Design’s Liquid Memory: Drops from Apple’s Liquid Glass

Design Moves in Cycles: Why “Too Early” Isn’t the Same as “Wrong”

Looking at the Liquid Glass UI updates currently available in its beta stage, and recent discussions on social media concerning it got me thinking about how design trends actually work: design doesn’t just progress—it cycles. What feels cutting-edge today can seem outdated tomorrow, and what was dismissed as over-the-top years ago might suddenly feel visionary.

Take Microsoft’s Aero interface from the Windows Vista era. At the time, the glassy transparency felt futuristic and immersive. Fast-forward a few years, and it became shorthand for bloat and bad taste. But now, Apple is reintroducing similar ideas with Liquid Glass; and this time, it got the general public divided - some say it looks sleek and forward-thinking, others think its backward and poorly implemented.

UX as Fashion and Language

Design trends tend to shift like fashion. We move from textured realism to stark minimalism, from shadows and gloss to flat colors and grids—and now, back toward softness, personality, and depth.

Apple’s early iPhone UI was full of skeuomorphism—leather-bound calendars, metallic sliders, detailed shadows. It helped users understand unfamiliar digital metaphors. But as people became fluent in mobile interfaces, that realism became unnecessary. Flat design swept in, demanding clarity and simplicity.

Now? We’re seeing a return of visual flair: soft gradients, dynamic layers, animated textures. Not quite skeuomorphic, but not entirely flat either. The pendulum is swinging back, but with more nuance this time.

“UX is like a fashion, and just like that, it’s a language you can learn.”
Fs0i (Reddit user)

That idea resonated with me on different levels. We develop fluency in design languages just like spoken ones. A visual style that once needed explanation becomes intuitive through repetition and exposure. Today’s “weird” is often just tomorrow’s “normal.”

Not Wrong—Just Too Early

The idea that a design isn’t necessarily incorrect - it might just be early is a fact I think most people will side with. Timing matters as much as execution. Some ideas fail not because they lack merit, but because the infrastructure, audience readiness, or cultural context hasn’t caught up yet.

• Aero, though beautiful, was too heavy for its time: the amount of hardware resource this OS demanded from users was outrageous, yet makes sense. Now, our devices are better suited to render these intensive visual effects.
• Google Glass was awkward in 2013. Now, we’re exploring spatial interfaces and heads-up displays with excitement.
• Neumorphism was briefly mocked—but refined variants of it are quietly shaping modern UI kits.

Design leaders often introduce concepts that feel alien at first, but gradually become convention. It takes courage to stick with a bold vision, especially when early reactions are mixed. But this is often how the next generation of design is born.

Execution Is Everything

There are countless ways to botch design and make it look gaudy, but Apple, as we know, usually finds the most elegant solution (except Siri and Apple Intelligence 😅).

Many companies copy visual trends without understanding the principles behind them. They replicate the surface, not the intent. That’s how we end up with flat designs that feel sterile to the application, or neumorphic buttons that fail accessibility tests.

It’s not just what you implement, but how well you do it—and why you’re doing it in the first place.

The Cycle Keeps Turning

Design is not a straight line toward some final form of perfection. It’s a cycle of exploration, rejection, refinement, and return. By recognizing these patterns, we can view trends more clearly—not as definitive steps forward, but as parts of a larger conversation.

Some styles fade because they’re gimmicks. Others reemerge stronger because they were simply ahead of their time.

So when you find yourself drawn to a bold or unconventional design idea, don’t immediately discard it just because it doesn’t “fit” current trends. Ask yourself:

• Is this idea wrong? Or just early?
• Is the problem in the concept, or in its execution?
• Could this become intuitive, once people are ready for it?

Sometimes, the best design decisions aren’t the ones that win immediate praise; they’re the ones that plant seeds for what comes next.

You might not have been wrong. You might just have been early.

And that distinction could be the difference between fading out and defining the future.

Thanks for reading!