Flat Web Design – Is this the future of Web Designing?

In the year 2013, web designing is at the cusp of a new beginning. In the last few years, flashy illustrations faux-realistic textures, 3-D effects, drop shadows and several other animated effects were at the core of web designing but now these artificial characteristics are giving way to a completely new revolutionary trend of web designing – Flat Web Design.

All the new websites and even some of the redesigns are adopting the flat web designing technique to furnish their sites with a fun fresh, modern and refreshingly simple digital aesthetic. Certainly, it is going to be a huge trend in web designing this year.

What is Flat Web Design?

Flat web design is the newest innovation in the field of web designing. It is a simple and a minimalistic design approach that focuses on sharp, bold typography, crisp edges, solid colors and flat, two-dimensional illustrations sans any fluff and fussiness. This form of design can be both beautiful and captivating.

Flat designs are judged by the functionality and how good it works rather than how it looks. Usability and not the appearance are the prime focus while creating a flat web design. It is specifically fabricated with clean and minimal effects so as to enhance communication and promote usability of the site.

A perfect example of the flat design is the Windows 8, it is absolutely flat. Microsoft was the first one to embrace this trend to its interface.

How can you make it work for you?

However, having a flat design for your site does not mean that it will look bland and boring. When you are flat designing for your website, disregard any embellishments for your design and focus more on simplicity and functionality. Here are a few tips to help you incorporate flat design in your web designing:

#Color is the key:

If you know how to play with colors, layouts and photographs, you can make your site truly gleam and that too without any extra effects. From color-blocking, shades and tints to shapes and bars, color is the key ingredient to make a flat web design stand out. You can use bright and contrasting colors to make the objects, buttons or any other illustration pop from the background and grab the user’s attention.

#Play with words:

Words are essential to maintain the flow and feel of a simple design. Use them in a clear and concise way to communicate your message and tell the user what to do on your website. Try adding a different and interesting typography that goes well with your theme or you can use an a novelty font accented by simple typefaces like sans serif as an artistic element in your design.

#Simple UI interface:

There is no room for deceptive beautification in a flat web design. Avoid over-designing and in order to create an impressive design, keep the designing of UI elements like buttons and icons such that they are clearly defined and easy to use. You can add variety by including boxes, colors, shapes or even a different typeface.

#Hierarchy is essential:

It is imperative for any website to build a distinct sense of hierarchy. Ensure that navigation through your website is easy for users. Keep the links clear and clickable, either by using a different color or enclosing them in a box.

How can you benefit from the Flat Web Design?

The minimalistic approach gives flat design its unique functional character.

• When you employ a flat web design for your website, you won’t just get a simple and efficient layout, in fact, the code of your site will also be streamlined. Therefore, if your website encounters any error in its functionality, it can be debugged quite easily.
• Moreover, shedding unnecessary styling makes your website speedier, more flexible and extremely simple to use.
• Solid color blocks grab attention more quickly and the meaning of well-defined icons can also be easily interpreted by everyone.
• The simplicity of flat design makes it more scalable and easier to load on any platform be it a tablet or any mobile device.
• The website appears to be a self-guided presentation rather than an interactive document making it very easy to use.
• Flat web design does not require any flash or shock wave application. All you need is the simple and traditional HTML and CSS.

Still, if you feel going completely flat can be quite intimidating, you can try to keep the artificial effects in your design to the minimum or you can contact us. Send us your design and we will convert it into an HTML website.