1. design basics
for web, print, powerpoint, doodling on napkins, and more
by Lisa Blankenship, rev. 2008

2. visual literacy: the joshua tree principle
Graphic designer Robin Williams tells a story about receiving a book about trees as a girl. The first type of tree in the book was the Joshua Tree. She thought she’d never seen one before, but after reading about it in the book, she realized there were several in her own neighborhood in northern California.
The point: If you can name something, you have power over it; if you can analyze and describe good and bad design principles, you have control over design yourself.
source: Williams, Robin. The Non-Designers Design Book.
Berkeley, CA: Peachpit Press, 1994.

3. CRAP design principles
Contrast
Strong contrast adds visual interest to a page and makes it more attractive to the reader's eye.
source: Williams, Robin. The Non-Designers Design Book. Berkeley, CA: Peachpit Press, 1994.

4. CRAP design principles
Repetition
The principle of repetition entails repeating some aspect of the design throughout the entire printed piece, PowerPoint presentation, or website.
In web design, repetition often takes the form of a masthead at the top of the page or in a navigation bar on the left side or top of the page.
Repetition works to unify all parts of a design and creates a sense of consistency and visual unity.

5. CRAP design principles
Alignment
Nothing should be placed on a page arbitrarily. Every element should have some visual connection with another element on the page. This creates a clean, fresh, sophisticated look.
To keep an entire page unified, align every object with an edge of some other object. Remember vertical and horizontal alignment.
bad:
good:

6. CRAP design principles
Proximity
Items relating to one another should be grouped together.
When several items are in close proximity to each other, they become one visual unit rather than several separate units. This helps organize information and reduce clutter.

7. design tips Left justify text and graphics rather than centering.
Avoid mixing illustrations and photographs in the same site.
3. Create a focal point—maybe
a photo, graphic, or large header.
bad:
good:

8. design tips
Avoid using all capitals in your titles and headers. Also avoid using italics on your site—harder to read on the web.
Keep it simple; the best designs often are. Don’t feel like you have to get fancy in order to be good. The Mark Twain rule of thumb in writing can also be applied to design: it takes great effort to be simple and clean.
bad:
6. Avoid colored or textured backgrounds.

9. design tips
7. Avoid information overload. “White space,” or blank space without graphic elements or text, is not a waste of space; it’s an opportunity to draw attention to the elements and words on the page and is one of the most important aspects of good design.

10. helpful sites images: http://www.sxc.hu/ design: