Background

Overview

MakerSpace was a social network created by Maker Media, the company behind Make: Magazine and Maker Faire, to bring the Maker Movement online. Maker Media is a pioneering force in the Maker community, fostering creativity and innovation through its events and publications. At its peak, Maker Faire attracted over 1.5M attendees annually across events worldwide.

MakerSpace aimed to bring the collaborative spirit of Maker Faire online. I led UX design for a remote, cross-functional team with startup-like autonomy, rapidly prototyping and iterating to create a community-driven platform that fostered participation, knowledge sharing, and global connections, all within a tight timeline.

My role

• UX & Visual Design: I led all aspects of UX and visual design, from creating wireframes and high-fidelity comps to developing interactive prototypes. Pair design sessions with developers over video chat allowed us to iterate in real-time and ensure seamless implementation.
• Collaboration & Art Direction: I worked with cross-functional stakeholders on a range of tasks, including crafting the art direction for promotional materials and aligning design efforts with overall business goals.

Press

Engadget / TechCrunch / MakeZine / Fast Company

Building

Sprinting to Minimum Viable Product

At the outset of the project, our team was tasked with an ambitious goal: to launch a minimum viable product (MVP) at World Maker Faire New York within just 45 days. Rising to the challenge, we rapidly iterated and built the social platform from the ground up. At the Faire, we successfully onboarded our first 700 users on-site. The following are key design artifacts from that intense and rewarding first month.

Project Sharing Design Iterations

At the outset of the project, our team was tasked with an ambitious goal: to launch a minimum viable product (MVP) at World Maker Faire New York within just 45 days. Rising to the challenge, we rapidly iterated and built the social platform from the ground up. At the Faire, we successfully onboarded our first 700 users on-site. The following are key design artifacts from that intense and rewarding first month.

Community Feed Design

At the outset of the project, our team was tasked with an ambitious goal: to launch a minimum viable product (MVP) at World Maker Faire New York within just 45 days. Rising to the challenge, we rapidly iterated and built the social platform from the ground up. At the Faire, we successfully onboarded our first 700 users on-site. The following are key design artifacts from that intense and rewarding first month.