Resources

General

• Dribbble

  The popularity contest for designers. But this site still attracts some really good work. My first go to place.

• Bēhance

  Like Dribbble but more in depth. I've duplicated all my case studies on Bēhance, as it's god good exposure to potential client.

• Designer News

  Like a finely curated twitter feed, just for designers. I check this most days and ready the weekly email summaries.

• Designers List

  If it's not in this list, it will be on this site. If the first 2 links didn't help with insperation, I go here.

• Google Material Design

  Teaching all good about good design on the internet. Makes sense, to check this first if ideas are hard to come by.

• MaterialUp

  A portfolio of things people have posted online that conform to googles rules. Gets input from the Google Design team which is nice.

• Sidebar

  5 design news stories everyday. No excuse not to read.

• Mail Chimp

  The best email marketing service on the planet. I recommend to all my client and use myself.

Feedback

• Desinion

  Feedback tool, useful for quick A/B preference tests. Aimed at visual design, for narrowing down options

• Usability Hub

  Similar to Desinion but used more by UX architects to get feedback on wireframes.

Learning

• Codecademy

  If you want to learn code, do these courses. Then build something. Also good for learning best practices.

• Skill Share

  I've taken a couple of Skill Share classes and been very pleased. Plus your helping out a fellow designer.

• Hack Design

  Teaching the basics of design via finely curated internet articles. Lading in your inbox weekly. Good for beginners to learn and a nice recap for experienced designers.

Freebies

• Vectorian

  Premium packs are seriously well worth a buy. But the freebies have saved my skin a few times.

Web

• Awwwards

  The go to place for seeing the best sites around. Site of the day lands in my Slack feed everyday.

• CSS Design Awards

  Same as above. Sometimes content is duplicated from Awwwards and visa versa. But two sites of the day is better than one.

• Kirby

  My new favourite CMS. I used to think WordPress was unbeatable, but apparently it is.

• WordPress

  The wealth of themes, plugins and knowledge on the internet still make this a very powerful CMS.

• CSS Tricks

  Insightful and useful tips that have helped me out numerous times.

• codyhouse

  Snippets of code that can really make your site pop. All for free with articles to back up each 'drop'.

• CodePen

  Like Dribbble or Bēhance, but for Devs. Their Podcast is great too.

• Foundation

  Great framework for mocking up responsive sites quickly.

• Snap SVG

  SVGs are great for retina screens. Animated SVGs are even better.

UI

• Pattern Tap

  A collection of the best UI from around the web. Now hosted by the amazing Zurb

• Pttrns

  Similar to above. But more for apps. Both are useful when designing digital products.

• Little Big Details

  Sometimes its the small things that makes a difference. This feed has some great examples.

UX

• UX Checklist

  Working on a site or app from scratch? This is the process you need to follow.

Work Stuff

• Oliver Peoples Fairmont OV5219

  A designer needs good vision! With a -7.5 prescription in each eye. Without these I'm pretty screwed... :)

• 15” MacBook Pro Retina

  This is my primary computer, it’s super quick and much lighter than their regular MacBook Pros. Also, since Adobe updated their software to retina resolution, it’s super awesome.

• 27" iMac

  My late 2009 isn't as quick as my MacBook these days, but the screen size is still impressive. I much prefer a bigger screen.

• Wacom Intuos Pro Medium

  I can work without a Wacom, but productivity is literally slashed in half. I also have a bamboo, for back up.

• Magic Trackpad 1

  I can't live without gestures. They really speed up my workflow and make daily tasks a breeze.

• Apple Keyboard with numeric keypad

  I can't be doing without a numerical keypad! Or replacing batteries for a keyboard.

• Canon CanoScan LiDE 90

  My Scanner of choice, although its olllllddd now. Still does the job, but I need a new one soon.

• Epson Stylus Photo R285

  Like my scanner, this printer is old now. But it's still bossing any photos I want printing. Ink is expensive however. :(

• Bose SoundTrue around-ear headphones

  My summer earphone of choice. Although I get crazy hot with this on in summer so I switch to the in-ear's. Even though the around-ears are better in my opinion.

• Bose SoundSport in-ear headphones

  In summer these are the biz. Can happily sit with these on all day and get in the zone. Also great for the gym and running.

Software / Apps

• Dropbox Pro

  Dropbox completely changed the way I work. Extremely good at syncing files. By far the best cloud service, in my opinion.

• Alfred

  Spotlight on speed. I use every time I turn on my computer. It's free, but the power-pack really makes it an awesome bit of kit. Make sure you get buy the "Mega Supporter" licence ;)

• 1Password

  Like Alfred, I use this EVERY TIME I turn on my Mac. Saves me hours of time, weekly. I really really can't recommend this app enough

• Coda 2

  My text editor of choice. Some nice shortcuts that same LOADS of time. Plus a very robust FTP client, all in one.

• AMPPS

  Forget MAPP or XAMPP, this it literally 1 click away from hosting you site on your machine.

• TSO Host

  I host all of my side projects on a TSO Host Cloud account. TSO Host has been a dream to work with, their customer service is AMAZING. They're always happy to help and respond as soon as physically possible.

• Kirby CMS

  WordPress was my weapon of choice for years, but I'm now a converted. I use Kirby as the content management system for my website.

• WordPress

  If I'm not using Kirby, I'll be using WordPress.

• Adobe Creative Cloud

  Expensive, but exceptional. Always improving a very solid product... I shouldn't really need to even put it on the list. Goes without saying.

• Sketch

  Designing Apps daily has converted me to the "UI app of the year" (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015). Really good light weight bit of kit.

• Wunderlist

  My list making app of choice. I've tried a few, Apple's Reminders app and the very capable Clear

• Ember

  Great app for organising inspiration from multiple sources. Gutted its no longer supported.

Companions

• Rich Hinchcliffe

  The most talented creative I've ever had the pleasure of work with. He's a nice guy too, although he bossed me around for 3 years.

• Ricky e'Sousa

  The next Rich Hinchcliffe in the making. Bringer of good vides, always lightening the mood. Oh, he's freelancing these days, so HIRE HIM NOW!

• Stephan Gerlach

  The best backend developer I know. He's dug me out of many a sticky situation. Always happy to help, teach and share. Patience is a virtue.

• Asis Patel

  My UX architect of choice. Super talented guy who's taught me the UX process and the importance of User Experience.

• Andy Kirk

  Andy is the man behind visualisingdata.com. His knowledge of the data visualisation field is second to none. He's taught me a lot through his blog and his training courses.

• First 10 Digital

  My old employer. Super great guys. Doing super cool shit daily.

• Ed Hanley

  The best 3D designer I know. He make awesome computer games.

• Hunk Print

  Prints, T-Shirts, what ever you want go see these guys. They're great at what they do and care about fairtrade etc. Which is a bonus.

• Stephanie Dominguez

  Concept artist, who make some amazing piece of art. You have the idea she can visualise it.

• Kayleigh O'Mara

  Super nice girl, making a living making things!

• boneface

  Went to uni with this guy. His drawings blow my mind. Crazy good.

• Sector 4 Illustration

  Similar to boneface, we were also course mates. Another talented guy with more mind blowing illustration skills.

• Preston Illustration

  My old courses' blog. Great to see updates from where I leant a lot... and drank a lot.

• The disciples of Design (TDoD)

  Great graphic design blog, keeping me up to date with uni and the industry.

• Provius

  A little side project I'm working on. Working with some great guys, super talented in their own fields. Watch this space...

• You?

  Shit! I've missed you off the list! Don't take it personal. It's not because you didn't make the cut, I just forgot to add you. Please let me know I can rectify this.

Podcasts

• Football Weekly
• 606 Football Phone-In
• James O'Brien's Mystery Hour
• This American Life
• Snap Judgement
• Tech's Message
• CodePen Radio
• Responsive Design Podcast
• Apple Keynotes
• Bantams Banter
• Serial
• The WIRED.co.uk Podcast
• Developer Tea