As a designer you are all too aware that if you stop inputting inspiration into your brain mix there soon comes stagnation. Inspiration is the fuel that keeps you going as a designer. For me, this comes in 2 forms ‘design’ in sense of things I see and websites I view and colour. Colour to me can be just inspiring as seeing a complete design. I’m a hoarder of screen-shots and links for inspiration and with that comes 2 new sites announcements.

I know I was a bit amiss last week but I’m slowly getting over the hospital treatment and getting back in the game. I still have to find out what the infection did in the long term (and the small matter of getting rid of it as I still have it apparently) but things are slowly getting back to normal. Anyway, back to webspiration….

Part of what keeps me interested in design is the attention to small details that gives things a lift. I really like the little features you can add that take things to another level. One of the historically yawnsomest areas of website design has been forms. Whilst with css and other things there are always ways to cheer up forms, it’s still often a last minute thought. Not in the case of Frooition and their register interest form.

Over at 9rules notes there was a recent post about what music do you design to. I have been thinking a lot about my design process as I’ve started to train someone again. A big part of my process involves getting the ‘zone’ using music. I have this odd habit of listening to a type of music depending on my project - actually it seems from that thread I’m not alone in this.

I’ve written before about the need to feed the designer in you. One way of feeding my inner designer is to set myself tasks. This year I want to rekindle my love of photography. A long time ago I started out studying photography and did it as one of my degrees. I loved it and it was such a part of my life. I also was insane about video, I even took a whole year of my life and recorded it. I was never seen without a camera of some form for many years.

There is something to be said for a simple but effective logo, in my case a fair bit can be said as I love them. I have found a lot of these lately and this one from Propaganda Games really sums up a good example.