the latest web trends

Web design is constantly changing and with it are the design trends used to
produce a visually pleasing and creative website. There are a few things that
can be done to a web design to change it from average site to a fabulous and
interesting design.

Contrast

Good use of contrast can be achieved by using typography, colour, animations
and images wisely. The viewers eyes needs to be directed around the screen,
by using eye catching elements. Good contrast will help with the first
impressions of your site.

Alignment & Multi Column Layouts

In an effort to keep visitors interested and therefore stay on a website,
designers are experimenting with different layouts. But the difference
between a professionally designed website and an amateur one, can quite
often be the attention to detail. Columns of the same length, equal spacing
between elements and a clever grid layout, getting the intricate parts of
the design right, can influence the whole look of the website. It is best to
make an effort to utilize the layout so that nothing is lost and usability
is gained. Layouts like this will allow the user to find the information
they are looking for quickly and without hassle.

Gradients, shadows and texture

The use of subtle gradients in a web design, weather it be for the
background, buttons, tabs, footers, will help give the site a flow, and a
bit of movement from the screen. The use of shadows combined with texture
will give the website design personality and help lift the website off the
screen and draw the user into the site. A good subtle use of colour will
help make things stand out from each other without over power the visitors
eyes.

Fabric and Textures

A way to add depth and make your design that little bit more interesting
is to add some texture. Whether it be to background images (the most common
use) to headers, footers and even fonts, textures can give a website design
that extra edge.

Dynamic tabs

Tabs have become a popular website design trend. As they give the site
interactivity and also save space, while the content and general design can
be kept quite minimal and simple.

White Space

A good use of white space is key. This does not mean spaces of no colour,
but the space between design features. Excellent spacing between design
elements on a site will allow the page to breathe, and not become cluttered
with too much information in such a small space. The minimalist way of
working is still a common design trend on the web.

Typography and Letterpress

Big typography has become a popular web trend over the last year. It plays a
huge part in taking a design to the next level and can turn your website
from being dull and plain to being a creative work of art. Typography will
not only make or break your design. One typography design trend that has
come to the web has been the letterpress or embossing of the words. The main
reason for this trend is that it again gives a page some movement and depth,
which in turn adds to the users experience.