Wow, where has 2012 gone? It’s almost 2013, and with a new year come new trends in design and visual aesthetics. Today we’ve gathered some interesting predictions on what will be hot in the coming year.
Responsive Web Design
With the development of mobile web, smart phones and tablets are increasingly becoming the tool of choice for internet surfing. With all of these formats, traditional web design dictates that separate coding would be needed for every different screen size and device. That means lots of extra time for web developers and designers, and much less flexibility. With responsive web design, a single set of code can adapt to any environment, cutting down on time and cost, and allowing the designers and developers to focus on more important things like user-interface and visual layout.
Here are some responsive web design examples, to see the screen difference just resize your browser:
Maryland Craft Beer Festival
Clean Air Challenge
Minimalist Design
In 2012, many large corporations such as Microsoft and ebay re-vamped their logos to be much simpler and cleaner than before. In 2013, we expect many other companies to follow suit with these clean and simple logo designs. Also, a trend in geometric digital illustration has been on the rise, and is gaining popularity over its analog cousin. Simple and striking illustration styles are expected to become popular in the new year and usher in a new appreciation for Bauhaus-like minimalist design.
Here are some Jennergy minimalist logo design examples:
Kyle Kincaid :: Certified Public Accountant
Cocker Fennessy
Lund Consulting
Print Publications Going Digital
With more and more people opting to read materials from an e-reader or tablet, it only makes sense that they would rather purchase their magazines in the same digital format. Digital magazines and catalogs are expected to skyrocket in popularity as the prices of tablets come down and more people purchase them. Interactive ads and animated photographs and illustrations add interest and attraction to e-publications for both the consumer and the magazine companies and adds an extra layer of interest to this new format.
Pantone’s Color Predictions
In the new year, muted and rich colors such as brick red, desaturated fuschia and deep purple are at the forefront of the new color palettes, in heavy contrast to the bright neons that were popular in 2012.
Here are some Pantone color examples:
http://www.homerenovationguide.com/articles/1590-pantone-s-2013-colour-trends
Single Page Website Layouts
Increased implementation of HTML5 is making it more easy to create single-page website designs with very little processing power and very consistent results. We expect to see this trend become very popular in 2013, along with full page animated background images that load in no time. Sites such as format.com, a website-building and hosting application, plan on releasing some of these options to their customers at the start of 2013.
Big Buttons
Since touch-screen devices are becoming more and more popular, so are big and easy-to-tap buttons that save frustration and make identification much easier. Before, the use of oversize buttons was less desirable, and only used for aesthetic purposes, but in 2013 will become more of a necessity than an option.
Luxury Printing
Since everyday materials are going the way of digital, printing is expected to take a turn for the higher-end market, with experimental printing processes and high quality papers and inks. Swanky, avant-garde designs are expected to rule the printed magazine world, with an emphasis on tactile qualities. While printing may not be popular for the average magazine or newspaper, the people who really appreciate printed materials (ahem, us), are in for a real treat.
