Want an insight into design trends seen in 2023? You got it. This was originally sent out to my mailing list in June '23 as a little bit of inbox design sweetness and now it's time to share it some more.

Typety-type

In the trends of type, it seems the basic san serif look that brands have been embracing over the last few years now seems to be taking a back seat to the more intricate serif. It’s a refreshing change and one I’m enjoying playing with in brand and marketing graphics.

Having said that the san-serif certainly isn’t, and never will be, dead but a well-balanced combo of a serif typeface with a san serif is still a definite vibe. Seeing a lot of san serif typefaces with quirky features that add interest & character. Check out Goia as a good example of this.

Thoughts on colour

Colour in brand and packaging is still popping and bright and yet I think we’re seeing slightly more muted versions of brights, less garish combos that are just that bit easier on the eye. I’m liking the use of just black on a nice colour pop. Here’s a sexy little HEX code colour palette to try that out with.

Lilac #ddaded | Yellow #ecd424 | Peachy #f2c3af | Blue #adc5ff

The 80s

Brands are embracing 80s aesthetics. Rough round the edges is in. Raw and ‘unedited’ is the flavour of the day. Visuals that mirror the real-life imperfection of foregone eras such as basic printing finishes, film grain, paper textures are IN.  This is not just an thing, we're

Here’s an example from both a small brand and a mighty brand that have embraced the retro nostalgia aesthetic. Don’t tell Kim but that choice of headline font & line spacing on the Skims ad is really disappointing. The small brand Lark did it better 👊🏻 Just saying.

That's me for now on design trends seen in 2023. Be sure to sign up to my Design Trends newsletter to be sure to get future insights as soon as they land!