With the fast-paced information dissemination that is
going on around the online world, web designing has begun an evolution of taste
and preferences which suggests a distinct approach to designing a website.
Blog sites from the traditional theme designs and
oftentimes-cluttered look to classy minimalistic approach turn their attention
to details such as typography, alignment, etc., to name a few.
Minimalism, an artistic approach can be applied in so
many ways because of its timeless concept that has been very popular in
different media through the years and this can also, and definitely can, go
well with one of the most powerful tools online: your website.
Defining
Your Site’s Purpose
Before starting with anything, brainstorm about what
you want to be seen on your website. By this, meaning you should have in mind
the purpose of your site, what it is all about, what it presents, what your
readers or viewers can benefit from visiting your site and so on.
By clearly defining the purpose early on will save
you from the stress of changing or customizing your site once you have already
put it up. And by this, it will help you keep your designs on track.
Make it to the point to take note also of the
elements that you initially put into your website. If it does not reinforce
your site’s true purpose and may just cause a distraction, then you have to
double-check it. The additional item must compliment your focus.
Flat Design
Gone are the days with the use of the skeuomorphism
method of which has had notable elements such as 3D effects, gradients and drop
shadows. This has been recently superseded by most web designers’ approach and
embraced minimalist designs to emphasize on the more important aspects of a
website.
Bold and vibrant colors are more trending in use for
most minimalistic design websites to draw the eye of the user and to make it
more easy for the readers to scan around the website.
An example of a minimalist website.
White Space
Some might be too reluctant about why there is a lot
of negative space that is present in your website. They might even say that you
are not maximizing the area that is of your website. But for web designers who
are practicing the minimalist approach, this is an exceptionally smart design
element that guides the eye to go where you want it to go on a webpage, and
makes it a standard-bearer for minimalism.
One of the best examples for this is Google Search.
It is there and you cannot escape it. Needless to say, it is the purpose of
having it in the first place: to search using Google. Which makes having white
space a very effective approach to a website. It makes your site not hard to
notice but also cluttered-free!
Bold
Typography
Bold and simple fonts are now beginning to be used by
most minimalist websites. This would pose a fact that with the kind of approach
that is minimal, there should be a sophistication that only comes from better
typography.
Focusing on bold typography can pinpoint what your
website wants to say. It can present the important details your readers wanted
to see and what you want them to see. Choosing fonts that would match the
personality and style of your website is also important as this will
distinguish from any other website you can see online.
Color
It is also good to add a splash of minimal colors in
your website. May it be from the typefaces you use or from the photos you have
on your website. These things will say something about your website or blog so
it is nice to have these into consideration.
With small flicks of color, your visitors’ eyes will
immediately know that the area is of importance. An example of which is a link
that would direct them to another page from the website. You can use this
advantage by making it as a paint-path for their eyes to follow.
Navigation
This should always be on top of every web designer’s
mind. Despite how awesome and well-coded and designed your website it, what
runs true is the fact that your website is easy to navigate.
Navigation is one of issues any reader or viewer can
have a difficulty with. And it stems from the placement of your elements in the
page. Tabs are usually placed above your page and usually reads the About,
Contact, Blog or Shop pages, to name a few. These should be easily seen (as how
typography is also concerned) and to direct them to and from the website should
not be a hassling experience for them, not mentioning the exhaustion their eyes
could acquire and their hands and fingers from clicking the wrong tabs.
To sum it up, minimalism is very easy and can mean
being well organized. But put into mind that not everyone works with minimalism.
It still depends on your approach on how you wanted to present your products to
the users, how you want them to see them and the amount of what you wanted to
let them see.
Minimalism might often be tagged as an “empty” work
of an art, as style is concerned, because of it’s simplistic approach. What
works is the fact that your audience can read, scroll, click and be amazed
through their experience in your website.
Take note that making websites is not about you being
creatively awesome in designing your site, it is about the ease of your clients
to work around it and definitely will give them the impression that your
products are as good as how you presented them to be.
No comments:
Post a Comment