portraits of amanda gustin with a black blazer and white shirt with a white background

I’m the designer you hire when the stakes are real and you can't afford to get it wrong.

I have spent the last six years working at the intersection of design and operations. That means I think about how products function in real environments, with real constraints and real people using them, not just how they look on screen.

My background in education and international operations gives me a user lens that most designers do not have. I design for the full range of how people actually think, learn and work, not the idealized version.

I work best when the brief is hard and the deadline is real. I bring structure to ambiguous situations, communicate without noise, and make decisions that reduce internal friction rather than add to it. I do not wait to be told what the problem is. I find it, frame it, and move.

How I work

Structured from the start

Before anything gets designed, the problem gets defined. Users, constraints, and success criteria are established early so that every decision that follows has a clear rationale and rework stays off the table.

Decisive, not reactive

I make informed decisions and move forward. Each step has a purpose. I do not rely on endless exploration or subjective iteration to find direction, because direction should be established before the design work begins.

Built to ship

Design does not stop at Figma. I can also build in Webflow, ensuring what was designed is implemented accurately, responsively, and ready to go live without a handoff gap.

Skills & Tools

UX & RESEARCH

UX & Research

Journey Mapping

Heuristic Evaluation

User Testing

Accessibility (WCAG 2.1)

PRODUCT & DESIGN

Information Architecture

Journey Mapping

Interaction Design

Prototyping

Design Systems

VISUAL & BRAND

Brand Identity

High-Fidelity UI

Visual Systems

Responsive Design

BUILD & WORKFLOW

Figma (Advanced)

Webflow (Advanced)

Maze

Miro

Notion

AI-assisted workflows

Design and build — without the gap

I don't stop at design. I build production-ready websites in Webflow that are fully responsive, SEO-configured, and handed off with a walkthrough so clients can manage their content independently from day one.

01

DEFINE

Problem

Users

Criteria

02

DESIGN

Structure

Hierarchy

Logic

03

BUILD

Webflow

Direct

No gaps

04

CONFIGURE

SEO

CMS

Domains

05

HANDOFF

Walkthrough

Teaching

Independence

Experience

Product and UX Designer

2025 to Present, Freelance and Independent

Designing and building end-to-end digital products for real clients and self-directed work, including brand identity systems, multi-role dashboards, mobile apps, and marketing websites delivered through production-ready Webflow builds

Head of Design and Operations

2019 to 2025, Hoi An International School, Vietnam

Led a full redesign of the school's digital ecosystem over six years, designing for four distinct user groups simultaneously. Drove a 105% increase in enrollment through coordinated design and communication strategy, connecting design decisions directly to measurable outcomes.

Curriculum Designer and Instructor

2018 to 2019, Sogang University, South Korea

Designed structured curriculum frameworks and learning systems applying instructional design principles. Built performance programs that produced national competition winners.

Programs and Operations Manager

2014 to 2018, Virginia Commonwealth University, USA

Designed and managed community program structures, wellness initiatives, and large-scale facility operations. Supervised 60 or more staff across scheduling, training, and service delivery.

If the work needs to be clear, and it needs to ship, I can help.