Julian Knott
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julianknott.bsky.social
Julian Knott
@julianknott.bsky.social
Graphic designer who loves the outdoors. www.julianknott.com
I’ve been thinking about how many logo files we still hand over. The geometry is often identical, yet we export six versions anyway. SPV puts all colour modes in one vector, which feels closer to real workflow.

#branding #logodesign #designprocess #vector #svg

www.julianknott.com/blog/smart-l...
A smart logo format for creatives & clients
What if one vector file replaced every export — RGB, CMYK, Pantone, mono and reverse? Meet SPV, a smarter way to hand over logos.
www.julianknott.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:05 PM
This is what I have to do to help mobile users discover horizontal scrolling in code blocks. A scrollbar at the top would solve this instantly, but browsers don't support it (only waaaaay down at the bottom). Why is this still not a thing? Have I missed something?

#UIFails #WebDev #FrontendDev
November 23, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Oh wow. If only my old sliver age comic collection I have in my attic contained that.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

#comics #superman #dc #silverage
Superman edition found in mum's attic is most valuable comic ever at $9.12m
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a new record after Man of Steel comic found in a California home is auctioned.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 7:28 PM
AI makes me chuckle. There’s me moaning about bad posts on LinkedIn.

Me: Do I sound bitter?
AI: No, you’re just allergic to bullshit.
Me: That should be a t-shirt.
AI: Honestly, it’s less a t-shirt and more a professional qualification.

Well… I found it funny.

#freelance #design #designerproblems
November 20, 2025 at 4:04 PM
MSNBC’s new ‘MS Now’ logo is visually jarring. The red and that neon-leaning blue just don’t sit well together. Maybe it’s brand heritage, but that blue has become a tech/screen shorthand. Try printing it in CMYK and see how shouty it looks then.

#msnow #logodesign #discordant #colour
November 18, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Sometimes AI makes me chuckle. Mention branding and word/powerpoint it cheerfully said "Word and PowerPoint are where brand consistency goes to die".

#branding #office365 #graphic-design #brandsthatdie
November 17, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Remember design folks: your customer isn't THE customer.
I commented on a post about 'make it pop' feedback. The real problem isn't vague language, it's that we're asking clients to art direct based on personal taste, when they should help us understand their audience's needs.
#design #strategy
November 14, 2025 at 12:59 PM
I love it when cafes make an effort to inject local flavour and a quick history lesson into their decor with creativity. #cafeculture #stroud #illustration
November 11, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Interesting visual direction. Normally, I'm a bit skeptical about 'low-fi' design aesthetics, but the down-to-earth nature of this branding, based on classic storefront/family-run typography, works and conveys honesty.

www.creativebloq.com/design/graph...

#branding #zohranmamdani #typography
Zohran Mamdani's branding is a graphic design masterclass
Mamdani didn’t just run for office; he built a visual identity.
www.creativebloq.com
November 8, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Nicely articulated article. I particularly liked the point that branding is "the ability to discern the right story for the right people at the right time." Simple.

www.designweek.co.uk/brand-strate...

#design #branding #brand-strategy
“Brand strategy’s not in trouble – bad strategy is”
Here’s a game. I’ll think of three numbers. The first number is between one and six. So is the second number. The third number is between one and nine. You have to guess those three numbers, in order.
www.designweek.co.uk
November 3, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Reposted by Julian Knott
🧵I've posted them before, but here's my thread of horror/kids' TV double-bill cinema posters. Happy Halloween...
#halloween #cinema #graphicdesign #poster
October 31, 2025 at 9:39 AM
I love the art style of this game. Brings back all those fond memories of playing those geeky role playing games back in the 80s.

store.steampowered.com/app/3876150/...

#illustration #gaming #steam #thesecretofweepstone
October 30, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Adobe, a company that sells creativity and AI, can’t seem to brand its own thumbnails.

You’d think they’d have a button for that by now.

#DesignObservation #BrandConsistency #AIandDesign #Adobe
October 30, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Reposted by Julian Knott
Early in my career, a client loved my designs... then ghosted.
No contract, no deposit, no payment.
Ghosting isn't about bad clients, it's about weak boundaries and processes. I've written my thoughts, suggestions and links.

www.julianknott.com/blog/ghost-c...

👻

#freelance #webdesign #ghosting
Ghost Clients: How to stop disappearing acts
Ever had ghost clients vanish mid-project? Learn how to protect your time, sanity, and income with contracts, deposits, and clear boundaries.
www.julianknott.com
October 22, 2025 at 8:41 AM
The screenification of branding gets the long-form treatment.

Are you forgetting how colours behave once they leave the screen and hit print?

(👀 looking at you, neon blue.)

www.julianknott.com/blog/when-he...

#colour #graphicdesign #branding #screenificationofbranding #designprocess
When Hex Meets Paper: Screenification of Branding | Julian Knott
When colour leaves the screen and hits print, everything changes. Discover how the screenification of branding affects colour, trust, and consistency.
www.julianknott.com
October 29, 2025 at 8:37 PM
When brands are born on screen, colour lives in light, not ink.
So the moment it hits paper, everything changes.
That sector colour you meant as a sub-colour can end up looking like your brand in print.
That’s the screenification of branding.
#DesignProcess #BrandDesign #PrintDesign #CraftAndProcess
October 29, 2025 at 2:17 PM
The furore over the raised dot in the updated GOV.UK logo was overblown, fuelled by a media chasing outrage and a government unwilling to share the process or purpose behind the change.

www.designweek.co.uk/we-need-to-t...

#Design #BrandDesign #PublicSector #DesignProcess #VisualIdentity #UKDesign
We need to talk about the GOV.UK redesign (again)
International Men’s Day is on November 19. I know this because for many years on International Women’s Day, the comedian Richard Herring would reply to every snarky tweet wondering – erroneously – why...
www.designweek.co.uk
October 28, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Sobering BBC report on how AI is reshaping graduate jobs with graphic design among the fastest-declining roles by 2030 (WEF). Makes me wonder how design education is adapting their approach. If at all.

#AIImpact #FutureOfWork #DesignEducation #CreativeCareers

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Graphic design graduates 'competing' against AI for jobs
Graphic designers say a growing use of AI makes them question the value of their degree.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 26, 2025 at 10:22 AM
I had this daft idea that there wasn't a gender pay gap in design and that agencies were more progressive. That's my fault for living in a one-person freelance bubble. *Sigh*.

www.creativebloq.com/design/from-...

#WomenInDesign #DesignPayGap #EqualPay #CreativeIndustry
From today, women in design are working for free – here's why
Kerning the Gap's Nat Maher on why equal-pay laws aren't enough.
www.creativebloq.com
October 24, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Molly-Mae is basically Alan Partridge for the influencer age — earnest self-belief meets oblivious absurdity.

That unshakable confidence while saying something beige about branding or an imminent “drop.”

#Branding #Satire #BritishHumour #PartridgeMoments
October 23, 2025 at 11:18 AM
Early in my career, a client loved my designs... then ghosted.
No contract, no deposit, no payment.
Ghosting isn't about bad clients, it's about weak boundaries and processes. I've written my thoughts, suggestions and links.

www.julianknott.com/blog/ghost-c...

👻

#freelance #webdesign #ghosting
Ghost Clients: How to stop disappearing acts
Ever had ghost clients vanish mid-project? Learn how to protect your time, sanity, and income with contracts, deposits, and clear boundaries.
www.julianknott.com
October 22, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Jonathan Ford at Pearlfisher touches on AI and calls it:

iQ x Ai = Di

(Human imagination multiplied by generative AI equals Design Intelligence).

Guide AI with intent (I agree).

www.creativebloq.com/professional...

#AIandDesign #DesignThinking #Creativity #GenerativeAI #DesignIntelligence
"I harness my power animal": a day in the life of Jonathan Ford
Pearlfisher's co-founder discusses AI, ageism in the industry and the power of a growth mindset.
www.creativebloq.com
October 19, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Design trends are weather.
Brand strategy is climate.

As 2026 “trend lists” start rumbling in, remember (and I love a metaphor): storms come and go, but strong brands build for the long season ahead.

www.julianknott.com/blog/brandin...

#DesignTrends #BrandStrategy #GraphicDesign #StudioNotes
Why branding and design trends are the weather not the climate.
Branding and design trends come and go, but strong brands build for climate, not weather. Here’s why longevity beats prediction lists.
www.julianknott.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:18 AM
To tell clients you use AI in some way, or not? That is the question.

#DesignThinking #GraphicDesign #Branding #AI
October 13, 2025 at 2:36 PM