The „Beauty of Sharpness” saga of the Miyabi knives is back with a new campaign signed Herezie Group.
SUJIHIKI, SANTOKU and SHOTOH are the names of the 3 high performance knives that Miyabi has chosen for its new campaign „Jewels”.
This time, to celebrate „the beauty of sharpness”, the legendary precision of the Miyabi blades has been applied on salmon, cheese and cucumber to create unique and incredible shapes of real jewels of food.
Your website’s name and URL address are how customers remember you. Your website also has an IP address that anyone can find for free using WhoIs.com
In the screenshot above, you can see the result of a WhoIs search for Amazon.co.uk. The IP address is highlighted. But who is going to remember the IP address of every site they visit? Site names make the Internet possible for ordinary people to use.
What Makes a Poor Site Name?
Users must be able to remember your site’s name.
Avoid numbers (either written or numerical eg three or 3) – people have to say “number” or ‘word’ every time
Avoid dashes (-) – Sites with hyphens are often perceived as low quality
Avoid underscores (_) – Who is going to say “underscore” when they are talking about your site?
Avoid trademarks (eg Hoover, BBC) – That way you avoid expensive legal battles you will lose
Avoid mis-spellings (eg hoovver) – Their legal team has more clout than yours
Avoid triple letters (eg MissScunthorpe) – They are hard to remember
A good site name must be memorable, easy to say and have an unambiguous pronunciation.
Ideally, it will include what you do, be one word that you can trademark, eg, WordPress or two words run together, eg, InMotion or LinkedIn.
Where Should You Buy Your Domain Name?
Most web hosting companies give you a free domain name, but experts agree this is an unwise option to take up for your company name: Rather, you should buy your site address from a different company.
Trust is essential when searching for a domain name, and your searches must be private. Some name resellers sell your search data to unscrupulous domain “investors” who buy the domain you searched for and try to blackmail you into paying ten times what they paid.
LCN offers free domain privacy so a simple WhoIs search won’t reveal your name and address. They keep your searches private so that you can come back the next day and no domain sitting parasite will have ‘stolen’ your preferred URL.
Do .shop and Similar Domain Names Work?
You have a whole galaxy of domain name suffixes to choose from. Forget them all: Nothing works like .com or .co.uk.
Country-level domains work well within that country, but .com domains are essential for international businesses: Nothing else conveys the same authority.
Can You Use Your Business Name as Your Site Name?
Yes if someone hasn’t already registered that URL.
Should you do so is another question.
If your website visitors come from Google and Bing, your URL should tell users about the services you offer. This is less important if yours is a high street business with mostly word-of-mouth custom.
BobJones.com will work for a company with mostly local trade where everyone knows who you are and what you do. If you are targeting a broader geographic area through search engines, BobJonesHardware.com will work better
Think about your business exit strategy before settling on a site name. The name would need to be attractive to anyone buying your business. If your preferred URL were HarrogateHardware.co.uk, that would only appeal to potential buyers of your business from North Yorkshire. Similarly, avoid local colloquialisms, eg, JonesButties.com, because ‘butties’ is meaningless to many outside the North. (If you are not a Northerner, it means sandwiches.)
Other Ideas for Your Site Name
If you are setting up your business and website simultaneously, then you must check any business name you think of to check if the .com domain name is available.
Think of adding an extra letter to a URL that is unavailable, eg, Cowws.com or Letterss.com. Another trick is to use homophones, eg, Lyft.com or Silli.com.
Long Story Short
Never search for a web address on an untrustworthy site, and that includes many web hosting company sites. Only search on a website that is entirely trustworthy and guarantees your search data will remain private.
Look for a .com site name that reflects what your business does and that will have a broad appeal to buyers. If possible, your URL should be similar to your ‘trading as’ business name, but it must not include numbers or dashes.
Once you have set up your site there is more to be done – Check out this TechDonut guide to improving it.
As a designer, you never know when inspiration will strike. Although we might feel inspired while working, it is normal while taking a break that we find ourselves inspired.
This because during off times, our minds are free to process our experiences and to come up with new ideas. As a result, we often feel inspired by walking, spending time with friends, going out to dinner or watching a movie.
Without our design inspirations, we often don’t add fuel to our creative fires. This often results in a ‘creative block’. It is therefore very important to surround yourself with artistic inspiration in order to feed your imagination.
Inspiration gives us the energy to create new designs and to work hard to ensure they fit with our image or vision. It is when we are inspired that we produce our best work. Inspiration assists us with brainstorming, mapping out new ideas and with bringing these new ideas to life.
As designers, inspiration assists us with keeping our creativity alive. When we are innovative, we are able to produce ideas that have never been seen before. It is our creativity which produces ideas which are ‘fresh’, ‘new’, out of the box or even genius.
As a designer we can use simple things around us to get inspiration, as example having a motivational wallpaper on your desktop is a very good option for this job.
So how do we ensure we remain inspired?
Set the parameters
When we are working towards creative design, it is important to consider the purpose of your graphic. Explore:
What do you hope to achieve with your work?
What message would you like to create and how would you like to deliver it?
Are you working towards an online design or will your design be printed?
Who are your clients, and what guidelines have they given you?
Who would your audience be?
By taking your design brief into consideration, you will be able to create parameters for your design. This helps you to eliminate possibilities and focus clearly on your options.
Source your inspiration
When we work creatively, there is a wide range of possibilities which are available. We can find inspiration for dinner, other people, photographs, ideas and even experiences. In order to find inspiration, we simply need to open our eyes to the world around us.
Often, we may have a specific aspect or area where we go to find inspiration. We may explore the designs or color palette within nature. Alternatively, the designs of others may fill us with wonder.
This often means taking ourselves to a specific place, such as the beach at dusk or an art museum. At other times we may find inspiration during times of rest or relaxation. We may find it when we run to catch the bus, walk in the park or are on the verge of sleep.
However, we do know that people or situations inspire us, fill us with awe and motivate us to add to the aesthetics we see around us. We are often inspired by something extraordinary, just as we find delight in an exquisite restaurant meal when compared to a takeaway.
However, sometimes an everyday object or event can also offer up a sense of wonder when we open our eyes and truly see it for the first time. Many historical artists were able to depict the beauty in everyday objects such as apples on a kitchen table.
Inspiration often has an emotional impact on us and leaves us touched by wonder. Our minds feel inspired to create.
Inspiration touches each of us in different ways. One person may be inspired by a bowl of fruit while another is inspired by a girl, a bridge over a canal, or the sky at nighttime. Drawing upon our creative inspirations assists us to put together a campaign.
Working with inspiration
As designers, we depend on our inspiration in order to work creatively. Giving our best at work depends on our creativity. Many creative people work flexible hours, taking on tasks while their creativity moves them and allowing themselves periods of contemplation or exploration when it does not.
However, many designers have deadlines to meet and short-term projects which do not allow us to contemplate. There is a need to draw on creativity the majority of the time. It is therefore important to know ourselves, find out what inspires us, and understand where to look for inspiration.
Some people might have an intricate knowledge of how to find inspiration, but others are still finding what moves them. Below are some spaces where inspiration can leap out at you.
Explore social media
Access the internet to a great peek into the collective unconscious. Pinterest and Tumblr are image-based social media platforms which offer up great inspiration.
Both are packed with photography and design ideas and are easy to navigate and search. Whether you’re searching for inspiration for a website design, logo or simply a color scheme, Pinterest, and Tumblr offer a great range of visual treats to explore.
Search the pages of a magazine
Design magazines are often inspiring because they offer up quick snapshots of some of the best work in the industry. As a designer, these magazines are bound to leave you feeling awed.
Have a look at the creative use of color, composition or font and pick a look that inspires you. You can pull out the pages you feel awed by and file them or keep them in a folder you’ll be able to refer to later on.
Gather up your inspiration
When you find websites which inspire you, bookmark them. Pin images to your Pinterest board. Use Twitter to follow designers who you love. When you create a collection of images which move you, you’ll gain great inspiration for future projects. You could even store your inspirations using Google Drive.
Make connections
Start conversations with designers or creators. Share your projects, what inspires you, what you find challenging, and those places you find inspiration. Other designers may give you great advice.
They may also be able to offer you solutions to some of your challenges. However, even just sharing will enable you to think through some of the struggles you are having. This often creates the space for solutions.
Draw on your inspiration
As a designer, it is often possible to live with continual inspiration. You can draw on the colors of nature, the swirls within leaves or the metallics on an insect’s back.
There’s the genius present in the clothes we wear, the movies we make, the designs offered up on the internet and the work that is constantly reproduced by artists all over the world. Once you open your eyes and begin to notice it, you will feel alive to the creativity around us. In return, it will enliven you.
So if you need inspiration for your designs, or you would simply like to live a life of wonder, understanding what inspires you is key. Tuning in to the world you see around you and allowing it to carry you away to another universe will awaken your imagination. You will feel more alive.
Summary
Inspiration can come from anywhere, a verse of poetry, the sight of a bird in flight or the colors in a sidewalk might all draw your attention. When you draw on these images, incorporating them into your own work, you will give of your best.
A design is always a collaboration. We build on new ideas every day. None of the work we produce on a day to day basis would ever exist without the thoughts, ideas, and visions which inspired us in the past. We are connected to a larger world and this feeds our artistic imaginations.
When did web design become an art form? We know it sure as heck wasn’t anywhere close to when sites really started hitting the World Wide Web in waves back in the 90s. With no CSS, ugly fonts (the polar opposite of these), brutal colors and a painfully slow loading time, calling websites art back then is like calling a jackhammer music. Thankfully, we now have a world where progression is expected, and much like every technological discipline out there, web design has moved forward so fast that we’re essentially playing catch-up.
It’s quite remarkable to think that we’re in an age where pre-designed website templates exist for those either unwilling or incapable of creating their own. But while what you can find here is useful for non-web designers in terms of templates, there are still those who desire to push the envelope in terms of web design and consequently change our perceptions of what makes a great website. Does it present information in a succinct and appealing manner? Yes, but how exactly does it do that? That’s what Designer Daily is all about, as we want to delve deeper and showcase the sites which take that information and make it art.
However, it’s not just us, as AWWWARDS.com does a great job of featuring brilliantly functional and gorgeously designed sites which can’t help but put a smile on your face. AWWWARDS gives out honors for site of the day, site of the month, and site of the year (alluding to design, creativity and innovation), and as that’s far too many to discuss in one article, we’re going to focus on our favorites from the site of the month category over the last 12 months.
Tao Tajima
Filmmaker Tao Tajima’s site makes such a great use of space because as soon as it loads, the screen is filled with a full-size video of Tajima’s work while the necessary text is overlaid splendidly in white. What’s more, the transitions from one page to the next seem to shimmer and dissolve, making the whole site appear as one living, breathing entity. His videos can be accessed easily enough and come with a short and interesting backstory, while a ‘Play’ button simply begs you to click. A beautiful portfolio on a cutting-edge site.
We The Fans
For ESPN’s upcoming documentary series following hardcore Chicago Bears season ticket holders, an accompanying website has been set up to add further detail and simply to hype the project. The user is greeted with a calming blue screen featuring a lit-up stadium, in addition to the typical sounds one hears in the midst of the action. After clicking ‘Start the experience,’ you can explore particular areas of the stadium and find out more details of the fans featured in the documentary. The overall experience is soothing, delightful and enjoyable, as we’re the ones who get to move around the (admittedly small) section of the digital stadium and read about the fans as and when we feel.
Ghost Recon Wildlands
This site is made for the new Ghost Recon video game, and after the intense and quite shocking video, we’re treated with a map view of Bolivia, where we can play side missions relating to the story. While the missions are mostly observation and don’t involve the user doing too much, it’s still an immersive experience and overall, makes you feel invested in the world. The map design is fantastic, and the moving elements such as cars and helicopters turn it into something so much more.
If you’re a web designer who wants to be a trailblazer and smash preconceptions of what a website is capable of, then the AWWWARDS are merely a way of simultaneously motivating you to try harder and be inspired by the work of others.
Branding goes beyond the logo. It also transcends the product or service and creates an emotional resonance with the public. Typography assists with creating a brand.
As we move into a digital world, new products or brands are being given the opportunity to shine.
If you’re looking at building a brand which stands out amongst the competition, focus on the role typography plays in creating a deep emotional resonance with your audience.
Designers today work with digital and web technology. This includes video, illustration and social media. However, text-based website content plays an important role in building a relationship with an audience.
Once a video has been played, the audience will interact with the text of a website. In fact, there is probably more text on a website than anything else. As a designer, you can ensure this makes an impact.
Typeface helps to identify a brand
There are many free fonts available online, but if you’re looking at identifying your brand, paid fonts or unique font designs have their place. Companies such as The New York Times and Coca-Cola are immediately recognizable by the fonts they use.
Using a single identifiable font gives your page a clean feel. As a page is not simply made up of headers or titles, you can use other fonts as well. Limiting your number while creating a neat feel to your page helps to create an identifiable brand which is familiar to readers.
Classic brands have used digital imagery to create an online presence. This means that their brands remain easy to identify both online and off. The quality of the design creates a positive experience for online viewers.
What do fonts add to a brand?
Fonts are expressive and give words a visual representation or language. They are also durable because they help to create an identity for a brand that will remain in the minds of the public.
Brands such as Coca-Cola, American Eagle, Apple, Vogue, Disney and Calvin Klein all use distinctive fonts that help to identify their products and communicate their message. It is no wonder companies pay such large quantities of money to have a logo designed.
Through using typography, brands communicate a message. Think of Disney’s typeface logo, which communicates fun, imagination, vibrancy and nostalgia. However, branding goes beyond the typeface used for a logo.
Aligning you’re the typeface on a website with a company’s message helps to add another layer to the brand.
Which typeface should you use?
There are a great number of different typeface fonts in the world. Some are wonderful, some terrible, and opinion is sometimes personal. However, there are some basic design principles to take into account when choosing a font.
Body fonts
When selecting your body font choose lettering which is simple and easy to read. Some fonts come with serifs or finishing strokes (serifs) between letters, such as Times New Roman. Others are without these strokes and are sans serifs.
In the printing industry, serifs are often used for text. Online, however, the copy is often sans serif, and fonts like Helvetica are popular choices.
Fonts for headings
When selecting headings, fonts can be dramatic or full of flourish. It should also be bold enough to command attention. Display fonts break up your page, add contrast and direct the user’s attention. You can use fonts which are eccentric, elegant, beautiful or full of flourish.
The font does have to be easy to read, however. This is because headings often give a site user quick insight into the contents of a page. If the font is difficult to read, it will lose its design purpose.
When working with a font, it is often helpful to limit your choice to two options, but vary the weight and height in order to create emphasis or hierarchy within the text. This will help to create a sense of consistency as well as keep your page uncluttered.
When selecting a typeface, take the following into consideration:
Legibility: Does your typeface feel familiar to your readers? Are the letters easily distinguished? Look at the spacing between the typeface. Does it flow, so that readers can follow easily?
Readability: Is it easy to make sense of the text? Each letter should disappear into the background as the reader recognizes the overall shape of the words. This makes the text enjoyable for the reader.
Suitability: Look for a font which is suitable for the product or brand. Apple, for example, uses a slick, clean-lined and modern typeface as a part of its brand. Remember to pick a typeface which fits the purpose of your design as well.
Free versus paid for typeface
Many people use the term typeface and font interchangeably. However, from a technical perspective, typeface refers to the name of the lettering (such as Helvetica or Arial) whereas font refers to the variation within the lettering, such as Bold or Light.
A typeface which is freely available online often comes in only one font. This means it doesn’t come with a variety of weights and styles. This might limit your options as a designer.
Many free fonts are also untested, which means that they do not always look the same across web browsers. This can limit your ability to design your page according to the message you would like to portray.
Quality fonts which have been tested and which are helpful to the design industry are not normally free. There is a range of typefaces which are fairly inexpensive (between $35 and $75) which will give you a range of options and weights in order to create a cohesive and well-designed site.
There are, however, some designers who charge a great deal for their lettering. Determine your client’s budget in order to establish how much you have to spend on a typeface.
Services such as Adobe Typekit are helpful to access fonts across the web. Typekit obtains fonts from different artists, testing them across different browsers to ensure uniformity and quality. Users can obtain typeface from Typekit.
Creative Cloud is a desktop application which enables you to sync fonts available from Typekit onto your computer.
If you’d like to build up a library of font purchases on your own computer, you can use sites such as fonts.com or myfonts.com.
These fonts can be purchased by you for a set fee. If you do choose to purchase your fonts, ensure that everybody who will need access to them will have a license to do so if you’re working in a team. Otherwise, this might exclude certain members of your team from working on a project.
Digitalization adds new options to design
In the past, printing relied on letter setting. When a book or pamphlet was about to go to press, blocks of letters were arranged in a printing press. Lettering options were limited. It was also harder to make changes because this would mean rearranging all of the letters in the typeset.
These days, it is much easier to make changes to a page as you go along. This means making copy easier to read. You can add or subtract headlines and break up the text. You can also try out a number of different lettering styles until you are happy with your design.
How does your font speak to your audience?
Each typeface has its own personality. Some fonts are clean-lined, sleek and modern. Others speak of elegance and heritage. They bring a sense of trustworthiness and reliability.
The personality of your typeface should combine with the message behind a brand in order to send out the correct message. This is particularly true with a logo.
Your design should send out a message or first impression to a potential client or customer. This message will be clear before the client purchases a product.
What meaning will the audience take from it?
A typeface will have to mean to your reader. If a font is familiar, it will often feel as trustworthy as an old friend. This doesn’t mean you have to limit your choices. Instead, consider carefully what your brand is portraying.
Fonts are often related to products we’ve seen in the past and will remind viewers of a range of products, from pickles to candy. Some fonts are associated with ceremony while others with technology or creativity.
When it comes to font, consider the size, weight and height of your typeface as well. This will enable your font to whisper, shout or make a simple, bold statement.
As a designer, you have the ability to use type to create a statement. And to ensure you are putting across the right message.
Understand how your message is received
The choice you make in selecting your font will determine how your readers determine a brand or product. Are you contemporary, innovative, trustworthy or old fashioned?
How you present a brand will determine audience response.
Although some responses are subjective, it is often helpful to determine how an audience sees a design or product before making a final commitment.
Selecting the best choice for a brand often means determining how the audience interprets your design.
Researching or understanding public perceptions of a typeface will help you to establish the meanings you create for a product and the way that your brand speaks to the audience.
Your design should be invisible
If your design is doing its job, your audience shouldn’t notice your typeface. This is because the whole is more than the sum of its parts.
You want your audience to gain an overall impression of a brand which transcends both your design and the product.
This might be one of creativity, honesty, reliability, innovation or even intelligence. This is because it’s the emotional resonance with a brand which motivates a client to make a purchase.
An effective design assists clients to understand a product, organize information, easily digest what is being said and it attracts attention.
This enables the audience to build a story. In effect, a good design is like the backstage work in a theatre which ensures the audience is able to resonate with the production.
Summary
The story we absorb, or the end product we perceive (form) follows a process of careful and practical planning or creation. As designers, we want our work to be attractive.
However, it is the thought and creativity we put into it which will result in the emotional resonance with a brand or product. It is therefore crucial that this is well thought through. Without it, we simply create an attractive image.
Typography, when used with care, can turn a product into a brand which has a deep emotional resonance with its audience.
And by that, it’s usually some kind of CSS experiment, often an elaborate drawing or interaction.
For example, have you seen Lynn Fisher’s extraordinary A Single Div project? Not only are all these graphics drawn in just HTML and CSS, they are all created with (you guessed it) a single <div></div>.
Why would she do that? Here’s one pertinent possibility: it’s none of our business. We’re free to wonder, or even ask if it’s done respectfully enough. But does it really matter? Let’s stop short of assuming she doesn’t know what’s she’s doing, assuming it’s a twisted form of pain, or that she’s unaware of other technologies. Check out the example where she drew the official SVG logo with CSS and a single div. Woke.
I even kinda get it. I wrote a whole book about SVG because I think it’s underused. Are there „CSS drawings” that I think would be better as SVG for a production site meant to last? Sure.
Jeepers creepers that’s something else. I would have guessed GreenSock was behind this at a quick glance. Speaking of, GreenSock has advocated right here on CSS-Tricks some techniques for smart animations. Part of that is breaking animations into parts and stitching them together into larger timelines for maintenance ease and „without getting bogged down by the process.”
So, did Julia Muzafarova do it wrong? Of course not. If there is a wrong way to animate a cartoon hipster on a bike in this world, I don’t wanna live here anymore. It’s 2,100 lines of meticulous positioning, coloring, and animating. Heck, it’ll work in some email clients if you really need to latch onto something „practical.”
Sasha Tran, a UI developer at Apple, shared her story of creating drawings in CSS last year. She drew something new everyday for 20 days during Codevember.
Even if I am not talented in hand illustrations, there is a way to express myself through other mediums. I found that medium to be in HTML and CSS. To level up and get to a point where I could create cute artwork, I focused on two things: the basics, and consistency. Working with basic CSS shapes like rectangles and basic properties like border-radius overtime gave me the muscle memory to progress into more intricate illustrations.
Significantly leveled up in a month and developed better CSS muscle memory. Huh. Speaking of shapes, there are plenty of ways to get tricky with those in CSS!
You could argue that pushing boundaries toward the impractical is what hones our skills for all that other work we have to do.
In today’s quick tutorial you will learn how to create a pussy willow and chick illustration. We will basically create one branch and then turn it into many. We will then make three compositions using these branches. At the end, we will cheer up our illustration by creating a little chick.
This is a quick and easy illustration that is perfect for beginners. To create this image, we will be using basic shapes in Adobe Illustrator and deforming them to create a cute illustration.
After opening Adobe Illustrator, create a new document with 850 x 850 px Width and Height.
Let’s start with the catkin of the willow. Set the fill color as you see in the image below. Now take the Ellipse Tool (L) and create a grey ellipse. Then we will transform this ellipse by going to Effect > Distort and Transform > Roughen. You can play with the options for the rough effect (Size and Detail) to get a result close to the one shown below or whatever you like. Expand this shape (Object > Expand Appearance).
Now create a copy of the rough ellipse in the front (Control-C, Control-F) and shift it to the upper left side. In the image below, the black stroke color of these ellipses is used only for better visibility.
Next, create another copy of the first ellipse in front (Control-C, Control-F) and, while keeping this copy and the shifted one selected, press the Minus Front button on the Pathfinder panel (Window > Pathfinder). This action leaves us with a new crescent shape. Change the color of the crescent shape to a darker grey.
After this, add a light colored ellipse on the top left side to show the volume of the catkin. To finish the catkin, add small yellowish circles of different sizes all over it. It is better to group the whole catkin now, as it will be easier to move it later (right-click > Group).
Step 2
Using the Rounded Rectangle Tool, create a thin, vertical rounded rectangle for the stem. Place the catkins on both sides of the stem. Rotate and change the size of some catkins to get a result similar to the image shown below. Do not place each catkin evenly, but place them more randomly.
Step 3
To make the stem look more realistic and not so perfectly straight, we will roughen its surface by using the Warp Tool. Double-click on the Warp Tool (Shift-R) and enter Width and Height dimensions for the brush of around 20-30 px, Intensity 100% and hit OK. Place the rounded rectangle in front the catkins (Control-C, Control-F), and select it before you use the Warp Tool (Shift-R), otherwise you will affect the other objects surrounding it.
Move your mouse over the stem (as shown in the image) to create the part where the catkin sits on a branch.
In a similar way, create another stem, which should be smaller and should have a different number of catkins. Group each stem (right-click > Group). Later in this tutorial we will combine them in different ways, so it’s important to have at least two different stems.
Step 4
In this step we will create a set of stems, which will be used for the three different compositions. Therefore make a few copies of the large and small stems and combine them.
First, we will select one stem and warp it. Go to Effect > Warp > Arc. For your convenience, select Preview while adjusting the options to get a result you like. In the new dialogue window, select Vertical, Bend -20%, Distortion Horizontal 0%, Vertical 0%, and hit OK. Do the same warping process for each branch, just by varying the Bend percentage.
Expand each branch (Object > Expand Appearance).
2.How to Create the Compositions of Pussy Willow
Step 1
First, let’s create our first composition. Draw a blue circle (use the Ellipse Tool (L) while holding down the Shift key for an even circle).
Add a set of willow branches on the left side of the circle. Now select all of the stems, right-click the mouse, and select Transform > Reflect. This will bring up the Reflect dialogue window, where you should enter Axis Vertical, Angle 90 degrees, and press Copy. Move the copy of the newly created stems to the right. You’ll end up with a composition similar to the one shown below.
Step 2
Now we will create our second composition.
Make another copy of the blue circle created in the previous step, and place a set of pussy willows on the circle as shown in the image below. Notice that the willow is overlapping the sides of the circle.
Next, select the circle and make a copy of it in front of the willows (Control-C, Control-F), cut it off (Control-X), and place it in front of everything (Control-F). To be able to see the willows under the circle, we will remove its fill color and add a black stroke color.
Now, as we want to make the top part of the willows visible, we have to distort the top circle so as to be able to cover the willow on top. Move the handles of the anchor points of this circle by using the Direct Selection Tool (A) to achieve the result you need. You want to place the black stroke color inside the top part of the willow.
After that, select the willow and the front shape, and then go to Object > Clipping Mask > Make (Control-7). This action will cut the part of the willow beyond the blue circle.
Step 3
For the third composition, create a copy of the blue circle again. Place the willow branches around the circle to have a wreath look as shown below.
Step 4
Place all three compositions together.
3.How to Create the Chick
Step 1
We will start by drawing the head of the chick. Using the Ellipse Tool (L), draw an oval. In the image below, you can see which fill color you need. Then go to Effect > Warp > Inflate to shape the head. Enter the options you see below.
For the eyes, create a brown ellipse and add a tiny white circle to brighten up the eye. Place this eye on the left side of the head. While keeping the eye selected, take the Reflect Tool (O). Hold down the Alt key and click in the middle of the head. In the new dialogue window, select Vertical, Angle 90 degrees, and press Copy. You should now have two eyes.
Step 2
Let’s add the chick’s beak. In the middle of the head, add a pink oval and modify it with a warp effect: go to Effect > Warp > Inflate. Select the required options and expand the shape.
Next, select the pink shape, and create a copy behind it (Control-C, Control-B). Using the Direct Selection Tool (A), select the bottom anchor point of the upper copy. Then move this anchor point a little bit upward.
Change the fill color of the bottom copy to a darker color. The beak of our chick is ready!
Step 3
For the chick’s body, add an ellipse below the head and distort it with the warp effect: Effect > Warp > Inflate. After adjusting the options as shown, expand the resulting shape.
Step 4
In this step, we will create the chick’s wing. Start with an ellipse and modify it with the Arc effect (Effect > Warp > Arc). Enter the options shown below. Expand the shape.
Next, add four ellipses that should be slightly rotated to the right, and place them over the deformed ellipse. For better visibility, I added a black stroke color which should not be present in the final image. In the end, group the whole wing (right-click > Group).
Step 5
Put the wing on the left side of the chick’s body. Then make a vertically reflected copy of this wing to get another one. To do so, while keeping the wing selected, right-click your mouse and select Transform > Reflect. Once you get the dialogue box, select Axis Vertical, Angle 90 degrees, and press Copy. Move the new wing to the right.
Step 6
To create the chick’s leg, start with a pink ellipse. Next, use the Direct Selection Tool (A) to select the left and right anchor points and move them up.
Then, create a copy of the shape, place it on the left side, and rotate it to the left. Make another copy and rotate it to the right to get the three toes of the chick’s leg.
Finally, add a fourth copy of the shape, make it smaller, and place it as the fourth toe.
Step 7
Below the chick’s body, add two circles to start creating the legs. Place the foot (which should be grouped together) below the chicken, and slightly rotate it to the left as shown below.
Next, we will add chick’s leg. First, we will delete the fill color and set the stroke color. To do so, hit the double arrow Swap Fill and Stroke (Shift X) in the Tools panel. You should now have the same pink fill color as you had for the toes. Increase the stroke Weight and check Round Cap on the Stroke panel (Window > Stroke). Now, create an arc which will connect the two legs (you should rotate the arc) and place it behind the chick’s body. Move the handles of the arc by using the Direct Selection Tool (A) until you get the necessary result.
Make a vertical copy of the chick’s toes and attach them to the right leg.
Step 8
Place the chick in the middle of the two compositions, as shown below.
4. How to Create the Background
Step 1
Create a blue square with Width and Height of 850 px, send it to the back (Control-X, Control-B), and center it to the artboard. For the alignment, select this square and on the Align panel (Window > Align) from the pop-up menu, choose Align to: Align to Artboard, and hit the Horizontal Align Center and Vertical Align Center buttons.
Step 2
Arrange the created compositions on the background to get the complete image.
Conclusion
Good job! I hope you had fun creating these cute compositions. To make them brighter, you can add some bows. If you want to know how to create such a bow, you can follow the instructions from one of my previous tutorials. You can also add other details if you wish. Just be creative and enjoy the process! See you again in my next tutorial!
In this tutorial I will show you how to create an ornate gold text effect in Adobe Photoshop CC. And as a bonus, you will learn how to create seamless textures.
I know that many readers of Envato Tuts+ are from Indonesia, so I decided to create this tutorial using an Indonesian word. „Mulia” means „noble” in Indonesian, and I think that it works very well with the text effect that we are going to create.
This text effect is part of Epic Metallic Styles 3. The complete pack
has 15 different text effects and works with shapes and text.
pattern and gradient inside the zip file attached to this tutorial (optional)
1. How to Create the Ornamental Pattern
Step 1
Create a new 2000 x 2000 px 300 dpi document and name it Ornamental Pattern.
Step 2
Press Shift-Backspace to open the Fill panel. Choose Color… and set the color to #1a1515.
Step 3
Pick the Brush Tool (B) with these settings:
Brush: Hard Round
Size: 35
Hardness: 100%
Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Flow: 100%
Smoothing: 100% (only available in Adobe Photoshop CC)
Step 4
Press Control-Shift-N to create a new layer. Name it Brush and click on OK. Then go to Window > Brush Settings and use these settings:
Brush: Hard Round
Size: 35 px
Roundness: 100%
Hardness: 100%
Spacing: 1%
Step 5
Now starts the relaxing part (at least for me). With the Brush Tool selected, choose a color that you like and start drawing some abstract curves.
The secret here is to maintain a constant speed with the mouse, and try to maintain the same space between the lines. But it’s OK if you make some lines closer or farther than others; sometimes it looks better this way.
Please do not touch the borders of the document while drawing; we will deal with that later. Don’t worry if you have shaky hands, because the 100% of smoothness on the Brush Tool will help you with that.
Step 6
Continue drawing the lines. If you don´t like the result, press Control-Z and try again. Take your time!
Sometimes you will have to draw some branches. Remember to start the branch precisely from the middle of the previous line, so that your drawing will look smooth and natural.
Step 7
This is what I came up with. You can try to copy, but I don’t recommend that you do that. It’s important that you create your own pattern if you want to learn how to do it.
Step 8
Now we’re going to make this pattern seamless using the Offset filter. This filter can move the corners of the document to the center, making it a lot easier for you to complete the texture in a seamless way.
Go to Filter > Other > Offset… and use these settings:
Horizontal: +956
Vertical: +949
Wrap Around: Checked
Step 9
With the same brush settings that we used before, continue drawing more lines and filling the empty spaces. Remember to not touch the border of the document.
In the next image, you can see how I did it. I changed the color to red, so you can see the new lines.
Step 10
Now turn off the visibility of the background layer, and then go to Edit > Define Pattern and click OK.
Step 11
Now activate the visibility of the background layer again. After that, press Control-R to activate the rulers in Photoshop. Then click on the rulers and drag four margins to the borders of the document.
Step 12
Go to Image > Canvas Size and use the following settings:
Width: 2665 px
Height: 2665 px
Relative: Unchecked
Anchor: Center
Canvas extension color: Other
Color: #1a1515
Step 13
Select the Brush layer and press Shift-Backspace to open the Fill panel. Then choose the following settings:
Contents: Color…
Color: #262626 (any color will do)
Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Preserve Transparency: Unchecked
Step 14
With the Brush layer still selected, set its Fill to 0%. After that, go to Layer > Layer Style > Blending Options and add a Pattern Overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Pattern: Ornamental Pattern.psd (The one we just saved)
Scale: 100%
Link with Layer: Checked
… and click OK.
Note that we have a seamless texture inside the margins, so no matter where you move the pattern overlay, it will always be seamless.
Step 15
Now right-click the Brush layer and choose Rasterize layer. Then go to Layer > Layer Style > Blending Options and add a Color Overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Color: #ff8400
Opacity: 100%
Step 16
Add a Bevel & Emboss with these settings:
Style: Inner Bevel
Technique: Smooth
Depth: 1000%
Direction: Up
Size: 16 px
Soften:0 px
Shading Angle: 20°
Shading Altitude: 26°
Use Global Light: Off
Anti-aliased:On
Highlight Mode: Lighter Color
Highlight Mode Color: #ffd179
Highlight Mode Opacity: 66%
Shadow Mode: Darken
Shadow Mode Color: #1c1505
Shadow Mode Opacity: 100%
Click on the thumbnail of the Gloss Contour to edit it with the following settings:
Point 1: Input: 0% Output: 100% Corner: Off
Point 2: Input: 13% Output: 29% Corner: Off
Point 3:Input: 38% Output: 45% Corner: Off
Point 4: Input: 44% Output: 76% Corner: Off
Point 5:Input: 76% Output: 100% Corner: Off
Point 6: Input: 87% Output: 1% Corner: Off
Point 7: Input: 100% Output: 0% Corner: Off
After that, click OK.
Step 17
Activate the Contour option of Bevel & Emboss with these settings:
Contour: Rolling Slope – Descending
Anti-aliased: On
Range: 74%
Step 18
Add an Outer Glow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Darken
Opacity: 74%
Noise: 0%
Color: #000000
Technique: Softer
Spread: 0%
Size: 59%
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: On
Range: 48%
Jitter: 0%
After that, click OK to close the Layer Style panel.
Step 19
Now hold down the Control key and click on both layers (Brush and Background) to select them. Then right-click on any layer and select Convert to Smart Object.
Step 20
Go to Filter > Filter Gallery and add a Plastic Wrap effect with these settings:
Highlight Strength: 4
Detail: 1
Smoothness: 9
Step 21
Now pick the Rectangular Marquee Tool (M) and select a small square.
Step 22
Right-Click on that selected square and select Transform Selection. Then scale up the selection to match the margins that we previously created. It has to be perfectly aligned with the margins.
Step 23
Now pick the Crop Tool (C) and press Enter twice to crop the image. Then go to Edit > Define Pattern and name it Ornamental Pattern Final.
You can close the document after doing that.
Note that we first expanded the document size, and then we contracted it again. That was necessary because we don’t want the layer style being cut by the borders of the document.
2. How to Create the Secondary Pattern (Optional)
You can install the optional pattern (it is inside the zip file) and skip to „3. How to Create the Text Effect” if you don’t want to learn how to create the secondary pattern. The secondary pattern is a radial metallic texture that goes on the top of the ornamental pattern. This texture is optional on the final text effect too.
Step 1
Create a new 980 x 1696 px 300 dpi document with a red background #d11212 and name it Radial Pattern. Then pick the Ellipse Tool (U) and set it to Shape mode.
Step 2
With the Ellipse Tool selected, click on the middle of the document and create a 980 x 980 px ellipse.
Step 3
Press Control-A to select the entire document, and then pick the Move Tool (V) and click on Align Horizontal and Vertical Centers. This will place the ellipse exactly in the center of the document.
Step 4
Turn off the visibility of the Ellipse layer and create a new layer called Noise. After that, press Control-Backspace and fill this layer with the color #797979. This color will help us when we start moving the radial shapes. We don’t want to see any red in the final texture.
Step 5
Go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise and use these settings:
Amount: 400 %
Distribution: Gaussian
Monochromatic: On
Step 6
Go to Filter > Blur > Radial Blur and use these settings:
Amount: 100
Blur Method: Spin
Quality: Best
Step 7
Press Alt-Control-F to apply the same radial blur again. Then Control-Click on the thumbnail of the Ellipse layer to create a selection. After that, press Control-C and Control-V to create a new layer, name this layer Radial, and convert it to a Smart Object. After that, you can delete the noise layer.
Step 8
Control-Click on the thumbnail of the Radial layer to create another selection, and then click on the Add vector mask icon.
Step 9
With the Radial layer selected, go to Layer > Layer Style > Blending Options to open the Layer Style panel. Then add a Color Overlay with these settings:
Step 10
Now add a Gradient Overlay with these settings.
Blend Mode: Color Dodge
Dither: Off
Opacity: 87%
Gradient: Radial gradient (inside the zip file attached to this tutorial)
Reverse: Off
Style: Angle
Align with Layer: On
Angle: -90°
Scale: 100%
To install the gradient file, click on the drop-down menu of the Gradient option, and then click on the little gear icon in the top-right corner and choose Load Gradients…
Step 11
Add a Bevel & Emboss with these settings:
Style: Inner Bevel
Technique: Smooth
Depth: 834%
Direction: Up
Size: 250 px
Soften: 16 px
Use Global Light: Off
Angle: 73°
Altitude: 37°
Anti-aliased: On
Highlight Mode: Color Dodge
Highlight Opacity: 25%
Highlight Color: #ffffff
Shadow Mode: Multiply
Shadow Opacity: 34%
Shadow Color: #000000
Click on the thumbnail of the Gloss Contour to edit it with the following settings:
Point 1: Input: 0% Output: 0% Corner: Off
Point 2: Input: 15% Output: 89% Corner: Off
Point 3: Input: 22% Output: 24% Corner: Off
Point 4: Input: 33% Output: 99% Corner: Off
Point 5: Input: 58% Output: 37% Corner: Off
Point 6: Input: 100% Output: 53% Corner: Off
Step 12
Activate the Contour option of the Bevel & Emboss and use these settings:
Contour: Rolling Slope – Descending
Anti-Aliased: On
Range: 56%
Then click OK to close the Layer Style panel.
Step 13
Go to Image > Adjustments > Curves to add a curve filter with these settings:
Show Amount of: Light (0-255)
Channel: RGB
Point 1: Input: 0% Output: 0%
Point 2: Input: 56% Output: 43%
Point 3: Input: 181% Output: 167%
Point 4: Input: 255% Output: 183%
Step 14
Go to Filter > Sharpen > Sharpen to add a sharpen filter. Then Right-click on the Radial layer and transform it into a Smart Object again.
Step 15
Create four copies of the Radial layer and place one copy in each corner of the document, aligning the center of the ellipses with the corners of the document.
Step 16
Select the first Radial layer and create four more copies, and then move these copies to the back of the original Radial layer. You can change the colors of the layer and group them to make it easier for you to identify the layers.
Step 17
Click on the rulers and drag two margins to the center of the document. Place one copy of the Radial layer on each edge of the document, aligning the center of the ellipses with the margins and the edges of the document. (The small circles in the next image represent the center of the ellipses).
Step 18
Go to Edit > Define Pattern and name it Radial Pattern. After that, you can save and close the document.
3. How to Create the Text Effect
Step 1
Create a new 2160 x 1025 px 300 dpi document with a dark blue background #132125. I’m going to name it Mulia, but you can choose any name you want.
Step 2
Double-click on the Background layer to unlock it. Then pick the Brush Tool (B) with the Soft Round brush and set its size to 2173 px and color to #365861.
Step 3
With the Brush Tool selected, click on the center of the document. Then go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise to apply a noise effect with these settings:
Amount: 1%
Distribution: Gaussian
Monochromatic: On
Step 4
Go to Layer > Layer Style > Blending Options and add a Pattern overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Luminosity
Opacity: 5%
Pattern: Ornamental Pattern Final
Scale: 10%
Link with Layer: On
Step 5
Convert the layer to Smart Object, and then go to Filter > Sharpen > Sharpen. After that, go to Window > Adjustments and add a new Gradient Map layer.
Step 6
Double-click on the thumbnail of the Gradient Map layer to open the Properties panel. Then click on the gradient bar to open the Gradient Editor.
Step 7
You can use any color that you like here, but I’m going to make a red background. These squares with small triangles pointing to the gradient bar are called Stops. You can create new Stops by clicking just below the gradient bar. Create a new gradient with these settings:
Stop 1:Location: 0% Color: #020007
Stop 2:Location: 66% Color: #c61717
Stop 3:Location: 100% Color: #ffdbdb
Step 8
Pick the Horizontal Type Tool (T) and set the size of the text to 160 pt. Then choose the font Titania and write your text.
Step 9
Double-click on the text layer to open the Layer Style panel (don’t click on the name or thumbnail of the layer). Add a Pattern Overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Pattern: Ornamental Pattern Final
Scale: 50%
Link with Layer: On
Tip: If you have the Pattern Overlay selected on the Layers panel, you can click on the text and drag to move the texture to a better position.
Step 10
Add a Bevel & Emboss with these settings:
Style: Stroke Emboss
Technique: Smooth
Depth: 100%
Direction: Up
Size: 24 px
Soften: 0 px
Use Global Light: On
Shading Angle: 90°
Altitude: 30°
Anti-Aliased: Off
Highlight Mode: Screen
Highlight Mode Color: #ffffff
Highlight Mode Opacity: 50%
Shadow Mode: Multiply
Shadow Mode Color: #000000
Shadow Mode Opacity: 50%
Click on the Gloss Contour and create a new contour with these settings:
Point 1: Input: 0% Output: 0% Corner: On
Point 2: Input: 46% Output: 69% Corner: On
Point 3: Input: 50% Output: 0% Corner: On
Point 4: Input: 94% Output: 73% Corner: On
Point 5: Input: 100% Output: 0% Corner: On
Step 11
Add a Stroke with these settings:
Size: 28 px
Position: Center
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Overprint: Off
Fill Type: Pattern
Pattern: Ornamental Pattern Final
Scale: 25%
Link with Layer: On
Step 12
Add an Inner Shadow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Color Dodge
Color: #ffffff
Opacity: 96%
Use Global Light: Off
Angle: 0°
Distance: 18 px
Choke: 28 %
Size: 6 px
Contour: Choose Linear, then move the second point to Input 100% and output 71 %
Anti-Aliased: Off
Noise: 0%
Step 13
Add an Inner Glow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Darken
Opacity: 69%
Noise: 0%
Color: #000000
Technique: Precise
Source: Edge
Choke: 66%
Size: 21 px
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: On
Range: 55%
Jitter: 0%
Step 14
Add a Drop Shadow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Color: #000000
Opacity: 57%
Use Global Light: Off
Angle: 0°
Distance: 27 px
Spread: 33%
Size: 16 px
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: Off
Noise: 0%
Layer Knocks Out Drop Shadow: On
After that, click OK.
Step 15
Create a copy of the text layer and name it Mulia TOP, and then right-click on it and choose Clear Layer Style.
Step 16 (Optional)
This step adds a very subtle effect to the text, and sometimes the text looks better without it.
Double click on the Mulia TOP layer to open the Layer Style panel. Then add a Pattern Overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Overlay
Opacity: 100%
Pattern: Radial Pattern (you can move this texture just like the first one)
Scale: 25%
Link with Layer: On
Step 17
Add a Bevel & Emboss with these settings:
Style: Inner Bevel
Technique: Smooth
Depth: 240 %
Direction: Up
Size: 68 px
Soften: 0 px
Use Global Light: Off
Shading Angle: 90°
Altitude: 37°
Anti-aliased: On
Highlight Mode: Lighter Color
Highlight Color: #ffdb95
Highlight Opacity: 7%
Shadow Mode: Darken
Shadow Color: #000000
Shadow Opacity: 26%
Click on the Gloss Contour and edit the contour with these settings:
Point 1: Input: 0% Output: 9% Corner: Off
Point 2: Input: 35% Output: 25% Corner: Off
Point 3: Input: 52% Output: 23% Corner: Off
Point 4: Input: 60% Output: 97% Corner: Off
Point 5: Input: 100% Output: 0% Corner: Off
Step 18
Add a Stroke with these settings:
Size: 24 px
Position: Center
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 0%
Overprint: Off
Fill Type: Any type
Color: Any color
This Stroke effect is here just to show the Stroke from the first layer; that’s why the Fill type and Color don’t matter. Note that the Opacity is set to 0%.
Step 19
Add an Outer Glow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Opacity: 100%
Noise: 0%
Color:#1a1a1d
Technique: Softer
Spread: 90%
Size: 14 px
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: On
Range: 100%
Jitter: 0%
Step 20
Add a Drop Shadow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Color: #0c0b0c
Opacity: 100%
Use Global Light: Off
Angle: 0°
Distance: 8 px
Spread: 100%
Size: 14 px
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: Off
Noise: 0%
Layer Knocks Out Drop Shadow: On
After that, click on OK.
Step 21
We’re almost done; it just needs a few tweaks. Select both text layers and convert them to one Smart Object. Then press Control-T and resize it to 55%.
Step 22
Go to Filter > Sharpen > Sharpen. Then Double-click on the text layer to open the Layer Style panel. Add a Drop Shadow with these settings:
Blend Mode: Normal
Color:#000000
Opacity: 23%
Use Global Light: Off
Angle: -1%
Distance: 21%
Spread: 8 %
Size: 6 px
Contour: Linear
Anti-aliased: Off
Noise: 0%
Layer Knocks Out Drop Shadow: On
Step 23
Create a new layer and set its mode to Screen. Then pick the Brush Tool (B) and select the Soft Round brush with a size of 473 px.
Select the color #120202 and start clicking on the text to add some lights to it. The small circles in the next image represent where I clicked.
Step 24
Create another layer and leave the layer mode as normal. Then change the brush size to 213 px and color to #170c00.
Start clicking on the text to add more lights (it will look ugly, but don’t worry).
Step 25
Change the Fill of the second light layer to 0%. Then Double-Click on the layer to open the Layer Style panel and add a Color Overlay with these settings:
Blend Mode: Screen
Color: #390300
Opacity: 41%
After that, click on OK.
You just learned two ways to add a simple light effect to the image. The first option is faster, and the second one gives you more control over the effect.
Step 26
Now we need to add a shadow to the bottom of the text. Create a new layer and name it Simple Shadow, and then move this layer on the layer panel and place it below the text.
After that, pick the Ellipse Tool (U) and set the color to black #000000. Then click below the start of the first letter and drag the mouse to the end of the last letter, drawing a very elongated oval shape below the text.
Step 27
Convert the Simple Shadow layer to a Smart Object. Then go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and add a blur with 6.4 px. After that, change the layer Opacity to 55%.
And We’re Done!
In this tutorial, you learned how to create seamless textures using the Offset filter.
You also learned that increasing the size of the document can help you when you want to add continuity to the layer
style effect, avoiding layer styles being „ended” by the borders. You also learned how to use textures with layer styles and complement that with another layer.
If
you completed the second part of this tutorial, you may have noticed
how good smart objects are for performance. You can try to repeat those steps using groups instead of smart objects, and you’ll see that your
computer will soon become slow.
Remember that this text effect is completely editable.
This one uses the Radial pattern as the stroke:
To change the text color, I recommend opening the text smart object and adding some Color Overlays or Gradient Map layers with Layer Masks.
I hope that you’ve learned something useful with this tutorial!
Dave Rupert shows us all how to animate radial progress bars in SVG with a tiny script alongside the stroke-dasharray and stroke-dashoffset properties:
For a client project we tasked ourselves with building out one of those cool radial progress bars. In the past, we’ve used entire Canvas-based charting libraries (156k/44k gzip), but that seemed like overkill. I looked at Airbnb’s Lottie project where you export After Effects animations as JSON. This is cool for complex animations, but the dependencies seemed heavy (248k/56k gzip) for one micro-animation.
Per the usual, I tried my hand at a minimal custom SVG with CSS animation and a small bit of JavaScript (~223b gzip). I’m pleased with the results.
Here’s another example Jeremias Menichelli posted here on CSS-Tricks with the added twist of making them components in React and Vue.
