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Level Up Your Design Game & Capture Inspiration: Build a Swipe File to Sharpen Your Eye ✨
An essential method to train your design eye, stay inspired, and organize ideas for your next project
Florian Bölter
January 15, 2025
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Hey and welcome back to a new week! 👋
Just two things before we go into this weeks issue:
First I’d like to remind you that I launched the premium subscription for this newsletter last week which gives you the ability to support Open Doors, get access to an exclusive Q&A section and permanent 30% off on my services. All for $7/month. Join the first people who already subscribed and get going!
And finally you have the chance to catch me live on Wednesday the 22nd 4:30pm CET (10:30am EST / 8:30am PST). I’ll go live on LinkedIn together with Chris Nguyen and talk about “How To Break Into Design in 2025” covering a lot of topics and giving room for questions as well. Make sure to sign up!
In this issue:
One of my Favorite Tools: Keep a swipe file to capture inspiration and develop an eye for good design + grab my convenient template!
Level Your Design Game Up: Get Chris’ vetted UX playbooks
Rhea’s Portfolio: Breaking down complex problems into great case studies like a pro
Today’s Question: How Can I Make My Portfolio Visually Stand Out?
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Level Up Your Design Game & Capture Inspiration: Build a Swipe File to Sharpen Your Eye ✨
Last week, I talked about one of the best strategies for early-career designers in 2025: honing your visual skills. Today, I want to dive deeper and show you a method that helped me build taste, train my design eye, and organize inspiration simultaneously.
This might resonate with you if you've ever struggled to find the right inspiration when working on a project—I’ve certainly been there. The method is simple yet powerful: a swipe file.
I first came across this concept through Michael Riddering and later discovered that many great designers I admire use it too. It’s been instrumental in shaping my design taste and helping me stay organized. Let’s break it down.
What Is a Swipe File?
A swipe file, sometimes known as a lookbook, inspiration bucket, or simply a collection, is a curated personal database where you gather actionable design inspiration. Unlike a moodboard, which is project-specific and often includes colors, photography, or abstract elements, a swipe file focuses on tangible design elements—UI patterns, industrial design pieces, or even specific interaction details.
What Sets a Swipe File Apart?
It’s Personal: While you can use external inspiration sites, the key value of a swipe file is that it’s curated by you, for you. Over time, it becomes a unique repository reflecting your evolving design taste.
It’s Granular: A good swipe file allows you to find specific inspiration quickly. For example, if you’re working on a dark-mode dashboard or a feature section, you can filter your swipe file and find exactly what you need.
It’s Living: A swipe file is never “finished.” You regularly add, update, and even delete entries to keep it relevant and valuable.
It’s Well-Organized: The key to an effective swipe file is tagging and categorization, which makes it easy to filter and find inspiration without endless scrolling.
So, in short: a swipe file is a living, personal, highly organized database that helps you build taste and quickly access inspiration for any design scenario.
How to Set Up a Swipe File
The good news? I’ve already created a Notion template to kickstart your swipe file, complete with example entries, predefined tags, and a guide. You can simply duplicate it and start collecting straight away. You can find the link further down.
But if you want to build your own from scratch, here’s how to do it:
Essential Features of a Swipe File
A swipe file should:
Enable quick filing & tagging: You want to be able to add new entries effortlessly.
Display visuals clearly: We’re not just collecting links; we’re curating visual inspiration.
Allow for filtering: You should be able to quickly find inspiration for specific elements or patterns.
If you prefer using another platform, ensure it supports these core features.
Step 1: Define Your Tags
Tags are the backbone of your swipe file. They allow you to categorize inspiration broadly but also filter granularly when needed. My tags include categories like:
UI Elements: Buttons, Typography, Forms
Patterns: Onboarding, Dark Mode, Social Proof
Industries: SaaS, eCommerce, FinTech
Disciplines: Visual Design, Interaction Design, Motion Design
Whenever you add something new, tag it appropriately. If you don’t find a matching tag, create a new one—but avoid overly specific tags like product names or brands.
Step 2: Add Supporting Properties
In addition to tags, I recommend adding the following properties:
Description: Write a brief note on why you saved this piece and what you like about it. This not only helps with context later but also trains your eye as you reflect on what makes a design stand out.
Link: Save the original source link, but be aware that links may expire—this is a backup, not a primary reference.
‘Used’ Checkbox: Optionally, you can add a checkbox to track whether you’ve already used the inspiration in a project. This helps avoid over-repetition and gives insight into what types of inspiration you tend to use most.
How to Use Your Swipe File
Capturing Inspiration
Whenever you come across something inspiring—whether it’s a sleek UI, a well-crafted interaction, or a clever design pattern—capture it. Here’s how:
Take a Screenshot: If it’s static, a screenshot works best.
Record a Short Clip: For interactions or motion design, record a short video. I use Chrome Capture for this. Loom or other similar tools also work well.
Save the Link: Use Notion’s web clipper or copy the URL manually.
Create a New Entry: Add the image or video, give it a clear title, apply relevant tags, and write a short description.
Using Inspiration
When working on a project, your swipe file becomes invaluable. You can:
Swipe through entries: Sometimes, simply scrolling through can spark ideas.
Filter by tags: If you’re looking for something specific—like a dark-mode UI—apply relevant filters.
Create custom views: In Notion, you can define views with pre-applied filters, making it easy to access frequently used categories like “Landing Pages” or “Mobile Patterns” or to define more specific filters for tag combinations like “Dark Mode Landing Pages”.
Where to Find Inspiration
Your swipe file is personal, but inspiration can come from anywhere. Here are some great sources to get you started with your first entries:
Inspiration Sites: Mobbin, Seesaw, Design Spells
Social Media: Follow relevant hashtags on Threads, Bluesky, or Twitter/X.
Organic Discovery: Don’t underestimate the value of random inspiration you come across while browsing or working. Make it part of your routine to file inspiration in your swipe file as you discover it.
Get My Swipe File Template
Ready to start your swipe file? Grab my free Notion template with
Predefined tags
(Real) example entries
A guide on how to use the template
Simply access it and make sure to hit ‘Duplicate’ on the top right to get started
Summary
A swipe file is a powerful tool for any designer looking to hone their visual skills, build taste, and organize inspiration. By setting up a well-organized, living repository of design inspiration, you’ll not only find the right ideas faster but also train your design eye over time. Whether you use my template or build your own, the key is consistency—keep capturing, curating, and learning.
💼 More Jobs
⁉️ Q&A
Today’s Question: How Can I Make My Portfolio Visually Stand Out?
👀 Portfolio Showcase
Today: Rhea Chandy
Today’s showcase features Rhea’s amazing portfolio. Based in San Francisco Rhea already has some experience in the industry and worked as a UX Designer before going back to university for her Interaction Design M.Des degree. Her capstone project there was with CNN and is especially impressive in my opinion.
What I love best about Rhea’s portfolio is her skillful approach to making complex and data-heavy topics engaging and approachable. Let’s dive a bit deeper into that.
The Good:
Making Complex Topics Engaging: This is what impressed me most about Rhea’s portfolio, though there’s plenty more to admire. Tackling a complex topic like a ROS data analyzer for robotic systems and turning it into an engaging, easy-to-understand case study is remarkable. Rhea breaks down the problem space with a brief, clear description that anyone can grasp—no engineering degree required. Throughout the case study, she uses visuals and even hand-drawn animations to simplify complex concepts and communicate effectively. I’ve read many case studies on intricate products and enterprise software, but rarely have I felt so well-informed. I also want to highlight that her RoadRunner design system case study excels in these same areas.
Powerful Intro: You know I love a strong intro, and Rhea nailed it. It’s brief, includes the essentials, and—what makes it stand out—links directly to relevant case studies that back up her key skills. This simple yet smart tactic adds credibility while also subtly enhancing the visual appeal of her intro through the use of her accent color on the links. Take note and copy this move!
It wouldn’t be a portfolio showcase if I couldn’t contribute one or two things to improve and address.
The Potential:
Highlight Results & Impact: A key element I look for in portfolios is results and impact—what did your work achieve? With Rhea’s case studies, I sensed impact but couldn’t immediately find it. I checked the case study previews on the homepage—no sign. I opened the first case study—still no mention in the navigation or main sections. Just as I was ready to give up, I spotted it at the top: “73% improvement in WCAG AA Compliance”. There it was, buried. Long story short: don’t hide your achievements. Even if they aren’t traditional business metrics, quantifiable results matter. Showcase them in the case study preview, highlight them at the start, and emphasize them at the end. Tie it together well, but don’t be shy about your wins.
Navigation Hides Interesting Things: I nearly missed Rhea’s great About page simply because it was tucked away behind a burger menu. While this isn’t uncommon, on desktop, it feels less standard these days—especially since the menu sits next to the dark mode toggle, making it look like a settings option. As a result, I almost overlooked fascinating sections like her journal and About page, both rich with personality. I even found a dead link labeled Fun. My suggestion: use a standard navigation bar on desktop and reserve the burger menu for smaller screens. This way, key sections won’t be missed.
Overall Rhea’s portfolio is an excellent example when it comes to visualizing complex matters, great storytelling and overall good design work that I recommend everyone take a look at. Also make sure to consider copying her intro section as I really think this is a super smart one!
That’s it for this week—thanks so much for the support! ♥️
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Keep kicking doors open and see you next week!
- Florian