Nothing but Neumorphism
The design style's (short-lived) rise to fame and how to try it out!
Welcome to the FLUX Yeah! newsletter.
In it, I share about the practices and processes of designing & building products.
That includes exploring the connection between humans and technology, experimenting with tools, styles and services, & sharing insights on personal and professional growth.
Most importantly, I highlight members of the FLUX Yeah! community. The goal is always to make space for diverse perspectives and new voices. ☺️
❤️, Sarah
In today’s newsletter:
📓 A Journey into Neumorphic Interface History
📐 A Neumorphism DIY
🥂 A Summertime Soirée
📓 A Journey into Neumorphic Interface History
What is Neumorphism?
To even get to a definition requires a little context. Or at least an understanding two other design trends: Skeuomorphism & Flat Design.
The skeuomorphic style imitates real-world objects so the digital elements resemble their physical counterparts. For those who remember iOS 6, Skeuomorphism may bring about some serious nostalgia 👇
Flat design gained popularity soon after. The shift can be seen most blatantly when Apple launched iOS 7 in 2013. Compare those iPhone homescreens!
Flat design was regarded as easy to use and scale, compatible with responsive design, a with fewer accessibility concerns than other design styles. So it was really all about minimalistic, 2D, and geometric shapes for…a while.
Now, enter Neumorphism.
This style is seen as a hybrid of the two: Hitting the sweet spot between the realistic design of Skeuomorphism and the traits of flat design. It avoids hyperrealism, but allows elements to softly and subtly look like they’re protruding from or pressing into the background.
The style is largely attributed to a single Dribbble shot.
The designer, Oleksandr Plyuto wrote “Imagine that we live in a dimension where skeuomorph is still alive and has continued its evolution in mobile interfaces. What would applications look like then? Here is my vision.”
And then he drops this banking app design.
The drop went viral.
Then! To add one more element to this quirky internet history, the term Neumorphism itself was coined in a comment. The comment was on a Medium article titled “What’s the next UI design trend?”.
Seriously. Here’s the comment.
And that is how Neumorphism was born.
Biggest takeaway? In the rapidly evolving design landscape, active participation in Dribbble, Medium, Slack and Discord communities is a great way to stay engaged in the ongoing conversation. Being part of these platforms allows you to be aware of emerging trends, share their own insights, and exchange ideas!
📐 A Neumorphism DIY
Now that you have a background, let me introduce a guide on creating Neumophic Design! This was produced by FLUX Yeah community member, Enrique Magno.
Connect with him on Linkedin and check out his portfolio here!
Many thanks sharing, Enrique!
🥂 Happenings
For anyone in Miami, I am hosting a networking event (and by event I mean a summer soirée, with a champagne toast) for people in the product industry.
It’s on Thursday, August 3rd. Hope you can make it!
Details and tickets can be found here! 🎟️