Design

Invisible UX is coming 🔥 And it’s going to change how we design products, forever. For decades, UX design has been about guiding users through an experience. We’ve done that with visible interfaces: Menus. Buttons. Cards. Sliders. We’ve obsessed over layouts, states, and transitions. But with AI, a new kind of interface is emerging: One that’s invisible. One that’s driven by intent, not interaction. Think about it: You used to: → Open Spotify → Scroll through genres → Click into “Focus” → Pick a playlist Now you just say: “Play deep focus music.” No menus. No tapping. No UI. Just intent → output. You used to: → Search on Airbnb → Pick dates, guests, filters → Scroll through 50+ listings Now we’re entering a world where you guide with words: “Find me a cabin near Oslo with a sauna, available next weekend.” So the best UX becomes barely visible. Why does this matter? Because traditional UX gives users options. AI-native UX gives users outcomes. Old UX: “Here are 12 ways to get what you want.” New UX: “Just tell me what you want & we’ll handle the rest.” And this goes way beyond voice or chat. It’s about reducing friction. Designing systems that understand intent. Respond instantly. And get out of the way. The UI isn’t disappearing. It’s mainly dissolving into the background. So what should designers do? Rethink your role. Going forward you’ll not just lay out screens. You’ll design interactions without interfaces. That means: → Understanding how people express goals → Guiding model behavior through prompt architecture → Creating invisible guardrails for trust, speed, and clarity You are basically designing for understanding. The future of UX won’t be seen. It will be felt. Welcome to the age of invisible UX. Ready for it?

Vintage Illustration, luxury driving nostalgia. +73% of Gen Z consumers say they find comfort in content and design that reminds them of the past. Is trending hard, especially among lifestyle and fashion brands trying to win over Gen Z. But this isn’t just a vibe shift, it’s a strategic move backed by cultural data, behavioral insights, and evolving consumer expectations. Fashion and lifestyle brands are leveraging these illustration trends across packaging, social media, and product design. This appetite for nostalgia isn’t about looking backward, it’s about finding emotional grounding in an overwhelming digital world. +120% YoY increase in searches for terms like “vintage cartoon art” and “retro aesthetic outfit.” +58% of Gen Z shoppers prefer brands with a “strong aesthetic identity rooted in storytelling and nostalgia.” >>Nostalgia-Driven design is here to stay<< Reports predicts that “neo-nostalgia” will define aesthetic strategies through 2026, particularly as Gen Alpha begins to enter the consumer space and Gen Z’s influence continues to peak. Meanwhile, AI and generative design tools are making vintage-style illustration easier to scale, enabling brands to customize retro visuals for seasonal campaigns or limited drops, all while keeping production costs low. +Digital Burnout: In a screen-saturated age, tactile, analog-style graphics stand out. +Sustainability: Vintage aesthetics pair naturally with thrifting, upcycling culture. +Anti-Overdesign: After hyper-polished brand visuals, there's a desire for hand-drawn, imperfect, real art. >>Illustration styles to review<< +Rococo Fashion Plates +Toile de Jouy Designs +Chinoiserie +Scientific & Botanical Illustration +Neoclassical Engravings In Conclusion: Vintage illustration isn’t just a throwback, it’s a forward-looking strategy for brands that want to connect with Gen Z’s complex mix of irony, emotion, and aesthetic intelligence. It signals soul in a world of sameness, and smart brands are taking note. Find my curated search of luxury Illustrations, and get inspired for success. featured Brands: Bulgary Chanel Dolce & Gabbana Dior Dyptique Gucci Hermes Kohan Loewe Versace #beautybussines #beautyprofessionals #luxurybussines #luxuryprofessionals

Turning Heat into Comfort: Smart Innovation in Saudi Arabia ☀️➡️❄️ In Saudi Arabia’s scorching 50°C heat, a mosque has been transformed into a cool oasis with 250 smart umbrellas—a fusion of technology, design, and climate adaptation. 🔹 Heat-Resistant Materials – Fireproof, wind-flexible fabric reduces glare and keeps the space cool. 🔹 Built-in Cooling System – Each umbrella features 16 mist fans, creating a refreshing microclimate for visitors. 🔹 Seamless Aesthetics – Designed to fold away elegantly, enhancing both functionality and beauty. More than just shade, this project showcases how smart design can reshape environments and improve daily life. 🌍 💡 What other technologies can be adapted to combat extreme climates? Let’s discuss! 👇 #Innovation #SmartDesign #Technology #ClimateSolutions #SustainableFuture

I have spent hundreds of hours analyzing design systems. One of the things that confused me for many years is how to structure color scales and tokens. I have experimented with multiple structures at different sizes of design systems, and at a high-level recommend the following approach: 1. Primitive Colors Your design system foundations should always start with a full color scale that is based on your brand identity. We call these colors Primitives, and your variable/token collection should look like this: - purple-600 - purple-500 - purple-400 - And so on.. To create a Primitives palette you will want to start from your main brand colors and use a tool like UIColors, Supapalette, Colorbox to expand to the full scale. (links in comments) This is a great foundation to have, as it gives you a set of shades that can be used in different ways, and ensures all of them have consistent hues, saturation and brightness. However, Primitive colors are simply not effective when used directly in your designs: - They create ambiguity - Their names have no contextual meaning - They are often misused due to similarity If you have had the “why are there 20 different shades of gray?” conversation with an engineer, you know what I mean. So let’s see how we can improve that. 2. Semantic Colors This is my default recommendation to all product design teams that don’t have a highly complex design system. What you will want to do here is create a new variable collection named Semantic, which is what’s visible in your design files, and comprises of: - Brand / Action - Text - Link - Border - Icon - Surface / Background - Bias - Data / Charts Each color should point to a primitive value, e.g. - text-primary → gray-800 - text-secondary → gray-600 - text-tertiary → gray-400 This takes a bit of setting up, but creates immense long-term value. A great example of a simple, theme-level Semantic structure is Shopify’s Polaris (link in comments) 3. Component-level Semantic Lastly, if you are working on a design system with a lot of complexity and, ideally, a dedicated design systems team, you might want to add another level of hierarchy and specify colors at a component-level. In this structure, you would want to create color tokens based on how they are used in each component. - input-text-filled → text-primary - input-text-placeholder → text-secondary - input-text-disabled → text-tertiary This eliminates all guesswork, but also increases the complexity exponentially. It does serve a purpose though. As design systems scale, you may find that: - A theme-level semantic structure is too restrictive - There is still some guesswork - Decisions need to be documented. An example of this is Uber’s Base and Adobe’s Spectrum design system, linked in the comments. I’m curious to know, what structure are you using for your design system and what has worked well for you? — If you found this useful, consider reposting ♻️ #uidesign #designsystems #productdesign

Remote teams don’t work? Here’s the truth: If your team needs constant watching... You’ve hired the wrong people. I've managed a remote team for 3+ years. Here’s what I’ve learned: 1/ The best people don’t need babysitting → They deliver results, not excuses. → Micromanagement kills trust. → Ownership drives real performance. → Accountability beats oversight. 2/ No commute means more growth → Extra hours for learning, not traffic. → Time spent on skills, not sitting still. → Work-life balance fuels productivity. → Efficiency replaces exhaustion. 3/ No office means no politics → Results matter more than appearances. → Ideas win, not egos. → Collaboration over competition. → Culture thrives without drama. Here’s how you can make it work: → Set clear KPIs that actually matter. → Monitor outcomes, not hours. → Document your process with Tango. → Give freedom to work where, when, and how. → Focus on impact—not desk time. Remote success isn’t about location—it’s about results. I started using Tango myself to streamline our workflows, keeping everyone aligned. For our remote team, it’s a game-changer. Why? Less explaining, more doing. ♻️ Repost and follow Justin Bateh, PhD for more.

Let’s talk about hidden disabilities—ADHD, dyslexia, anxiety, and others that don’t meet the eye. Too often, these students are left to struggle because their needs aren’t immediately visible. But here’s the thing: when we ignore those needs, it’s no different from denying someone in a wheelchair access to a ramp. Think about it. Would you expect someone to climb stairs without the tools they need? Of course not. Yet we often expect students with hidden disabilities to navigate education without the accommodations that would level the playing field. It’s not fair, and it’s not right. Accommodations like extra time, clear instructions, or a quiet space aren’t “special treatment.” They’re the difference between drowning and swimming. They’re the tools these students need to show us their potential, not their struggles. I’ve seen the power of a single adjustment. They’re what happens when we meet students where they are. What if we reimagined education as a place where every student feels valued and equipped to succeed? What if we stopped seeing accommodations as “extras” and started recognizing them as essential? Here’s a question for you: Have you seen examples of simple accommodations making a big impact? Or do you think schools are doing enough to support students with hidden disabilities? Let’s share, reflect, and push for better together. Image Courtesy: No Nonsense Neurodivergent #Disability #Accessibility #SDGs #Equity #HumanRights #WeAreBillionStrong ID: Allowing a student with a hidden disability (ADHD, Anxiety, Dyslexia) to struggle academically or socially when all that is needed for success are appropriate accommodations and explicit instruction, is no different than failing to provide a ramp for a person in a wheelchair.

I interviewed 20 sustainability managers 🎙️ That's their #1 pain point 🤕 ➡️ "Reporting is 1st. Impact is 2nd". Challenges that I can see with sustainability in companies: ❌ Competing frameworks confuse. ❌ Data collection becomes more important than actual impact ❌ Disconnect between reporting teams and operational teams ❌ Excessive time spent on documentation. ❌ Risk of greenwashing through selective reporting (I am sure you have your observations to add🙄) 5 secrets to turn this into the biggest opportunity for change: ✅ Use reporting to clarify sustainability vision 100%. ✅ Identify in-company 'spoilers' - and engage them! ✅ Change sustainability reporting from 'a burden' for all, to an 'invitation to do good' for each individual. ✅ Turn deadlines into celebration moments for internal change. ✅ Use data requirements as opportunities to understand the entire value chain (and opportunities for change). You know the pain ?🧐 📲 Ping me to re-write the script on your sustainability reporting ♻️ #circulareconomy #zerowaste #sustainability

💎 Accessibility For Designers Checklist (PDF: https://lnkd.in/e9Z2G2kF), a practical set of cards on WCAG accessibility guidelines, from accessible color, typography, animations, media, layout and development — to kick-off accessibility conversations early on. Kindly put together by Geri Reid. WCAG for Designers Checklist, by Geri Reid Article: https://lnkd.in/ef8-Yy9E PDF: https://lnkd.in/e9Z2G2kF WCAG 2.2 Guidelines: https://lnkd.in/eYmzrNh7 Accessibility isn’t about compliance. It’s not about ticking off checkboxes. And it’s not about plugging in accessibility overlays or AI engines either. It’s about *designing* with a wide range of people in mind — from the very start, independent of their skills and preferences. In my experience, the most impactful way to embed accessibility in your work is to bring a handful of people with different needs early into design process and usability testing. It’s making these test sessions accessible to the entire team, and showing real impact of design and code on real people using a real product. Teams usually don’t get time to work on features which don’t have a clear business case. But no manager really wants to be seen publicly ignoring their prospect customers. Visualize accessibility to everyone on the team and try to make an argument about potential reach and potential income. Don’t ask for big commitments: embed accessibility in your work by default. Account for accessibility needs in your estimates. Create accessibility tickets and flag accessibility issues. Don’t mistake smiling and nodding for support — establish timelines, roles, specifics, objectives. And most importantly: measure the impact of your work by repeatedly conducting accessibility testing with real people. Build a strong before/after case to show the change that the team has enabled and contributed to, and celebrate small and big accessibility wins. It might not sound like much, but it can start changing the culture faster than you think. Useful resources: Giving A Damn About Accessibility, by Sheri Byrne-Haber (disabled) https://lnkd.in/eCeFutuJ Accessibility For Designers: Where Do I Start?, by Stéphanie Walter https://lnkd.in/ecG5qASY Web Accessibility In Plain Language (Free Book), by Charlie Triplett https://lnkd.in/e2AMAwyt Building Accessibility Research Practices, by Maya Alvarado https://lnkd.in/eq_3zSPJ How To Build A Strong Case For Accessibility, ↳ https://lnkd.in/ehGivAdY, by 🦞 Todd Libby ↳ https://lnkd.in/eC4jehMX, by Yichan Wang #ux #accessibility

Peel and Reveal. From the vibrant hues of an apple to the intricate patterns on a mango, the skin of fruits tells a story of growth and ripening. Ever noticed the unique patterns and blemishes on a piece of fruit? From the speckled skin of a banana to the dimpled surface of an orange, nature's artwork is full of imperfections that add character and charm. Imagine if your packaging could capture that essence, mimicking the fruit's natural markings and aging process? That's exactly what designers are exploring with the innovative concept of packaging that mirrors fruit skins, complete with embossed brown spots. By mirroring these natural markings in packaging design, brands are celebrating the beauty of imperfection, challenging the notion of flawless aesthetics and embracing the authenticity of the natural world. And it's not just about aesthetics. In a society where a flawless appearance often reigns supreme, embracing the quirks and irregularities of fruit skin sends a powerful message—reminds us that beauty comes in all forms, including the unique patterns and variations found in the natural world. Secondly, it enhances the sensory experience. By incorporating texture into packaging design, brands can engage multiple senses, creating a more immersive and memorable interaction with their products. Moreover, it fosters a deeper connection to the source. When packaging mirrors the appearance of fresh produce, it reinforces the idea of authenticity and transparency. Consumers can visually connect the product to its origins, fostering trust and confidence in the brand's commitment to quality and sustainability. Consider Loukas Chondros' packaging for Bananostafido. Inspired by banana peels, it mimics their markings and aging process with embossed spots. Designed for easy opening, it even features a perforated area that mimics the act of peeling a banana. The inner surface of the box resembles the pale yellow of a banana peel, again a nod to the fruit. These small details, transform a simple act like opening a box into a delightful moment of discovery—it's packaging that invites you to engage with it, creating a connection between you and the product inside. From farm to table, the journey of the fruit is reflected in every detail of the packaging, creating a narrative that resonates with consumers. In stores inundated with mass-produced goods and cookie-cutter packaging, designs inspired by nature offer a breath of fresh air. They remind us of the beauty that surrounds us, celebrate the charm of imperfection, and invite us to slow down and appreciate the little things in life. So, the next time you grab that piece of fruit, take a moment to really look and feel its skin—and consider how that same sense of wonder can be captured in the packaging that surrounds it. Think this packaging is spot-on? #packagingdesign #design #productdesign #graphicdesign 📷Loukas Chondros

Smart materials in this futuristic design shift color and texture based on temperature, motion, or light — turning fashion into adaptive tech. Would you wear it? 🧬 This isn’t sci-fi. + Smart textiles are forecast to grow into a $17.6 billion industry by 2030, driven by innovations in nanomaterials, thermal sensors, and electrochromic coatings. + AeroSkin’s concept shows what happens when AI, material science, and design collide — and it raises the question: What happens when your clothes start thinking for you... 🎯 Imagine soldiers with adaptive camouflage. ⚡ Athletes wearing gear that adjusts cooling zones dynamically. 🌆 Or professionals using color-shifting jackets as expressive, data-driven fashion statements. We’ve made phones smart, homes smart, even cars autonomous… yet most of us still wear “dumb fabric.” Maybe the next frontier of computing isn’t a screen — it’s the skin you wear. #WearableTech #SmartMaterials #Innovation #FutureOfFashion #AI #ChameleonJacket #AeroSkin #TechDesign #MaterialScience #AdaptiveClothing