10 Design Principles of Dieter Rams

Ah, the world of design. The place where accessibility, innovation, and imagination meet together and make our concepts and ideas come to life. Design has always been a big part of our lives. Whether it is a traditional design, web design, UI UX design, interior design, or any visual aesthetic you can imagine, it requires time and devotion. Yet, design is about more than just the pretty graphics. Good design is useful, intuitive, and timeless. It doesn’t fade away with any new trend, beating the test of time. And Dieter Rams seems to have thought of everything. 

Dieter Rams is a pioneer of systematic design. He started out due to his passion for carpentry, a passion instilled by his grandfather who was one. In his early career Rams applied for a job at the electrical product company named Braun. We have all heard of their appliances, there is no doubt there. Rems was appointed as head of design at Broun between 1961 and 1995, being the one who designed products that later became the inspiration for many.

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Rams’s  Philosophy

Dieter Rams believed that good design comes from understanding how people think. Responding to their needs and delivering designs that don’t fade away over time, having a sustainable approach with his creations. 

“I imagine our current situation will cause future generations to shudder at the thoughtlessness in the way in which we today fill our homes, our cities and our landscape with a chaos of assorted junk.” – With this statement, Rams, encourages a more meaningful life. 

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1. Useful – The ultimate goal for a design is to be useful. Whether it is a piece of clothing, a web or app design, or even a new piece of furniture we want it to be helpful and make our lives easier. Imagine buying a new sweater and it doesn't keep you warm, or even worse it doesn’t have the space for your head to fit. 
2. Timeless – A design needs to beat the test of time. It needs to stay modern and be just enough for the user at any moment in time. And UI UX designers should also deliver this with their designs. Create web and app designs that offer users a flawless experience at any given moment. One of the design principles Rams recommends is opting for classic and timeless designs that are minimalist and will make your design stay relevant with time. And a deductible user experience will help you get there.
3. ‍Deductible – Design products that are easy to understand. Dieter Rams designed products that you can understand the first you get a grasp of them. When you first see a design you need to understand what its purpose is. It can be a web design delivering electronic appliances or it can be an app design that helps you translate texts – in all cases, UI UX designs need to be sure that the users understand that when they first see the design.  ‍
4. Aesthetic – Simplicity is enough. Dieter Rams created designs that found beauty in simplicity. Timeless pieces can be integrated into our homes easily, being the inspiration for many designers throughout time. Rams was the inspiration for Apple’s calculator design, iPad, and many others.‍
5. Innovative – Another one of the design principles Rams discusses is innovativity. Having an innovative design doesn’t need to be hard. The possibilities are endless but at the same time, the UI UX design market is oversaturated with the same designs. However, in the UX UI design field, innovation plays hand in hand with technological advancements. ‍
6. Direct – Honest design is the best one. Letting your users know exactly what your product does and what they can have is the best user experience. We can all agree that when purchasing a new item we have certain expectations. And when the products don’t meet our expectations we tend to get annoyed and overwhelmed by it. So be honest when designing a new project, no one will appreciate a product that does not do what it is expected to do.‍
7. Sustainable – Having a sustainable design takes care of our home. The tech industry and sustainability in the technology industry are prime examples. While technology has brought us countless benefits, sustainability problems like energy-intensive and resource-hungry, raising questions about its sustainability. Nonetheless, sustainability represents our proactive efforts to ensure that this reality endures by being mindful and consuming only what is necessary so that future generations can also thrive on a healthy planet. And, with his design, Dieter Rams created timeless pieces that remained relevant over time.‍
8. Minimalist – Less is more. And, Rams took this statement really seriously. If we want to take a look at one of the most successful and iconic integrations of minimalism in UI/UX design, we should look no further than at Apple’s user interfaces. Here, the industrial designer played a big role as their inspiration. Most people who become new Apple users do not require a lot of time to get accustomed to their design system. And it is quite easy to see why - their user interfaces are intuitive, well-organized, and visually stunning. They communicate a great story by using the least amount of elements that can be implemented. ‍
9. Unobtrusive – For the best user experience possible, web and app designers should make sure intrusive elements are not encountered in the design. So, stay away from any auto-layout media, or pop-ups as they can interfere with the users’ focus.‍
10. Thorough – Be careful at any detail. A good and long-lasting design needs to respect every user's needs and make sure a good user experience is sustained. Taking care of everything and making sure your interface is scalable and testing it on as many devices as possible is what every UI UX designer needs to be doing. 

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We at uinkits understand the importance of inputs in great user experiences and creating amazing UI designs. That’s why we’ve developed a Figma UI Kit with design components that include these essential UI elements that enable you to design intuitive and user-friendly interfaces effortlessly.  

“You press the button, we do the rest,” – Kodak.

Inspired by this iconic tagline from Kodak, we believe in simplifying the design process for you. Our Figma UI Kit, uinkits, is a complete design system with UI components that allows you, as a UI UX designer, to create your products as quickly as pressing a button.

Our design system includes components, icons, variables, cards, buttons, and everything you need for your design process. All you have to do is take your UI design component needed, and you’re ready to use it in your designs!