Perfect pixels: 10 digital designs we wish were real

Every year, digital design becomes more ingrained in our daily lives. Smartphones and devices filled with apps for everything from fitness and food, to travel and timetable – there’s really never been a better time to be a digital designer. 

Shillington’s graphic design course delves into the digital side of design, using industry standard software to teach UX and UI design to students wanting to lead the way in this rapidly growing area. Shillington’s innovative approach to teaching means graduates can have an incredible portfolio under their belt and are industry-ready in as little as three months (or nine months if you prefer part-time study). And there’s also the opportunity to study abroad, with six Shillington campuses across the UK, US and Australia (Bondi, anyone?). 

Sound too good to be true? Hear from the students themselves in these open and honest Shillington testimonials, and see for yourself in this inspirational student showcase. But before all that, here’s a round up of some amazing digital designs, all created by former Shillington students, to inspire you. 

01. Friendly Faces font app

Former Shillington Melbourne student James Freebairn is the designer behind Friendly Faces font app, which helps identify unknown typefaces when you’re out and about. Not only a super-helpful tool for any designers on the go, but it looks the part too.

02. Das Food food delivery app

Shillington graduate Petra Venturini created this beautifully simplistic concept food ordering app for German restaurant Das Food. The cute, simple icons work perfectly with the limited colour palette, leaving users in no doubt of how to order their favourite dish. 

03. Figured Cloud accounting app

Accounting is not the easiest of subjects to come at from a creative angle, but former Melbourne Shillington student Benjamin Ngooi has managed it beautifully with his finance app, Figured. The clean, minimal design makes the subject both accessible and engaging.

04. Bean mental health app 

Previous Shillington student Meg Lawrence created this concept design app to tackle mental health. Centred around mindfulness, personal growth and self-care, the hand-drawn icons and earthy green colour give it an overriding sense of nature and an altogether friendly, approachable feel – perfect for the subject matter. 

05. Wobbly Wonderful recipe app

Apps need to stand out these days, and this concept design from Shillington graduate Vanessa Low certainly does that. Using vibrant graphics, the images immediately catch your eye – an ingenious way to emphasise the versatility of jelly.

06. Verst money management app 

It can be hard to be inspired by money, especially if you don’t have much. But this gorgeous money management concept app, Verst, designed by Shillington graduate Lucia Gajdošovà, is definitely something to get excited about. Sleek, clean and easy to read, Verst would no doubt keep even the biggest spendthrifts on top of their finance goals. 

07. Buddy mobile network app

“We’re all tired of boring, basic, banal data providers, this is why Buddy was created,” says designer and former Shillington graduate Stefania Luvarà. She’s got a point, right? Buddy is a world away from the design of your average data provider apps, which is nothing but a good thing. 

08. Daily Green climate change website

Shillington graduate Jessica Ibbett put together this striking website design for action on climate change. The attention-grabbing design references old-school notes, schedules and to-do lists to help spread the message of planning for the future. You can’t miss it, and that’s kind of the point. 

09. Submerge wild swimming app

Jay Van Duerse is a former Shillington student. He’s also a big fan of wild swimming, hence his Submerge app. A clean, beautiful and minimal design, Submerge shares details of the nearest ‘swimming paradise’. And it does so in such an effective, inviting way, it’ll make you want to reach for your swimmers even on the coldest of days. 

10. Reefresh reef clean up app

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock recently, you’ll know the Great Barrier Reef is under serious threat from coral bleaching. To highlight the issue, former Shillington student Isabella Coman created this clean up app concept, which not only aims to do good, but looks really lovely too.

Want to create amazing digital designs like these? Read more about studying at Shillington and learning to become a graphic designer in three months full-time or nine months part-time in London, Manchester, New York, Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane.