Context
I noticed that discovering talented designers was fragmented across Twitter, Dribbble, and word-of-mouth. There was no single place to find designers worth following, especially those doing interesting work outside the mainstream.
How might we create a curated, opinionated directory that surfaces designers doing genuinely interesting work?
Process
- Compiled my personal list of 100+ designers I follow and admire
- Identified patterns: what makes someone's work worth following?
- Designed a minimal interface that lets the work speak for itself
- Built with Next.js and deployed on Vercel for speed
Solution
A hand-curated directory of designers with a focus on quality over quantity. Each entry includes recent work samples and a brief note on why they're worth following. No algorithms, no popularity metrics—just good taste.
Outcomes
- 5,000+ unique visitors in first month
- Featured in several design newsletters
- Dozens of submissions from designers wanting to be included
Learnings
- Curation is a feature, not a bug—people appreciate opinionated selections
- Simple, fast sites still stand out when everything else is bloated
- Building in public created organic word-of-mouth