Vellum App for iOS
A few months ago we launched another app, but a long jump from a photo editor. This time I’m focused on fixing your ugly screens. We launched Vellum back in January, so this post is a bit overdue. Time for a backstory!
I've been enjoying making wallpapers for a few years now, and even teamed up with another wallpaper creator - Kyle Gray (@klikekyle). These wallpapers have been downloaded tens of thousands of times over that timeframe. You can still find the Completes Wallpapers here - http://www.merekdavis.com/wallpapers/. It's always been a goal of mine for a while to create a wallpaper app with features that I had hoped to see that have been lacking. Unfortunately, this idea has always played second fiddle.
While Wes Billman - @wesbillman and myself were working on implementing new features/optimizations for the Mextures App, I realized we could use some of those features to build a wallpaper app. It's refreshing to be able to create an app from testing certain backends/features. I enlisted the help of Brandon Charles - @heybrandon to help tighten up the UI and soon Vellum was born.
I wrangled up a team of artists and curators to find images that work well with mobile layouts. More often than not, a breathtaking image doesn't always work well with a portrait screen. I handled painstakingly going through and testing thousands of images to make sure they worked great on the iPhone. We included hundreds of images at launch ranging from landscapes to the abstract. I really think there's something for everyone.
FOCUS ON WHAT MATTERS
One important feature I wanted was a blur tool for the home screen wallpaper. Wallpaper images and patterns can be somewhat distracting on a home screen.
Impossible to Concentrate
We made sure to incorporate a customizable blur tool into Vellum to make gradient wallpapers from the included images. You can add a little amount of blur or go nuts and have a beautiful gradient of blurriness.
EVERYDAY I'M SHUFFLING
I really think that we have the most quality wallpapers, and will continue to provide unique looks every day. Vellum updates every day with a new Daily Wallpaper from a variety of different sources. For our premium users (for a low price of $1.99 in app purchase) they get access to the last 4 weeks of the daily wallpapers, as well as no ads.
NOT JUST FOR PHONES
I really like my devices to match as much as possible. With Vellum I created a simple tutorial on how to get these beautiful wallpapers on your Apple Watch: https://www.getvellum.com/walltut. Since the wallpapers are created specifically to handle white text that’s found on the phones lock screen, they look right at home on the Apple Watch.
I really hope you enjoy Vellum, and if you want to submit your work, we're always looking! There’s a submission form on the about page And before you ask, we are looking into bringing this to Android! (hit me up Android developers!)