About
Hi, I'm Maria
UX-focused Frontend Engineer based in Portugal, working at the point where design decisions and the code behind them meet.
I have a Software Engineering background (BSc & MSc) and four years of professional experience working with Frontend Development and User Experience — sometimes on the same project, sometimes back to back. That overlap is where I do my best work: I design with implementation constraints already in mind, and I build without losing the intent behind the original design.
What keeps me in this space is genuine curiosity about how people think and behave. No two people think quite the same way, so it takes an ongoing practice rather than a fixed checklist to ensure the solution will work well for everyone. I write more about UX and frontend on my blog.
What I Value
Empathy first.
On any project, I care as much about how the end user and the client will feel about the outcome as I do about whether it technically works.
Clear, honest communication.
I'd rather ask a clarifying question early than guess and redo work later, and I try to give clients and teammates the same directness I'd want from them.
Built, not just designed.
I try to stress-test ideas against real implementation constraints early, and to keep asking whether what I'm building actually serves the person using it, not just the spec.
Continuous learning & improvement.
I stay curious on purpose, actively seeking out what I don't know yet — the tools will keep changing, and the ability to learn new things is a skill that needs practice too.
Outside of Work
Outside of work, I paint, play or build games, and I'm usually somewhere in the middle of a new hobby — right now that's a reading challenge, digital art, and 3D printing. I'm drawn to art that makes people feel something, and that same instinct shows up in my design work: noticing what makes an interface (or a game's UI) feel good to use isn't so different from noticing what makes a painting feel alive.
I'm also studying Japanese for the JLPT — the reason the language-learning app on my Playground page exists in the first place.
Let's Get
in Touch
Open for full-time roles, freelance projects, and interesting collaborations.