The New Yorker’s Cartoon 404 Page

A cool 404 error page image linked to the home page that features the classic style of cartoons daily released in the American newspaper The New Yorker.

Creating Love T-Shirt Designs: Elements, Assets & Inspiration For Designers

Who hasn't experienced love? The majority of people worldwide have fallen in love at some point, and we often seize special and commemorative dates to demonstrate affection for our loved ones. On Valentine's Day, it's customary to encounter numerous products that reference love, including t-shirts. T-shirts featuring love designs rank among the most commonly worn and sold, as individuals enjoy donning phrases and symbols that articulate their emotions. Last year, I encountered a campaign by a renowned company where their strategy for this occasion involved creating T-shirts devoid of explicit messages but adorned with shapes conveying those sentiments. The challenge for consumers was to decode the phrases symbolized on the shirts. This serves as an instance where symbols effectively communicate, particularly concerning matters of love. And with the current boom of graphic tees, in this article we are going to talk about love t-shirt designs, what characterizes them and how you can design the perfect one. Symbology and Elements Used Created with ByPeople Composer Throughout history and literature, love has taken many forms, ranging from apples to Romeo and Juliet. Love symbols from around their world have found their way into all cultures. The symbols of love around the world throughout history have been many, it is important to understand them and where they come from to be aware of how they can be used for your own project. Here are a few examples: Red Hearts The best known, universal symbol of love is the heart-shaped ideograph, and it symbolizes the core of romantic love, affectionate emotion, and caring. This is the quintessential symbol of love, since it is the organ of the body associated with this feeling, because when it sees the person it loves, it shakes and begins to beat more strongly. Did you know that this symbol originated from a coin during the time of the Greeks? An article from TED Ideas (2019) recounted the complete history of this symbol from its beginnings. It's fascinating how a symbol can evoke so much intrigue throughout human history, considering the heart is one of the symbols we use most in our daily lives. You don't have to use just one or two red hearts on your designs, why should you make a basic design when you can have a unique love design with great love patterns like the ones included in this 100+ vector pattern pack? Roses The rose is the symbol that represents Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty (and Cupid’s mom), in Greek mythology and Venus, in the Roman tradition. This represents sensuality, passion and delicacy, all elements alluding to love. Nowadays, the colors of the flower carry a message. For example, a red rose is the perfect gift for a loved one, while a yellow one is the ideal one for a friend, and a white rose depicts divine love. You can find the perfect roses cliparts in this pack of more than 5200 flowers! You'll get designs of figs, branches, leaves, flowers & more as well as larger compositions such as bouquets, wreaths, floral frames, baskets and others, all in just one pack! Infinite and Regular Knots Knots represent union in many cultures. It is a classic symbol of love of the Celts and very latent in the history of the British Isles. In the same way, it is said that young Muslim women sent romantic messages to their lovers that they placed inside knots that were very difficult to undo. The reality is that this symbol is very accurate to express love, because that feeling also produces the sensation of feeling a knot in the stomach. Padlocks It is enough just to go around the city of Paris a bit to realize that the padlock is a clear representation of love. Many couples go to the so-called "city of lights" to make romantic promises, which they seal by placing a lock with their initials on the famous Eiffel Tower or on iconic bridges in the town. Swans and Doves The Greek goddess Aphrodite, and her Roman counterpart, Venus, goddess of desire and love, also symbolize a swan. A popular depiction of love is two swans opposite each other with beaks touching. Their necks form looks like a heart, which reinforces its symbolism, at least in modern culture. Swans mate for life. Remember, creating designs with symbols, in this case, of love, should have a logical coherence with everything else being done. The illustrations or prints on the T-shirts, if not done in that order, might end up communicating nonsensical things. Therefore, it's important to know which symbols are used and what each of them communicates. If you desire a more succinct rendition of these symbols, here's a poster encompassing all the information you've just read and a bit more. Created with ByPeople Composer Elements of Love T-Shirt Designs The Matching Clothes Concept Created with ByPeople Composer While you might be thinking that matching clothes is corny and only something that silly people do. Well, let us tell you that there's more than meets the eye. Matching has been done for hundreds of years, and it's more popular now than it's ever been before. Matching helps people create a special bond, show their feelings for one another, and create a feeling of togetherness. Another thing that matching does is help people show their feelings for one another. Couples in love are perfect for this. The modern trend of couples wearing matching outfits started in Asia, particularly South Korea. Sweethearts thoughtfully wear the same or similar clothes to show that they belong together - both literally and metaphorically. “His and hers” apparel is a way to take your romance public. Like families preparing for a special occasion, couples can also bring some excitement into the preparation of going out. The typical "what are you going to wear" conversation becomes "what should we wear." Putting effort into coordinating give couples something fun to work cooperatively on. Once people are all dressed up, they feel proud of what they’re wearing and are excited to show it off. Then, once they're out, their attire not only lets other people know that they're together and that they're proud of that, but it also shows their loyalty to one another. So, you could totally go for designing not only love t-shirts but matching love t-shirts! Colours Colours do not just satisfy an aesthetic function in our day-to-day lives, they also embody symbolic characteristic that hold meaning to a variety of different people across the world. These meanings differ across cultures and social backgrounds. Palettes and shades can affect our consciousness and influence our mood, which is why the choice of colour is such a crucial decision. When representing love, the colour red is a popular choice. This is why this shade is often used when celebrating romantic occasions such as Valentine’s Day, and red flowers are most often gifted to a romantic partner. However, there are some claims that red should not be the colour of love, and instead, it should be green, pink, or purple. Typography Love fonts are fonts that help to add heart-based emotions to your designs. They also in a way add a personal touch to your designs. Words are a great way to express your emotions. With stylish, intimate, and lovable love fonts you can express yourself. Script fonts In a nutshell, you can define script font as a font that mimics cursed handwriting. It is a typeface with a personal touch like calligraphy and handwriting fonts. It has equal parts that are cute and attractive. You can use the font with great ease to evoke feelings of joy and happiness This is one of the love fonts that comes from a simple, elegant contemporary writing style. The twists and turns of the font are heart-shaped ones that can fit in aptly for any love design. You can find many fonts with this style on the ByPeople tools, for example, you can find this Singel font family which is a neoclassical serif typeface with semi condensed proportions by Fontfabric that will give you love design a romantic and elegant touch. Or you can also download and use a nice cursive fonts pack like this amazing one which contains more than 30 free script fonts, perfect for your love designs to look stylish and elegant in your t-shirts! Bubbly fonts If you’re looking for some playful options, give bubble fonts a try. These whimsical typefaces will add a little fun to your work! A bubble font is a typeface with rounded letterforms. They’re often used to convey a childlike or playful tone. This easy-to-read style font helps to add quality to your projects. This font style can be used in apparel, clothing line, bags etc. You can find the perfect bubbly and cute font for your love designed t-shirt in bundles like this pack which includes 20 different creative fonts and their variations, perfect for creating eye-catching designs. Quotes Clothes scream a volume about your personality and else, but your lifestyle choices display you most appropriately. In fact, you can reckon the entire disposition of the person with how they carry themselves while being dressed. A sharp blazer is the mark of sophistication. A kurta may represent artiness while being comfortable states that the person is quite easygoing and doesn't give much attention to superﬁciality. There are hundreds of clothing options that one may choose from. Still, the most comfortable clothing item loved by all age groups, every gender, and social class equally is a T-shirt. Whether it’s a single t-shirt or a matching t-shirt, if it’s for a boy or a girl, or a relative, these love quotes can help put how people feel into words. The following can help people show their love for someone: “One love, one heart” “Al you need is love” “I’m ready to do anything to be your everything” “Self love is the greatest medicine” “Nobody could replace you” “The right ones won’t leave” “Love has no borders” “Take my heart and let’s never apart” “True love is worth the wait” “Make love not war” “Be my Juliet/Romeo” “Pour the wine, his last name is mine” You can always find even more love related quotes for your designs and even more love-related icons, illustrations and design in this Valentine’s T-Shirt Designs Pack with this full pack and all of the characteristics and details we've already talked about in this article, you'll be more than ready to get into action and design the coolest love t-shirt! Do Love-Themed T-Shirt Designs Have an Impact? A study conducted by Drive Research (2019) found that on Valentine's Day, people spend a certain amount of money, not only on experiences but specifically on details. The study revealed that 52% of consumers celebrate Valentine's Day, and around 3 in 10 Americans will go into credit card debt from V-day spending. Additionally, 35% of consumers will shop online for their gifts. This indicates that Valentine's Day gifts are significant, and people do make an effort on this date, as well as on things related to love. Love-themed T-shirt designs then become an economical, creative, and fitting option for gifting to a partner or friends. Choosing the right design, with symbols, details, colors, etc., will allow us to visualize the type of love we share with the people to whom we gift the T-shirts. That's why we will talk about the elements of love t-shirts. Created with ByPeople Composer In conclusion, we can understand that love has many symbols and elements, just as in designs. These should be unique and personalized to surprise the person we love. A design can communicate many things, meaning that a T-shirt is not just that; it transcends to other things that help people express emotions they may not be able to articulate.

Vintage Design Breakdown, All About Vintage Elements, Styles & Typography

Vintage design is everywhere, if you think about it. For centuries, we've been taking trends from earlier times to alter how we want new designs to be perceived. In fact, you'll find throwbacks in every design category, from decorative arts to fashion design to music. Although let's say that vintage design is a trend these days, we've been doing it forever. Collectively, vintage design takes us back to earlier eras that were based on elements with specific styles, usually those that became popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. So if you are thinking about working or using vintage design, you came to the right place—because in this article we’ve got not only inspiration for you to use, but we will also really explain the essence, the characteristics and the uses that you can give to this type of design. What is Vintage Design? When you're asked to give a design or an image a 'vintage' look, what does that actually mean? Vintage design refers to an item from an earlier era that holds significant and recognizable value. The style of said article can be applied to interior design, decor, architecture, arts, and other areas. Vintage design is very popular today, and items in this style have been rising in price. There is currently a debate about what really determines if something is vintage or not. Some say that this connotation falls within the definition of anything old and of value. The most widely accepted and used definition of something vintage worldwide is that it is older than 40 (and less than 100) years old. An item described as ‘vintage’ should speak of the era in which it was produced Vintage or Retro-What’s the Difference? Let's get a little nerdy for a second, there is a difference between the terms retro and vintage in the field of design, even though they are often used alike and have some overlap. The term vintage is commonly understood as items and designs that were actually produced in the past, while retro is a term typically used to refer to modern designs that emulate those old designs. So the vast majority of the designs that we will talk about in this article are vintage-inspired, rather than really vintage designs. But in the practice, the transition between retro and vintage has become seamless. Today the two terms are often used interchangeably and to refer to different styles and eras that are emulated in one design. Textures and Backgrounds Used Textures are one of the elements that are most taken care of in vintage design. Of course, always as an accompaniment to the main design, which in the vintage style has all the prominence. Otherwise, the focus would be on a secondary element, which accompanies the main design and complements it, but which should not have a leading role. Texture is commonly used in vintage design to refer to old printing techniques. These textures often appear stiff, grainy, gritty or tough. Imagine images of rough cardboard, gritty paper or chalkboard. Images may include faded areas, as if they represent something worn. There may also be "rough" patches or an asymmetrical area within the texture, as if a background or figure had been rendered by hand. These effects often appear to be random and "worn" rather than carefully designed. When creating texture, color should also be considered, as when creating texture, the goal is to be subtle so that the effect appears natural or genuine. Another of the common elements in this vintage style are the backgrounds with noise. It is a resource that completes the retro air of the designs created to resemble those made several decades ago. Of course, the noise in this case is advisable to be very soft. Otherwise, it will be loud and detract from the whole. Floral Patterns The 'white box' minimalist look that's been on trend for so long is being replaced by a maximalist pattern-clash style. Floral patterns are making a comeback. A floral design can feel fresh and modern when used in varied color palettes, painterly printing, and against a dark background. Flowers are naturally organic, but arranging them into an organized grid gives them a more contemporary vibe. The language of flowers and floral design is symbolism personified. Not only does the type of flower used or represented has a meaning, but there is significance in how it is placed, where it is placed, quantities, and of course in its physicality (example, whether it is a bud or heavy-headed flower being used). Back in the day, the same floral fabric was used throughout the room or parts of the house. For example, the sofa would be matched to the curtains, then repeated through some carefully placed pillows. Obviously, this had to be carefully planned; otherwise it could look like a busy disaster. The focus of florals have been more subtle in recent years, but they never really left. Now, in the present day, they are more pronounced and make a statement. Flowers have always been symbolically connected to both springtime and femininity. A traditional motif used by perfume and fashion houses, flowers are often presented in graphic and editorial imagery with a delicacy and fragility befitting of ladylike style, elegance, and restraint. For you to apply this technique in your own designs, we’ve got this new bundle which features a set of vintage floral patterns and templates with a diverse variety of colorful floral designs including wreaths, floral arrangements, bouquets and more, everything delivered in 100% vector file formats so you can recolor, rearrange, add/remove elements and modify shapes without losing image quality. Advertisements Why do vintage ads evoke such curiosity? Sometimes, especially on social media, it’s the humor from old-time political incorrectness that draws us in. Other times, the appeal stems from emotions that go much deeper than humor. Vintage ads tap into emotions that simply cannot be present in modern-looking advertising. You can’t create that feeling in a design that looks like it was created today. A nostalgic design must evoke a memory or feeling that's linked to yesterday. There are six main elements of traditional vintage advertising that you can include in your designs to catch that nostalgia: Headlines Slogans Photographs Road and restaurants signs Create beautiful retro vintage collages & compositions using this brand new elements package featuring many of said elements from vintage magazine & newspaper cutouts, delivered in high resolution PNG file format. Propaganda From a pure design perspective, propaganda art can be overwhelming, as it idealizes and stylizes the ordinary into something much more grandiose to rally support for causes or gin up national fervor against something. Design is in everything we make, but it’s also between those things. It’s a mix of craft, science, storytelling, propaganda, and philosophy. But the past centuries have been incredibly moved by propaganda vintage graphics. In said graphics you can immediately see telltale characteristics that are common to all types of heroic realism, regardless of what country, cause or movement produces them. A few of these graphic elements include: Uprising symbols Pointing finger Bold sans serifs to make the message stand out loudly Realism in art to make it more relatable Color contrast Caricatures You can get inspiration or even make your own vintage poster with this amazing Retro & Vintage Vector Graphics Pack that includes 650 + items that you can use to create posters, logos, banners, flyers & many more in a vintage look. The pack includes fonts, text styles, color palettes, icons, textures, brushes, and many more. Drawings and Illustrations Many vintage designs typically include drawings or illustrations in black and white (or just black). Originally they were hand-drawn or engraved and that's why they may look realistic yet simple. Many books produced in past centuries are illustrated with these designs, from botanical to academic to novels. During these periods of time, photography was not so common, nor was industrial printing, so drawings and illustrations were the only way to record and represent what was around us. Before the new technologies we now have, the world relied on artists and illustrators to share the beauty of plants, animals, anatomy, and new inventions with the world. The work required great artistic skill, great attention to detail, and technical knowledge. You can use this type of drawings and illustrations in cards, invitations, presentations, sketchbooks and many more. We’ve got an incredibly extensive pack of vintage drawings and engravings you can buy here (it's on discount)! Color Palettes In addition to logos, vintage design can be used to create other types of elements. But, as with all trends, certain elements are used. Especially in the case of colors. The tones that are used in this style of design are not very varied. Generally, those that were in fashion in the years in which you want to inspire the design are used. Decades ago, color printing was quite expensive, so the usual thing was to use two or three colors apart from the black of the letters. It was rare to find more colorful designs. As for the type of tones used in vintage graphic design, they are not usually strong. Pastel colors and paler tones are usually used, which contrast with the black of the edges and letters. Retro color schemes can be complicated to create as they use a lot of vintage or cream colors, which can be tricky to use in print. On a website, however, they do stand out. These colors are contrasted with brighter hues. Background colors are normally desaturated. Hues are muted, but often look as though they have been mixed with a touch of black, or grey when compared to the brightness of pastels. Retro colors come in a variety of hues but tend to be more muted. They don’t draw from primary colors, but range from neutrals such as creams, and yellowed browns, to blues, sage green, teal, and art deco style pastels such as peach or pale pink. Color influences range from the 1920s to the 1980s. As time passed, colors became brighter. However, the large time range gives designers a huge variety of influences to draw from. Fonts Another of the most important elements in vintage graphic design is typography. Texts have a lot of strength and presence in retro designs, partly because of their appearance. The vintage design not only plays with the font, but also gives a fundamental role to what is written. For this, the location of the texts in the designs is carefully selected. In addition, letters can sometimes be embellished with additional strokes and ornamental details. Just like it was done several decades ago, or in certain styles of calligraphy. These details add elegance and character to the designs in which they are implemented. If you are looking to make a creative design with these characteristics, you can count on the typeface Rumble Brave to bring luxury, elegance, and style to any design project: branding, logos, badges, wedding invitations and so much more! Typography has always played a crucial role in creating a retro design. It is not just the choice of a font that will make a difference, but how this font is used. Designers wishing to create a retro look might reposition a font, duplicating pixel strokes for added texture and a unique element to their designs. Typography is just as important as color in creating a retro design, you can look for the perfect font in this new collection of retro vintage font designs which contains 20 fonts that will create your desired feel to your designs. One example of vintage fonts is the Victorian typography. More whimsical than the sleek and simple Art Deco style fonts, but with less adrenaline than Wild Western fonts of the same Century, Victorian fonts are recognizable by their ornamentation and lavishly intricate decoration. As product competition in post-industrial England skyrocketed, so did the public’s demand for bold, bright and eye-catching typography. The use of decadent color-layering, borders, decorative finishes and flowing letters became the dominating period style. These enriching typefaces still evoke the excitement of a time when luxury items were finally accessible to non-nobles. And bring a sentimental nostalgia to any creative project. If you want to bring that sentimental nostalgia to any creative project, use the Figuera Font Family! It is a variable font with a Victorian design that features a neat vintage style, delivered in many formats and you can even create web fonts & customize it to your liking. Letterpress Letterpress Printing is one of the oldest printing techniques, using a relief printing method to create an embossed color effect. The effect adds an attractive handmade look to designs, making it a great pairing for vintage-style designs. Letterpress designs look like they were pressed with moveable type—like a printing press. When you look at letterpress designs, you’ll see they vary from each other…a lot. What ties them together is their relative simplicity. Letterpress designs have limited color palettes and fonts. You should be able to run your hand across a letterpress design and feel its indent into its paper, or at least look at it and imagine feeling the texture when you touch it. Including this type of fonts in your vintage designs, regardless of the type of design, is extremely trendy nowadays. To do so without complicating or altering your initial idea, get your hands on this carefully designed & highly detailed vintage letterpress toolkit. Uses of Vintage Design Now that you’ve decided to work with the vintage trend, let’s talk about how you could make it happen. You don’t have to go full-on vintage in your design—your brand might be represented better by a blend of modern and vintage elements or by elements from a few different eras, like a font that would feel at home on a Steampunk video game cover and graphics that look like you cut them out of an 80s skate zine. Fashion There are a lot of fashion trends that emerge quickly but soon become a flash in the pan. However, there are other trends that come back into fashion years after their initial iteration. The vintage trend is one such style. There are styles within it that are timeless classics, and there are others that are trendy simply because they fall under the vintage label. There are plenty of vintage fashion pieces that speak to a sense of nostalgia within the wearer. These are trends and pieces that they remember from their youth that they missed out on. They get the chance to relive that. Perhaps they ended up giving away or throwing out those pieces, and they regret it, only to find them again at a vintage store or charity shop. Here are some of the vintage fashion trends that are currently making a comeback: Puffer jackets Flares Bucket hats Platform shoes Slim-Fit Turtlenecks Corduroy and Velvet Trousers Vintage T-Shirts It is likely that when you go out for a weekend, you will notice that many people wear t-shirts with vintage designs. These vintage print t-shirts are extremely popular nowadays, and you may wonder one thing; why are they so popular? As trends change and fashion evolves, many types of clothing go out of style as people stop wearing them to move on to something new. But it seems that these shirts will never go out of style. This popularity can be attributed to many factors, some may be: They are of High Quality and Unique. Today you see hundreds of graphic t-shirts that look similar because they all have the same brand logos or pop culture characters. And while there's nothing wrong with these designs, people can take their fashion to another level with more creative T-shirts that aren't mass-produced. They're Incredible Versatile. Something that's immediately noticeable about these shirts is their versatility. Unlike some kinds of clothing, which usually only come in specific patterns or colors, you can find a good casual tee in practically any color or design. So, if you have a particular fashion style or you prefer specific colors or patterns, you will most likely be able to very easily find a tee that you adore. They're Easy To Wear. Due to their versatility, vintage-feel shirts are incredibly easy to wear. You can find shirts to go with nearly any style, and building an outfit around a cool shirt is easy and fun. For people who enjoy streetwear, nicely-printed tee shirts can be the perfect thing to show off your stylish fashion sense and stay effortlessly cool at the same time. Here are different steps you can take on the design side, as well as which type of inks and t-shirts you print with, that can help you achieve a perfect vintage look and feel for your t-shirt. Here’s 3 ideas for you on how to make a vintage shirt. Print on a polyester/cotton blend or a tri-blend t-shirt. If you’re not familiar, there are essentially three main types of t-shirt fabric: 100% cotton Polyester/Cotton blends Tri-blends, made up of polyester, cotton, and rayon Since poly/cotton blends and tri-blends are made up of different materials, the fabrics are going to naturally have a vintage, heathered look to them. The ink is going to react differently with each of these shirt fabrics as well, and that is something you can use to your advantage. Something unique about water-based printing is that the ink only dyes the cotton of the t-shirt, not the polyester or the rayon. Meaning, if you print on a 100% cotton shirt, your print is going to come out very bright and vibrant — not ideal for a vintage look. Make sure your shirts are printed with water-based & discharge inks. While water-based and discharge screen printing is the method of choice for any t-shirt project here at Real Thread, it’s particularly important to use when aiming for a vintage, distressed look and feel. Since the ink literally soaks into and dyes the fabric of the t-shirt, rather than sitting on top, the print is going to naturally have an incredibly soft, worn in feel right away, like a t-shirt you’ve had for years. Enhance your design with textures. Though printing on poly/cotton and tri-blend t-shirts is the most natural way to create a vintage looking t-shirt, there are things you can do to your design on the front end to achieve that look, regardless of the shirt material. One way to create a vintage style shirt is to overlay your t-shirt design with a texture. Textures are a great way to add an extra dimension to your design, and ensure that your print has a faded, vintage look, regardless of the t-shirt fabric. The vintage tee comeback started in the early 2000s when celebrities like Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake started rocking them. This sparked a renewed interest in vintage fashion and, of course, vintage t-shirts. Today, fashionistas and celebrities alike covet vintage t-shirts. They offer a unique style you can’t find in today’s mass-produced fashion. Because they’re from a different era, they have a certain cool factor that is very appealing. It’s also because people are now more interested in wearing clothes with a story behind them. Vintage t-shirts often have cool retro designs or logos, which can be a great way to show your personality or make a statement. Here at ByPeople we’ve got you covered for you to design amazing vintage t-shirts with the all new bundle featuring 200 illustrations that you can start using on your shop’s products straight out of the box! Interior Design Vintage interior design is for treasure hunters, lovers of unique pieces and patient collectors. It is said that the only restriction in vintage interior design is only your imagination. The vintage style now reigns in the homes of half the world, it is a new look at the retro style. Weathered steel, old or historic buildings take us back in time, but now with a modern loft look. The spirit of industrialism is combined with the warmth of natural materials. Vintage interior design is an elegant and romantic style. Use discreet colors like the palette of neutrals, grays, beige, sand and cream. Some light pink, pale blue, pale lilac shades are appropriate. In vintage style, it gives rise to the creation of a range of a single color, bright, noble and calm. Vintage interior design is old and elegant. It implies the use of old or aged furniture and accessories. To achieve a vintage-style interior design, use natural materials such as wood, small details in stone, wrought iron and natural elements. The interior should look as if it had been decorated several decades ago, it should reflect the trends in interior design of the last decades. Vintage interior design is characterized by soft and flowing lines, carefully selected or inherited furniture and decorative accessories. Graphic Design Graphic design, like other disciplines, presents numerous trends that change over time, although there are some that remain unchanged and never go out of style. Characterized by using elements and techniques from past decades, vintage design is present in all areas in which graphic design is used: advertising, marketing, posters, illustration, etc. Also, vintage design is not only used by professionals or big brands. It is a trend to use it for more everyday graphics, such as invitations, business cards, and even signatures! A few features that are being brought back are: Vivid colors with "happy" and bright tones (yellows, blues, oranges, reds). Flat elements and designs, without extras that disturb the shape. Geometric figures with thick strokes. Squiggles or abstract doodles. Themes based on early video games, pixel illustrations. Neon style, from the colors to the imitation of neon lights. Typography that imitates titles of video games, movies or television. Simple animations without much speed and that jump a bit. Abstract illustrations of people but not faces. Musical themes with cassettes, boom box, turntables. Custom typeface with bubble style, block serifs. The audiovisual (photographs or videos) is not used much. So Why go with a Vintage Design? The primary reason to go with a vintage-inspired design is to evoke nostalgia. When consumers are familiar with a product and fondly look back on their relationship with it, a vintage design is a way to capitalize on that relationship. A vintage design can also highlight a specific feature of the product—like how a product is made using an older recipe or manufacturing method. Vintage designs are popular with artisan and handcrafted products for this reason. Vintage-inspired branding can also communicate that you’re established in your industry. When a brand reaches a certain level of industry clout, changing its branding can undermine its popularity. There’s a lot of validity to the phrase “don’t mess with success,” and that’s the thought-process that keeps certain brands using the same designs for decades. For these brands, using vintage designs wasn’t a conscious choice; rather, it came out of the choice not to change their designs and allowing the designs to age alongside them. We live in an uncertain world where technology and culture advance at a faster rate than it ever has before. Looking at vintage imagery feels comforting. The past might not have actually been simpler or safer—the world is safer now than it's ever been before—but that doesn’t matter here. Successful marketing burrows into the consumer’s mind, so you’ve got to meet consumers inside their heads. That’s the gateway to their hearts and guts, which are the end of your journey. To many, the past feels safe because there’s no uncertainty. Like watching a movie you’ve seen 100 times before, replaying the past in your head is comforting because you know how the story ends. A design can put viewers into a state of mind where they’re walking through their favorite parts of the past, creating a positive association between your product and the consumer. Vintage designs can be a lot of fun! They’re a refreshing contrast against our digital, minimalist, modern world. Have you ever bought a product or downloaded an app simply because it reminded you of a positive experience when you were younger? We’d all like to say no, but whether it’s a choker necklace, a pair of Adidas Originals, or Pokémon Go, it’s very difficult to resist the pull of nostalgia marketing — especially when goods get packaged as something shiny and new. Nostalgia marketing is nothing new, but it has particular power over the millennial market. In a digital age of virtual relationships and all-encompassing work schedules, nostalgia facilitates social bonding. Casting your mind back to long summers spent on Rollerblades or listening to the Backstreet Boys is not only a fun way to bond with friends and colleagues from a similar generation, it’s also a strong incentive to buy products that trigger that same powerful, nostalgic feeling. This emotional hook gets channelled by some of the biggest brands in their marketing campaigns, and visual design plays a huge part in triggering an emotional response in the consumer. The point-of-sale rests on making the consumer feel happy, secure, and even childlike, transporting them back to an earlier time, a simpler time they can view through rose-tinted glasses.

Best Vector Avatars and How to Use Them in Your Projects

Today, anonymous digital interactions are the norm, so an avatar is usually the only symbol that represents people when they are online. When designing, be it an App, a website, the branding of a company, or even a presentation, vector avatars are crucial to give expression and identity to users, and it can only be expected that they will become even more important as the world grows more online and remote. What is an Avatar? An avatar is a representative substitute of a person, or sometimes, of an organization. Avatars are often branded differently, but the core idea is that an avatar allows us to project our identity into a place where we personally cannot be, like an intangible digital sphere. Also what's the importance of avatars? Well, in the book "Boundaries of Self and Reality Online" (2017) in its thirtieth chapter, views avatars as a mediating device between real and virtual spaces. The avatar has become the key technology through which this interaction is organized and experienced, organizing our relationship between spaces that are simultaneously "real" and "virtual." What are Vector Graphics? In order to understand what vector avatars are, we must first understand what vector graphics (hence the “vector” in “vector avatars”) are and how they are used in the greater graphic world. Vector graphics are a set of mechanisms that are used to create visual images that start from geometric figures such as lines, points, curves, and polygons. This is what mainly differentiates vector graphics from raster graphics. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Vector graphics continue to be widely used and are the most preferred choice among professional designers, architects, and engineers for multiple fields where the resolution of designs matters, specifically that resolution is not affected by changing the dimensions of designs. Meanwhile, raster graphics is the most appropriate and efficient option for photographic works and those that need to be in pixels and not vectors. However, the two mechanisms are not exclusive. Some domains use both vector and raster depending on their purpose, such as graphic design and geographic information systems. We can find vector graphics in formats such as: WMF (windows metafile), SVG (scalable vector graphics), PDF (portable document format), EPS (encapsulated postscript), CDR (Corel draw), or AI (Adobe Illustrator artwork). So... What is a Vector Avatar? Created with ByPeople Composer Vector avatars are digital images created by illustrators for better quality. You can find different sites online with packs of vector avatars, or multiple digital tools to create your own vector avatars. Vector avatars have more benefits than raster formats since they are specially designed so that when using them, their quality is not affected. As we have already said, the main function of a vector avatar is to transmit personality and emotions. These avatars are found on multiple platforms where users are expected to have their own profile and therefore their own avatar, from web pages, video games, streaming platforms, and applications. Also, vector avatars take up less space both on your computer and on your digital platform. They are easy to adjust and you can have a very clean and precise result. Creating a digital illustration is an extremely meticulous process, so if you are aiming for the best results for your design project, choosing vector avatars is an outstanding idea. What Are the Best Ways to Use Vector Graphics in Avatars? In their article "What are the best ways to use vector graphics in Avatars?" (2024), Sahil Charma, Mathew Kudelko, and Kathy Go provide the following characteristics to consider. Software and Format: use Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape, Affinity Designer, and Sketch. Regarding formats, the most common ones are SVG, EPS, and AI. Shapes and Paths: use circles, rectangles, polygons, and stars. Paths are lines that can be curved and manipulated, such as curves, arcs, and spirals. Colors: add colors and gradients to your shapes and paths, as they can enhance depth, contrast, and atmosphere. Effects and Style: These enhancements can elevate the overall visual appeal and authenticity of your design. Advantages of Vector Avatars Now, after understanding what avatar vectors are, we present to you the advantages you can potentially gain by deciding to use them for your personal or professional projects. Remember that the more unique and detailed these designs are, the better, as we've already mentioned, the essence of avatars lies in identity and, consequently, authenticity. Created with ByPeople Composer Types of Vector Avatars While avatars may be fictional representations, they are intended to be representative of real people. And unlike characters (but much like emojis), avatars don't even have to look like a person: they can be inanimate objects or abstract shapes. It all depends on what kind of image the user feels that exemplifies their personality (as opposed to the singular emotions that emojis represent). Humans Avatars styled after real people are the most common. While the simplest is a selfie photo, humanoid avatars can also be custom illustrated. By providing custom illustrated humans, most users these days will expect avatars to include the full spectrum of human users, including diversities of race and gender. And the inclusion has to be authentic, which means no unnaturally coloured characters that suggest diversity without actually doing so. These human avatar vectors have primarily been used in virtual reality. A study conducted by the University of Catalonia in Spain (2022) asserts that the use of self-avatars in a virtual reality application can enhance presence and embodiment, leading to an improved user experience. Additionally, in collaborative virtual reality, it also facilitates non-verbal communication. This means that these types of designs help simplify processes where visual representation of the human image is needed. Also, if you're looking for really unique and cute looking human vector avatars for your designs, you can get this pack of 795 diversity avatars! It includes 400 female and 395 male designs of all ages and many different professions like doctors, police, business, chefs and many more! Also every character comes with different versions of outfits, skin colors, hair styles, etc. Get this pack of vector avatars in Ai, EPS, PDF, SVG and Iconjar formats as well as transparent PNG files so you can add them easily to any of your design projects. Creatures For the purposes of this article, we will consider creature avatars to cover all non-human characters, including aliens, monsters, animals, and any other imaginary creature. Serious or photorealistic shots tend to be out of place here; usually these types of avatars will be humorously designed in a cartoonish anthropomorphic form. Looking for the cutest animal vector avatars? Look no more! With this set of 3D animal vector animals you'll get 50 stylish and cute characters which come in fully customizable files as well as use-ready renders of the characters in a variety of different poses. They are perfect for you to use as avatars or elements in websites mobile apps, presentations and more. This set includes 10 different animal characters (which you can see in the picture above) each one with transparent backgrounds so you can drag and drop them into your projects. On the other hand, for more creature looking avatars, give this colorful cartoon characters pack a shot. This collection of 300 hundred vector cartoon designs features a massive variety of designs (animals, people, zombies, mythological creatures, and many more) you can use to create compositions for all kinds of purposes, from branding, video games, mobile apps, etc. Every single vector avatars is delivered with 100% vector source files which you can customize to your liking - resize, change colors, create compositions with many characters, etc. Abstract Abstract avatars can include patterns, geometric or organic shapes, and real objects. While these do not have a face associated with them, they can still be emotionally expressive in terms of shape, language, colour, or the cultural associations assigned to an object. A great example of this type of vector avatars is this pack of more than 280 vector geometric shapes and designs which you can use for all kinds of purposes. All files within this pack are neatly organized in 3 categories and are delivered in layered Ai, PSD and EPS vectors as well as transparent PNG files with several color variations. This pack surely has great options for your abstract vector avatars options! What are Vector Avatars Used For? As we have said before, vector avatars are used as an alter ego or a character image in virtual worlds, social media, websites, and communities. Vector avatars can be largely boiled down to many many uses, the most important and common ones are what we'll be discussing throughout this article. User Self-portraits The most popular and straightforward vector avatars have been images used on social media profiles, messaging apps, or any online service that requires a representative photo of a user. While these are typically static images, they can be animated, but do not extend user control (like the avatars that allows users to move around simulated environments such as a video games). The purpose is just to give a face to the users. The perfect self-portrait, next to a profile picture, is a cute animated person looking forward, like the ones you can find in this cute icons and avatars pack that includes 300 vector icons. This pack features both male and female avatars fully customizable which means you can add your own color palette. Thanks to it's vectorial characteristic you can take every avatar and resize it, twitch it, recolor it, mix it and even combine them all if you want! With this avatars you will be adding fun, squishy sweetness, and some hipster and urban bite to your projects! Mobile Apps and Social Networks Avatars play an important role when it comes to activities on forums or social networks on the Internet. Here, the term refers to small symbols that often have a dimension of 80 x 80 pixels. These symbols are integrated above, below or next to the username and the corresponding message depending on the selected platform. In this case, they serve to increase the recognition value of a person or profile on the network. It is considered an element that should build trust. On social media, many people use a real photo of themselves as an avatar. However, in forums where one remains rather anonymous, this is rarely the case. Instead, cartoon figures, 3D graphics, pictures of places, animals or stars, illustrations, slogans and statements, etc. are used. In cases where social media platforms are used commercially, it is advisable to use avatars that communicate the company's values in a certain way. Experts refer to this as visual consistency. The first visual impression of a potential customer is configured in such a way that the recognition value is as high as possible. In addition to the avatar, other aspects also play an important role, including the logos, colors and fonts used in all corporate communications. Avatars are an integral part of corporate identity. For users to not only show their personality but also how they look in mobile apps, incorporate simple yet detailed looking vector avatars like the ones featured in this pack of both male and female vector faces with colored backgrounds. This set comes in an editable Photoshop vector file which means you can edit the sizes, colors and shapes of the avatars. It is perfect to give the users of your mobile app the option to choose from a variety of different avatars for their profiles. Website Designs When designing a website that truly connects with your clients, you really want to pay attention to the user-to-user interaction, the user space and mainly the whole UX concept. There are many reasons why your website should have Vector Avatars for your clients' profiles, here are some of them: Vector avatars give your website good vibe and a feeling of customization. Personalization. It lets the user add a sprinkle of character to their information/profile, it lets them have their own little imprint on it. It makes users feel good. Users are able to choose their own avatar that represents them. Even wallets have a photo area in them that we can use to make them feel as "ours". Its a good feeling thats brought on when someone is using your product when they see the photo. Control. It gives the users more sense of control over their account which is always a nice feeling. It may show users (or make them feel) that the company doesn't just think they are a number or name, they are more than that. Its a face to a name. Created with ByPeople Composer Not only can you use vector avatars for your users or clients profiles on your website design, you can also implement vector avatars for the display of the website so it looks more friendly. For example, it is amazing to see how avatars can create the illusion that we are in a real setting when, in reality, we are not. After reading several articles, I realized that this was breaking communication barriers because for some people, it's easier to navigate through visual aspects than written ones. Similarly, on some websites, they have decided to implement this because it helps people with limitations to quickly and effectively interact with the page. Creating products is not an easy task, especially for the needs of population groups that are not given much attention socially. In the same article, they highlight a company that sells hearing aids for people with hearing impairments. However, some of these individuals found it difficult to hear some of the explanatory videos on how to use the devices. In this case, the company decided to use avatars that would narrate through sign language what was being said in the video. This is one of the many reasons why design continues to be more than just design. It also involves social work, where processes are simplified and made more accessible for everyone, not just a few. To achieve that, use this unique pack of isometric vector avatars. Not only is it exclusive but it is now free! It contains 20 different isometric people illustrations, delivered in a fully layered Adobe Illustrator file, where you can scale, adapt and easily modify all the characters and their separate body parts to better suit your website project without having to worry about losing quality. It is the perfect pack of vector avatars for you to even create your own avatars or scenes containing multiple of them. Online Stores In online stores, avatars are used for a totally different strategy. Here, digital customer advisors and contact persons are created using avatars. These help the user with the user experience on the web. If a user has questions about the service, the product range, the navigation or the purchase process, they can contact the avatar. Behind this avatar is a real person who answers the questions, just like in a live chat. The conversion rate can be sustainably increased through the targeted use of avatars. This is because the customer is not left alone with questions about the product or difficulties during the ordering process. Instead, the customer is guided along the path until the order has been completed. In this case, the avatars are part of the confidence building measures. Most times you really want to not only give your costumers that confident feeling, but also you want to maintain your brand's visual identity and you might feel that most vector avatars packs aren't editable so you really can't include your own design style. Thankfully, there are awesome avatar sets like this avatars complete creation library which includes Figma components and Sketch symbols. With this set you'll get 84 different assets, 100% vector and entirely customizable, so your customers will be able to use avatars that communicate effectively with the rest of the shop. Presentations Vector avatars are one of the favorite go-to graphics for learning projects. They're a clean, modern-looking alternative to text-only presentations, and can really complement the current flat design trend. Especially the human avatars are very handy in the designs since their physical characteristics allow an easier understanding and interpretation of the content of the presentation. Also, with the variety of vector avatars that are currently available it is more than possible to use different avatars for not only each presentation, but also on each slide. The advantage of this type of vector avatars is that there are packs that you can even edit yourself so that it goes much more in line with your presentation. So if you really want to have customizable vector avatars, get an editable pack! Like this cool pack of more than 100 characters that are fully editable. This bundle features completely different characters displaying unique faces, personalities and outfits, each character includes two different face angles, which means that you could have a total of 200 editable vector avatars for your presentations designs. Video Games When it comes to video games, it's important to note that not all video game characters you control are avatars. Video games can involve storytelling, which means that you often control a protagonist. This is a specific character in the game's lore with a distinctive name, personality, and backstory. In other words, you're not supposed to think of these protagonists as extensions of yourself; it's more like how you would inhabit the perspective of a protagonist in a novel. For an awesome video game design, get your hands on this vector avatars set that includes more than 2200 design elements for you to create the perfect avatars for your project! This set includes both male, female and creatures avatars designs that you can mix and match to give them their own personalities, creative accessories and hairstyles. The pack contains heads, eyes, eyebrows, noses, hairstyles, accessories and many more delivered in vector Ai formats as well as PSD files, so you can also customize the colors, reshape the characters, scale them up and down, etc. These designs were used by one of my friends who wanted to develop a video game; however, he had no design skills, so he used these to use them as his avatars. The good thing about this type of vectors is that they can be customized as they want, therefore, my friend didn't have to follow the same patterns that were in the designs, just join the pieces to his liking and create his avatars. Branding Avatars that represent a brand, as well as its consumers, are becoming more common. This is probably not surprising, as many tech brands (Google, Apple, and Slack) that involve user profiles and messaging naturally rely on avatars. And creating custom avatars that align with an existing brand image not only helps maintain a consistent look and feel across a site, it can also help customers see themselves in a brand. There is a natural overlap: both avatars and brands seek to convey an identity. And assuming the brand personality is informed by the target audience, the brand and consumer identities shouldn't be too far apart. Brand images are commonly reused in default avatars or placeholders that are automatically generated when a user first creates a profile. While many default avatars are featureless, gray human silhouettes, it is better to assign new users different versions of cool graphics based on their branding. Design for the Person Behind the Avatar Avatars are like digital extensions of ourselves. In fact, they are often the only images that represent us in certain contexts online. This inevitably means that the more online our lives become, the more important avatars will be in the future. While avatars, of course, can't represent the full complexity of a person, they do bring an important human element to distant interactions. So when you need avatars that are more expressive than a poorly cropped selfie, consider contacting a freelance designer. Since default avatars are made to be changed, it's essential to provide users with a number of avatars to choose from that align with a brand. This involves hiring a designer who can take your existing visual identity and translate it into a selection of custom avatars.