After a few months of solid consideration, I have decided to drop the freelancer label and as of today am donning my design and web studio hat under the name of Humaan.

This may come as a surprise, given my advocation of freelancing, however I felt it was the right thing to do to be able to move forward.

As some of you may be aware, I’ve been freelancing in collaboration with my partner, Karen, for some time now and she will also be joining me as a director of the business.

So what’s going to change? Nothing really (apart from the name – I’ll get to that in a minute). I still believe in the values I held as a freelancer and they will be an integral part of the way we operate our new business. Apart from providing great service, exceptional design and building incredible websites, we’ll have a greater capacity to get things done.

And the name? Ultimately we wanted our business name and brand to reflect our values – We’re creative, we do things a bit differently and we pride ourselves in exploring designs and building websites for humans. As strange as it seems, to us Humaan was an obvious, memorable choice.

As for freelancing – in all honesty, I still believe that it is a great career path and that all of the points raised in this article are valid. I have been and will continue to recommend freelancers for jobs that I think are suitable.

For me and my situation, moving on from freelancing has become gradually more inevitable – and I’m looking forward to the next step.

Launchlist is a collaborative project between myself and a friend, Lee Karolczak. After using traditional methods of conducting website pre-launch testing for far too long, we realised the web would be a great way to do it better. The initial version features a standard set of checklist items that users can go through and mark as yes, no or N/A and also add some of their own custom questions to the list. The upcoming Pro version will incorporate functionality for saving and creating user’s own checklists, among a number of other features.

Responsibilities

I am responsible for the design, UI and design implementation of the project, and work closely with Lee on the interaction and front end functionality.

Other Info

The initial phase of the project was completed in less that 2 weeks from conception to production. We’re working hard on the Pro version which we hope to release very soon.

The purpose of this project was to completely overhaul the previous Clover Cottage website, refreshing the design, incorporating a CMS, booking engine and other features. Working closely with the client I developed a completely new design based on the nature and atmosphere of the property and incorporated this into a much more flexible and approachable website.

Skills involved

I was responsible for the entire project, from the initial design phase, through to the integration, development and production.

Other Info

With the help of a friend, Lee Karolczak, we created a Wordpress plug-in specifically for the Attractions page which allows the client to add their own attractions to the map and the page.

Propellr is an ongoing side-project that I am working on with local Perth developer Matthew Farrell. The purpose of this project is to make it easier for web designers and developers to create and deliver proposals to their clients. We feel the web has an advantage over traditional word processing software and will make it a lot easier, faster, and intuitive to send proposals to clients from anywhere in the world.

Responsibilities

I am solely responsible for the design and implementation as well as working with Matthew for the front-end development and project management.

Other Info

This project is still in development, we’re hoping to release it very soon. You can sign up to receive updates at the project’s website – propellrapp.com

The purpose of this project was to develop a new identity for the recently established business ‘Branch Creative’. The client wanted the logo to be fresh, vibrant and creative and incorporate meaning from the name of the business.

Skills involved

I worked with the client to develop the full identity, from initial sketches to the final chosen design. I also designed a set of business cards and letterheads to go along with the new identity.

Other Info

My partner, Karen, designed and developed the Branch creative website which you can find at www.branchcreative.com.au

This purpose of this project was to promote, provide information and allow people to purchase tickets for the 100 Things Online Conference. This one page website was another project completed for Carsonified and needed to fit in with the existing Think Vitamin Brand, but also stand out on its own.

Skills involved

I was responsible for the complete design and HTML/CSS/jQuery implementation of the website.

Other Info

This was another project completed for Carsonified, started and completed within a week.

This purpose of this project was to develop a blog/website for the client’s new internal motivational program. The website had to fit alongside the newly created identity and help promote a feeling of confidence and motivation in the workplace.

Skills involved

I was responsible for the design of the website.

Other Info

This project was completed in conjunction with Wordplay Media.

The purpose of this project was to develop an identity which helped promote the client’s new internal motivational program ‘Thank F it’s Monday’. The logo needed to be quirky, fresh and promote a feeling of confidence and motivation in the workplace.

Skills involved

I was responsible for developing the complete identity, from initial sketches and concepts to the final design.

Other Info

I also developed the website design for this project, which you can find here.

For this project, I needed to develop a completely new identity for the recently established ‘Blue Ink Copywriting’. The client wanted a logo that showed them to be creative and fun, but also hinted at the purpose and name of the business.

Skills involved

I was responsible for the complete identity, along with a set of business cards and letterheads to match the new design.

Other Info

The website for this project is currently being polished and should be live shortly.

The purpose of this project was to completely refresh and revise Shawmac’s existing website to incorporate a more modern and professional feel and help promote the company’s image and expertise to potential clients. The client also wanted to incorporate a Content Management System to manage their website content easily, and ultimately align the website with the company’s physical presence.

Skills involved

I was responsible for the entire website project, from the initial research and design stages through to development and production.