The word "flat" in translation from English means "flat". Since its inception, the so-called Flat design has continued to maintain its position for several years, occupying a leading position in the market.
How it all started
Web design has changed a lot of times since its inception. It has come a long way from simple and boring elements to three-dimensional, convex and almost material. This can easily be seen in the example of changes in the appearance of the Windows operating system. The visual component is developing in parallel with the development of technology. But its new trends indicate, rather, a return to minimalism and simplicity.
From Skeuomorphism to Flat Design
The style preceding the flat one was skeuomorphism. It has been a major trend in design for a very long time. Skeuomorphism is a pseudo-volumetric style, all elements of which imitate the appearance of real objects (notebook, alarm clock), using shadows, natural textures and other things. His vivid examples were found in the early interfaces of smartphones. He began to lose his position after 2010, when designers of large companies began to look towards simplification and when developing user interfaces began to get rid of the main feature of skeuomorphism - three-dimensionality.
A great visual example of the difference in styles is the photo below. The image on the left is a flat design, and the right is a skeuomorphism.
Flat style features
Flat is a two-dimensional style. It has absolutely no visual effects, such as smooth color transitions, shadows, volumetric textures. In a word, everything that makes an image three-dimensional.
The most informative are the icons (Flat design icon). They should be as user-friendly as possible when it comes to smartphone apps. For sites, icons are the main elements that reflect its specificity and information message. As a rule, they are presented in the form of simple geometric shapes, a circle or a square, with a characteristic conditional image.
When developing a Flat-design, attention is paid to the color scheme. It should be monotonous, not intrusive and not distracting to the user. Most often, one pure color and several contrasting shades are used. By the way, there are many Internet services with Flat design colors sets that you can use by copying the hex codes of your favorite colors.
No less important is such a thing as typography (text). Due to the general simplification, the text component is especially distinguished. So, it should be readable and not contradict the general style. This will depend on the choice of font and its color.
Flat design examples
To begin with, the icons of so many well-known Internet resources and social networks have changed in a flat direction. Not so long ago, the giants Google and YouTube also changed their design to flat. The Windows operating system, starting with the eight, completely abandoned all the signs of volume in the icons that pleased the eyes of some users in previous versions, and began to adhere to the Flat design. Mobile developers for iOS and Android followed her example.
Widely use the advantages of Flat design single-page sites (landing pages), for which the decisive role is played not by the artsy appearance, but by functionality and readability.
The evolution of flat design
At first, Flat design was really completely flat, which created certain difficulties for users who were accustomed to convex buttons. If in skeuomorphism the clickability of the buttons was immediately noticeable, then in the first variations of the flat design it was not always possible to determine the interactivity of the elements the first time.
After Microsoft released Windows 8, designed in a flat style, not all users were able to immediately figure out the new interface and which icons they can click on. The appearance of the elements did not indicate a possible interaction with them. Such a design was convenient, rather, for mobile applications, which picked up this idea. And the first to do this was Apple in the design of iOS 7.
However, Flat design does not stand still and is developing towards complexity. Today, it increasingly looks like a semi-flat design or, as it is also called, Flat 2.0. The effects of depth, shadow, gradients began to appear in it. Depth in a flat design is achieved by arranging the elements at different levels or at an angle.
Be that as it may, the style is at the peak of popularity and is in great demand. So, if you plan to design your site, you can safely make a choice in favor of Flat design. And if you need some missing elements for your website, then on the Internet you can find a huge number of Free flat design UI elements (free to download), such as icons, fonts, templates and other necessary components of the user interface.
Pros and Cons of Style
Without a doubt, in the modern rapid pace of life, such a discreet informative style is more convenient than its predecessor. Flat design has a number of undeniable advantages.
Perhaps the most important thing is the fast loading of web pages. Sites using a flat design open much faster than those that are overloaded with animation and other heavy objects. Especially important is the load time for SEO optimization and website promotion to the top.
A simplified appearance contributes to the readability of the text and allows you to focus on the main content.
The design looks harmonious and holistic, which creates an overall pleasant impression.
Nothing can be perfect and Flat design is no exception. For all its apparent simplicity, developing a truly successful flat web design is not so simple. There is a chance to make it boring and unattractive. Or vice versa, overdo it with the design and forget about the functionality. The main task in the development of Flat-design is to maintain the perfect balance between beauty and ease of use.