hen it comes to design work, it can be a bit daunting at times. This feeling can can happen at any moment of the process; during initial research, concept design, development, all the way to project completion.
At Bearfaced Studio we use a good selection of resources to help us manage our projects, as well as inspire brilliant new ideas. We have made a list below to give everyone more of an insight into the inner workings of our design studio.
Management
"What are we working on today?", "Who made the latest revisions?", "How long have we been working on this logo design?".
Management is a key element to any successful project. It's easy for your work to take over and get lose track of revisions, but problem solved with use of some of the below design resources.
Trello — project planning and tracking
Trello is out hub for planning our projects. This allows us to keep track of tasks that have to be completed, which designer is working on what project, and all of the work in the pipeline.
It's collaborative element is a fantastic addition, as it makes remote working a breeze and gives everyone an overview of their current projects.
Toggl — time tracking
Have you ever found it difficult to price a project? Or give a client a good estimate on time-plans? Toggl helps to mitigate against that by providing a free time tracker that allows you to easily see how long you and your team have been working on any given task for any given project.
Buffer — social media management
Streamlining social media posting makes life a lot easier. Buffer lets you stagger your future posts and automatically posts them at scheduled times without you needing to press a button. A great resource for both social media managers to use, as well as freelance designers.
Inspiration
We've all experienced mind-fog; that lack of a 'spark' that we creatives thrive on to help us deliver high quality work. The below resources provide you with some well needed va-va-voom for when Google images just isn't cutting it.
Abduzeedo — a design blog packed full of the latest and greatest
If you're looking to keep up to date on the current affairs of the design world, then Aduzeedo is the place to go. It's sleek layout means there's no distractions from the content that they are posting — you're sure to find an article that will benefit your inspiration.
Behance — design projects and case-studies
For anyone looking to see some well thought out user submitted case studies, head to Behance. Run by Adobe, Behance is a platform for designers and design teams to showcase their prized work — providing you with a great opportunity to learn from some of the best in the business.
Dribbble — vector and UI/UX
Although similar to Behance, Dribbble showcases predominantly vector based graphics such as logo designs and UI elements. It's a great community to become a part of and offers a great deal of inspiration for anyone searching for it.
Awwwards — the top website trends
Websites have come a long way in recent years, and Awwwards will help you keep up to date with everything you need to know. The panel of extremely talented judges will sift through submissions and cherry-pick the crème de la crème.
Typefaces
A crucial part to all things graphic design related, choosing typefaces can often times seem like an endless maze, navigating through legibility, glyphs and kerning. But let's befriend type by using the below links.
Google Fonts — an online open source font library
An amazing resource that offers a wide selection of typefaces to choose from. Every typefaces is free to use commercially and works well on website builds, definitely something you should be saving in your bookmarks bar.
Adobe Fonts — a wide array of CC fonts
Great for any Adobe CC users out there, these fonts sync directly to your Adobe software so there's no need to download an instal. Just sign in and you're ready to go!
Font Pairing — an online resource for matching fonts
A very minimal and easy to use website that lets you quickly match both heading and body fonts. There's also an option to see a contrasted version on a darker background, helpful for different design options.
WhatTheFont — for finding fonts you don't know the name of
This handy tool lets you upload an image or a screenshot of a font that you can't quite remember the name of. It analyses the image and shows you what it believes to be the closest matching results.
Visual resources
And finally for some helpful links that are great for helping your project shine as bright as possible. Be it stock images or mock ups, these resources will take your designs to the next level and help you add that professional finish to your work.
Unsplash — royalty free images for commercial use
With so many royalty free image websites available, it can be hard to choose. The beauty of Unsplash is that all of the images are totally free and can be used on any of your commercial projects. You can optionally credit the photo author with an easy copy function.
Icons8 — amazing collection of free icons
Some well budgeted projects require bespoke icons, and for all others there's Icons8. This vast library of icon packs is free to use commercially and offers a great selection of icon styles and themes.
Graphic Burger — free mockups
For that finishing touch to your design project — a selection of mockups that will help to bring each concept to life. Our clients have always been delighted to see mockups as they help to visualise their product/service in a real world environment.
Adobe Color — colour wheel and colour palette generator
Our final resource is extremely helpful when designing bespoke colour schemes for your projects. There's also an explore section so you can see what other designers have been creating. You can easily sync these colour palettes up with your Adobe software with he click of a button.
Phew! We made it to the end of the list. We appreciate you taking the time to have a look through what we use on a weekly basis and we hope that you have found some new resources that you can implement into your future projects!
Visit our blog to keep up to date on design and business news, hope to see you soon 🐻
