Gloria is a designer at Houzz, where her responsibilities span everything from building our brand look and feel to overseeing the design of all our print materials, email templates, marketing banners and ads.
How did you get into design?
I drew and sketched from the time I was a child. In middle school, I was inspired by my cousin’s collection of Marvel’s X-Men comic book cards, so I began drawing Rogue and Storm along with my own imaginary characters. A friend later showed me a Japanese anime series called Ranma ½, and I was influenced by its more exaggerated and feminine flair. Throughout high school, my art teacher had us try everything from landscapes to still lifes, portraits and self-portraits. Those years were a nice transition from flat artwork to more complicated techniques with shadow and depth.
By the time I got to college I was fluent in a vast array of styles, but my parents didn’t want me to pursue art. I took some computer science classes to appease them, which turned out to be a great decision. Those classes helped me realize that I could combine my love for art with technology through graphic design. I applied to the Academy of Art when I was 20 years old.
What’s your favorite part of working at Houzz?
The people. Everyone on the design team shares the same enthusiasm for design. Feeling that your sensibility is shared by the broader team encourages you to work together to create this amazing product. It also fosters a truly collaborative environment, where you feel comfortable inviting feedback from peers who you respect. It feels like we’re working with a mindset of “one team, one dream,” with a singular goal of making Houzz look great.
What’s your favorite thing you’ve worked on at Houzz?
My favorite project has been expanding our brand guidelines. Brand guidelines exist to ensure that everyone uses the Houzz logo, text, and icons in a way that is consistent with our look and feel. Back in 2014, they didn’t exist. It was empowering to have this blank slate, blue sky before me. I was able to create a full set of guidelines that include color palette, fonts, space and size requirements, and examples of how that visual language can appear in our marketing materials. It’s rewarding to know that Houzzers and our partners around the world look to this guide as their source for how to best represent the brand.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I do a lot of arts and crafts. After working most of the day on a computer screen, it’s satisfying to make something real and tactile by hand, without the help of technology. I particularly enjoy creating hand-crafted items for friends’ special events. When one of my friends from back in middle school recently got married, I created the letterpress invitations. For another friend’s wedding, I made decorative paper flowers to serve as a backdrop for her ceremony. I love being able to contribute little hand-made touches that personalize the event and make it feel even more special.
I have a daughter who just turned nine months old, so I also spend a lot of time with her. We read books together, and she seems to love it. She spends a lot of time examining the book and flipping through the pages, just like her mom.
How do you use Houzz?
We own a home, and there are always projects on our list. Most recently, we redid our floors, which were originally a combination of tile in the kitchen and hardwood in the living and dining rooms. My husband and I wanted to keep them consistent throughout the house, so we saved images we liked to a Houzz ideabook to compare our choices. Fortunately, we both like modern, contemporary design, so most of our selections were pretty similar! We chose a strained bamboo floor because they are super durable and eco-friendly, and we love how it turned out. The next project on our list is making over our backyard from a weed haven to a more usable family space. We’d love to include a table and chairs to enjoy a cup of coffee, a play area for our daughter, and a grill and some outdoor seating to entertain friends.