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looking for inspiration

January 31, 2009 7:37am

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  • #1 / Jan 31, 2009 7:37am

    JT Thompson

    745 posts

    I’m helping a friend look for some design inspiration.

    I use to have a good site that showed all sorts of really nice layouts of other websites. Kind of a design showcase of the web. not their work. I use to use this site for inspiration a lot when trying to come up with stuff for clients.

    I haven’t used it in awhile but thought I’d ask if anyone had suggestions. My business partner is looking for some inspiration and I can’t remember the site i use to use, or any other really good ones.

    Can someone help a google challenged person?

  • #2 / Jan 31, 2009 9:29am

    Mark Bowen

    12637 posts

    You could try Pattern Tap or Smashing Magazine if you go through their archives they usually have quite a few site designs in there. Also all the different CSS galleries such as Nice Stylesheet, Unmatched Style and CSS Mania to name a couple. There are loads loads more though so just do a quick Google search for CSS galleries and loads will come up.

    Hope that helps a bit though.

    Best wishes,

    Mark

  • #3 / Feb 01, 2009 6:41pm

    Crssp-ee

    572 posts

    Hi Jt, you are welcome to share my design journal blog from the past year or so, I’ve sort of stopped posting these, but still wish I had a place to blog what impresses just me.
    http://www.mostinspired.com/blog/category/weekly-top-standards/
    I usually pick them right off of CSSmania.com and another great and selective gallery is http://bestwebgallery.com/. You can’t beat smashing MAgazine either, but you sometimes have to use a keyword search for a certain style or resource.
    It’s a lot of fun posting a journal.

  • #4 / Feb 01, 2009 8:12pm

    JT Thompson

    745 posts

    Thanks Mark and Crssp-ee.

    This is exactly what I wanted. I especially like the way they have those small thumbnails but bigger previews on mouseover on that bestwebgallery site.


    Thanks again guys! i sure wish I was creative enough to think of those things.

  • #5 / Feb 03, 2009 7:04am

    Simon Cox

    405 posts

    What I have recently started doing is keeping snapshots of designs or fragments of designs in LittleSnapper - (Mac only). I also keep a record of any client updates I do with this as well but I have an inspirations category that whenever I see something I like I take a grab of it.

    Some recent good places I have been trawling to find inspiration include, in no particular order:

    Fresh Web Trends
    CSS Imagine
    ScrnShots
    CSS Dance
    CSS Blaze
    CSS Mix

  • #6 / Feb 03, 2009 8:18am

    stinhambo

    1268 posts

    Also all the different CSS galleries such as Nice Stylesheet, Unmatched Style and CSS Mania to name a couple.

    You mean a few right?

  • #7 / Feb 03, 2009 9:39am

    Mark Bowen

    12637 posts

    Also all the different CSS galleries such as Nice Stylesheet, Unmatched Style and CSS Mania to name a couple.

    You mean a few right?

    You picking on my pluralisms? 😉

    To be fair I did have a comma after Nice Stylesheet and then Unmatched Style and CSS Mania were grouped together so that makes a couple!! 😊 😉 😊

  • #8 / Feb 03, 2009 9:45am

    Simon Cox

    405 posts

    Maybe Steven is alluding to the fact that there are a lot more sites out there than has been mentioned…

  • #9 / Feb 03, 2009 9:52am

    JT Thompson

    745 posts

    thanks again for these replies.

    To Simon. I think we all know there are probably thousands of these sites out there. That’s actually the main reason I asked here. With most people here being developers I’m able to weed out probably 95% of the sites that just recycle stuff, have hidden agendas or are just pointless. Most responses from this board on stuff like that provide highly qualified results.

  • #10 / Feb 03, 2009 10:10am

    Mark Bowen

    12637 posts

    Maybe Steven is alluding to the fact that there are a lot more sites out there than has been mentioned…

    Nah he was picking on me for my bad use of grammar 😉

  • #11 / Feb 03, 2009 12:42pm

    Simon Cox

    405 posts

    and thanks for the reminder of Smashing Magazine Mark - forgotten about that - just read their article of 50 more 404 pages - always an interesting but often neglected subject!

  • #12 / Feb 03, 2009 12:45pm

    Mark Bowen

    12637 posts

    and thanks for the reminder of Smashing Magazine Mark - forgotten about that - just read their article of 50 more 404 pages - always an interesting but often neglected subject!

    Yep I read that a couple of days back now and it’s a really good idea. Must remember to do that more often myself from now on! 😊

  • #13 / Feb 03, 2009 6:11pm

    hildreth

    12 posts

    What I started doing for inspiration, especially for websites, is to not look at anything that is a website. I found that when I use websites as inspiration for websites, my design starts looking like that website.

    I started heading down to the local Barnes & Nobles and sift through the art section and look at books on business cards, brochures, and even architecture. Then, once I have a good idea for a design, I then look at the CSS gallery sites for functionality. I will look at how the navigation changes, drop-downs, etc.

    I feel that I get better results this way, and I think my designs are more unique this way.

  • #14 / Feb 03, 2009 11:14pm

    Deron Sizemore

    1033 posts

    You could try Pattern Tap or Smashing Magazine if you go through their archives they usually have quite a few site designs in there. Also all the different CSS galleries such as Nice Stylesheet, Unmatched Style and CSS Mania to name a couple. There are loads loads more though so just do a quick Google search for CSS galleries and loads will come up.

    Hope that helps a bit though.

    Best wishes,

    Mark

    Yeah, I hear that Nice Stylesheet site is the BOMB!  :cheese: 

    Thanks for mentioning Mark. 😉

  • #15 / Feb 05, 2009 12:29pm

    Arun S.

    792 posts

    What I started doing for inspiration, especially for websites, is to not look at anything that is a website. I found that when I use websites as inspiration for websites, my design starts looking like that website.

    I started heading down to the local Barnes & Nobles and sift through the art section and look at books on business cards, brochures, and even architecture. Then, once I have a good idea for a design, I then look at the CSS gallery sites for functionality. I will look at how the navigation changes, drop-downs, etc.

    I feel that I get better results this way, and I think my designs are more unique this way.

    I agree with that approach. I do the same myself—draw inspiration from non-web sources.

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