As a standardized resource with all the easy-to-forget minutiae surrounding a project, style guides ensure product consistency and act as a quick reference tool during the design process.
But no one style guide works for every project, and several different types and variations exist to play different roles. Mood boards, style tiles, brand guides, and front-end guides all contain different content for different purposes.
This 'pocket guide' on style guides explains the basics so you can take that all-important first step in the right direction. Citing examples and screenshots from such popular companies as Adobe, Facebook, Atlassian, BBC, Ubuntu, Lonely Planet, and Yelp, this book explains:
the specific reasons style guides are crucial
how to make mood boards useful as well as inspirational
how style tiles blur the line between atmospheric collages and useful reference guides
suggestions on what to include in your brand style guide
what makes a front-end style guide and why it’s the most popular kind