When you click on a floppy disk icon to save your work, move a file into the garbage bin on your laptop screen or open your very lifelike digital wallet, you’re engaging with skeuomorphic design. Bridging the physical and the digital worlds, skeuomorphism is a design style that imitates the look and function of real-life objects. Although its peak ended with the rise of minimalism, traces of skeuomorphism remain prevalent in modern user interface design. You can still use the style to create familiar, intuitive, and visually appealing user experiences.
Skeuomorphism was one of the biggest and most influential design styles in the early days of the Internet, inspiring many modern icons and trends. Now, more than a decade after skeuomorphic design fell out of favour in a digital landscape dominated by minimalism, it’s making a comeback. Skeuomorphism’s easy familiarity has found new appeal among a demographic that finds it reassuringly easy to understand.
This is Anchor Digital’s guide to best practice skeuomorphism and how to use it to create familiarity in your UX/UI design.
What Is Skeuomorphic Design?
The phrase "skeuomorphism" comes from the Greek word “skeuos”, which means container or vessel, and the English word “morphism”, meaning the state or quality of having form. The concept itself is as old as Ancient Greece and originally referred to potters crafting handles that mimicked metal designs.
In user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design, skeuomorphism means designing interface objects to mimic the qualities of their real-life counterparts. This involves focusing on elements like form, function, light, shadow and texture. Skeuomorphism involves incorporating elements of the real world into digital icons to make them appear more realistic and intuitive.
While it’s no longer the dominant design style, examples of skeuomorphism are still easy to find when you look for them. Famous examples include the trash can icon for deleted files, calculator apps with 3D buttons, note-taking apps that resemble paper notepads, and camera apps that resemble real cameras.
How Skeuomorphic Design Started
While it’s based on ancient concepts, skeuomorphism began to take root in design in the 1980s, and the famous Steve Jobs was its biggest proponent. Jobs popularised the design style with the launch of the Apple Macintosh computer in 1984. The Apple Mac’s famous graphics, including its trash can, folders, bookshelf and calculator, have since become widely recognised industry symbols.
But it was Apple’s approach to the design style that really helped it take over the world. In 2007, Apple unveiled its first operating system, iOS 1.0, which heavily featured this design style. As the public became increasingly familiar with digital concepts, these visual cues started to look dated, and the tide began to turn. In 2013, Apple launched iOS 7, and a new aesthetic emerged: flat design. Flat design was known for its two-dimensional images, high-contrast colours, clean lines and simple typefaces. Compared to skeuomorphism, flat design’s sleek images were faster to load and embodied the ethos “less is more”.
As designers and users alike began to prioritise simplicity, speed and functionality, flat design became the most common kind of design around. But it wasn’t the end for skeuomorphic design. In 2019, Alexander Plyuto created an interface called ‘neumorphism’, combining elements of both skeuomorphism and flat design. This is an approach that’s minimal but still draws on skeuomorphic elements in a subtle way, with the use of techniques like raised shapes, shadows and embossing.
But design trends come, go and are revived. With nostalgia so prevalent in pop culture and design, there’s still a place for skeuomorphism, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.
The Psychological Impact of Skeuomorphic Design
There are two main reasons for skeuomorphism’s longevity and its current resurgence in popularity. As technology evolves, user expectations do too. These days, users are drawn to design that’s easy to use, engaging and impactful. UX design aims to make webpages easy and pleasant to use. A touch of skeuomorphism in design appeals to users with its balance of functionality and personality.
Many of today’s Internet users grew up using these classic symbols and icons, and seeing them again creates a warm and comforting sense of nostalgia, which our brains are hard-wired for. Nostalgia can offer a sense of comfort and relieve stress, both positive experiences for people to have when interacting with your site.
Skeuomorphic-inspired designs are also, by nature, intuitive, leveraging user familiarity with the physical versions of these objects for a smoother digital experience. For users, interacting with familiar designs feels effortless. Users become more quickly acquainted with your interface, making it easier for them to make purchasing decisions and taking a load off their minds.
Tips for Incorporating User Familiarity in Your Interface Design
How do you incorporate the most effective elements of skeuomorphism into your own UX/UI design? The best tips and techniques include:
Use realistic details
Realism is key when it comes to skeuomorphic design. The more closely your icons and symbols mimic their real-life equivalents, the more they will stand out in a sea of flat design, and the more powerful their impact on users. Creative use of shadows, gradients and highlights can give your design a more authentic look.
Adapt to the times
While familiarity is important, using dated images can make your website look out of touch. For best results, use skeuomorphism not for the sake of doing so, but because it’s the most important way to communicate your message to your users. Using modern colour palettes and simplifying icons and symbols can give your site a sleeker and more contemporary look.
Keep it simple
It’s best to use skeuomorphic design sparingly, as too many elements of it can clutter and overwhelm the page. Keep the skeuomorphic elements simple so that your users can focus on the main task. Remember to design with your users in mind. Which visual cues will be most engaging for them?
Monitor performance
Skeuomorphic elements can sometimes slow down loading times, so it’s important to make sure your website is responsive and continue to monitor its performance.
Design with Impact at Anchor Digital
A full-service hybrid creative marketing agency, Anchor Digital, looks towards the future and stays true to timeless, always-effective principles. Our graphic design services can incorporate a range of different styles, including effective skeuomorphic design, while communicating your vision to your target audience and helping to turn them into loyal customers. With an approach that focuses on both UX and UI, we provide design that’s optimised for both aesthetic appeal and functionality as we share what you offer as a brand with the world.
If you’re looking for web development in Brisbane, Anchor can provide you with a responsive, optimised website that reflects your brand identity and puts you ahead of the competition. We don’t just design a site that looks good, we ensure it functions well across different devices and optimise it for speed and usability. Our approach is based on teamwork and collaboration, so we’ll keep you in the loop every step of the way.
To find out more, contact Anchor Digital online, call 1300 971 392 or email info@anchordigital.com.au.
