feat: the end of flat design post

Author: BuiltByWalsh

cspell.json

@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@
     "runescape",
     "shalvah",
     "schoolai",
+    "skeuomorphism",
     "tomo",
     "turborepo",
     "turso",

posts/the-end-of-flat-design.mdx

@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+---
+title: The (hopeful) End Of Flat Design
+description: Dia is a new browser from Browser Company that promises to be an AI-powered browser. But is it really?
+thumbnail: /blog-thumbnails/the-end-of-flat-design.jpg
+status: 'draft'
+publishedAt: 2025-07-06
+lastModified: 2025-07-06
+brief: Dia is a new browser from Browser Company that promises to be an AI-powered browser. But is it really?
+tags:
+  - FlatDesign
+  - UI
+  - UX
+  - FlatIcons
+---
+
+## Hot Take 🌶️
+
+It's time for colorless icons with abstract shapes to go the way of the dinosaurs.
+Turn your attention to exhibit a; **_my dock_** 😱.
+
+![my-dock](/blog-images/the-end-of-flat-design/my-dock.webp)
+
+I use each of these applications every day. I sing their praises. I'm practically a pest control salesman for each of them. So why is it every single time I look at my dock I feel like I'm being bit a mosquito?
+
+Because these icons lack context & character.
+I have to remind myself every single day which is which.
+Do they look clean and tidy? Sure. Modern? No doubt. But I don't care.
+From left to right you are looking at:
+
+1. Zen browser _(which I gushed about in my [last post](/posts/lets-talk-about-dia))_
+2. Linear _(fantastic project management tool. So long Jira 👋🏻)_
+3. Cursor _(if you don't know about cursor I'm sure this blog post isn't for you)_
+
+And I don't mean to pick on these apps alone.
+The web right now is in a pit of minimalism that we're beginning to crawl out of.
+
+Claude and ChatGPT share the same illness.
+
+![ai chat icons](/blog-images/the-end-of-flat-design/ai-chat-icons.webp)
+
+Exhibit C. Don't get me started on Slack. The once great hashtag became 4 ducks pecking each other on the... tail. Once you see it you can't un-see it. If you were blissfully unaware about the slack ducks, I'm sorry about that...
+
+![slack icon redesign](/blog-images/the-end-of-flat-design/slack-icon-redesign.webp)
+
+## FANG Started It
+
+In many ways Google & Apple willed this design system into being in the late 2010s as UI minimalism & flat design trends took off. See now exhibit c; the google suite redesign.
+
+TODO
+
+## What Was Old Is New
+
+I might just be nostalgic for the skeuomorphism design that was popular during my formative years.
+And on that note, I'm pleasantly surprised by some of the icon designs coming in iOS 25.
+Seriously, look at how fun and creative the new camera icon is compared to the old icon.
+
+![iphone camera redesign](/blog-images/the-end-of-flat-design/iphone-camera-icon-redesign.webp)
+
+Full disclosure. I don't know how I feel about liquid glass yet.
+But it appears that time is a circle, and what was old and outdated is trendy again.
+Liquid glass ushers in design choices from Windows Vista.
+But reception has been mixed due to text legibility.
+Overall though, the I'm here for quick death of flat design.
+If you're a designer reading this, help me out. Hop on board. Talk with your teams.
+
+<br />
+Let's quickly see through the door excitement for fun bespoke branding that is immediately understandable.