Top 10 Christmas Greeting Cards Design
Holiday season is approaching once again, and I am sure you are looking for interesting greeting cards for your loved ones this Christmas. With extensive research we have gathered a list of top 10 Christmas greeting cards design.
If you are tired of looking at the old and over-used greeting cards, have a look at the following collection and let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. These cards don’t have the usual fonts, characters or images that you will find in your local card shop.
Here is our pick of top 10 Christmas greeting cards design for this year. The list includes creativity from Kate Moross, Anthony Oram, Jon Burgerman and others. Browse through and enjoy these festive designs.
- Christmas Greeting Cards by BenTheillustrator
- Murray Christmas Cards by Little White Lies
- Holiday Greeting Cards by Kate Moross for Trekstock
- Christmas Greeting Cards by Jon Burgerman of Burgerplex
- Promotional Christmas Greeting Card by Paul Burgess
- Santa Hates You Christmas Card by FINCHandHARE
- Hoo Hoo Hoo Christmas Greeting Card by PikeStreetPress
- Christmas Greeting Cards by Monocle
- SnowBikeMan Greeting Cards by Anthony Oram
- Never Eat Yellow Snow Cards by Ohh Deer
Check out some of the best Christmas Craft Ideas and learn how to make snowman christmas card.
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How to Become a Better Designer?
Do you know how to become a better designer? What does it really take? Even if you don’t, I think you can do so by learning new skills and trying all of our design tips listed below.
Here are some of the important tips you should keep in mind to be a better designer in your niche.
- Learn how to use the grid in designing layouts
- Use better font options with the help of technology
- Use free color generators and check out different palettes
- Communicate that message to masses through your design
- Pencil a sketch before using design software
- Explore and draw all you can before finalizing a design
- Learn to draw and copy-write effectively
- Research, research and research more…
Let us know in the comments if you were able to implement any of the creative design tips mentioned above to become a better designer.
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Top 10 Excuses to Get Cheap Design Work Rates
Interestingly, I have come across quite a few designers lately raving about money dispute with the clients on different community forums. Since, I thought this article might be useful for most of the inexperienced designers.
Here is a list of top 10 excuses made by clients to get cheap design work rates for their projects.
- Do this work for cheap and we’ll make it up in the next design project.
- We can not pay upfront, and will only release payment once you have delivered the final design.
- You will get massive publicity and a lot of work once you have done this design project for us, for free!
- After having a look at the rough design copy, this is what you get: “We are not sure if this is what we want, however let us discuss this within our team, partner, family, etc and we shall get back to you.”
- Project is little delayed because we do not have enough time at the moment. Keep our tab open and we will continue working on the design next month.
- Work contract? Don’t you trust us? I thought we were cool
- You can send us an invoice once the work is complete.
- We cannot do $x,xxx because our budget is only $xxx, firm!
- The last designer we had, was doing it for $xxx.
- We cannot pay you upfront because of some financial issues; however we will definitely make it up after you have delivered.
Please understand that the list of top 10 excuses wasn’t compiled to mock any firm or individual, however is published to bring novice designers into reality, and out of fantasy world so that they can stop losing money on offering cheap design work rates.
image source: unknown
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Top 10 Forums for Web Designers & Developers
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Posted under: Design Firms, Design Tutorials, Graphic Design, Website Design
You will find hundreds of knowledgeable forum communities online for web developers and designers, however not all are maintained with high standards. You should perform adequate due-diligence to find the right forum.
You should keep in mind that good quality and high standard forum should have characteristics of substantial user-base with 50%-70% of them being quite regular and active. One other aspect to evaluate is the quality of content available in the forum with effective management.
Here is a list of top 10 most popular forums available for web professionals like developers and designers:
Adobe Forums – The forums are quite effective and supported by the Adobe itself. There are quite a few interesting segments (like Print Design, Web Design, and Typography) on Adobe Forums that you should check out.
Designerstalk – The Designers Talk forum has a huge user-base of over 400,000 developers and designers. And, you can always find someone available for help.
Dev Shed Forums – You will find professionals from different areas and skills ranging from web programming to design, to databases and much more.
Digital Point Forums – Digital Point community is one of the oldest and well-known forums. You will find discussions ranging from search engine optimization, search engine marketing, and other web developer related issues that may also be of interest to professionals.
Graphic Design Forum – Graphic Design Forum is exclusively for graphic designer related discussions.
Kirupa Forums – These forums are for web designers and developers who actively want to participate in discussions with over user-base of 100,000 members.
SitePoint Forums – This is another largest community forum available for webmasters and related professionals and is also an eminent source to some of the authoritative ebooks and web tutorials.
WebDesignForums.net – You will find effective tips, tricks and tutorials on different web design aspects from fellow community members. An added bonus is of availability of web hosting, server setup and marketing segment.
Web Designer Forum – This is a mid-sized forum with an active and loyal design community.
WebmasterTalkForums – Here is another medium-size webmaster discussion forum focused on interests of web designers and developers.
Are you using any of the following online communities? Share your experience about these forums with us in the comments below.
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Kenya Hara: Accomplished Designer
When Kenya Hara, a Japanese designer, designed a logo out of Human hair at the Haptic Exhibition, he opened new gateways to creativity. “I designed it using human hair, which shocked some and impressed others. I believe that the human body has a great possibility to fill the walls of one’s home. I want people to use their entire body to create a fantastic world of art,” explains the visionary.
Sustaining excellence right from Nagano Winter Olympics, 1998 to “Designing Design” an influential book, Kenya Hara is a design institution in itself.
Hara theory is object designing and art out of the most unknown ideas. In a recent interview, Hara recalled the masterpiece in his career; ‘Re-Design: The Daily Products of the 20th Century’ in 2000. “That exhibition happened when a new century was beginning. As the art director of that exhibition, I asked many talented artists to redesign ordinary things like matchsticks, toilet paper and even diapers. Those objects actually became art pieces in my eyes, it was then that I posed the question to myself and society — what is design?” recalls Hara.
The essence to create design out of the uncommon and wild objects signifies his work. “Everything is design — a pen, a cup, the coaster the cup is placed on, each tile on the floor, the city. I want to awaken people to the reality of design and make them aware of the difference between re-inventing a design and creating a new one. That’s what interests me most — to understand the challenges in changing something from the old to new,” shares Hara.
Japan, his home-country, has lot of influence on him and the design projects. His latest being methodological floor design for Japanese houses, where footwear are not allowed inside the house, design something that comforts both the feet and the house. “Like in some other countries, the Japanese also take off our shoes when we enter a house. If the floor is more intelligent and can capture information about the human body like blood pressure, temperature and weight, we can imagine a new dialogue between a house and the inhabitant. A house can be a high-tech art form that combines various technologies,” he explains.
He recreates from old to new and culture oriented artifacts by not restricting his designs to current trends only. “Don’t think of the future as the next five years but think of it as a 40 to 50-year time frame. Similarly, when you go into the past, go back at least 100 years and from that viewpoint, look at what you can do today,” advises Kenya Hara.
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Top 10 Free eBooks for Designers and Developers
No Comments Posted under: Design Firms, Design Tutorials, Graphic Design, Website Design
If you are a web designer or a developer, and would like to learn more about designing, get your hands on one of these interesting eBooks available for download. Even though most of the books cost quite a bit in the market, you can get your hands on these top 10 creative eBooks absolutely free of cost.
Here is a list for your use:
- Getting Real – Free eBook for Web Developers
- Principles of Web Design – Free eBook for Web Designers
- HTML5 WTF? – Free eBook for Web Developers
- How To Be Creative – Free eBook for Web Designers
- Mobile Design & Development – Free eBook for Web Developers
- Design Your Imagination – Free eBook for Web Designers
- Bulletproof Web Design – Free eBook for Web Designers
- 20 Things I Learned About Browsers and the Web - Free eBook for Web Developers
- Type Classification – Free eBook for Web Designers
- Web Style Guide 3 – Free eBook for Web Developers
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How to Use Adobe Fireworks for Graphic Design?
Different types of graphics are designed for print and electronic media using Adobe Fireworks software. CS6 is the latest edition of Adobe Fireworks with top-rated features like pages panel, path panel, PDF export, align panel upgraded, guide measure, measurement auto shapes, 9-slice scaling tool etc… which help out in making websites and vector graphics with great ease.
Before starting the graphic designing tutorial, it is necessary to have some basic idea about how to use Adobe Fireworks. In case you are a beginner, you can still learn the design work using Adobe software.
Creating Curves
Every graphic designer should know “the making of curves”, as it is one of the main graphic design skill that can come into play any time.
While making a curve, the first step is to create a stretched rectangle. After making a rectangle, select one among the four points of the rectangle by using the sub-selection tool. While using this tool, Adobe Fireworks will warn that the object will be ungrouped; you should accept it and move ahead.
Second step is to change the shape of rectangle by using pen tool. Using this tool, make a point on the lowest line of the rectangle (preferably at the center) and click drag. You will notice curve handles of the point appearing. Release click after the curve handles appear.
The third and final step is adjusting the curves… for this, you have to click at the point you had created in the second step and correct or fine-tune shape of the curve by pressing and dragging the curve handles.
Drop Shadow
This is a graphic effect in the Effects Panel of the Windows Properties. For applying drop shadow, you need to select the graphic and “+” option under Effects tab. When you are there, click at Drop Shadow for the effect to appear. You can change the shadow properties to make the effect look soft or crisp. For a soft shadow effect, change the properties, by changing the values of distance to 2px and softness to 5. For making it crisp, you can input the value of distance as 3px and softness as 4.
Feathering of Images
If you have an imported image where you do not want a certain section to be seen, or only parts of the picture to be displayed, then use the Image Extraction techniques available in Adobe Fireworks. One of the most popular features is feathering which will get rid of the sharp finish to generate a revised image by providing a fading in pixel radius.
Paste Inside
Any graphic can be placed in a vector shape by using the “paste inside” feature of Adobe Fireworks. For this, you need to place the graphic over the vector shape while selecting and chopping the graphic only.
Subsequently, select the vector shape and paste that particular graphic inside with Ctrl+Shift+ V buttons. It is always advised to give a stroke and shadow to such images for making the entire graphic look better.
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Top 10 Joys of Instagram
Instagram recently celebrated it’s second birthday on the October 6th, 2012 as a free photo-sharing service and also surpassed Twitter with most active daily user base on mobile.
Here are the top 10 and best photos on Instagram in most recent times.
- “My first tattoo…dedicated to my mommy!” — Via Urvi Jain
- “First Instagram photo on my new iPhone, en route to Texas from D.C.” — Via Geoff R
- “My bike commute in Seattle.” — Via Jason Gowans
- You can feel the crisp chill just by looking at this Instagram of the Alps. — Via Giuliana Chi
- “Golden Sunset.” — Via mirza-asad-baig
- “I like reflections because they are able to give any subject, as big as the Golden Gate Bridge or as small as a flower, a human like quality by allowing the viewer to admire the object’s beauty and power regardless of its size.” — Via Jonny Luis
- “She saying “YES” has been my nerve racking triumph!” — Via Jonathan Nafarrete
- “Crazy weather not too far from home: Sand Tornadoes in the Desert.” — Via Andrew Gant
- “The first photo I edited for perfect symmetry — aka the first time I’ve ever seen a two-headed cow.” — Via Frederik Verleye
- Nothing pays homage to summer like a waterslide. — Via Jonathan Nafarrete
Do you use Instagram? Let us know of your best and worst Instagram experience in comment section below.
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Creative Graphic & Web Designer from Bali; Ari Krzyzek
2 Comments Posted under: Design Firms, Designer Interviews, Graphic Design, Website Design
Ari Krzyzek, better known as “Chykalophia” is a popular graphic and web designer from Indonesia. Chykalophia Design is a firm operated by Ari and being setup as a full-time art studio in Glenview, Illinois.
We recently got a chance to speak with Ari on different design aspects and she was humble enough to share her thoughts and experience for readers of DesigningTips.com. Don’t forget to check out her design tips at the end of this interview.
Excerpt from Ari Krzyzek’s website:
Once upon a time, we had a dream to make a big impact in design industry. We’ve been through a lot of dialogues with small to medium business owners to accomplish their visions through our designs. Today, we’re proud to be a goal oriented design studio focusing on how to make you look great. Literally!
DesigningTips.com – Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from and how you ended up being a designer?
Ari Krzyzek – Well I am from “island of thousand temples” Bali, Indonesia. After finishing my high school, my parents wanted me to apply for the scholarship in Tourism School of which, I think, I really didnt have any desire for. In the meanwhile TV advertisement and magazine attracted me (I refer to the Ads Artwork/Ads Design), just then I realized my wish to become a graphic designer. I applied to Art School where I got my Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication Design. I’m currently setting up my design studio in Glenview, IL along with my husband…
DesigningTips.com – Is it necessary to go to a design school to become a good designer or is it enough to “attend the school of hard knocks”?
Ari Krzyzek – I wouldn’t say it’s necessary to attend design or art school though it gives you a lot of experience and perspective on working as an artist, improving your skill by learning and experiments. It also gives you an opportunity to build a network of designers you trust in case you need a support for a big project. But then I also know many designers who didn’t get a Bachelors or didn’t go to design school and are doing great on their own. It’s a matter of preference I think.
DesigningTips.com – What are the key elements for a good design? Is good design a function of creativity … of sound experience … or both?
Ari Krzyzek – If you would have asked me this question few years ago, my answer would have been creativity but design is not ONLY about that. Creativity is a big part of design but you really need to make sure you have the right solution incorporated with the right function. If you think of design as a simple thing, yeah sure….every designer can make creative business cards or flyers. But when you think of design as a solution and you (graphic designer) as a problem solver, it is more complex than just creativity. You see, a brand identity project is not just about creativity. You’ll need to find the right nuance to know how the design will approach their target market and more.
So, I guess to answer your question: the key element of good design is creative solution.
DesigningTips.com – What inspires you and your designs?
Ari Krzyzek – Ugh…. tough…. I don’t know… anything pretty I guess. It could be from the gradient color of trees during autumn, some fancy invitation sets, painted decorative tile or Bali beach view. To me, as long as it is captured by my “pretty sixth sense” I can start to work on some design.
DesigningTips.com – Is there any real difference between designing a brochure/pamphlet/logo, room in a home, or clothing for a beautiful woman?
Ari Krzyzek – In the early stage of process, it’s possible that there might be some differences. But even though it’s a different branch of design, I think the basic process: research, brainstorming-ideas, sketch, revisions and final design would be the same.
DesigningTips.com – How do you work on design projects? I mean, what design software, applications and design tools you use the most for your projects?
Ari Krzyzek – I use most of the Adobe Creative Suite but the most frequent ones are Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign and Dreamweaver.
DesigningTips.com – Are there ever times when design changes are radical?
Ari Krzyzek – Design is a learning process for both me and my clients. We attempt to minimize these types of changes by trying to understand each other’s mission for the project, understanding the branding and company. Although when it happens, both parties should understand why such changes are needed before proceeding to the next stage.
DesigningTips.com – Can you tell us about your design portfolio and clientele (people you have worked with & for)?
Ari Krzyzek – I’ve worked with clients around the globe. Most of my clients are from Bali, Singapore, Poland, UK, Australia, and of course the US. I’ve worked with Department of Defense contractors, exotic fashion lines, TV celebrities and a lot of other really fun people. I’m also working with high end restaurants, multi-million dollar start-ups and some very cool non-profits.
DesigningTips.com – Any design tips you would like to share with freshers who are just starting out in the design industry?
Ari Krzyzek – One thing: Never Give Up! Yeah, it’s true that there are thousands of graphic and web designers out in the market. But there’s only one “you”. So make yourself ready, shape up your artistic mind with creativity and roll! Good Luck!
Design Portfolio:
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I-Mark Initiative for Product Designs
The launch of India Design mark or “i-mark” by India Design Council is an initiative taken due to the rising demand by the companies for certification of their product design.
Though the practice is new in India, to maintain better design standards, more and more companies are concerned over the infringement of their product designs. Earlier Indian companies relied on an internal system or a foreign authority or such certifications. With the usage of I-mark, there will be uniformity in label design and control on design breach entirely through an Indian Authority.
The Indian design Council has received the registration in two phases. The first phase saw 70 applications in which 31 applications were certified, the second phase may cross 150 applications this year. The first phase of registration wiped away the cream of the market certifying designs of companies like Wipro Consumer Care &Lighting, Godrej & Boyce, Crompton Graves, etc. The figure of 400 has been recorded so far compared to 300 last year.
A fee is charged for the process of certification and online registrations are compulsory for all companies. “Our assessment is based on the number of online registrations we’ve received so far,” says Hrridaysh Deshpande, administrator, India Design Mark. The design Council is trying to build principles and benchmarks that will make all the companies to squeeze their patent product design under one authority and minimize design-copy cases. “The parameters include not only the aesthetics of the product, but also metrics such as whether the product is designed in-house, is it eco-friendly, and so on. This is useful because it helps you raise the bar while designing products. You will obviously keep these factors in mind,” says Parag Kulkarni, senior vice-president & business head, commercial lighting & furniture business, Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting. The sacrifice in quality of the product packaging and grading will depreciate and no sub-standards design of products will sustain in the market.
The kick start of design certification will also help Indian products to encompass better recognition in the foreign market. According to the Design Council, almost all commerce sectors have applied for the I-mark including consumer goods, manufacturing, automobiles, etc. Thus both consistency and disparity in product design will be attained. “Standards such as these would help catapult India as a global manufacturer of quality products,” says Keita Muramatsu, president & chief executive, HMSI.
There will be new entry for creative and never-seen before looks of commercial items in the market, promoting resourceful ideas and innovations.
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