,” resulting in the muted color on the exterior.

Aloha_Tapa

The Contemporary

Contemporary Aloha shirts are often brilliantly-colored with floral patterns or generic Polynesian motifs, and are worn as casual informal wear. They may have prints that don’t feature any traditional Hawaiian quilt or floral designs and instead may have elements such as automobiles, drinks, surf boards or other elements arranged in the same pattern as a traditional Aloha shirt. The modern Aloha shirt was created in the early 1930s by Chinese merchant Ellery Chun in Waikiki, when he began sewing brightly colored shirts for tourists out of old kimono fabrics he had leftover.

Aloha_Mod

Tags: aloha, color, design, fabric
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Design Forecast: Houndstooth

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

This print definitely has a checkered past, but it’s on its way back in! The French call it pied de pole (chicken’s foot) due to its characteristic broken checks,or abstract four-pointed shapes. The Houndstooth check was made classic by its use in fabrics in the 30’s through the 70’s, and now it’s coming back in full force. We’ve caught glimpses of this traditional black and white pattern popping up in fashion, interior design, and even recently was spotted on the back of a car.

CHECK out why this pattern rocks our socks:

A.) It adds a traditional/vintage flair into any piece it is applied to.
B.) It can be bold or subtle, based on the size and scale of its use.
C.) It can have a very modern and current feel when it’s paired with a bold color.

Though this print has been popular in the textile industry, we predict its widespread growth beyond fabrics, slowly invading our coffee cups, iPhones and computer screens. So be on the lookout—we’re sure you’ll be seeing this patterned print everywhere in the near future!

Houndstooth

Tags: color, design, fabric, houndstooth
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Animal Print

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009

Get on your safari hats, because today we’re going wild! We love a splashy animal print because it borders on that line of oh-so-good or oh-so-bad. That line can be crossed in fashion, interior design and graphic design, but when it’s done right it makes our hearts go pitter patter. Check out these examples of just the right amount of jungle style on the runway, in print and in the home. We recommend just a dash of these prints—don’t be afraid to mix and match with other bold patterns & textures, but always remember to go faux. Grrrr.

The Color of Animal Print

7504_Animal_Print

The color of animal print is 7504, a warm brown that looks soft to the touch.

The Typeface of Animal Print

AnimalPrint_Zeebra

The Typeface of animal print is Zeebraa. It is clearly wild and crazy enough to represent this fierce trend.

Tags: color, design, Typography
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Greg’s Top Tops

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

A week would not be complete without a glimpse at one of Greg’s infamous Top Tops. Check him out here—already passing on his stripey top top style to a little friend! We’ve heard the fashion tip “if you find something you like, buy one in every single color.” But we commend Greg’s slightly different motto; “if you like the color of something, make sure you buy one of everything in that color.” We just have one recommendation; it’s summer, and it might be worth adding a sleeveless number to the Top Top collection. Just a thought.

The Color of Greg’s Top Tops

304_GregsTops

One part pms 304, one part brown, stripe it up and you’ll be rockin’ the town.

The Typeface of Greg’s Top Tops

GregsTops_DFVanilla

At last, a font to accompany Greg’s Top Tops. DF Vanilla embodies the feeling surrounding Greg’s infamous affinity for stripes and lends an 80’s feel to the whole scene, which of course is highly applicable. High tops and funny hair anyone?

Tags: color, design, Typography
Posted in Design Love | 2 Comments »