In this episode of Syntax, Scott and Wes talk about design foundations for developers — tips to follow that will make your designs better!
Sanity - Sponsor
Sanity.io is a real-time headless CMS with a fully customizable Content Studio built in React. Get a Sanity powered site up and running in minutes at sanity.io/create. Get an awesome supercharged free developer plan on sanity.io/syntax.
Freshbooks - Sponsor
Get a 30 day free trial of Freshbooks at freshbooks.com/syntax and put SYNTAX in the “How did you hear about us?” section.
Show Notes
6:35 - Our backgrounds in design
12:41 - Foundations
- Consistency makes a big difference
- Use “training wheel” tools until you are confident
- Always work within a system
- Less is more - subtle is better
19:39 - Color
- Color theory
- Complementary colors and shades
- Stick to color pallet generators until you are good enough
28:51 - Spacing
- More spacing than you think you need
- Vertical rhythm
- Letter spacing: -1px
- Consistent margin and padding
34:47 - Typography
- Sans vs serifs
- Finding fonts
- Use proven combinations until you know your way around
41:49 - Interaction
- Design for all states (e.g. standard, visited, active, hover, etc.)
- Animations should be quick
- Interactions should make sense
45:04 - Concerns beyond visuals
- Accessibility via color contrast
- Thin fonts and light grey are awful
- Think about the poor Windows users
48:47 - Inspiration + Resources
Links
××× SIIIIICK ××× PIIIICKS ×××
Shameless Plugs
Tweet us your tasty treats!
