When were you first introduced to web design? Why did you decide to pick it as your major at college?

I can't believe it was over ten years ago. Has time really gone by that fast? I was less than 14 years old (I think I might have actually been 12) at the time that I first got into doing Web Design. Of course, back then, it was only a hobby. My father showed me how to make sites using a WYSIWYG/HTML editor that was created by AOL. Over time (and many HTML editors later), I learned how to code by hand.

So by the time I got into college, I already knew how to make websites (though not with standards). I was actually majoring in Graphic Design when I decided to take a web design class. I thought, 'Either this will be an easy 'A', or I'll actually learn something new.' Well, as it turned out, I got a 'B', and did learn something new.

My teacher was amazing. He recognized very quickly that I was a student that needed to be challenged. He made me buy and read Designing With Web Standards, by Jeffrey Zeldman. It totally changed the way I thought about web design/development, and was the start of a passion which turned into a career. I decided to do another major in Computer Arts, which allowed me to take two more web design classes, do an independent study, as well as an internship. There isn?t a true 'web design' major at my school, so in a way, I crafted my own.

You have the same last name as famous singer Michael Bolton and almost the same last name as another famous web designer Mark Boulton, but you?re not related to neither of them. Does it irritate you if people ask you that question? Have you ever met any of the guys?

There's a famous singer named Michael Bolton? Wait, wasn't he in Office Space?

I guess it depends on how I?m asked. Usually I try to have fun with it. I do have an uncle named Michael Bolton? he just doesn?t sing. So of course if I?m asked, 'Are you related to Michael Bolton?' I say 'Actually, yes, I am.' I haven't really had a lot of people ask me about Mark Boulton though. Maybe once before, and then now.

As a side note, I'm a big fan of Mark Boulton's work. He shares my love for typography and grid (but is a lot more vocal about it (and he rocks). I haven't met either of the guys, but would obviously be much more excited about meeting Mark.

I traditionally ask all female web designers this following question. How does it feel to be a woman in male dominated industry?

Absolutely amazing.Obviously in the past, I've faced issues, mainly gaining the same respect my male colleagues get from coworkers/managers/clients/etc. But when it comes to my career as a whole, I think my gender (and even possibly my ethnicity) may have helped me get ahead, by standing out. Sounds cliché, I know, but I really think it?s true.

For The Art & Science of CSS, I was the only female author. But I never felt like an outsider to the other guys. In fact, far from it. I tend to get along better with guys anyway, so it all works out, right? ;)

You're currently working on Apple's development team, whilst you've mostly done web design work before. How different is the experience and how difficult was the transition?

I can?t and won't talk about my work at Apple. But I will say that it's an exciting and challenging experience. I'm used to working among other creative people that do what I do, and working for various clients (sometimes hopping from client to client in one day). Now I work among extremely intelligent engineers, and I get to just focus on one 'client'. It?s an interesting change, and I'm still enjoying my work very much.

Could you share with us some of your current responsibilities and impressions from working with Apple?

Wow, you're trying to get me fired. ;)

At the risk of saying too much, I'll just share that I work with an amazing team of people, which include rock stars that are seriously good at what they do. Our team focuses on the front end for Apple Online Store. Even though I am no longer working in a design agency, I still get the benefit of working with very creative people. The things they come up with are awesome. It?s to be expected. It's Apple.

In one of your posts you mentioned you wanted to become a CSS teacher at college in order to pass the knowledge on to the next generation of web designers and developers. Will you still pursue this goal? Do you believe formal design education is important?

Of course I will. I love what I do, and like to help people and share what I know. While I had the benefit of taking a couple web design classes at my college, I still feel like the content taught in colleges and high schools could be so much better.

From my experience, I think there is a big need for improvement. I strongly feel that we should skip the old school techniques and get straight to how it should be done. Don't get me wrong. History of web design/development is important, and definitely should be taught. But we should not teach the 'old school' techniques as a practice. Out with font tags in school, in with CSS. ;)

More importantly, we should also stress usability, accessibility, information architecture, etc. I feel that web design classes don?t get the full range of information needed. I want to help change that.

Do you think term 'sexy style' could be applied to website design? What would you name as its key elements? What websites would you place in that category?

Sexy style can be applied to website design in the same way it can be applied to an iPhone, a Mini Cooper, a piece of furniture out of West Elm, or that long, sleek black outfit from Kenneth Cole. To me, it's about elegance, class, and quality. A website with sexy style, for me, is a site that pairs great typography, with a solid, well-designed grid, and, if used, stunning imagery & ornamentation. Three of my favorite websites that fit this category are:

- The Big Noob

- SimpleBits

- Shaun Inman

Do you keep in touch with the web design gang besides conferences? Or do you draw the strict line between professional and private relationships? Among web designers who is frequent contact?

Actually, since I?ve moved to Silicon Valley, most of my friends are in 'the gang'. I can?t possibly draw a line between my professional and private relationship - they are way too intertwined. My best friends are in the industry. It?s probably why we get along so well. Since moving to here, I find myself hanging out with:

- Dustin Diaz: This guy keeps me laughing until my sides hurt. He rocks.

- Bryan Veloso: Possibly my favorite Asian. Bryan is awesome and talented. Enough said. o_O

- Faruk Ates: My teammate at work, and a great friend. I love him to death. <3

- Eris Stassi: This chick is way cool, super talented, and intelligent.

- James Craig: Great taste in music and a ton of fun to hang with.

I find myself chatting almost daily with:

- Stephen Rainey: A great friend of mine in Memphis (where I lived before moving to Silicon Valley).

- Dan Rubin: Dan has helped me with advice and recommendations time and time again, and I can't thank him enough.

- Andy Clarke: I value his opinion and his insanely awesome talent. He?s awesome.

- Dan Benjamin: My big 'brother' He keeps me laughing and has the most unique chatting style. Sometimes I want to hit him, but that?s why he?s my big brother.:D

- Patrick Haney: From what I hear, he's not a sausage. It's debatable.

In an interview to DesignWorkFlows you said you 'must have music playing when I work.' What do you usually listen to? Do you have a last.fm profile? What do you generally think of this network?

I have a broad taste in music. Some artists I listen to include Portishead, Atmosphere, Cat Power, Buddy Holly, Keren Ann, David Bowie, The Blow, Elliot Smith, Azure Ray, Andrew bird, Ella Fitzgerald, etc. Pretty much everything except country. Unless it?s Johnny Cash, he?s good.

I used to be on Last.fm, but it was a victim to my mass social-network account deletion craze I did a few months ago. My use for it went away when Virb came out. I got rid of my iLike account as well. They're both cool services, but I like Virb better.

You're working on CSS templates for the Markup category on your site. What is the purpose of this project? How many templates are we to expect and when? And are they going to combine CSS and graphics or just CSS?

Haha. Oops. I was working on CSS templates (which would include graphics as well) for that category. That was until I started writing, speaking, and working for Apple. :P

Yeah, it?s something I still want to do? but slowly overtime. I used to do LiveJournal themes and had fun giving something to the community. I had planned to do some WordPress themes, but since I'm leaving WordPress, I want to turn my focus on to things I actually use. So now I want to do some for Virb and of course regular site templates? But when I have the time!

You've been keeping yourself quite busy working for Apple, speaking at numerous events, writing, co-authoring a book, doing art, blogging, and learning Italian. How do you manage everything and do it so well? What's the secret? Does such busy schedule interfere with your personal life and plans?

Ha! You think I do this well? Then I am a fantastic actress. I stress this stuff all the time. I just don't talk about that part. Heh.

Rather than 'what's my secret', I suppose I can say 'what's my problem' which is that I want to do everything. I want to do it all. Honestly, I don't feel I manage all of this very well. I am actually one of the most unorganized people you will ever meet. But hopefully I will get better. I'm working on that.

You're a world traveler. Is this a hobby for you? Tell us where you've been and how it influenced your personality?

If I had the time and money, this would most definitely be a hobby for me. I absolutely love seeing new places, and experiencing different cultures. Over the couple years, it's been amazing. Some places I've been (excluding Memphis and Nashville) include St. Louis, Birmingham, Destin, Barcelona (Spain), Figueres (Spain), Boston, Florence (Italy), NewYork, Orlando, San Francisco Bay area (before moving here), Amsterdam (Netherlands), Austin, and Portland. And I'll be hitting NYC up again this November for the Future of Web Design conference.

Tell about your experience with AIGA (the professional association for design). When did you join? What are the current activities? How do you contribute?

AIGA is a great organization. I joined when I was still attending college, and frequented the local Memphis chapter meetings. The Business conference I attended in NYC was fantastic. This organization is truly professional, ethical, and passionate. To be honest, this question just reminded me that I need to renew my membership. My move here kinda kept me busy, and it slipped my mind. Anyway, since moving, I haven't contributed, but I would like to find the local chapter and get involved once I'm a little more settled in (yeah, I?m still getting settled). I'm really excited that Memphis, Tennessee (my most recent home before moving) was selected to host an upcoming AIGA Design Conference. I will definitely try to visit.

As a CSS expert, what do you think about the future of this technique? What innovations should we expect?

Well, my hope is that we can get moving on this quicker. CSS3 has been a 'hopefully soon' thing for way too long, in my most humble opinion.

But I think the future is going to be awesome? I?m excited about it. I do think that the next big wave is already beginning? Layout and typography systems and techniques are beginning to buzz louder and louder, and I think the big thing we will see in future CSS articles are going to be more focused on these topics. It?s this that gets me very excited.

What is your definition of Web 2.0?

What it used to be: a smarter web, a more people-centric movement (user-driven). Smart applications.

What it is now? A term thrown around to describe the trends (design clichés, JavaScript effects, etc.), or even a 'type' of web designer/developer.

Personally, I preferred the old meaning.

Do you believe Web 2.0 design is bringing something radically different or continuing the use of old techniques?

Web 2.0 design? I guess that depends on what you, yourself, define as Web 2.0 design. If it's the so-called Web 2.0 'look' (reflections, big fonts, bursts, etc.), then I think all it brought was a new fad that will soon get tired (much like the previous fad, which I believe was smaller fonts, diagonal lines, drop shadows, etc.). It?s like fashion. It'll come around again later, and then it'll be old again.

But if you mean Web 2.0 design as in the before mentioned people-centric movement, and designing smarter interfaces, with great user experience, then yeah, I think it is. Brochure sites are just not enough these days.

What web design books/magazines/blogs are you reading?

As for books, I still think Web Standards Solutions, by Dan Cederholm, is one of the best web-related books I've read. It was actually interesting to read! I hope my writing is that way. I also really like Transcending CSS by Andy Clarke.

As for magazines, I subscribe to Dwell, Body+Soul, Bazaar, and Real Simple. I also like flipping through design mags like Communication Arts, HOW, and Graphis.

You're Web-wide-known for your passion for sushi. Sushi seems to have become a part of your personality and even a design attribute. Was that a pre-planned marketing maneuver or pure coincidence?

Oh man. I love sushi. Absolutely love it. :D I even used to work at a sushi bar when I was out of work, because I love it so much.

I was wanting to redesign my site for a while, and had already begun using the color schemes and fonts that you find on my site now. But when I found that photo on iStockPhoto (which is currently used on my site at the time of this interview), I had to buy it and turn it into a website design.

The 'SushiMonster' thing came from someone calling me that? comparing me to Cookie Monster. I actually don't mind if it sticks around. ;)

What is your motto in life?

'Persist! Resist!' It came from a song by one of my favorite bands (Deitiphobia), and it also just really suited me, especially during college (and working during that time). I like it. It mostly has to do with my art ? but also applies to my work as well.

Helen Walker

Helen Walker graduated with a degree in Mass Communications and Sociology. She worked as a newspaper journalist for two years after that. Having always been interested in cyberculture and its impact on society, Helen switched to online journalism and joined Design Interviews blog in July, 2007. Ever since she's been interviewing web designers and administrating the blog. Helen is a keen movie-goer and she is also a panda lover.


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Get in touch with Helen: helen.walker4@gmail.com