Good writing is good design. It’s a rare exception where words don’t accompany design. Icons with names, form fields with examples, buttons with labels, step by step instructions in a process, a clear explanation of your refund policy. These are all interface design.
Journal
Words 104
How you look and feel really matters. This is a totally pragmatic thing, not a style or fashion thing. From now on always try make the very best of what you’ve got. People will make instant snap decisions about how they feel about you, based on how you look. So there’s a need to groom, to dress and behave attractively.
Workflow 04
Feedly is my RSS reader of choice.
Pictures 59
Adding a few snaps to the NJS Equine Therapy logo & web design project.
Words 103
Every feature has some maintenance cost, having fewer features lets you focus on making them work well.
Words 102
People can copy what you’ve done, but they can’t copy what you still want to do.
Pictures 58
The new karstenrowe.com brand roundel and the google+ circular avatar.
Words 101
It’s pretty hard to be efficient without being obnoxious.
Pictures 57
Digging around in old project folders… These designs never really saw the light of day so…
Pictures 56
Branding yourself or own product is the most painful and indecisive process, yet the most satisfying one.
Pictures 55
Admittedly I have never used the service but I love the idea of Newspaper Club.
Words 100
Never be afraid to sit a while and think.
Pictures 54
Sometimes books are best for inspiration.
Words 99
I value the friend who for me finds time on his calendar, but I cherish the friend who for me does not consult his calendar.
Pictures 53
Digging through some old magazines – this Roy Lichtenstein inspired cover design for Creative Review still works for me.
Words 98
Being rich is having money; being wealthy is having time.
Pictures 52
Holly Daniels and I recently visited the Imperial War Museum – a beautiful building, a posh cafe and some inspiring artwork.
Project 06: NJS Equine Therapy
A brief insight into the NJS Equine Therapy branding and website project.
Words 97
Users should never have to guess if something is clickable or not.
Resource 03
A multi-page skeleton web project framework.
A simple aim; create a basic, yet expansive web project template that you can download, use and deploy quickly.
- Bootstrapped
- LESS integrated stylesheets – commented, variables, mixins, retina ready, minified.
- jQuery & Google Web fonts ready.
- Mobile friendly design.
Please feel free to download and use in your own projects.
Words 96
The price the user sees in their shopping cart should be the same as what the user is charged on their credit card.
Words 95
Showcase your best work, not all of your work.
Pictures 51
A piece of the Berlin Wall.
Words 94
People overestimate what they can accomplish in the near term and underestimate what they can accomplish in the long term.
Workflow 03
At Nutshell we use HipChat daily, resulting in CloudApp becoming a fundamental tool. The Auto-upload screenshot preference which I initially found frustrating has become a convenient way to quickly share content – visuals & text. It also serves as a running history of UI inspiration.
Words 93
It’s important to get away from work until you miss it.
Workflow 02
A brief endorsement of Bootstrap – a mobile first framework for faster and easier web development.
Yes, I know I am very late into the game. I eventually got onboard – very impressed.
Words 92
Taking time to sit back and watch is important – a million ideas will come to you.
Pictures 50
Google being helpful again. Intuitive, easy yet descriptive – helping users along their way with minimum fuss.
Pictures 49
An overwhelming amount of amazing design work – the @Dropbox team on @dribbble.
Words 91
You know you’ve done something right when everyone at the conference table is smarter than you.
Pictures 48
One premium package by Viktor & Rolf.
Words 90
Is web design an artistic undertaking? Or, is it a pragmatic process.
Words 89
We do not remember days, we remember moments.
Words 88
Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination can take you anywhere.
Words 87
Set goals, reach, repeat.
Pictures 47
I recently visited the Detroit Institute of Arts with team @Nutshell. A truly extensive and varied collection that rivals any museum I have ever been to.
If you are ever in the Detroit area, it’s well worth a visit.
Words 86
When Winston Churchill was asked to cut arts funding in favour of the war effort, he simply replied, “then what are we fighting for?”.
Words 85
The young are always coming up with the good ideas; it’s because they waste time. They follow their passion and do something, not looking for a payoff, just doing what’s interesting.
Words 84
Branding is what people say about you when you are not in the room.
Pictures 46
Stumbled across this lovely poster today – color, composition & type.
Resource 02
Words 83
I want a life that other people tell stories about.
Words 82
Be passionate about whatever you do.
Pictures 45
Collaborative sketching with clients is fun – found these very old comps this morning.
Words 81
It’s not that I have more energy. I also get tired. It’s more a case of choosing to use it.
Words 80
Treat every job interview as a success. You then have very little to lose once you get there.
karstenrowe.com have a dribbble page
www.karstenrowe.com are now on @dribbble – a weekly preview of new design work and inspiration.
Pictures 44
Gorgeous hand drawn typography.
Words 79
Old, wise or experienced?