Skills | Projects | Education | Experience | Interests
I am a full stack junior developer and new graduate of Makers Academy, a highly selective web development bootcamp. During my time here I have been trained in Object Oriented Design principles, Agile methodologies, pair programming and peer-reviewing. I have been instilled with a passion for writing clean, extendable, well-tested code.
Prior to this I worked as a designer in the fashion industry, and have worked with both small studios and large retailers. I found myself seeking a change in direction, and found that coding reignited my love of learning, creativity, and designing well crafted solutions to problems.
I'm currently seeking my first role as a junior developer, and I'm looking forward to joining a team where I can get stuck in, and have the opportunity and support to continue this fast pace of learning.
Working as a designer for the last 6 years gave me the the chance to utilise my creative skills on a daily basis. In my last role I spent a great deal of time working directly with clients, being briefed on their needs and carrying out design work in response to this. I recognize that creativity is often a collaborative process and have relished the opportunity to work closely with clients and other members of my team. I feel strongly that creativity is also an important aspect of coding - I love the thrill of creating something from nothing and the challenge of designing a well thought out solution that adheres to the best practices that I have learnt. I have a good eye for aesthetics and have had a lot of fun bringing this into my project work at Makers Academy.
My design training has been a valuable asset that I've been able to apply to my coding projects. A good example of this would be in my final project, where my teammates were impressed with my attention to detail, focus and enthusiasm for adding small features that greatly improved the overall design of our app and the experience of the user. I'm good at keeping the user and their needs in mind when creating new things, and I feel excited when faced with the different challenges that each new project brings.
The time I spent at my last job helped me to gain excellent communication skills. A big part of my job was liaising between clients, manufacturers and members of my own company, many of whom did not have the same technical background as me. These skills have developed further still during my time at Makers Academy as such emphasis is placed upon pairing and teamwork. I really enjoy working with others, both in pairing situations and in groups that I have been a part of.
I have a lot of experience with working to tight (and frequent!) deadlines, and carrying out important tasks at short notice. Often I would be managing workloads assigned to me by various different departments, so organisation and time management were crucial. I work well under pressure and am able to prioritise my workload to ensure I am able to deliver the best possible product within the given timeframe.
Originally from a non-technical background I have been amazed by what I have been able to learn just 12 weeks, and I'm excited about challenging myself further and continuing to refine and add to my skills. A recent project I'm really proud of was Standups and Retros, a web app aimed at remote teams to help them maintain an Agile workflow. This was a group project built over ten days using the MERN stack plus websockets, despite all four of us having no prior experience of these technologies. Check out my Github profile to see how far I've come, or see below for a sample of my projects.
I have enjoyed using Ruby (with Rails, Sinatra and PostgreSQL databases) and JavaScript (with Node.js, Express.js and React.js) along with HTML and CSS to build clean and well-tested full-stack web apps. I'm a big fan of test driven development and have been using RSpec, Capybara, Jasmine and Mocha. I'm also highly capable with Adobe Suite software, especially Photoshop having used it throughout my professional life. See below for a few of my favourite projects, most recent at the top.
| Project | Description | Technologies |
|---|---|---|
| Standups & Retros | A tool for remote developer teams. Allows groups to have a standup or retro on a collaborative whiteboard in real time | MongoDB, Express, React.js, Node.js, Websockets, Mocha, Enzyme |
| InstaCat | A Makers Academy weekend project. Build a simple Instagram clone | Ruby, Rails, Postgres with ActiveRecord, OAuth, Devise, RSpec, Capybara |
| Chitter | A Makers Academy weekend project. Build a simple Twitter clone | Ruby, Sinatra, Postgres with DataMapper, RSpec, Capybara |
| Rock Paper Scissors | Another Makers Academy weekend project. Play a game of Rock Paper Scissors against your computer | Ruby, Sinatra, RSpec, Capybara |
- Curiosity and hungry passion for code
- Independent learner and problem-solver
- OOP, TDD, SOLID, MVC, DDD
- Software Craftsmanship
- Ruby, Rails, Javascript, Node.js
- Rspec, Jasmine, Mocha
- Textile Design for Fashion and Interiors, specialising in print, First
Misfit Fashions (May 2014 to October 2016)
Print Designer
Bay and Brown (July 2010 to May 2014)
Print Designer
In my spare time I like to unwind with yoga and running, and also enjoy creative pursuits such as photography, exhibitions and film. Recently I have really enjoyed going to tech meetups; I find them a fun way to learn more and get involved with and inspired by my new industry.