CategoryGraphics

June 30, 2017 — It’s been nine years already since we embarked on this mission to welcome the new month with a fresh batch of desktop eye candy, with wallpapers that are a bit more distinctive as the usual crowd. And it wasn’t any different this time around. July is almost here, and artists and designers from across the globe once again challenged their creative skills and created a lovely collection of wallpapers for July 2017. All of them come in two versions and can be downloaded for free. Now you only need to decide which one will make it to your desktop. Enjoy! Read more…

May 31, 2017 — Our monthly desktop wallpapers post is an opportunity to refuel your creative battery and get a little in-between inspiration shot. Each month, artists and designers from across the globe challenge their creative skills to create inspiring, unique, and simply beautiful wallpapers for you to indulge in. Wallpapers that are a bit more distinctive as the usual crowd and that’ll, hopefully, cater for some fresh ideas. All wallpapers come in versions with and without a calendar and can be downloaded for free. Enjoy! Read more…

May 24, 2017 — It used to be enough for user interface elements to “look professional” or simply to “add polish” to a website. But in the past few years we’ve come to expect more personal interactions and stronger relationships with the apps we use. Our relationship with the web has evolved dramatically over the past few years. It is a much more intimate relationship than it was before we had smartphones and tablets. Physically, the web is in our pockets. It’s on the couch. Custom images are a powerful design tool. They can tell a story and convey a distinct personality. Custom illustrations can be especially impactful. They can make our audience feel personally connected to an app or website, while being an integral part of the design. Read more…

April 30, 2017 — Time to freshen up your desktop! Our monthly wallpapers challenge is an opportunity to let your ideas run wild and try something new, to indulge in a little project just for fun. This post features desktop wallpapers for May 2017, created by designers and artists from all across the globe. Each wallpaper comes in versions with and without a calendar and can be downloaded for free. You can feature your work in our magazine by taking part in our Desktop Wallpaper Calendars series. We are regularly looking for creative designers and artists to be featured on Smashing Magazine. Are you one of them? Read more…

April 27, 2017 — Sketch makes the day-to-day life of a user interface designer a lot better. Mundane little things such as measuring distances and sizes are now much easier and quicker. You can automate parts of your workflow and use real data in your Sketch designs. You can also organize your files more optimally, and more. If you’re a UI designer and are still using mostly Photoshop or Illustrator, Lachezar Petkov highly recommends you try Sketch. You might never want to look back! Read more…

April 20, 2017 — Javier Cuello started using Sketch a few years ago, as a replacement for his favorite design software back then, Fireworks, which had been discontinued by Adobe — leaving a whole generation of designers broken-hearted. In this article, Javier will outline how to make use of symbols in Sketch in order to unleash their full potential, going from the most basic situations to some more advanced use cases. He’ll also include some tips and tricks that he has learned along the way. Read more…

March 31, 2017 — We’ve been on this mission to bring you unique wallpaper calendars each month anew for eight years already, and we are very thankful to all the designers and artists who keep it running by diligently contributing their artworks to it. This post features their works for April 2017. No matter if April means blooming colors and embracing the warmer weather in your part of the world or getting cozy for autumn, our new batch of desktop wallpapers is bound to cater for some fresh inspiration regardless of that. Read more…

March 9, 2017 — Due to its similarity to Sketch, Figma was easy for Chrstian Krammer to grasp right from the start, but it also has some unique features to differentiate it from its competitor, such as easy file-sharing, vector networks, “constraints” (for responsive design) and real-time collaboration. In this article, Chrstian would like to compare both apps in detail and highlight where each of them shines. Read more…

February 28, 2017 — If you need a little inspiration kick to get your creative juices flowing, Cosima Mileke has something for you that could work: desktop wallpapers. Each month, artists and designers from across the globe diligently contribute their works to it. And well, it wasn’t any different this time around. This post features their artwork for March 2017. The wallpapers all come in versions with and without a calendar. All images can be clicked on and lead to the preview of the wallpaper. Time to freshen up your desktop! Read more…

February 23, 2017 — Data should be the cornerstone of everything you create. It makes it easier to account for edge cases, or things you might not have thought of otherwise. The easiest way to work with real data in Sketch is the with Craft plugin from InVision. It provides a wealth of predefined content, such as names and addresses, lets you scour a website for the required information, and enables you to feed in a JSON file and work with the provided data. Read more…