Over the years, my portfolio has evolved just as much as I have as a designer. What began as an expressive, animation-heavy experiment slowly transformed into a refined, minimal, and purpose-driven showcase — a reflection of how I’ve grown to value clarity, intention, and restraint in design.
Project Type: Meta UX Role: UX & UI Designer, Webflow Developer Goal: To evolve my portfolio into a tool that communicates my work clearly and effectively to hiring managers and design peers.
The First Iteration — Entry into UX (2022)
My first UX portfolio was built during my early learning phase — expressive, animated, and heavily text-based. I tested it frequently with peers and mentors, iterating through nearly ten major updates before it helped me land my first UX role. While it showed personality, it lacked structure: there was no defined typography system, no consistent layout, and little visual hierarchy between projects. Each case study carried its own “vibe,” making the portfolio more experimental than cohesive.
This version was my first real experience in Webflow — I took a personality-first approach to compensate for my limited experience. It attracted attention and helped me land my first job through its uniqueness, but it definitely screamed “junior designer,” giving hiring managers a clear impression and expectation of the role I was looking for.
A unique vibe for each page
Each case study adopted the branding of its featured product, resulting in distinct, visually rich pages. It gave every project personality, but at the cost of overall cohesion — more creative playground than professional portfolio.
Animations I experimented heavily with Webflow’s animation tools — creating lively headers, scroll effects, and interactive transitions across pages. The motion gave the site energy and character, though in hindsight, it sometimes distracted more than it guided.
Reflection After getting little traction from job applications, I asked mentors and peers — including senior designers and hiring managers — for feedback. They praised the visuals but confirmed what I suspected: inconsistent formatting, unclear case studies, and weak cohesion. Despite that, my design solutions were well-received — enough to help me land my first role after a few resume tweaks. When I asked hiring managers directly, they admitted the portfolio didn’t win them over — the interviews did.
It wasn't the most refined portfolio, but it opened some doors. I took my first portfolio offline in 2022 after landing my role — it had fulfilled its purpose.
The Second Iteration — Pivot to Interdisciplinary design (2024)
In 2024, while continuing my full-time role as a UX Designer, I began taking on freelance projects and decided it was time to reposition my portfolio. I wanted a portfolio clients could share with their peers. It became a natural way to market my design services, so I set out to create a new, more interdisciplinary portfolio that moved beyond UX.
Cutting the fat
I shifted the aesthetic toward a cleaner, more minimal UI — simplifying typography, streamlining case study formats, and removing older work that no longer represented my standards.
Visually, I took inspiration from editorial layouts, design magazines and Dieter Rams.
Expanding the Practice The PLAY section originally showcased personal explorations and casual creative projects, but this iteration gives it new purpose. It now features real client work in visual design, branding, and art direction — a way to demonstrate my versatility and attract more projects in this space. It’s still PLAY, just with higher stakes.
The Third Iteration — Product (2025)
The third iteration represents a complete philosophical shift. I decided to strip the portfolio back to its essence — only showing what truly matters to my career direction. Focused the portfolio on clarity, context, and relevance. This version is clean, minimal, and honest. It’s less about showing everything I can do, and more about communicating who I am as a designer right now.
Cutting down to 10% fat
Key changes: • Removed the ‘Play’ section (graphic design, video, photography). Those were better suited for personal expression — not for hiring managers. • Merged the About section into the landing to simplify navigation. • Introduced an Index Page — a text-based list of all past works, including memorable “soft-removed” projects for mainly archival reasons.
It may have lost some personality, but it’s now more focused and purposeful — like designing a uniform for work. It brings clarity to my practice and makes it clear to others what I do: Product Design. Branding.
Narrowing down the case-studies I also narrowed my focus to Product Design and branding — a clearer reflection of my direction and the work I wanted to do at the time. This decision was in hopes of reducing friction for hiring managers.
Reflection & Review This iteration was shaped by feedback from hiring managers at larger tech companies. I optimised for speed, clarity, and restraint, and made several decisions based on what I thought would be most impressive.
While effective, it became clear that the portfolio no longer reflected how I actually think or work. It was made from caution rather than belief. That realisation led directly to the next stage, where I begin to bring myself back into the picture.
The Fourth Iteration — Human again (2026)
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Reflection Designing and refining this portfolio over the years has given me a clearer sense of who I am as a designer — what to show, what to hold back, and how to make it resonate. I’m only sharing a fraction of myself, but that fraction is intentional and authentic. The target audience (other designers) respond less to words about personality and more to a designer’s philosophy, sensibility, and approach.
