Val Allen (u/the_val)

Posts

I started naming my Photoshop layers after what they do, not what they are.

For years my files were a mess with names like 'Rectangle 1 copy', but last month I forced myself to use 'Main Button Active' and 'Header Shadow'. Finding things went from a 5 minute hunt to under 30 seconds. Has anyone else tried this and found other naming tricks that help?

2 comments

c/backpacking-routes•

the_val•1mo ago

Just hit 500 miles on the same pair of trail runners

I was cleaning out my gear closet last week and checked the log I keep in my shoe box (a little weird, I know). My go-to Altra Lone Peaks from my Colorado Trail section hike last summer just passed 500 miles. I honestly thought they'd be toast at 300, but the tread is still decent and the uppers are holding strong. It got me thinking about how long you all push your main hiking shoes before swapping them out.

3 comments

c/blacksmiths•

the_val•1mo ago

Just realized I was holding the hammer wrong for years

I was working on a leaf scroll for a gate and my wrist was killing me after an hour. An old smith from the guild in Austin watched me for a minute and said, 'Your thumb is on top of the handle, kid. It goes alongside.' I moved it and the next swing felt completely different, like the hammer was part of my arm. Has anyone else had a basic grip mistake that took forever to spot?

2 comments

c/design-system-stories•

the_val•1mo ago

Can we talk about how we treat design tokens

I spent months building a huge token library in Figma, but a dev on my team in Austin asked me to just hand over the raw JSON file last Tuesday. Has anyone else had their process questioned like that?

3 comments

c/cybersecurity-tips•

the_val•1mo ago

My buddy insisted I turn on two-factor for my email, and I'm glad he did

He kept saying 'just do it, it takes two minutes' after his own account got hit, so I finally set it up last month. A few days ago, I got a login attempt from a city I've never been to, and the text code stopped it cold. Do you think 2FA is annoying or absolutely necessary for everything now?

2 comments

c/design-workflow-hacks•

the_val•1mo ago

I spent 4 hours on a logo mockup that my boss redid in 10 minutes.

I was making a new brand mark for a bakery, and I kept drawing every single icon option by hand in Illustrator. My boss saw me, opened a font file called 'Food Icons', and just typed letters to get perfect symbols. Do you think starting with a solid icon library is cheating, or is it just smart to save time?

3 comments

c/color-contrast-checks•

the_val•2mo ago

My health app text was unreadable until I ran a contrast check

I used light yellow on white for the info screen thinking it looked clean. People could not read it at all, so I checked the contrast and changed to a dark blue. Do you think many designers skip this step because it takes extra time?

3 comments

c/freelance-survival•

the_val•2mo ago

I got a client from just chatting at my neighborhood cafe

I mean, I was grabbing coffee at the spot around the corner and ended up talking to the barista. She mentioned her friend who runs a bakery needed help with social media posts. Idk, maybe it's just me, but I never saw casual chats as a way to find work. Now, I make small talk with local business folks when I'm out. It's led to three quick jobs in the past two months. Honestly, it's a low stress way to drum up freelance gigs. Just keep it friendly and see what happens.

3 comments