I did not start as a front-end designer, but my story is rather simple. When I was first working with design, implementing something like rounded corners was a pretty big deal. Right now, we can do all that with just one line of CSS. There were times when I asked my colleagues to implement something for me and the feedback I got was usually:
why don’t you try to do it yourself?
I finally gave it a shot and this is how I learned how to code.
Now it feels like it was a natural step forward on my web designer path.
But who is a front-end designer? Why do you need one in your team? What are the skills of a good front-end designer? Here are some answers I gathered based on my own experience.
Who is a front-end designer?
The term "front-end designer" has become increasingly prominent in recent years, reflecting a growing need for specialists who bridge the gap between design and development. A front-end designer is essentially a graphic designer with a strong understanding of front-end development. They merge key aspects of both roles, thriving in the space where pixels meet code and aesthetics intersect with engineering.
they understand the UX principles and best practices.
they have a strong eye for aesthetics and attention to detail.
they can write some JavaScript for interactivity and simple functionality.
they understand the possibilities of frontend development.
they can create HTML, CSS, and presentational JavaScript code that shapes user interfaces.
A front-end designer bridges the gap between vision and code, crafting interfaces that both look and feel amazing.
Front-end design involves creating HTML, CSS and presentational JavaScript code that make up a user interface.
Skills of a front-end designer
As mentioned above, front-end designers combine the skills of a front-end developer and a designer. Most importantly, we need to have a solid understanding of:
CSS & HTML
The most basic building blocks of web coding. Front-end designers master coding with HTML and CSS in order to build static websites. HTML is used for creating the foundation of a webpage and CSS is used to create the layout, colours, fonts and other styles.
JavaScript
Lets you add both simple functionalities to the websites and create super-advanced applications. Most of the front-end designers are familiar with JS frameworks like Ember or React, but it does not mean that they code advanced features with it. Personally, I worked with React, Ember and Vue, but am not a master in any - just enough to get around and know what is possible within this technology. Same goes for the backend, like Ruby on Rails I have been working with since 2012. This does not mean that I am a backend or full-stack developer by any means. The area to cover is too wide, there is no way to be good and up-to-date with everything.
Design Principles and Tools
Understanding and applying design principles is a cornerstone of a front-end designer’s role. These principles ensure that the user interface (UI) is not only visually appealing but also functional, intuitive, and accessible. Here’s a deeper dive into the three core aspects:
User Experience (UX)
User experience focuses on creating intuitive and user-friendly interfaces that solve user problems effectively. Front-end designers use wireframes and prototypes to plan the structure and flow of a product. They prioritize interaction design, ensuring elements like buttons and menus are easy to use. Usability testing helps identify pain points and refine designs to enhance user satisfaction. Accessibility is also crucial, ensuring that the interface is inclusive and usable for people with disabilities.
Visual Design
Visual design enhances the aesthetics of a product while maintaining usability. Front-end designers use color theory to create visually appealing and emotionally resonant interfaces. Typography and layout principles guide users’ attention to key elements and ensure readability. Consistency in imagery and iconography strengthens the brand identity across the product. Effective visual design strikes a balance between beauty and functionality to create engaging experiences.
Design Tools
Front-end designers rely on tools like Figma, Adobe XD, and Sketch to create and refine their designs. These tools enable the creation of wireframes, mockups, and prototypes, allowing teams to visualize the product before development. Prototyping features simulate interactions, demonstrating how users will engage with the interface. Design systems built in these tools ensure consistency and reusability across projects. Mastery of these tools facilitates collaboration, iteration, and the delivery of polished designs.
Why do you need a front-end designer?
So why do you need a front-end designer if you have front-end developers and designers available? Well, a front end-designer will make sure that the design implementation process is as smooth as possible. If there are any changes between the design and implementation, it is an improvement, not laziness/oversight. Having a front-end designer will also have a positive impact on:
Better design: designers are often guilty of adding 24 different font sizes, 30 shades of grey when people are able to distinguish between only 5 of them or adding spacing that does not follow any rules. Instead of font-size: 36px it is 35, 36, 37px depending on how the designer randomly clicked it. Designers sometimes live in the perfect bubble of their design, and only cover the perfect scenarios, while developers often do not care if the margin is 10 or 20px. A good front-end designer merges those two worlds together and creates a perfect design.
Implementation: naysayers say that implementing your own ideas makes you create worse designs since you know how much work is ahead of you. Personally, I would say it is a problem with a person’s approach, not with being a front-end designer. It happened to me way too often, I was bending over backwards around the designs I created. I know what is possible with plain CSS or how to push it to its limits and I know when I need some JS support. Sometimes it is much quicker to do something in CSS and present the change to a client, rather than recreate the whole thing in Sketch or any other design tool. Being the person that created the design, implementation is much easier as you already know all the variables and are able to convert them to code much faster, without the need to measure everything.
UX and UX is better as we pay attention to contrast, button and font sizing, placement of the elements or consistency. A front-end designer will definitely be able to perform a UX audit and ensure a top-notch look.
When you look on dribble, a lot of the designs there have no respect for accessibility or usability. This is a great place to inspire yourself, but many of these would not work in real life.
Conclusions
A front-end designer is somebody who ensures a good user experience executing both a great visual design and code. They act as a bridge between the design and development worlds helping to hold the bricks in place.
Even though not every designer should be able to code it is good to understand the basics of how the code works in order to create better designs and communicate with developers more effectively. Knowing how HTML and CSS work will help to better understand the limitations of designing for web applications.
If you want to work with experienced front-end designers, look no more. In Selleo, every designer knows at least the bare minimum of front-end development, which allows us to create impeccable designs that work well on every device and browser. Want to find out more? Contact us!
A front-end developer and a web designer have distinct roles in creating a website or web application. A web designer focuses on the visual aspects, crafting the layout, color schemes, typography, and overall user experience using tools like Adobe XD, Figma, or Sketch. In contrast, a front-end developer is responsible for turning these designs into functional websites using coding languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
Web designers prioritize aesthetics and user-centric design principles, while front-end developers ensure the site's functionality, interactivity, and responsiveness. Designers may work with wireframes and prototypes to visualize concepts, whereas developers implement those concepts to work seamlessly across browsers and devices. A front-end developer often collaborates with web designers to ensure the end product aligns with the initial design vision. Additionally, developers may integrate APIs or back-end data to provide dynamic content, a responsibility not typically within a designer's scope. Together, both roles contribute to a cohesive and engaging web presence.
Front-end design is important because it directly influences how users perceive and interact with a website or application. It creates the first impression, as the visual elements like layout, color schemes, and typography define the platform’s aesthetics and professionalism. A well-designed front-end ensures a seamless and intuitive user experience, making navigation easy and encouraging users to stay longer.
Good front-end design is also essential for accessibility, ensuring that people with diverse needs can effectively use the site or app. It plays a significant role in responsiveness, enabling the platform to adapt to various devices and screen sizes, which is critical in today’s mobile-driven world. Moreover, a polished front-end can help build trust and credibility with users, which is vital for customer retention and brand reputation. It bridges the gap between complex back-end processes and user interaction, making the technology more approachable. Ultimately, front-end design is key to achieving both functionality and emotional connection with users.
Being a front-end developer offers several benefits, making it an attractive career choice. Firstly, it combines creativity and technical skills, allowing you to bring visually appealing designs to life through code. This blend of artistry and logic can be highly fulfilling for those who enjoy both problem-solving and design.
Secondly, front-end development is in high demand, offering job stability and competitive salaries across various industries. With the increasing reliance on digital platforms, skilled front-end developers are sought after for their ability to create responsive, user-friendly interfaces. Additionally, it provides opportunities for remote work and freelancing, offering flexibility in work location and schedule.
Front-end development also offers continuous learning, as the field evolves with new frameworks, tools, and technologies, keeping the work dynamic and engaging. Collaboration is another perk, as front-end developers often work closely with designers, back-end developers, and other team members, fostering teamwork and communication skills. Lastly, the sense of accomplishment in seeing your code translated into functional, interactive web experiences is a unique reward in itself.
