Hey, fellow design aficionados! 👋 Ever wondered what designers do when the job hunt is on? We embark on a journey through our portfolios, hoping to unearth a touch of magic that screams “hire me!” In my case, it was all about dancing with consistency and being the superhero of user-centricity during a Figma-powered redesign spree.
As I dabbled in the redesign symphony, I found myself tossing in elements tested in the trenches of my day job as a Senior Graphic Designer or those I’d been itching to try out. Little things, you know, like those nested round corners that add just the right sprinkle of delight. And here’s a design hack for you — my secret formula for round corners is as simple as Outer Radius minus Gap equals Inner Radius. Math magic! Well, almost; a few pixel tweaks might be needed for that perfect vibe.
See the Pen Nested Radius Calculator by Paul Hebert (@phebert) on CodePen.
Now, let’s talk about the epic battle with Elementor, the website builder, attempting to make things more responsive. Enter ChatGPT and Perplexity, my dynamic duo. I’ve had more chats with ChatGPT than my morning coffee, and Perplexity, not being an ad enthusiast, brings in the freshest solutions from the coolest corners of the web.
But, in all seriousness, I really like Perplexity. I have it not just in bookmarks but on my iPhone. I use it daily.
Now, AI in web design? It’s not a magic wand, far from it. Despite the hype of it being a breeze, let me assure you, it demands a good mix of technical prowess and aesthetic sense. I can vouch for it—I’ve tinkered with Stable Diffusion on my machine. It’s not your ‘one-click solution,’ and if anything, it’s not getting simpler. It’s like the WordPress tale in 2003 or Canva’s journey in 2013 — supposed to make things a breeze, but there’s an art to it.
And what do artists and designers do when reviewing their work? Stumble upon forgotten pieces, of course. Deep in my old hard drive, I found artwork I’d totally forgotten about. Surprise, surprise! They were actually pretty good. Who knew my past self had some clever tricks up their sleeve? 😄
Oh, and here’s a blast from the past: one of the illustrations I did for Berserk CCG back in 2012! What I enjoy the most is the very strong drawing linework here. Even if this whole piece is heavily influenced by Wayne Reynolds. Look at the goblin with a scythe in the background. It’s almost like a copy from one of his artworks. Still, the linework! Real magic 😜
For cover image an illustration for Berserk CCG. © 2012 Fantasy World, by Pavel Guzenko was used
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