"We need a layout for this page in a few hours. I don't have the copy yet; I'm not sure everything that's going on the page, but I need it done ASAP. Thanks."
Does this sound familiar? As a designer this kind of thing happens A LOT, and it's not exactly the best setup to get your creative juices flowing. Luckily, I've found a few strategies that provide me with consistent sources of inspiration – even for those "hair on fire" situations.
Visual Inspiration
I'm a web designer and a front-end developer (CSS/XHTML), so naturally I take a lot of inspiration from visual sources. And, since I spend all of my time online, that usually consists of looking at other sites, design galleries, and anywhere the next tweet sends me.
However, I have also found that much of my visual inspiration comes from the print world. Since print designers don't have to worry about the same constraints that web designers do, they have a lot more flexibility with their designs. They can put just about anything anywhere and send it to the printer. Browsers aren't as accepting. I generate a lot of ideas from the print world and with a little CSS creativity I can achieve similar results.
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