I’ve always loved making things. When deciding what to major in, I thought “what’s more at the heart of a physical thing than the material it’s made of?” So, I got a degree in Materials Science and Engineering.
I liked the research, the problem solving of the lab, and the possibilities that materials presented, but not so much the actual learning of it. Too late in the game, I realized that I was actually more interested in the things the materials were used to make than the materials themselves.
When I joined Philadelphia Gear, I got more than I bargained for and, in retrospect, I got exactly what I needed. I took the opportunity to learn all I could about quality, lean, 3D drafting and the logic needed to make product selections.
I found things I loved:
An idea started to take shape. What if the things I was learning in quality could be applied to products and the processes of using them? What if the same observation, analysis and logic skills that I had built over the years could be applied to users and their products.
What if I could help solve the many work-arounds that we all devise, sometimes without even realizing, for our digital and physical products?
Turns out, there’s already entire fields of study to those exact concepts.
At the same time, I started taking an interest in human health and psychology. I started reading about the brain, body language and nonverbal communication, and the influence of nutrition and environment on our wellbeing. I keep thinking about how important it could be to implement some of these research findings about how humans are wired. How much more intuitive and healthier could our technology get?
So, I decided to make a leap, and transfer my thinking from gearboxes and shop processes to the user experience of a more diverse set of users and products.
There’s a wealth of knowledge and experience around building usable things and processes. There’s also still so much relatively untapped information about humans and our inner workings. I’m here to soak up whatever I can.
Oh, and I’d like to make those usable things beautiful too. Because if you’re going to put that much effort into something, why on earth would you make it ugly?
Unless of course, the user is looking for an unattractive or disorienting experience, and then I’m ready to start researching that, too.
Apr 2020-Current
Freelance Product Designer
Working with client to determine the audience and purpose of the product and using those decisions to guide the content voice and curation. Designing, prototyping and building a responsive website. Creating user experience, interface, imagery and illustrations to fit the website content and concept.
Jan 2020-Mar 2020
Freelance Product Designer
Researched, designed, prototyped and built a responsive website end-to-end. Distilled the client needs, ideas and goals into a cohesive product. Created all branding, illustration and an online education program.
Sept 2012-Nov 2019
Senior Metallurgist
Product development
Led root cause analysis
Contributed to a small team focused on internal lean projects
Apr 2019-Jan 2020
Certificate in User Experience Design
Certificate in Front End Development for Designers
Intensive project-based training program with a focus on user experience design, user interface design and frontend skills for designers.
Sept 2008-May 2012
Bachelor of Science in Materials Science and Engineering
working knowledge of
Below, you will find my resume and how I got into UX.
But if you want to know about me for real, here's probably where you'd look .
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