Happy New Year! Do you have any big design plans this year? A rebrand, some new print materials, perhaps an updated website? I’ve been curious about what design trends to expect in 2016, so I looked around to see what the internet creative hivemind is saying. Here are some recurring predictions I noticed:

Monochromatic Color

Monochromatic color schemes will continue to be popular. Designs with a monochromatic approach are generally clean, harmonious, and impactful, while allowing for the important content to remain the focus.

zag_studio_monochromatic

Retro Influence

There is always a specific time period in history impacting modern design, and apparently this year it’s going to be more of the 80s and 90s. Yay?

retro

Fearless Color…

Perhaps part of that 80s influence–bold, look-at-me use of color will be big again in 2016, particularly to highlight/accent. Interestingly, this is not just for fun consumer products or apps–bright colors are moving into the corporate/business brand space, too.

bloomberg_bright_color

…and Bold Type

Big, bold type will take center stage online and in print. Additionally, creative play with type will be more prevalent—stacking, rotating, flipping…

bold type

Flat Design

The clean, basic shapes and color of flat design are here to stay. Flat icons and logos are easy to read, universal, and they translate well across various media.

flat-ui-cover

Made by Hand

Illustration will be more important than in past years, as will the ongoing trend of handmade/hand-drawn qualities and effects. With all the talk of self-driving cars and the Internet of Things, maybe this is just the designer’s way of reminding the world that humans are still here, handcrafting one-of-a-kind, beautiful things.

handdrawn