10 design tools I cannot live without.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my processes, the tools I use and how it affects my workflow. And when I started really thinking about it and noticing what I was doing, I realised how much I rely on my tools of the trade. Our tools are a little different and are majority digital/online based so I thought I’d share a peek into the world of a designer and the 10 tools I cannot live without.
You know how some people go down a YouTube rabbit hole, well I go into Pinterest holes. They are my kryptonite, my black hole, where I’ll spend countless hours, browsing and being inspired. Pinterest is my go to for design inspiration, photography ideas, home office layouts, articles to read, my client boards and different wall murals I can paint on the walls of my future house (if I ever get there).
Third Ginger Studio has recently joined the business world of Pinterest and it’s hands down ah-mazing! Come and see what's inspiring me (and follow along for the ride).
Adobe Creative Cloud
The be all and end all of a designer’s life. CC not working = hell on earth. CC includes all the programs used to create beautiful designs, from InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop, it has all the goodies. I create literally everything in these programs, even a simple text document must be formatted.
Youtube
YouTube got me through my degree. There is never an end to things that one can learn especially as a designer and I have learnt so much from watching other people’s processes and tutorials about different tools. If I’m ever unsure of exactly how to do something, I’ll just jump on YouTube and find someone to teach me.
Unsplash
The bees knees of copyright free images. Not you average stock imagery, Unsplash photos are perfect for showcasing and presenting brands with images to make their design come alive.
Camera
I’d be lost without a camera. Even my phone camera. Capturing little things as I go about my day, photoshoots at home for experimenting, or for brands. A camera is unparalleled and I don’t think I could do my work without it.
Notebook (or paper)
I’m a paper and pen kinda gal. I love jotting down notes, quick sketches, or even just fleshing out brand new ideas on paper before going digital. It’s therapeutic, but also gives time away from the screen which is invaluable for my creativity and workflow! I’m also that person that has so many random pieces of paper floating around with super important things I need to remember. Not so convenient, probably need to work on that…
Adobe Colour
Another tool that makes my life easy! I love being able to have every colour known to our visible human eye at my fingertips to create the most perfect palette for a client. With so many options and the ability to extract from a photo is just perfection.
Google Fonts/Typekit
Give me all the fonts, all the time. I’ll sometimes scroll through thousands of fonts searching for the most perfect one. Google Fonts and Typekit make it so easy to sift through endless options to find that one match that was just made for the brand I’m creating.
And endless stream of new content, ideas and seeing other designers in real life is what Instagram is all about (and being able to share a perfectly curated feed). I can sometimes spend way (way way way) too much time on this little app but it’s a really great tool if used wisely.
Later
My social media scheduling app. I’m on here at least once a day. It is the perfect way to schedule, sort and write captions for any platform for my business. It takes the stress out of remembering to post, remembering hashtags and so much more. And it’s free!
And of course, my laptop. Where would I be without that bad boy. And coffee. Duh.
What are some things in your business that you just cannot function without? Let me know in the comments!
K