UX / UI /Product Design

Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, I’ve found my home in the UK by immersing myself in the local community and the natural world. I currently serve as the Booking Administrator for my local Scout Hut and volunteer with the secondary school PTA. These roles that keep me grounded, organised, and connected to people’s needs.

Lately, my passion for problem-solving has moved from the community to the environment. As a volunteer citizen scientist with Earthwatch Europe, I regularly test local stream water quality, blending my love for the outdoors with a commitment to environmental advocacy and data-led observation.

My Pivot to UX Design
I like the mix of creative work, problemsolving, and collaboration design in general, but I’m drawn to UX because of its formalised user-centered and data-supported methodologies. I’ve always looked for the ‘why’ and ‘how’ people use products, doing my own research and finding out as much as I could about the end user. And about 2 years ago, I started working on transforming print to digital content. I loved the challenge, signed up to the Google UX Design Professional course, and after completing the project I realised I wanted to continue working on "people-first" digital solutions.

When I’m not at my desk, you’ll find me:

In Nature: Either hiking or out in the field as a citizen scientist.  
Creating: Experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen or tending to my garden. 
Exploring: Seeking out hidden gems, whether it’s a local trail or a new cultural perspective.

How I work

I blend the rigour of research and discovery with the heart of a designer to build products that actually work. My process acts as a bridge between complex business requirements and the humans who use them.

Empathise

I apply a unique rigour to deep-dive research. I analyze market data and competitor landscapes to uncover the What, How, and Why, ensuring I truly understand the ecosystem before a single wireframe is drawn.

Define

I synthesize research into clear patterns, user stories, and journey maps. In the B2B and B2B2C sectors, this means finding the "sweet spot" where institutional requirements meet end-user needs. I translate complex briefs into simple, scalable frameworks that keep stakeholders and developers aligned.

Ideate & Prototype

Leveraging Figma and robust design systems, I move rapidly from low-fidelity sketches to high-fidelity, interactive prototypes. Working within Agile environments, I act as a collaborative partner to editors and marketing teams, ensuring the design is as functional as it is aesthetic.

Testing

I believe in the power of iteration: testing, learning, and refining until the solution is bulletproof. This stage is focused on WCAG accessibility compliance, data-informed decision-making, and ensuring the final production-ready design solves the actual problem at hand.

Thank you

Thank you for taking the time to look at my portfolio. If you would like to contact me, please reach out on either of the following:

Email houzethi@gmail.com
LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/houzethi

Beyond the screen

Oxford UX Jam March 2026

I’m a big believer that the best design solutions and ideas often start far away from a computer screen. Recently, I took part in the Oxford UX Jam (hosted by the University of Oxford UX Centre of Excellence), where we spent a high-energy day at the Story Museum exploring the intersection of further education and AI.

My favorite part of the process? The "back to basics" approach. My team and I moved from empathy mapping to physical prototyping using nothing but paper, card, and pens. We then took our ideas straight to the Westgate shopping center for "guerrilla" user testing with young people.

It was a fantastic reminder that rapid iteration and face-to-face feedback are the quickest ways to bridge the gap between human needs and tech solutions.