Web Design Trends

WEB DESIGN TRENDS 2011

An collection of online opinions

2011 is not about beauty, it’s about function.Jacqueline Thomas

More user-friendly, less colorful and with fewer whistles and bells, but still capable of delivering multimedia rich experience to the users.Inseven designs

...the most effective pages had less than 3 critical elements on them. Designers are using softer colors and pages are taking on a pastel revolution of minimalism.Benr Rama

Web fonts, social sharing, personalized content and much more emphasis on faster loading speeds and optimization for mobile devices.Jacob Cass

Content will be king in 2011.Andy Sowards

Pantone Colour of the Year!

PANTONE 18-2120 Honeysuckle: A Vibrant, Energetic Hue. A Color for All Seasons. Courageous. Confident. Vital.

A brave new color, for a brave new world.

Let the bold spirit of Honeysuckle infuse you, lift you and carry you through the year. It's a color for every day - with nothing "everyday" about it.

Mobile

Web designs in multiple viewports Designing for touch screens Using liquid/fluid layouts & responsive design Reinterpretation of the old web 2.0 look... Simple icons & front perspective

vv

CSS3 / HTML5

Becoming more main stream

New browser features means that design elements which previously took hours of design with Photoshop - like drop shadows and rounded corners - can now be created with a few keystrokes. Designers can finally use professional fonts without the clunky work-arounds that have been used in the past and the long awaited web canvas will allow designers to manipulate graphics in the browser rather than merely reshuffling pre-fabricated images. For designers these combined changes are like upgrading from scissors and glue to using paint and canvas.

New technology... A revolution in web design means web sites will soon combine the richness of magazine layouts with the interactivity of computer games.

Interactive pages being built with little or no Flash.

CSS3 / HTML5

...in 2011 the difference between designers who simply design and let the developers sort through the implementation and those that understand the full process and can design thoughtful CMS friendly designs will become even more evident.Patrick McNeil

Typography

Richer and stronger typography with webfonts becoming main stream & the growth of font-replacement technology Reducing kerning and tracking values for better mobile visibility SubTrend: Print Design Inspired Sites

Grids Even more focus on grid-based design – more flexible, breaking away from traditional layouts (header, content column, sidebar, footer) Single page designs Magazine like design “Editorial layout" which will enable the visitors to find information on the website more easily.

MinimalSimple Colour SchemesCleaner interfaces

Depth Perception

Depth Perception in Web Design - http://www.plantate.net/ Parallax Scrolling - http://www.rowtothepole.com/

Desktop Application UI Influence

Websites can often look like an application....Everything from modal windows, context menus, OS inspired buttons, and more are being brought into the web design environment in new and exciting ways… The end result: sites that feel more user friendly and natural.

Massive Images

Better image optimization, faster internet connections, and smarter loading methods mean larger images being used.Content-relevant & part of the experience

Texture!

● More designs are starting to feel “touchable”● New style of combining grungy textures along with clean interfaces and bold typefaces

Infographic Driven Designs

yummy!

v v

Constant Connection

● Feeds / activity● Social Media Convergence

Crispy, pixel perfect web elements

● Because of multiple resolutions for different devices●Same content but with much more detail and richness

And some more...

Thumbnail design awareness – Google

Really big images & oversized logos/headers are a new effort in branding for

websites

Lighter & brighter designs

More interactive web apps (inspired by iPhone apps)

Simple legible symmetrical logo design

Letterpress typography continues...

Attention to details with sewn-like elements, badges and banners

Sources

http:///www.brightlabs.com.au/page/Web-Design-Blog/Website_Trends_2011

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2011/01/web-design-predictions-for-2011/

http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/design-theory/the-state-of-web-design-trends-2011-annual-edition/

http://webdesignledger.com/tips/web-design-trends-in-2011

http://www.webdesignshock.com/review/design-trends-for-2011/

http://www.inseven.ca/wp/advice-news-opinions/web-design-trends-in-2011.html