Essentials
Flat Design (or Flat UI), as I already wrote , has become one of the most talked-about trends in web design.
As this new style gained many supporters, a question emerged: how long will the flat trend last, and is all this buzz just a passing fad? It's hard to say right now, but there's no denying that many developers are adopting flat design. In this article, I want to dive into the history of this style and explore its most interesting examples.
Personally, I want to say right at the start: flat design doesn't fit every project or interface. You need to be thoughtful when choosing the main direction for your layouts.
So, what exactly is flat design?
As the name suggests, the core idea of this style is flatness, which brings several features to the final product — the main one being interface simplification. Flat design fully rejects heaviness, shadows, and complex textures in favor of lightness and simplicity.
The idea is to create a complete design that lives only in two dimensions, without losing functionality. Designers working in this style know how challenging that can be. The inability to highlight key elements using traditional techniques (like shadows, borders, gradients, etc.) can be a real headache. But in the end, it's worth it — because a well-executed flat design can truly make your heart skip a beat.
A good example of flat design is the icon collection for Mac OSX, which, as you may recall, was redesigned in favor of simplicity. You can clearly see how the visuals, by stripping away the “excess,” don't lose appeal — in fact, they often become even more attractive.
The Evolution of Flat Design
Historically, both fashion and design have constantly been in search of a balance between complexity and simplicity. This becomes especially clear in design and multimedia, where new trends tend to emerge and spread very quickly.
The term "Flat Design" was coined by Allan Grinshtein from LayerVault. In his post "Flat Design Era" Allan explains that "elegant interfaces are those with maximum functionality and minimal elements." His core idea is that minimalism can often be better suited for interface design than over-the-top realism.
Not long after, the number of websites adopting this fresh design trend started growing like crazy. Modern flat design can now be identified by five main characteristics:
I’ll soon publish a few more posts about which companies are using flat design and how exactly they’re applying it — plus, I’ll show you how to easily create your first flat interface !
As you might have guessed, I’m a big fan of this style myself, so I’ll do my best to cover every aspect of it in future posts.