Everybody needs a little help from time to time. Even if you’re the standout genius in your field, you’re still likely to encounter situations when you feel stuck, overwhelmed, or just plain uninspired. That’s why it’s so important to have your own personal stockpile of resources at your disposal.
As a graphic designer, I often rely on creative resources to elevate my projects. Whether it’s finding the perfect font or selecting the ideal photograph, these resources always provide that extra kick of inspiration.
Here are some of my personal favorites:
Creative Market: For me, Creative Market is the one-stop shop for creative resources. Creative Market offers a huge range of products from fonts to graphics to stock photography and everything in between. It’s difficult to think of anything that isn’t available on Creative Market. It’s truly a creator’s paradise.
Retro Supply Co: If you love a vintage vibe, Retro Supply Co. is pretty much a designer’s dream come true. Retro Supply offers a huge variety of tools for purchase (fonts, textures, patterns, clip art) that will give your creative work that retro feel you’re going for. Even better, Retro Supply offers tutorials, courses, and webinars that allow users to develop the skills and techniques they need to give their work an authentic old-school look.
Font Squirrel: Even for seasoned designers, licenses and user agreements can be frustrating at best. Font Squirrel takes the guesswork out of font licensing by making all of the fonts featured on their site 100% free for both personal and commercial use. As any creator will tell you when resources are worry-free the creative possibilities are virtually limitless.
Unsplash: When I stumbled upon Unsplash for the first time, I could hardly believe what I was seeing. Gorgeous professionally-produced stock photography for free. And, over the years, Unsplash has only gotten better. I’ve used their photos to produce everything from web graphics to mood boards. Just trawling through their amazing (and seemingly endless) collection of photography is enough to spark some major inspiration. Best of all, Unsplash allows users to download their photos for personal and commercial use completely free of charge.
Kaboompics: Easily my favorite source for free stock photos, Kaboompics offers beautiful images that are versatile, timely, and cover a wide range of subjects. I use Kaboompics nearly exclusively for all of my blog graphics. From food to architecture, Kaboompics has something for everyone. All photos are free for personal and commercial use and even come with a complementary color palette.
Adobe Color: Creating an engaging color palette can sometimes be a little tricky, even for the most experienced designers. Luckily, Adobe has gone to great lengths to make this part of the process so much easier. By offering many different ways for users to explore color, Adobe Color makes building a beautiful, effective color palette simple and fun!
Whatever your area of expertise, having access to resources that can give you a helping hand is crucial. Why not start building your toolbox today? It’s sure to come in handy when you need it!