As a web designer, I have had to focus a lot on finding a balance between clean minimalism and the “wow” factor that distinguishes one blog or web design from another. One thing I’ve been experimenting with all year is working with textures and patterns to add a little spark to websites. I love that so many color palettes look even more amazing when you throw in some gold foil, a marble texture, or a simple pattern. One of my most recent projects, a website for Luminary Retreats, is full of rose gold. We incorporated it into the logo, some text, buttons, etc. and I am obsessed! With all the rose gold we used, it still wasn’t overkill. The website ended up feeling calm and dreamy, reflecting the vision of the brand. Below are some of my favorite ways to use textures and patterns throughout blog design.
1. Textured Icons and Buttons – Again, this is what I worked on with the ladies from Luminary. Rose gold was the perfect texture to go with the indigo and pale blue/gray shades of their brand’s color palette. You might also try marble or watercolor textures for icons and buttons throughout your site. Browse Creative Market and Etsy for hundreds of options!
2. Backgrounds – You’ve probably heard that white space is everything. I’m not here to object. I’m all about white space. But a wonderful way to add some contrast to your site is to add a subtle background pattern, either to the whole site container or just certain elements. Visit Going Home to Roost to see an illustrated background that enhances the design in a gorgeous way.
3. Blog Post Graphics – Being intentional about your blog post images and graphics is very important if you want your posts to draw people in from outside sources (Bloglovin’, Pinterest, etc). Marble and wood grain textures look great in blog posts (maybe you already have these textures in your home!). I also just love making my own quirky patterns for blog graphics sometimes like I did in this post.
4. Footer – The footer of your blog is one of the best places to add patterns and textures. Because it’s at the very bottom of your site, decorating it a little probably won’t clash with other elements of your blog. I really love how the team of A Beautiful Mess dresses up their footer with a simple hand drawn pattern.
5. Hover Effects -Looking for a way to add textures or patterns in the most subtle way possible? Meet your new best friend, the hover effect. The Everygirl is one of the prettiest, well-designed blogs on the web. When you hover over their menu links, you’ll see a simple striped background pattern that blends perfectly with the rest of their design. (click here to learn all about using hover effects with CSS)
Do you enjoy using textures and/or patterns throughout your blog design? I have some coding tutorials lined up on this topic, so stay tuned!