Design Resources Menu

If you’re hungry for useful design resources, you’re in the right place. Welcome!

Books

  • The Design of Everyday Things

    by Don Norman

    If you’re only going to read one book about UX design, make it this one. It’s a classic for a reason.

  • Mismatch: How Inclusion Shapes Design

    by Kat Holmes

    What inclusive design is and why it’s the foundation for good design, not an add-on feature.

  • Practical Typography

    by Matthew Butterick

    What designers need to know about typography, all in one place. I use shortcuts from the chart on this page every day, and the ten-minute condensed version of the book is a great starting point.

  • The Anatomy of Type

    by Stephen Coles

    An indispensable book for understanding letterforms and what they communicate. This dramatically increased my confidence when selecting typefaces, and it’s probably the most frequently referenced design book in my collection.

  • The Secret Lives of Color

    by Kassia St. Clair

    This is a fun read and a great reference for understanding the history and cultural meaning of color. It’s especially helpful when naming colors in brand palettes and describing how they serve the brand goals.

  • The Elements of Style

    by strunk & White

    Design is communication, so writing can be part of the job. The classic primer on writing for readers is the best place to start if you want to be a better writer or copywriter. It’s unusually concise (of course!), so it won’t waste your time.

Teachers & Courses

  • Erik Kennedy

    An excellent design teacher who focuses on practical advice. I’ve taken and would highly recommend Learn UI Design, Learn UX Design, and Landing Page Academy. I couldn’t have asked for a better or more reasonably priced foundation for my design education, and the included resources (the Good Fonts Table!) are still among my most used design tools.

  • Abi Connick

    The Pro Freelancer Bundle of templates (now called the Strategic Designer OS) has been both informative and invaluable because it offers a comprehensive system for strategic brand design and effective communication with clients that I’ve adapted to suit my own brand & web design process.

  • Andy Bell

    Piccalilli’s Complete CSS course taught me how HTML and CSS can be used to build resilient, responsive, and accessible websites from scratch. This understanding informs both what I design and how I build it.

Typography

Figma plugins & more