Chapter 1: Design principles

3 ways good design makes you happy

Don Norman^[1], Cognitive scientist^[2] and design critic

creating good design

As designers is it our job to make people happy, as Don Norman so nicely highlights. Luckily all our projects have a clear objective, and are aimed at a specific group of people. This means we have a starting point and a set direction for our work, from the beginning to the completion of the project.

Form follows function. Louis Sullivan, "The Tall Office Building Artistically Considered.", 1896
Adopted as one of the leading design principles by the Bauhaus

This famous quote is one that applies to all design and is a great first step our learning journey. It expresses the most effective approach to creating functional (user-friendly and inclusive) and beautiful (aesthetically pleasing) designs. Web design begins with the content and proceeds to focus on the people accessing the site - both of which will then inform the design concept and production.

where to begin?

When we are new to design, it can be difficult to decide where to start, how to tackle the challenges ahead. It might feel intimidating but design is a skill that can be learnt. While artwork is a creative expression with a purely subjective perspective, design is something that has a specific purpose, is created for a specific target group^[3] and it can therefore be studied, tested and understood from an objective point of view. There is always a clear objective. There are people who our designs are created for and they can give us insights and feedback which will help shape the final design and keep improving our skills.

Nothing will ever beat pen & paper ツ

Before we begin any design, we need to consider the task in hand, the content, the people its for and the overall aim of the project. Next, we'll brainstorm and come up with as many ideas and concepts as we can.

No matter how good or bad your drawing skills are right now – continue or start using your sketchbook for notes, doodles and design drafts. You will find that the best approach is to capture your idea without distraction on paper. It is quicker and easier than any other tool!

Digital tools tend to get in the way and slow us down. The immediacy of sketching on paper means we can let our mind loose and focus on only the essence of our ideas.

The best approach is to do a 'brain dump' ~ literally putting any idea on paper, there are no bad ideas ツ Even a silly idea might trigger great new thoughts and approaches and result in a new angle. And when we continue to draw until we run out of ideas, we will end up with a lot of concepts to review and a number of starting points for the new design. This collection of scribbles and notes is one we might even revisit further down the line.

This stage of sketching is not going to be the very first step when it comes to most projects. We will likely spend a lot of time initially to understand people and the problem in hand before we even start sketching. But if when we're new to this - it can't do any harm to get practising and get into the habit of note taking and drawing out our ideas. ツ

stay curious • experiment • consider context

When it comes to starting on the design in hand, we can look at anything and everything to inspire our approach. Inspiration can be found in any form of design: architecture, print design, product design, and also music or nature ~ anything! Sometimes the most innovative ideas will come from the most unusual places and in the most unexpected moments.

It is a good idea to look at classic principles, at successful web designs and common patterns. We have to understand all we can about our medium, about how people use the web and what makes a design both accessible and beautiful.

Design trampoline Learn design theory basics with Anna Riazhskikh

Learn design theory basics

Design Trampoline is a lovely little site for anyone new to the subject. It was created by Anna Riazhskikh, one of my former students and aims to teach the basics of design theory and includes 5 modules. Go ahead - jump in ツ Thank you, Anna ツ

Is it still necessary to learn design theory basics these days? Theory may sound boring. The goal of this project is to show that it’s not true. If you are new to design or never studied anything design-related, learning some basic design rules can be quite helpful to feel confident when you start working on your own design project. [...]
Learn the rules, follow them, break them, but wisely.