This page is an ever-evolving collection of resources I personally recommend to help you with your design and branding.
I can vouch for each one of them.
I truly hope they will serve you as they have served me.
And do check back regularly! As I say, this page will evolve as I discover new resources.
This page contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy through one of these links, I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you. This helps support my mission to empower and equip through design, so thank you!
Free design tools
Branding Compass
I created this free, printable workbook to:
equip you in your branding
empower you to connect with your audience on a deeper level
turn passers-by into pilgrims, with you for the long haul
It takes just fifteen minutes and has been described as “awesome”, “very useful” and “generous”.
Check it out for yourself here:
Inkscape
This is a free, open-source version of Adobe Illustrator and it’s great. It’s a bit of a steep learning curve, but when you’ve got a handle on it, the opportunities are (almost) endless. Logos By Nick has some useful tutorials. Explore the software here:
Canva
Much more limited than Inkscape but more user-friendly, with some decent templates. For bigger design projects, this probably isn’t going to work, but if you need to put something together quickly, it could be a good solution:
Photopea
Photopea is to Photoshop what Inkscape is to Illustrator. Because it runs in-browser, it can get a little slow, but it’s still a good option if you want to edit photos or Photoshop files:
Fonts
Here are my current top picks to find free fonts that are available for personal and commercial use:
HTML CSS Color
OK, not the most catchy name. And ‘color’ is missing a ‘u’ (hehe sorry American friends). But this little site is so helpful for finding out more information about a particular hue. I especially love how it assigns a name to each and every colour:
iLovePDF
Honestly, I have no idea why this site isn’t better-known. It’s an all-in-one PDF manipulation tool that lets you merge, split, compress, convert, edit… You get the idea:
Inspirational design/branding books
Alternative Movie Posters by Matthew Chojnacki
I had this book on my shelf as a teenager. I think it played a big part in me wanting to be a designer, with its eclectic mix of posters in so many different styles. You’ll find yourself getting lost in these wonderful designs, ranging from the minimal to the hyper-detailed (affiliate link):
Book of Branding by Radim Malinic
So good. This book was a big reason why I chose to niche into brand identity design. It continues to be a big inspiration for me. I believe it will inspire you to think about your own branding and all the components that go into a beautiful brand identity (affiliate link):
Shepard Fairey: 3 Decades of Dissent
Shepard Fairey is one of my favourite designers. He’s the guy behind the Barack Obama ‘Hope’ poster. This book is a retrospective of his work, with dissent always going hand-in-hand with design (affiliate link):
The Art Book
An absolute classic. Growing up, I remember this being on our family’s bookshelf. My dad (a painter) would use it for inspiration. I’ve done the same when it comes to design and would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to explore what is visually possible (affiliate link):
Technical design/branding books
Just My Type by Simon Garfield
A book about fonts. It goes into the history of typography and gets technical (without being boring). But it’s so much more than that. This is a book about what our design choices say about who we are, what kind of culture we want to create and how we want to be perceived. A brilliant read (affiliate link):
Make a Living Designing Logos by Ian Paget
Ian Paget is the host of the Logo Geek Podcast and is a great source of knowledge when it comes to the art and business of logo design. His book approaches things from a personal angle, generously sharing what has (and hasn’t) worked for Ian as he has built his logo design business (affiliate link):
Work for Money, Design for Love by David Airey
This is more geared towards those considering a career in design. Renowned brand designer David Airey walks us through all the different parts of setting up a profitable, enjoyable design business. It’s been a treasure trove for me on my own freelance design journey (affiliate link):
Philosophical branding books
For the Culture by Marcus Collins
Such an interesting book, with a really unique take on how culture drives successful brands. I find Collins to be an engaging, compassionate writer who comes at this stuff with so much heart and personal experience. Highly recommended (affiliate link):
Start With Why by Simon Sinek
To say that this book has had a profound impact on me and my business would be an understatement. I find Sinek’s model of the Golden Circle so helpful that I now use it with clients to explore why their brand exists. Your brand will thank you for buying this one (affiliate link):
Personally important books
Here’s a small selection of books that have nothing to do with design and branding, per se. But they have all been important for me personally, feeding into my work in different ways (affiliate links):
Other things I use
Here are a few other things that I use (and find useful) in my work as a brand designer (affiliate links):