40 Amazing Female Role Models for Web Designers
It’s no secret that there’s a large difference in the ratio of males to females in the web design industry, but that’s not to say there isn’t any amazingly talented female designers out there. This post rounds up 40 of the most notable and prominent female designers, who can be seen as perfect role models for anyone currently working their way up in their web design career. Watch out, here come the girls!
Selene M. Bowlby
- Name: Selene M. Bowlby
- Website: idesignstudios.com
- Twitter: @idesignstudios
Emma Taylor
- Name: Emma Taylor
- Website: twigglegraphics.com
- Twitter: @emtaylor
Sarah Parmenter
- Name: Sarah Parmenter
- Website: youknowwhodesign.com
- Twitter: @sazzy
Veerle Pieters
- Name: Veerle Pieters
- Website: veerle.duoh.com
- Twitter: @vpieters
Niki Brown
- Name: Niki Brown
- Website: nikibrown.com
- Twitter: @nikibrown
Grace Smith
- Name: Grace Smith
- Website: postscript5.co.uk
- Twitter: @gracesmith
Adelle Charles
- Name: Adelle Charles
- Website: fuelyourcreativity.com
- Twitter: @adellecharles
Sarah Whinnem
- Name: Sarah Whinnem
- Website: madysondesigns.com
- Twitter: @madysondesigns
Kris Colvin
- Name: Kris Colvin
- Website: kriscolvin.com
- Twitter: @kriscolvin
Kayla Knight
- Name: Kayla Knight
- Website: kaylaknight.com
- Twitter: @kaylamaeknight
Ashley Baxter
- Name: Ashley Baxter
- Website: iamashley.co.uk
- Twitter: @rockers_delight
Shannon Farrell
- Name: Shannon Farrell
- Website: shannonfarrell.com
- Twitter: @dolceshan
Jenna Smith
- Name: Jenna Smith
- Website: growldesign.co.uk
- Twitter: @jjenzz
Stephanie Sullivan
- Name: Stephanie Sullivan
- Website: w3conversions.com
- Twitter: @stefsull
Meagan Fisher
- Name: Meagan Fisher
- Website: owltastic.com
- Twitter: @meaganfisher
Jen Germann
- Name: Jen Germann
- Website: jengermann.com
- Twitter: @germanny
Jina Bolton
- Name: Jina Bolton
- Website: sushiandrobots.com
- Twitter: @jina
Mindy Wagner
- Name: Mindy Wagner
- Website: mindywagner.net
- Twitter: @graphicsgirl
Krissy Gogel
- Name: Krissy Gogel
- Website: 6bdesign.com
- Twitter: @6bdesign
Liz Andrade
- Name: Liz Andrade
- Website: cmdshiftdesign.com
- Twitter: @cmdshiftdesign
Jennifer Farley
- Name: Jennifer Farley
- Website: laughingliondesign.net
- Twitter: @laughing_lion
Lauren Marie Krause
- Name: Lauren Marie Krause
- Website: creativecurio.com
- Twitter: @creativecurio
Tina Roth Eisenberg
- Name: Tina Roth Eisenberg
- Website: swissmiss.com
- Twitter: @swissmiss
Tracey Grady
- Name: Tracey Grady
- Website: traceygrady.com
- Twitter: @traceygr
Vivien Anayi
- Name: Vivien Anayi
- Website: inspirationbit.com
- Twitter: @inspirationbit
Randa Clay
- Name: Randa Clay
- Website: randaclay.com
- Twitter: @randaclay
Antonea Nabors
- Name: Antonea Nabors
- Website: velvetant.net
- Twitter: @antonea
Larissa Meek
- Name: Larissa Meek
- Website: larissameek.com
- Twitter: @larissameek
Lea Alcantara
- Name: Lea Alcantara
- Website: lealea.net
- Twitter: @lealea
Jan Cavan
- Name: Jan Cavan
- Website: dawghousedesignstudio.com
- Twitter: @mj12982
Cindy Li
- Name: Cindy Li
- Website: cindyli.com
- Twitter: @cindyli
Gisele Jaquenod
- Name: Gisele Jaquenod
- Website: giselejaquenod.com.ar
- Twitter: @giselejaquenod
Inayaili de León
Kat Neville
- Name: Kat Neville
- Website: safetygoat.co.uk
- Twitter: @kassy4
Eva-Lotta Lamm
- Name: Eva-Lotte Lamm
- Website: eva-lotta.net
- Twitter: @evalottchen
Sabrina Dent
- Name: Sabrina Dent
- Website: sabrinadent.com
- Twitter: @sabrinadent
Tanya Merone
- Name: Tanya Merone
- Website: tanyamerone.com
- Twitter: @tanyamerone
Alyssa Tucker
- Name: Alyssa Tucker
- Website: alyssatucker.com
- Twitter: @dizzyvapor
Natalie Jost
- Name: Natalie Jost
- Website: nataliejost.com
- Twitter: @natalie
Ali Felski
- Name: Ali Felski
- Website: alifelski.com
- Twitter: @felskia
amazing personality you sharing here, they all running successful blogs as i seen many before your post and some of right now, i really like there portfolios.
These are some seriously wonderful designers. I have been a fan of some of the women on this list for a while but others are new to me, so I am off to enjoy/visit their sites. Thanks for sharing :)
Nice one, Chris. I have to admit I’d not heard of most of these designers before… probably 10 out of the 40, tops but they all look to be just amazingly gifted.
Megan Fisher’s site has been one of my favourites for a long time. It’s really original and loads of fun.
I have to admit you’ve put together a list of pretty amazing female designers. Looking at their work amazed me.
I’ll definitely bookmark some of them for the future.
Thanks for including me in the list Chris! Now you probably have just completely confused everyone because they thought I was a guy :)
Nice list, Chris. Although I’m surprised not to see Amy Mahon on there. Her design work is consistently superb.
Thanks for including me on the list Chris!! I’m super proud to be apart of it! :)
Thanks so much for including me! I’m honored. What an awesome list!
All of them are amazing.
There’s something about female design..they make it stand out somehow, don’t know but it’s cool :)
“Here come the girls?”
“Here come the GIRLS?!”
You sexist pig! That’s Womyn with a “Y!”
J/K – good article; thanks for showcasing the talent on the other side of the gender aisle.
I, too, had not heard of most of these designers, so thank you for bringing their wonderful work to my attention!
Chris, thanks so much for including me on this amazing roundup. Lots of talent to look up to here!
Oh wow, thank you so much for including me in this awesome group of designers! :)
Wow, Chris – thank you so much for including me on this list, as well. I’m in amazing company here! :)
I’ve heard of most.
What about some newer ones?
Very cool post. Love this. I recognize several names, but it’s nice to have new ones to check out too.
awesome list – very inspirational!
I am glad to see ladies doing well. This a great list and I will be following a lot the individuals on it. Thank you for putting together the list. I hope to be added to a list like this some day. That would be great!
Well done girls!
Good stuff! I just started following quite a few on twitter
Thanks for the mention here. I am very flattered.
These ladies rock! The run some of my favorite web design blogs!
Thanks Chris! Very kind of you to include me in your list. I appreciate you calling us “role models for web designers” since I no longer design but build the front end of many a site. The beauty is in the code. ;)
Seriously though — women are out here in this industry — but there are assuredly not enough of us. I’m currently looking at ways that we, that are here, can reach and inspire young girls – high school and college ages. I welcome any feedback you guys may have. I’d leave my email in the comment, but spam bots will harvest it — so feel free to contact me on my site or on twitter – @stefsull.
Keep it goin’ gurls — good work!
Thanks a lot for including me on this list, Chris! I’m very very happy to be part of it! :)
Great post Chris! Can’t believe there are such good designers I’ve never seen.
Keep up the great work ladies! You’re all very talented. :)
- Ken Styles
What is the criteria for making this list? Are there any female designers that you excluded from the list? If so, why? What criteria were used to determine if these women are perfect role models?
Thank you for sharing. This girls are a true inspiration for me!
Meh, all sound like web marketers who produce the same design over and over. Not everyone wants a flowery site you know.
So many kick ass ladies on this list! Thank you so much for including me!!! :)
You should add Jackie to your list. Her work is excellent.
http://www.jackie-ellse.com/designspace/
Definitely inspirational! Thanks for spreading the love. I’m glad to see the number of female web design/developers increasing.
Thank you for adding me to this list! I think he added all of us on here because we do love to reach out to the community at large. Don’t be a stranger, ask me anything on Twitter. :)
Thank you for including me on this list, Chris! What an honor!! I was actually quite shocked to see my avatar and screenshot here as I was scrolling; I usually don’t make many lists (not complaining, just sayin’), so this really made my day :) I recognize many here, particularly because of Twitter and @DCTH. I’d also like to suggest Cococello, Deb Pang Davis. She’s awesome!
excellent post. super refreshing to see a list like this!
Woww i love em Nice collection and thanks for the Amazing post :)
Woohoo! Filipina web designer on the list! :)
to see my name here was a big surprise. Thanks for the feature, Chris.
great!!!
Wow, this is an impressive group to be a part of. Thank you for including me, I’m honored!
thanks so so much!!!
Thanks for providing a great collection and double thanks for including me! There are plenty of familiar faces but also lots who are new to me (but not for long, ladies).
One of the most impressive things about this group is the broad range and variety of design styles everyone’s displaying on their sites.
Nice Article, but you have forgot @alpstar
Great list, and an excellent idea for a post Chris! I think you’ve pleased the ladies out there lol!
Thank you for the list! Hopefully it will help me find designer for my projects, because while I can code just fine, I’m horrible in creating good graphic :(
Thank you for all the comments!
To the ladies giving thanks for their inclusion – It’s a pleasure!
The topic originated from an email I received from Autumn, who described herself as an aspiring female designer. She was looking for a resource where she could find some of the women in the design industry to draw inspiration from.
Also, to touch on what the “criteria” was for inclusion, or that I’ve missed certain people – All the ladies included are talented designers who have crossed my path in some way, on Twitter, via blogging etc.
I’ve already spotted a couple of new names and faces from the comments, so maybe they’ll find themselves in the next 40 hahaha :-)
awesome list..bring on the girls! :)
…need more female (web)design… rockin!!!
This is probably the most brilliant and most original post I’ve read so far.
I didn’t know about most of these design heroes… I want my 14 yr. old daughter to be like them!
thanks for sharing!
Hi Chris, thanks so much for featuring me in this amazing list of talented ladies!
Awesome post Chris! I found some new ones to follow. You go girls!