skeuomorphic
Digital imitates physical
Skeuomorphic describes design elements that mimic the appearance of their real-world counterparts even when the imitation serves no functional purpose.
A digital calendar app with leather-texture borders and spiral binding evokes a physical planner; a smartphone's camera shutter sound imitates film cameras.
The approach trades on familiarity but can feel dated as users grow accustomed to purely digital interfaces.
Comparable equivalent
- knobsGraspable protrusions for turning
- dialsCircular indicator faces
- leatherTanned animal skin
- stitchingJoining with needle, thread
woodgrain · texture · buttons · switches · sliders · tactile · shadows · glass
Quality from past eras
- retroEvoking recent past
- analogComparable equivalent
- throwbackReturn to ancestral type
- old-fashionedBelonging to earlier times
bygone · classic · sentimental · reminiscence · memories · sepia · antique · heritage
analog
Comparable equivalent
stitching · woodgrain · texture · buttons · switches · sliders · tactile · shadows · glass · chrome
vintage
Quality from past eras
old-fashioned · bygone · classic · sentimental · reminiscence · memories · sepia · antique · heritage · timeless
icons
Representative small images
- foldersPaper organizers with pockets
- desktopPrimary computer interface
- notepadBound sheets for writing
calculator · calendar · envelope · clipboard · rolodex · shutter · toggle · cassette · turntable
skeuomorphicflat design
Shadowless digital aesthetic
flat · minimalist · abstract · non-representational · Swiss design
skeuomorphicminimalist
One favoring bare essentials
austere · unadorned · stripped-down · sparse · reductive
skeuomorphicfuturistic
Suggestive of times ahead
modernist · contemporary · forward-looking · progressive · avant-garde