50+ Articles to Make You a Better Web Designer

This post is a collection of some of the best articles that I’ve come across on various topics related to web design. These are excellent, insightful, thought-provoking articles that may be able to help you in your own design career. Some are new and some are a few years old, but they all have something valuable to say.

To make it easier to digest, I’ve categorized them according to topic (with a general category at the end). Choose a few areas that are particularly challenging for you and see what you can learn from these experts.

CSS:

Which CSS Grid Framework Should You Use for Your Web Design? - NETTUTS

6 Keys to Understanding Modern CSS-Based Layouts - Jonathan Snook

Faux Absolute Positioning - A List Apart

Creating Sexy Style Sheets - Vitamin

Efficient CSS with Shorthand Properties - 456 Berea St.

CSS Float Theory: Things You Should Know - Smashing Magazine

CSS Specificity: Things You Should Know - Smashing Magazine

Top Reasons Your CSS Columns Are Messed Up - Warpspire

100% Height Layout Using CSS - Dave Woods

Typography:

Typography Essentials - A Getting Started Guide - Freelance Folder

Typographic Contrast and Flow - Web Designer Wall

10 Examples of Beautiful CSS Typography and How They Did It - 3.7Crea.tv

Layout:

Grid-Based Design: Six Creative Column Techniques - Smashing Magazine

Five Simple Steps to Designing Grid Systems - Mark Boulton

Building a Semantic 4-Column CSS Layout - Mirificam Press

Indestructible Website: How to Build an EM Based Layout that Won’t Break - Mirificam Press

Multi-Column Layouts Climb Out of the Box - A List Apart

Setting Type on the Web to a Baseline Grid - A List Apart

An Introduction to Using Patterns in Web Design - 37Signals

CSS Layouts: 40+ Tutorials, Tips, Demos and Best Practices - Noupe

The Incredible Em & Elastic Layouts with CSS - Jon Tan

Whitespace - A List Apart

Color:

Color for Coders - Color and Design for the Non-Designer - SitePoint

Choosing Color Combinations - Veerle’s Blog

Creativity:

12 Ways to Tap Into an Endless Well of Creativity - PSDTUTS

8 Web Design Tactics to Help You When You’re Stuck - SEOmoz

Usability:

Why and How: Styling TeXt Links - Andy Rutledge

Design Decisions vs. Audience Considerations - Digital Web Magazine

Practical Usability Testing- Digital Web

The Ultimate Web Design Usability Checklist- Not Usable

10 Usability Nightmares You Should Be Aware Of- Smashing Magazine

30 Usability Issues to Be Aware Of - Smashing Magazine

23 Actionable Lessons from Eye-Tracking Studies - Virtual Hosting Blog

Usability 101: Introduction to Usability - Jakob Nielson’s Alertbox

Business:

A Simple Guide on How to Effectively Talk to Clients - Six Revisions

Getting Design Approval: The Single Mockup Theory - Fadtastic

10 Ways to Get Design Approval - 24 Ways

Free Resource: Pre-Design Questionnaire - Outlaw Design Blog

Design Processes and Why Every Designer Needs One - Positive Space Blog

Accessibility:

Evaluating Website Accessibility Part 1 - Background and Preparation - 456 Berea St.

Evaluating Website Accessibility Part 2 - Basic Checkpoints - 456 Berea St.

Evaluating Website Accessibility Part 3 - Digging Deeper - 456 Berea St.

10 Colour Contrast Checking Tools to Improve the Accessibility of Your Web Design - 456 Berea St.

7 Accessibility Mistakes Part 1 - Digital Web Magazine

7 Accessibility Mistakes Part 2 - Digital Web Magazine

Standards:

Developing with Web Standards - 456 Berea St.

5 Most Common Misconceptions About Web Standards - CSS Globe

Portfolios:

Creating a Successful Online Portfolio - Smashing Magazine

Build a Killer Online Portfolio in 9 Easy Steps - Freelance Switch

General:

10 Principles of Effective Web Design - Smashing Magazine

12 Steps to Creating a Professional Web Design - Chromatic Sites

9 Essential Principles for Good Web Design - PSDTUTS

25 Ways to Improve Your Site in 5 Minutes - Fadtastic

35 Designers x 5 Questions - Smashing Magazine

Web Design-isms: 7 Surefire Styles that Work - Vitamin

20 Pro Tips .Net Magazine

7 Crucial Tips for Designing and Maintaining a Large Site - NETTUTS

Design Cheat Sheets for Front-End Web Developers - Six Revisions

Understanding YSlow: What Matters; What Doesn’t - Templature