THE GEMME DIARIES | BLOG | OPEN

Tips on Designing

Blog by: SantanartEN

Hello!

Welcome to this new entry. These are a series of general tips and resources for anyone interested in design, whether in mobile or computer applications. Therefore, do not worry, they can always be used.

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Basic words you must know

✦ Mock Up: These ones are for showcasing your work and making them look professional. For example, if I'm designing a book cover and I want to see that image in a real book or how it will look, I can use a mock-up. Usually, there are Photoshop mock-ups, but you can also create your own mock-ups.

✦ Manip: refers to manipulations. This type of 'slag word' (that's how I call it), it's used when we create, design, manipulate or edit a character. It's common in fanfiction.

✦ Mood boards: well, these are called with different names but it's a type of graphic with some photo-editing and a specific color range that tries to show the reader what the story is about or gives a certain vibe to it. It's used for decoration too.

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Sizes

These are the measures in case you were confused about how to start a graphic or what was the dimensions.

✦ Cover: 512x800

✦ Banner: 1280x475

✦ Icon: 500x500

✦ Header: 1920x600

More sizes (the ones I use)

✦ Cover: 1024x1600

✦ Banner: 1024x250

✦ Icon: 800x800

✦ Aesthetics/mood boards: 1080x1080

*All of these are just Wattpad sizes.

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Color palettes

If you don't know how to combine colors, how to learn about color composition, and more, probably these sites can help.

1) Adobe Color: this site helps you to combine different colors and create different palettes. It has monochromatic colors to custom.

But, what is a monochromatic color?

✦ Analogous: about colors close to each other, that is, they are very similar to those next to each other on the color wheel. Even so, there is a slight distinction between them, enough to be able to differentiate them.

✦ Monochromatic: If an image or environment is described with a monochrome color scheme, it would be referring to a single hue (or color) that repeats in lighter hues, darker shades, and/or more gray tones.

✦ Complementary: are colors that place across from each other on what is known as the color wheel. The primary colors, red, yellow, and blue, each have their complementary secondary colors, orange, green, and violet.

Secondary colors arise by mixing two primary colors, for example, red and yellow (primary) make orange (secondary). The only secondary color that has nothing to do with blue is orange, so blue complements orange. Placing a color next to its complement creates the greatest possible contrast, intensifying one another.

2) Pinterest or any other site you can find on the internet world. You can type: color palettes and use one to create your graphic.

3) I recommend this blog for studying color compositions: miblart.com/blog/color-theory-in-book-cover-design

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Design Resources

If you need a place to find a sword or something for your cover design, there's places that can help you, most of them free:

✦ Deviantart

✦ Unsplash

✦ Pexels

✦ Free Images

✦ Freepik

✦ Graphic Burger

If you're looking for fonts:

✦ Dafont

✦ Google fonts

*Remember that this are just sites that I use frequently but there's plenty on the web.

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Education

It's fine that we take up creating covers as a hobby, but in case you really like this and are looking to learn more, there are plenty of resources available that you can use.

From mobile applications such as:

✦ IbisPaint.

✦ PicsArt.

✦ Canvas.

✦ Polarr.

Even professional applications such as:

✦ Photoshop.

✦ Illustrator.

✦ InDesign.

✦ Affinity designer.

Free use software:

✦ Krita.

✦ Blender.

✦ Inkscape.

✦ Blender.

To youtube channels and people willing to help, I recommend these:

✦ Mirr Rom

✦ Photoshop Training

✦ Benny Productions

✦ Encreate

✦ Phase Runner

There's a lot of free courses in Evanto Elements channel too.

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If you've made it this far, thank you. I wish you the best of journeys in this beautiful world of graphics. Don't forget that you can let us know if you have any questions.

With love, Santana.