9 Features We Most Want in WordPress 3.0

WordPress 3.0 is more than just the next in a long line of WordPress releases. It will see the merging of WordPress with WordPress MU (multi-user), which lets you run as many blogs as you like with a single install, a move that’s been widely welcomed by the blogging community…. read more

250+ Cracks Brushes for Photoshop

Crack effects are used in a lot of textured and grunge-style designs. Photoshop brushes present an easy way to add cracks to your work. In this post we’ll feature 18 sets of free cracks brushes.

Cracks Brushes (6 brushes)

High Res Cracks Brushes (12 brushes)

High-Res Cracked Brushes (22 brushes)

Demolished Cracks (12 brushes)

Demolished… read more

Win Free Stock Photo Credits from DepositPhotos

Stock photos are frequently needed by designers, and DepositPhotos has offered to give away $20 in free credits to ten readers of DesignM.ag!

If you are not familiar with DepositPhotos, they offer high quality stock photos, vectors and graphics at affordable prices. Photographers and designers can also register to sell… read more

Code a Corporate Website from a Photoshop Design: PSD to HTML Tutorial

Last week we published a tutorial for designing a basic corporate website layout in Photoshop, and in this tutorial we will walk through the process of coding that design in HTML and CSS. Here is a look at the design that we will be coding (click the… read more

100+ Resources for WordPress Theme Developers

One of the great things about working with WordPress and developing your own themes is the community and all of the resources that are available. If you’re not sure how to do something or looking to see what solutions other theme designers and developers are using, you… read more

Freebie: Media Icons from IconShock

Our friends at IconShock have designed a new set of icons for DesignM.ag readers. This set includes five media icons, with the usual high quality that we’ve come to expect from IconShock. The icons are available as PNG files and as Adobe Illustrator files. They can be used for personal… read more

Interview with Ryan Putnam of Rype Arts

Ryan Putnam is an amazingly talented designer and illustrator. Many of you are probably familiar with his popular Illustrator tutorials at Vectortuts and his own blog, Vectips. Ryan also provides services to clients through Rype Arts, and I recently had the opportunity to ask him some questions about design and… read more

Financial Management Tips for Freelancers

Most freelance designers are experienced and talented with their trade, but not so much when it comes to financial issues. In this post I’d like to share some things that I have learned through my own experience of being self employed that I think will be able… read more

How to Design A Corporate Website in Photoshop

Today we’re going to walk through the process of designing an example corporate website in Photoshop.

Here is a look at the end result of what we will be creating (click on the image to see it in full size).

Create a New File

In Photoshop, open a new file (File… read more

Win Free Die Cut Business Cards from UPrinting

Our friends at UPrinting have offered to give 500 free die cut business cards each to five readers of DesignM.ag! If you’ve been wanting to impress potential clients with some high-quality business cards, this is your chance to get them for free.

If you’re not familiar with UPrinting,… read more

Illustrating a Business Briefcase in Windows 7 Style

The new O.S. Windows 7 has improved aesthetics to make the user interface at least more appealing. There are huge ultra detailed icons for folders, devices and so on. This time we will use Illustrator CS4 to create a nice briefcase with the Windows 7 style. You need only a… read more

25 jQuery Plugins for Working with Forms

Almost every website uses a form of some kind. Contact forms and other types of forms can be enhanced with the use of a number of jQuery plugins that are readily available. In this post we’ll feature 25 useful plugins that you may be able to use in your own… read more

One Week Remaining for Free Job Board Postings

Throughout the month of January we have been offering free job postings and have been working to increase the usefullness of the job board for job seekers and for those who are looking to hire designers and developers. We’re happy to have more than 40 opportunities currently… read more

Freebie: High Res Vintage Wallpaper Textures

Today we have a great new set of vintage wallpaper textures from Caleb Kimbrough. The set includes 8 textures (4 are shown below). You can get any of them individually from the Flickr set, or you can download the whole set at the end of the post.

These textures may be… read more

10 Questions with Jason Walker of Two24 Studios

I recently had the opportunity to interview Jason Walker of Two24 Studios. Many of you may be familiar with his work as it has been featured in a number of galleries and design blogs. Jason has some great insight, so I hope you enjoy the interview.

Can you tell us a… read more

27 Sets of Useful and Free Adobe Illustrator Brushes

For Illustrator users, high-quality brushes can save time and help to produce impressive results. In this post we’ll feature 27 sets of free brushes to spark your work with Illustrator. For more brushes, see 45 Excellent Sets of Adobe illustrator Brushes and 30 Sets of High-Quality Adobe Illustrator Brushes.

Chalk Illustrator… read more

25 Outstanding Character Illustrations

For designers and illustrators, the Behance Network can be an excellent source of inspiration. In this post we’ll feature 25 character illustrations from members of Behance. If you see something you like, click on the image to go to the Behance page and check out some more work by the… read more

How to Design a Portfolio Site in Photoshop, Plus Free WordPress Theme

I’m happy to release a free WordPress portfolio theme called Modest Folio. It’s a simple design and layout that will allow your work to take center stage. It features a tabbed featured area on the front page to show the different services that you offer. Modest Folio… read more

Freebie: Distressed Bark Texture Pack

Today we have a free texture pack that includes 5 photos of graffiti/vandalized tree bark. All of the textures are high res and can be used for personal or commercial purposes, but they cannot be sold or re-distributed. You can get any of the textures individually from Flickr (click on… read more

How to Increase the Value of Your Design Services for Clients

Web designers obviously have a lot of competition from all of the freelancers and design agencies that are out there. Potential clients have plenty of designers to choose from, so there is always a need to focus on doing the best work that you can and giving… read more

450+ Photoshop Grunge Brushes

Today we are going to feature 25 of the best sets of Photoshop brushes for creating grungy designs. You’ll find a variety of different types of brushes that will all help you to give your work a rough, grungy look. If you’re looking for a way to create a grunge-style… read more

225+ Free Adobe Illustrator Patterns

Patterns can be extremely helpful for Illustrator users, and there are many good ones that you can download for free. In this post we’ll feature more than 225 repeating patterns that can be downloaded. We’ll start with pattern sets and then we’ll include some individual patterns at the end of… read more

29 Resources for Freelance Designers Operating on a Tight Budget

There are plenty of highly-useful resources and web apps that have been created with freelance designers and developers in mind. But for many freelancers, especially those who are just getting started, pricing can be an issue. In this post we’ll feature 29 resources that are not only very useful fore… read more

Freebie: High Res Texture Brushes for Photoshop

Today we’re releasing a free pack of Photoshop brushes for creating textures. The brushes are high resolution and can be used for personal or commercial projects. To make these brushes I used textures from some of my own photographs as well as some from Lost and Taken.

Here is a preview… read more

Foundations of Customer Service for Freelance Designers

There are a lot of factors that play a role in determining the success of a freelance web designer. Obviously, design ability and technical skills are needed, but other factors like customer service, marketing, networking, and work ethic will have a significant influence. In this article… read more

10 Questions with Logo Designer David Airey

David Airey is a very talented graphic designer and logo designer and he recently published a book Logo Design Love that is “a guide to creating iconic brand identities.” I’ve followed David through his blog for a few years now and I’ve always had a great deal of respect for… read more

350+ Smoke Brushes for Photoshop

Today we’ll continue our series of posts featuring collections of Photoshop brushes. In this post you’ll find 16 sets of free smoke brushes. These can be great for adding touches to your designs, especially on dark backgrounds.

Thick Curly Smoke Brushes (21 brushes)

High Res Smoke Brushes (9 brushes)

Thin Smoke Brushes (15… read more

13 Simple CMS Options

While there are a lot of powerful and feature-rich content management systems available to choose from, designers often have the need to work on small sites for clients that may only have use for a fraction of the features offered by the CMS. In theses cases the ideal solution is… read more

The DesignM.ag Job Board Has Been Re-Launched, with Free Job Listings!

The DesignM.ag job board has undergone some significant changes and been re-launched. If you’re not familiar with our job board, it provides designers and developers with a place to find work (freelance and employment opportunities), and helps companies to find skilled workers. To celebrate the improvements… read more

Freebie: Clean Grunge Texture Pack

Today we have a free high res texture pack from Caleb Kimbrough. It includes 8 light grunge textures that can be used for your personal or commercial projects, no attribution required. The only restriction is that you cannot sell or re-distribute them as your own. You can download the texture… read more

30 Gadget Design Tutorials for Photoshop

Gadgets are a favorite subject for many designers. There are some excellent tutorials out there to help you create amazing results in Photoshop for this type of design, and we’ll feature 30 of them here. You’ll find tutorials for designing iPods, iPhones, a Blackberry, cell phones and more.

MP3 Player Design

Create… read more

35+ Usability Resources for Web Designers

Usability should be a priority for every website. Without usability, even the most beautiful design will be ineffective. In this post we’ll feature a number of resources, tools, software, checklists, articles, and more, that can help you to design and develop highly usable websites.

Premium Usability Resources:

There are a number of… read more

25 Inspirational Package Designs

Designers can get inspiration from just about anywhere, including well-designed product packaging. In this post we’ll feature 25 product designs from the Behance Network. If you enjoy this post you may also be interested in Product Design Inspiration.

For more design inspiration please see:

40 Amazing Photo Manipulations
30 Web Designs with Amazing… read more

Tips for Dealing with Competition as a Designer

Being a web designer or developer offers plenty of opportunities for your career. If working as an employee isn’t for you, starting a freelance business is very inexpensive and there are virtually no barriers to entry into the business. While this presents great opportunities, it also means… read more

500+ Photoshop Brushes for Creating Brush Strokes

Photoshop brushes have always been a popular topic with our readers. In the past we have posted collections of the best watercolor brushes and the best splatter brushes, and today we’re focusing on those that allow you to easily create realistic paint brush stroke effects. There are 18 free brush… read more

Design an Ecommerce Website in Photoshop

Today we are going to design the homepage layout for an ecommerce site in Photoshop. Our sample site will be an electronics shop, and since we are in the holiday season, our site will include some special promotions, which is typical of ecommerce sites at this time of… read more

Showcase of Typography and Lighting Effects

Lighting effects can be used creatively to make impressive end results. Many designers are using lighting effects in combination with typography, and that is what we are featuring today. Here you will see 30 impressive works from various designers. If you see something you like, click on the image and… read more

15 of the Most Promising Flash CMS Solutions

Flash developers and users are constantly looking for powerful Flash CMS solutions. The case is any Flash CMS (Flash Content Management System) allows anyone to easily build Flash web sites and update them whenever necessary.

These days the number of Flash CMS solutions is growing rapidly and it takes a lot… read more

10 Questions with Daimon Caulk of Modal, Inc.

I recently had the privilege of interviewing Daimon Caulk, Principal of Modal, Inc. Daimon and his team produce great work and his responses in this interview provide excellent insight for the rest of us. I hope you find it to be helpful and that you enjoy getting to know more… read more

25 Free and High Quality Grunge Textures

Having the right texture is critical for effective grunge-style design. One easy way to get texture is to use a photograph. In this post we’ll feature 25 of the best quality high res grunge textures. As always when using a freebie, be sure to check the photographer’s instructions and terms… read more

50 High-Quality Free Fonts for Professional Design

Designers love to have a lot of quality fonts available to them, and fortunately there are some very good free fonts out there. In this post we’ll feature some of the best free fonts that can be used in your commercial designs. If you’re looking for a place to find… read more

Introducing Icon Fever, an Icon Gallery

If you’re a regular reader of DesignM.ag you’re probably aware that we launched a small network of five gallery sites about six months ago. We’re happy to announce the addition of a sixth gallery, Icon Fever.

Icon Fever will showcase the best icon packs available for designers. At… read more

10 Questions with Michael Dick of nclud

Michael Dick is a web designer/developer for nclud, many readers may be familiar with his work. I recently had the opportunity to ask Michael some questions about his experience and his work. I think you will find his answers to be helpful, and at the end of the post you’ll… read more

Inspiration from Five Masters of Typography

Some designers have talents that particularly stand out in specific aspects of design. Today we will be featuring the work of five designers that do amazing work with typography and text effects. For each designer you will see a sample of their work with links to some places where you… read more

Design Inspiration: 25 Vintage Rock Posters

Poster design can be a great source of inspiration, and posters from various musicians, bands, and gigs in particular. In this post we’ll showcase 25 vintage rock posters for your design inspiration.

Pink Floyd

Grateful Dead

Jimi Hendrix

The Schaefer Music Festival

The Sunrise Festival

Greg Allman

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Woodstock

Yardbirds

Fillmore Auditorium

Pink Floyd

Jimi… read more