Tips for creating a beautiful one-page portfolio website

Many of the global web design trends can be applied to one-page pages, but they also have their own unique features. Such projects are quite specific, so it is useful to read something on the topic before creating your own, for example, an article on the process of developing a landing page design that will improve conversion, or see general tips for one-page sites.

In addition, it is a good idea to find the best existing solutions in order to be fully inspired by them. This can be easily done in OnePageLove and Land Book, plus complement the experience with a selection of awesome portfolio sites since this is the niche in question.

No less useful for you will be the material from this English-language article, which is devoted to the creation of one-page portfolio sites.

Fixed scrolling area

For sites where content is placed on one page, it is quite common to find division into some horizontal blocks. In the process of scrolling through the page, the user views this or information, and at the same time, the background image, the colors of the block design, etc. change. This idea can be developed into scrolling an area equal to the full screen. For a classic website in the portfolio, by the way, you can add an endless scroll (scrolling) of works on the page.

Zack Batsaikhan s personal site is a great example of what we just talked about – in one spin of the mouse wheel, you move up / down one screen. It also supports keyboard arrows for navigation, so you can even do without a mouse.

Another example of a similar solution from designer Jeya Karthika. Each section / block uses its own background, which is especially convenient for mobile devices. On one of the screens, you can use not only the down / up arrows but also the right / left arrows to scroll horizontally. This is usually done with a jQuery plugin, or you can do it yourself if you know JavaScript.

Adaptive design

Along with the importance of supporting mobile devices, the so-called responsive design is developing. The trend is far from new, but it is in a kind of “free search” – developers play with different options and ideas for implementing responsive web design. If we talk about a portfolio, then here it is even more important, as it demonstrates your personal skills in solving such problems.

Andrew Shen has a great responsive portfolio site with responsive content and menus. The latter on small screens is transformed into an icon already familiar to everyone, which shows / hides menu items. The site is simple and looks great on any monitor.

Comparing the previous project with the site of another designer Dennis Field, you will find a lot of similarities. The content here is divided into horizontal blocks that are based on the width of the browser. When scrolling down, the main menu is replaced by another fixed menu and moves with scrolling. However, on smaller screens, the menu is removed altogether, and site navigation does not suffer from this.

There are also several other responsive design solutions that you will want to add to your site. For example, images that change size when the screen is smaller, as well as “foldable” galleries for photos. Think about the size of the screen, when you need to perform certain actions, as well as the size of the font.

Animation and effects

Effects can add some charm and attention to your one-page page, but only if done correctly. There is a certain limit, after which obtrusive and cumbersome animation will only annoy users. It is important to maintain a balance and not overdo it with this decision.

Keele Design Studio has a lot of animation details on its website. In principle, their permissible number for a particular user is a subjective value. Someone they mostly attract, others, on the contrary, annoy in any case. Anyway, the site has interesting details (logo effect and menu underlining, etc.).

Instead of animating the interface, you can try adding effects to images and content on the page. On the Karol Krakowiak website, this technique is used with elements / works in the portfolio. If you can implement these things in jQuery then they will work equally well on regular computers and mobile devices.

Hidden / Shown Navigation

The navigation topic for one page sites can be a little confusing for a novice developer / designer. Since there are no other (or very few) pages in the project besides the main one, as a rule, navigation is responsible for scrolling. When clicking on any of the menu items, the user simply moves to the desired information block.

So why hide the navigation? Clint Forrester s sample site demonstrates this perfectly. You can save a lot of screen space by removing the menu. This is especially true for mobile devices. Users will be able to get (scroll) to the places of the site they need, the menu for one-page pages is not as important as in ordinary sites.

If you don t want to use a large menu, you can check out designer James McGill s portfolio site. The menu icon is always available to users and it opens a much smaller menu than in the previous version. As I said above, given that all content is accessible from the page, the meaning of this navigation element is not that important. However, you can add links to other useful sites to this menu if required.

Pure minimalism

The simplest and most popular technique for creating a user-friendly one-page portfolio site is to use a minimalist style. This does not mean at all that you should only use white background or contrasting colors. Just think about the main aspects of your page initially by creating a wireframe, and then add some additional elements (text effects, icons, images, etc.)

Portfolio site Alicia Harris uses minimalist techniques brilliantly. It has many different colors and beautiful navigation icons in the upper right corner. In addition, there is enough free space and all the necessary information is easy to read. The only thing that I could have done so it applied was the first technique from this article – a fixed scrolling area because I personally did not like the transitions between blocks very much.

Designer Gabe Abadilla has a much more detailed portfolio. It uses a fixed header with logo and menus, and lots of illustrations on the page. However, at the same time, portfolios are not guided by the simplicity and presentation of the designer s work. Ultimately, it is the work that should be of interest to the potential customer. The rest of the information about you is also important, but not primary.

All in all, these are some basic tips for building a one-page portfolio site. Your task is to show your best side, highlighting your high skills as a developer and / or designer. Try not to overload text content, strive for minimalism and be sure (!) Remember about adaptive layout. If you have anything to add, write in the comments. You can also share your one-page portfolio sites there.