I’m Gemma, a uX designer based in Belfast studying Interaction Design at Ulster University. looking forward to starting in the world of work at instil in september 2023. My passion is user focussed design, no matter the purpose I love creating products that leave a positive impact on someone's day.
when not sat sketching or on figma, I can be found on a hockey pitch. Trying to stop a small white ball from going into a big net, or coaching other people how to do the same.
Wherever I am, I guarantee there is music playing and my laptop isn’t far away.
Every design process starts with research. On various platforms, researching for content, design styles, making moodboards and writing blog posts. This process is key to getting a visual understanding of what I want the design solution to look like.
After research and ensuring that I have a visual understanding of the solution, I move on to the sketching stage. This involves getting some sketches down on paper following a simple line drawing style with minimal colour. These sketches allow the first steps in the design and style of the product to be established.
Once rough ideas are down on paper, I begin to develop these ideas. This includes deciding on branding if it is required, colours for the product and developing my paper sketches to be paper prototypes, establishing the flow of how the product will work.
If I am happy with the outcomes on paper, then I move on to work digitally. I bring what I have learnt in previous stages through, to work in Figma or Illustrator depending on the project. This can also then be prototyped using Invision or Figma to ensure the flow through the product matches the standard of the design.
The final stage of product creation includes making small refinements and ensure the product is exactly as I imagine. This often can involve user testing to ensure it fulfils the initial brief and if I am not happy with the outcome, I can return to any of the previous stages.
Interaction Design BDes
2019 - Present
Completed sECOND YEAR WITH A FIRST COVERING MODULES ACROSS UX AND WEBSITE DESIGN.
COMPLETED PLACEMENT YEAR WITH A DISTINCTION AT GLOBAL PAYMENTS INTEGRATED, AS A JUNIOR UX DESIGNER.
CURRENTLY IN FINAL YEAR COMPLETING MY DISSERTATION AND MAJOR PROJECT WITH A FOCUS ON DESIGNING FOR ACCESSIBILITY.
Foundation in Art and Design
2018 - 2019
Developing skills across all art disciplines including Graphic Design and Interaction Design.
GCSE and AS/A Level Studies
2011 - 2018
A Level :
Art and Design - B
Digital Technology - B
Geography - B
AS Level :
Photography - A
Biology - C
GCSE : 3A*, 3A, 1B, 3C