Pixelhaze Academy's New Web Design 101 Guides Available for FREE!

From the desk of Elwyn Davies

Let me level with you: when I first dipped my toes into web design, I felt like I’d walked in halfway through a very technical play. Everyone around me seemed to speak in riddles, mentioning grid systems, UX heuristics, kerning, responsive breakpoints. Lovely. Now what?

Fast forward a couple of decades spent working with everyone from creative freelancers to cautious small business owners, and I’ve learned a simple truth: knowing your theory is one thing, but turning it into an actual, useable website is a completely different skill. Yet, too much of the advice out there either glazes over the essentials or throws you in at the deep end with no help in sight.

That's a big part of why we’ve launched our new, completely free Web Design 101 series at Pixelhaze Academy. These guides fill in the gaps left by overpriced bootcamps and scattered YouTube videos. You’ll learn step-by-step how to build a strong design foundation, with honest insights and the same practical advice I wish someone had given me at the start.

Why This Matters

Most people start building websites out of necessity. Maybe you’re trying to grow your side-hustle, freshen up the family business, or finally get your freelance portfolio looking presentable. What you quickly realise is that designing a website demands much more than picking a stock photo and a colour you vaguely like.

Bluntly, bad design costs time, customers, and cash. A confusing interface sends visitors packing. Unreadable fonts, muddled layouts, button colours that blend into the wallpaper—these issues all undermine your credibility. And if you’re charging for your services, a flat, uninspired website makes sales conversations much harder. Ask anyone who’s tried.

The most frustrating part is that the struggle usually comes from a handful of repeated issues: not knowing the fundamentals, skipping the planning phase, or imitating trends without understanding why they work.

Without a clear path to learn (or relearn) the essentials, you can waste days defining hex codes or wrestling widgets only to end up with something that still doesn’t ‘click’. That’s enough to make even the most patient person want to chuck their laptop out the window.

Common Pitfalls

After years of coaching designers at every level, I’ve spotted the same potholes on the road to web design confidence. Here are the most common ones:

1. Skipping the Basics:
   Jumping straight to fancy app features without grasping core design principles. “I’ll just figure it out as I go.” Spoiler: You might, but you’ll take the scenic (and bumpy) route.

2. Copying Without Context:
   Emulating trendy sites without knowing why those designs work leads to a mishmash of borrowed effects that rarely serve your audience.

3. Neglecting User Experience:
   Forgetting there’s a person on the other end. If your website looks good but baffles your visitors, it’s failed its one job.

4. Missing the Practice Piece:
   Reading guides, but never applying the knowledge. Web design is a hands-on skill. Passively watching someone use a tool is not the same as wrestling with it yourself.

5. Ignoring Feedback:
   Dismissing early feedback or never seeking it out. Sometimes it stings, but it’s the fastest way to level up.

Many can spot a beautiful website. Few can create one that’s both effective and appealing, especially under real-life constraints. Our aim is to help you gain both confidence and skill.

Step-by-Step Fix

This is the exact framework we use in our free Web Design 101 guides. Here’s how you can apply it to dramatically speed up your learning, and avoid months of trial and error.

Step 1: Nail Down the Fundamentals

Whether you’re starting from scratch or returning to web design after a break, you need to build a solid foundation.

Start by answering a few questions:

• Who is your site for?
• What do you want them to do?
• What, realistically, does your website need to achieve?

Once you’ve got those clear, dive into the “what” and the “why” of each core principle. This means:

• Colour theory: Understand how different palettes affect the feel and flow of your site.
• Typography: Learn how typefaces, hierarchy, and spacing guide the eye. Don’t just choose Arial because it looks ‘safe’.
• Page structure: Grids, margins, headers, and footers are invisible frameworks that make everything else work.

Step 2: Apply Your Knowledge Immediately

Theory is helpful, but even the best designer won’t refine a wireframe by reading alone.

Here’s the route we recommend:

• After each guide, commit to building a real example, however simple.
• Choose a single web page (yours, or someone else's as practice) and use your new knowledge in context. Rework the typography. Swap out colours. Tidy the hierarchy.

For instance, after our colour theory lesson, try adjusting the palette of your homepage to set a specific mood or highlight a call to action. When working with your own material, it becomes easier to see what works and what doesn't.

Step 3: Dig Deeper Into UX and UI

Once you’ve got the basics, it’s time to explore the subtleties that make a site feel right:

• UX (User Experience): The science of making sites that look good and also lead visitors easily from point A to point B. Consider navigation, button placement, and logical flow of information.
• UI (User Interface): The finishing touches and your visual language. Drop shadows, hover effects, icon choice, and those small interactions you only notice when they’re missing.

Start with small tweaks. Revisit sites you already know. Think about the features that make them satisfying to use or, conversely, frustrating.

Step 4: Work Through Real-World Projects

Web design in practice includes curveballs such as browser quirks, tricky clients, and shifting project requirements. Our Web Design 101 guides include practical activities and project suggestions. Make the most of them by following this approach:

• Choose a small project. It could be your friend’s bakery site, your old band’s homepage, or a charity’s event landing page.
• Apply the principles from each guide, one at a time.
  For example, after the white space lesson, review your chosen site for cramped sections and give them room to breathe.

Each guide provides prompts and checklists. Ask yourself, “Have I created a clear visual hierarchy?” or “Are my call-to-action buttons obvious, or are they easy to miss?” There will always be a next step to tackle.

Step 5: Embrace Iteration and Honest Feedback

Websites are never really complete. Each live version serves as a draft that can be improved. Spotting issues early and staying open to revisiting decisions helps you grow as a designer.

• After finishing a design, let it sit for a day. Revisit it with fresh eyes.
• Ask someone you trust (ideally not your mum) to click through and share notes about any tough spots.
• Compare what you intended with the actual user response.

Each module includes methods for gathering useful feedback. Treat input as a tool for refinement, not a final judgment.

Step 6: Connect With A Learning Community

Web design keeps changing. New patterns emerge, browser standards evolve, and what was cutting-edge last year might feel outdated now.

• Join forums, design communities, or the Pixelhaze Academy Discord.
• Share your work and challenges, and help others. Explaining basic ideas to someone else reinforces your own understanding.

What Most People Miss

The underlying reality: Web design combines technical skill and artistic sense, but at its heart, it is about empathy. The best designers are not defined by equipment or glitzy portfolios but by their effort to see the world through another person’s perspective.

Ask yourself where first-time visitors might get stuck. Consider what a business owner worries about when launching a site. Think about reasons a user might abandon a checkout halfway through.

Real progress in design comes from noticing where people struggle, not simply from tweaking the appearance. One of the hardest parts to master is remembering that design always serves people first—technical touches are secondary.

The Bigger Picture

When you learn the fundamentals and practice applying them, everything becomes more manageable. You spend less time troubleshooting and more time creating. Your revisions lead to real improvement, not just shifting problems around. The sites you build will perform better, users will spend more time on them, and—if you’re running a business—your sales may well increase, too.

The other advantage is credibility. Clients, colleagues, and your own inner critic will see the difference. If you can explain the “why” behind design decisions instead of pointing at trends, you’ll gain trust and respect in your field.

You’ll also avoid wasting thousands of hours on mistakes you could have skipped by starting with solid fundamentals.

Wrap-Up

To wrap up, the Web Design 101 series at Pixelhaze Academy exists to provide the foundation I wish I’d had starting out. Master the core skills, practise them in real situations, solve problems as part of a group, and see every mistake as useful experience.

Here’s what you get:

• Clear, straightforward lessons covering every essential, from colour and layouts to white space and accessible interfaces.
• Practical, hands-on projects for each topic.
• Examples—complete with pitfalls and mistakes—pulled from real websites.
• A supportive learning community, including designers, business owners, and many others.
• Free access. No hidden costs or upsells.

Want more guides and resources like this? Join Pixelhaze Academy for free at https://www.pixelhaze.academy/membership.

About the Author

Elwyn Davies is the founder of Pixelhaze Academy, a seasoned designer, small business owner, front-end developer, and project manager. He has been working with web tools since the early days and enjoys helping new creative professionals avoid common pitfalls. If he could do it all again, he’d have started teaching sooner—that’s his main focus now.

Related Resources from Pixelhaze

• Slow is Smooth, and Smooth is Fast: Why Rushing Doesn’t Cut It in Design
• Stepping into the World of Web Design
• Mastering White Space in Web Design: Why it matters
• Decoding Web Design: Unveiling the Web Design Jargon Buster

For more articles, tutorials, and tips from the design trenches, keep exploring the Pixelhaze Academy blog.

Key Takeaways

• Mastering design basics sets you up for success.
• Actively use your knowledge rather than just reading about it.
• Focus your design on your visitors, not just yourself.
• Receiving feedback helps you grow much faster than working alone.
• Access a wide variety of free resources at Pixelhaze and experience the difference.