The Opposite Of Design Fails: 50 Of The Most Brilliant Design Ideas That People Have Ever Shared In This Online Group (New Pics)
Some days it feels like the easiest way to go viral is to do something horribly. The internet loves poking fun at poorly designed stairs, terrible products, cake baking fails and certainly stupid things people have done. But every now and then, it might be nice to celebrate something that was actually done well. It may come as a surprise, but for every designer out there that you makes you question how they got their job in the first place, there is another one quietly creating masterpieces.
We found a subreddit dedicated to sharing “high quality images of interesting designs, including architectural, graphic, industrial, furniture & product design” and combed through their community to find some of our favorite pics. Enjoy this list of excellent designs that you might even deem “the opposite of crappy design”, and be sure to upvote the images that you find most satisfying and impressive. Then when you’ve finished this list, check out Bored Panda’s last publication on the same community right here.
This post may include affiliate links.
This Wooden Owl Door From Copenhagen, Denmark, Was Created In 1930
There must be plenty of amazing designers out there, but for some reason, the worst ones tend to find their work circulating around the internet. So where are all of the skilled designers hiding? Sergey Krasotin, design director and co-founder of Humble Team, wrote a piece for Medium titled “Why is it so hard to hire a good designer — and how to get a great one” detailing how surprisingly difficult it can be to find designers that will blow your mind.
First, Sergey sets a baseline of what makes a “good designer”. He notes that having a good set of "hard skills" is a must for designers. “Great designers are able to apply the best methods and practices to any project, without having to reiterate over and over. That means using design sprints and customer journey maps when they’re needed, knowing how to do design research and building a prototype,” he writes.
The Lost Class - The Agency Leo Burnett (Chicago) Held A Graduation Ceremony For The 3,044 Who Would Have Graduated This Year If They'd Not Been Killed In School By A Gunman
Almost brought a tear to my eye.. Definitely felt this in my heart. I can't believe it, 3,044 students, that's a sickening number...
Load More Replies...At a recent mass shooting at a 4th of July parade, a little 2 year old boy was found wandering alone in the aftermath of people running every which way. A couple saw him there, alone and scared, scooped him up and took him to police officers. He was alone because both of his parents were shot and killed. I am literally sick over all of this. The state of our country is...sad and frightening. I don't even know what to say to this photo and post. It breaks my heart.
I'm British and we realise that it is only a small minority of Americans who do this. The majority are decent people.
Load More Replies...How devastating and heartbreaking. Politicians should focus on protecting the living children, not unborn foetuses. Just proves that anit abortionists aren't pro life, its all about controlling women. Children should feel safe at school, I wouldn't go to school if I lived in the US.
I want to believe that US is still a safe place, but if the government are not strict about the gun rules, nobody is safe. How many lives needs to be taken away because of violence? How many times we need to hear this?
Load More Replies...Gun violence is the number one killer of children, not cancer or illness. GUN VIOLENCE.
John, these things do not exclude one another. Accessibility is what this is about. Crazy is everywhere, but if I give crazy tools to act on it, they will. Guns are just too powerful to be held in the hands of everyone. A few days ago, in the hands of a well trained very experienced Dutch police officer, dedicated to de-escalation, a young farmer boy still received a bullet in his vehicle. The 16 year old kid wanted to pass a police blockade, and while moving away from it, the officer shot at him. He luckily missed. The officer and as pumped with adrenaline about his job at that time. We have major protests by farmers at the moment because of hefty policy changes. We also allow minors to get their driver's license for farming vehicles in the main road. We let cops have guns. The officer made an error because he was highly emotional, anxiety is that. This could have gone wrong. Your basic rights do not include the right to own a potential.mass murdering tool. You already have a brain...
Load More Replies...I had to reread this several times because it didn’t make sense. 3044 kids??? Seriously? What in God’s name is going on???
From Time Magazine: "Every year, more than 3,500 children and teens—defined as infants through age 19—are shot and killed in the U.S., and another 15,000 are wounded in shootings, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data from 2016 to 2020, which was analyzed by Everytown—a nonprofit group that advocates for tougher gun laws and actions to address gun violence."
Load More Replies..."In school by a gunman" is that really correct? The stats on school shootings is horrible, but seems a bit much. Could it be overall gun violence?
It is not correct. This is blatantly false. It also includes grown adults at 19. It includes suicides and gang violence.
Load More Replies...Where is a list of these shootings? Over 3000 kids the same age? My BS meter is going off.
Edit: if u saw my first reply ignore it.... I looked it up and in Chicago da shooter killed 3044 kids from da same school..
Load More Replies...These are kids killed in Chicago on the daily. Not just in school. There's a huge violence problem there that the government and media refuse to address.
This is poignant, but the caption misrepresents what the 3,044 chairs represent. It's not victims of school shootings, but victims born in 2003 of ANY shooting between 2003-2021. Still horrifying, but it's not about kids who were killed in school by a gunman.
This is heart wrenching. The population of my hometown is barely above 5000. The nearest town from me would be a ghost town. Their population is 2930. That is beyond my comprehension, and yet the governor of Florida cannot and will not make it more difficult to buy automatic weapons. Florida, home of the Margery Stoneman Douglas High School massacre, and Pulse Nightclub killings in Orlando. Within the last week, and within a 50 mile radius of me, there have been more than 10 shootings and 7 deaths. DeathSantis has more than earned his nickname. Please make this stop!!!
Omg this made me cry. Beautiful but it should not have to happen. It just should NOT. What is WRONG with our country and WHEN did OUR RIGHT TO LIVE become less important than some maniac's right to own a f*****g assault rifle?
This is reprehensible. Whatever merit the creativity has is horribly outweighed by the fact that the statistic is DEMONSTRABLY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY FALSE. The true number is less than 30. The number used is the total firearm deaths for ALL “children” (up to age 19 or 24), of which ~98% were OUT OF SCHOOL, and over half of which are suicides. The “in school” is simply false; the bulk of these “children” are 15+y.o. gangsters dying in gang-related firefights; and over half of the “gunmen” are the tragic GIRLS AND boys committing suicide. The problem is horrible and tragic enough without having to resort to lies and almost-lies to fabricate something even worse. I am a trauma surgeon and I deal with death by violence on a regular basis. I want to include screenshots from reliable governments databases, but I cannot. I hope people will just do some brief google searches, e.g. at National Center for Education Statistics and the Department of Justice.
https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/559893-former-nra-president-gun-rights-advocate-speak-at-fake-high/
And this is why mental health is important. No, Susan, depression is not a made up illness people just need to go on a walk for.
I can see them... da boys da girls.. all in their navy robes and motarboards... sitting.. I can hear the cheers... and see da sight... when they toss their hats... and say goodbye... (for all da families and friends of those lost dat day... say hello to da graduates of da lost class)😭😭😥👨🎓👩🎓🧑🎓
3 f*****g thousand?! What the actual f**k?! I live in the US and read the news daily and if you really want to what's sick (aside from the fact this happens at all) is we don't f*****g hear about this. I've heard of less than 5 school shootings last year. Nobody talks about it. This is so far beyond unacceptable I don't even have words for it.
that is just so sad. So many lives were lost just because of that.
I wish it could make a difference, but I am afraid that so long as people equate gun control with some kind of control on a citizen, they will reject it, regardless how many children die. There have been so many, and yet a significant portion of the population does not feel their life is complete without semi-automatic rifles stored in easily accessible places and fully loaded.
Because politicians make money off gun lobbyists. And because our mental health facilities are garbage. And because people are getting more depressed and more angry by the day. And because some people are just evil.
Load More Replies...This is simply heartbreaking but thankful by this they are not forgotten.
We Americans like to say that that the US is the greatest country in the world. Is it? Think about it. No gun control. Any nut job can geta military style rifle and use it to blow children apart. Health care is only for those that can afford it. The cost of drugs for many who need them to live are out of reach for too many. Our government is being ruled by crazy idiots. And yet we are the greatest country in the world? Guess again.
it my emotions, therefore thoughts of the brutality of these mass shootings
Speaking of Chicago. How about the Black lives lost to Black lives on the southside of Chicago. I guess that gun violence doesn't matter. Only to the lefties.
I really don’t get why people in USA can’t live without guns like…like the rest of the world 🤪 it is much harder to kill so many people with a kitchen knife or a stick. The “holy right” to own guns sounds like bull…it to me. These kids had right to live.
Now I finally know. In which matter the USA is #1... This is so sad and absolutely unbelievable...
Will somebody please think of the gun-makers' profits, just for once though???
So incredibly sad — so many innocent lives tragically lost to gun violence. How many more innocent lives is it going to take for the damned US government to make a change?
Beyond comprehension for non Americans but with people like Broebart who relishes carrying guns, getting gun control is going to be an uphill struggle.
Load More Replies...The best part about it is, a former head of NRA was tricked into giving a pro-gun commencement address there right in front of the empty seats (he was told it was a rehearsal. At the beginning of the speech, he said he felt confident that members of this class would “stand up” and defend the second amendment. A three-part video was released about it, showing him saying these things to the empty chairs. Life just doesn’t get more delicious than that.
This should be crammed down the throat of any politician who doesn't have a clue (or care) about the crisis in the USA because of guns. Oh, but I forgot...their god IS guns!
Tell that to the families of the innocent children brutally murdered in cold blood in Texas.
Load More Replies...From Time Magazine: ery year, more than 3,500 children and teens—defined as infants through age 19—are shot and killed in the U.S., and another 15,000 are wounded in shootings, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data from 2016 to 2020, which was analyzed by Everytown—a nonprofit group that advocates for tougher gun laws and actions to address gun violence."
Load More Replies...Nasir Ol-Molk Mosque, Iran. Built In The 18th Century
Sergey goes on to say that excellent designers are proactive and responsible for product goals. They should not require hand-holding. The best designers constantly come up with new ideas and pitch suggestions to improve products. Some additional characteristics Sergey recommends looking for when hiring designers are people that are team players, solutions-focused, born creatives, self-organized and individuals with great communication skills. “So how hard could it be to find a proactive designer with hard skills? As it turns out, pretty difficult,” Sergey writes. “Not because there are none on the market right now, we’re honestly sure it’s quite the opposite. The reason is that the working environment really matters." He remains optimistic, though. "With great team management and a team structure, any new designer will thrive — whether they’re senior or junior.”
Cool And Cute
A Well Designed Crossword
Corner Desk
The first problem Sergey notes when designers don’t have a great set of hard skills is that no one ever pushed them to reach their full potential. He explains that designers cannot simply work alone and discover how to get better, they require guidance and mentorship. If they are pushed out of the metaphorical nest too soon, they might not learn how to fly. “Without someone there to point out their mistakes and make suggestions for how to improve, they’re never going to get better,” Sergey explains. “They can create a horrible design and get away with that. They can stay on the same level for years without getting any better and no one will notice. There is no authority, no critics, no movement.”
This Dragon Bench, Carved From Wood...
This Billboard To Raise Awareness About Stutter
A Horrifying Cover From The New York Times
A similar repeated headline makes The Onion step away from satire with frightening regularity. I wish there was a solution that didn't involve firing every corporate lobbyist into the sun (if only because they're the only ones with the money for such a venture - hence the problem never going away).
Another problem product designers may encounter is being “marooned on their own in a product team”. Working on a team can be vital to keeping ideas fresh and innovative. Sometimes, two heads (or more) are just better than one. Being able to bounce ideas off of peers can go a long way, and it prevents one person from having to shoulder the weight of an entire team.
One designer who has been working solo in a product team for years wrote, “For the past few months, I’ve been working on an app for a plastic surgery clinic in Los Angeles. One of the app’s features is a direct chat between a doctor and a patient that allows them to exchange all the necessary information and prescriptions. And you know what? I’m building it all from scratch, from the ground, while a similar chat for collecting patient’s test data already exists, made by a guy who’s sitting one floor below me. He’s even done a user’s testing and fixed all the main bugs. And still, here I am, doing the same things over again.”
Rain Vortex
Poster By Polish Illustrator Paweł Jońca
You Ever Been Snitched On By A Cardboard Box?
When designers start to become burnt out, they tend to take a horizontal shift in their career. Feeling frustrated with too much work on a product team or being tempted to think they have reached the peak of their field, they give up on any vertical growth and decide to do something else. While it is understandable to want to mix things up, this puts them at a disadvantage. By starting at the bottom of another branch, designers make it even harder to ever attain a more senior position. Sergey stresses the importance of having a mentor, not only to keep an eye on a designer’s work but also to help them navigate their career trajectory. Skilled designers often move into product management or analytics positions before they have had the opportunity to reach their full potential as a designer. Then we end up mocking the new designer's work online in a list of design fails...
Subway Details In Sweden
Conservation Awareness Poster
Inclusive Picnic Table Design
When it comes to career opportunities for designers, graphic design is certainly a popular field. In the United States alone, there are currently about 175,000 graphic designers, and the industry continues to grow by about 1% annually. But as with any other industry, it is impossible to know exactly how it will be until you’ve entered the field. To help prepare aspiring graphic designers for their future careers, Brianna Flavin wrote a piece for Rasmussen University detailing all of the things she wished someone had told her before she became a graphic designer. The first thing Brianna notes is that boring work is just something graphic designers can expect. Another designer echoed this idea saying, “Being a professional graphic designer is just as much about working on tedious boring jobs as it is building cool brands that require lots of creativity. You aren’t always going to work on projects that are exciting and fun, but [less exciting work] is a huge part of the job that some find surprising at first.”
Roman Pool, California
This would be the indoor pool at Hearst Castle, by architect Julia Morgan. She was amazing and was also the first woman to receive the American Institute of Architects’ highest award, the AIA Gold Medal, albeit posthumously in 2014.
This Park Bench Can Fold Out Into A Table. All Park Bench Designers Can Stop What They’re Doing, We’ve Reached Elite-Park-Bench-Status
But they forgot to make it really uncomfortable for homeless people to sleep on it! (Seriously, I hate hostile architecture; I think it demonstrates everything wrong with our society's attitude towards the most vulnerable people, and I'm glad this designer didn't include any.)
This Amazing Door Design In Paris
Collaboration is apparently a very important aspect of graphic design as well. “It’s easy to feel possessive about your designs or your ideas; but when you are working as a graphic designer, collaborating with others is a huge part of the job,” Brianna writes. “There are always more variables to deal with when you add more people to the work you’re trying to do—but… teamwork can be a very gratifying part of the role.” Although not everyone is naturally a great team player, working together must be a full proof way to avoid ending up on any crappy design lists. With the input of several skilled designers, the end result of a project comes out as strong as possible.
This Pro-Abortion Poster
This Living Room In Turkey
An Advertisement Using Pedestrians As Ticks On A Dog
No matter how skilled a graphic designer is, they are never going to be perfect for every project. That might be another reason designs sometimes fall flat. “I went into this field thinking that a great designer can create for anyone,” says Shavanna Pinder, a graphic designer at Geek Powered Studios. “When in reality, client and designer pairing is much like any other close relationship; styles, temperaments, and values should complement each other.” Similar to how every client has unique preferences for who cuts their hair, who manicures their lawn and what doctor they feel most comfortable with, clients must find a graphic designer who they really mesh with as well. “It’s better for everyone—and a lot more enjoyable—when you and the client are on the same wavelength,” says Shavanna.
"Where's The Fifth Pig?" - World War II Anti-Hitler Poster Created In The Occupied Netherlands. When Folded Correctly, It Creates Face Of Hitler - The Fifth Pig
Panda Bathroom Painting
Fish Light
Another difficult aspect of being a graphic designer is that sometimes clients just don’t understand everything that the job entails. “I was surprised by unrealistic expectations from clients,” says Natalie Downey. “Whether it’s a shockingly low budget or an unreasonable deadline, be prepared to have a solution.” She explains that sometimes it is necessary to set boundaries with clients when they are asking for too much or demanding they pay too little. It can be frustrating to feel like you have to negotiate, but as the professional who is being hired for a gig and who understands the industry, the graphic designer is ultimately responsible for communicating effectively and reaching an agreement with their clients.
This Great Use Of The Meta Logo
Awesome Table Seemingly Coming Out Of The Floor
Beautiful Concept Packaging For Honey By Maksim Arbuzov
Maybe it should not be shocking when we find excellent examples of design out in the world, but there’s nothing wrong with celebrating them. In fact, lists like this should encourage aspiring designers to continue working hard and to ignore any crappy designs they encounter online. You don't have to fall into the trap of horrible design! We hope you enjoy the rest of this satisfying and impressive list, and don’t forget to upvote the images that stand out the most to you. Then if you’re looking for even more examples of excellent design, check out this Bored Panda list next.
Photo By @anniset & @drcuerda | Breast Cancer Awareness
Anti Nazi Sticker In Berlin
If the black hair was turned so it was horizontal, it would be an Anti-Chaplin sticker. 🤔
In Toronto
I see someone filled in the gap, but the BP evangelists didn't censor it.
Tulip Chairs
This Lidl Lithuania Grocery Bag Promoting Paper Bags Over Plastic Ones
Batman vs. Penguin – Hero & Villain Poster By Simon C Page
Art Deco Door Brick And Wood
What A Structure Of Building!
That has to be one of the most gorgeous building designs I've ever seen!!
This Little Farms Egg Logo
This Unique 'Samurai Vodka' Bottle...
Clever Design Incorporating A Fire Extinguisher At An Aquarium
Cover Of Italian Magazine Internazionale
Whitespace Under Letter M Outlines A Cat/Dog
Found In A Clothing Store Dressing Room
I Got A Unique Chess Set For My Birthday. Designed And Made By A Potter Friend. I Think They Are Stunning
Wow! Absolutely gorgeous! Does your friend sell these, by any chance?
Our Local Library Has Books For Bench Legs And They're Titled As Famous Novels
Kudos To Nabisco's New Pop-Open Boxes, Which Actually Let You Fit Your Hand Inside The Cracker Box For Once
An Ashtray In Dubai
The Coming Food Catastrophe
20 Foot Tall Door Facade By Gabriel Schama
This Poster Protesting Against The Beijing Winter Olympics
I absolutely support this but let's not kid ourselves. The western world isn't protesting because of China's crimes. They're protesting because China is a political adversary. People gripe a lot about politicians lying but they lie just as much. If crimes against humanity was what really motivated these protests, we'd have seen thousands of unending protests by Americans when their military bombed hospitals or when they used depleted uranium on innocent Iraqis or when they provided weapons to their allies and let them carpet bomb UN shelters and strike red cross ambulances. Instead, we saw their shrugged shoulders and disrespectful defences of the crimes so let's have some moral consistency here. Let's protest not just the crimes of those antagonistic to our own regimes but our own states as well.
Mural Painted Upside Down For Reflection In Marijampole, Lithuania
A Mosque In Iran
Note: this post originally had 121 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
...and they're not "pro-life." They're pro-birth. After you've been born, they don't give a shift about you. You're on your own.
Load More Replies...I'll be this a*****e. Dear author, the antonym of the word "failure" is the word "success".
Well, you could say that, or you could say that a successful design is one you don't think about, in which case you shouldn't call these a success. up to opinion I think, but really I think they were just trying to say "it's the opposite of the design fail posts we also have here" while also avoiding using the name of the subreddit
Load More Replies...I see the anti-choicers are being generous with their downvotes. Oh, well, fúck 'em.
This entire thing was literally stolen from another website. Wish I could get paid to steal other people’s ideas. Anywhere else, this is called plagiarism.
...and they're not "pro-life." They're pro-birth. After you've been born, they don't give a shift about you. You're on your own.
Load More Replies...I'll be this a*****e. Dear author, the antonym of the word "failure" is the word "success".
Well, you could say that, or you could say that a successful design is one you don't think about, in which case you shouldn't call these a success. up to opinion I think, but really I think they were just trying to say "it's the opposite of the design fail posts we also have here" while also avoiding using the name of the subreddit
Load More Replies...I see the anti-choicers are being generous with their downvotes. Oh, well, fúck 'em.
This entire thing was literally stolen from another website. Wish I could get paid to steal other people’s ideas. Anywhere else, this is called plagiarism.