After nearly a month in the USA, with family time in Hawaii and Arizona, we’re bringing my pup Vogue back to the UK this weekend. If you’ve followed my journey at all on social media, you know I moved to Berlin last January for work and left my pup with my parents until I could find permanent housing.

Unfortunately that never happened after the company laid off 80% off staff, including me, so I couldn’t get a resident permit and I didn’t want to bring my small Pomeranian over if I didn’t know where I was going to be. Having got my UK resident permit, we were able to plan to bring her back over just over a year later. We have a long day of travel ahead of us but I can’t wait to get her back home.

Career Things

A short update in that I will be speaking at more than one conference this year and I’m very excited about it!

On the Web

12 Modern CSS One-Line Upgrades by Stephanie Eckles - 12 properties that you can start using today that will enhance or upgrade your web project.

User styles by Miriam Suzanne - a brief note on setting your preferences in the browser. Why stick to the default settings? Adjust those settings. It may help you think about building and scaling to accommodate those who aren’t using default settings.

Animating Font Palette by Mandy Michael - A demo and look at the ability to animate font palette that was just shipped in Chrome 121.

If you want to be creative, you can’t be certain by Ida Persson - a great read on how being unsure, uncertain, and embracing that state is key to being creative and letting new ideas flow.

How AI is changing gymnastics judging by Jessica Taylor Price - an interesting look at how AI is being used to “modernize” judging in the sport.

Massive Ancient Network of Cities Found in the Amazon by Jason Kottke - Not specifically web related but kind of tech related. A really cool overview of this recent discovery in Ecuador using lidar.

Reading

I’m keeping track of what I’m reading on an Amazon List.

I finished reading:

Over the Edge: Death at the Grand Canyon - Cannot recommend enough. I personally found this a really captivating read and warning to those who don’t respect the nature of the Grand Canyon.

Ranger Confidential: Living, Working, And Dying In The National Parks - after reading Death at the Grand Canyon, I wanted to keep with the National Park theme. Finished in two days.

The Last Wish: Introducing the Witcher (The Witcher Saga Book 1) - Back to the fantasy books while I try to find another national park history book to read.

I’m currently reading:

Soul Journeying: Shamanic Tools for Finding Your Destiny and Recovering Your Spirit - A slower read because I’d like to actually take notes and practice some of the exercises.

Not sure what I’m going to dive into on the plane yet, but we’ll see!

Have a lovely weekend!

The Web Witch (Stephanie)

website | blog | twitter | instagram | mastodon | linkedin | tiktok | youtube | discord server

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

Hello again after a long hiatus. Since we last met, quite a bit has happened. I got married in Denmark, I went back to the US so I could apply for my UK Visa. I successfully got my UK Visa and went back to the UK at the end of November. I’ve been interviewing, taking on freelance work, working on my Etsy shop, planning a kitchen remodel, planning the absolute trek to get my dog to the UK at the end of the month and trying to figure out what’s next.

We spent the second week of the year in Hawaii with family and family friends and had a nice chill week of watching whales spout from the shore and consuming many mai tais. We’re in Phoenix now and I’m taking the pup to all her appointments so we can take her back to the UK. I’m excited to finally get her home with us!

Career Things

Layoffs still continue and trying to find a job right now is really hard. I’ve also been in a weird state of flux with a lot of life admin and moving to the UK which makes it hard to interview. I’ve been working on my own content and started recording content again - just short form for the moment. You can follow along on YouTube for CSS & Design Tips.

I’m doing design and product consulting work still, if you’re in need of design work, a design and/or UX audit of your website, or product strategy work feel free to get in touch. 

I received my first quarterly statement from my publisher, which covers all book sales up until the end of September 2023 - I’ve sold over 3000 copies!

I’m also speaking at my first conference after a year off from speaking: Pixel Pioneers in Bristol. Very much looking forward to it!

Book links: Manning | Amazon (even adding it to your wishlist helps bump up visibility)

On the Web

Where Have All the Flowers Gone? by Dave Rupert - A lovely read on content curation and personal websites.

I miss human curation by Cassidy Williams - Something I find myself musing on quite often. The web is a different place to what it was even 10 years ago and there’s an element missing that I can’t quite seem to find again.

Accessible Notifications With Aria Live Regions (Part 1) by Sara Soueidan - Sara has shared a text-only excerpt from her Practical Accessibility video course so that the development community has an extensive guide to Aria Live regions.

Edge DevTools Tip: Explain Errors With AI - In the Edge Developer Tools, you can use Copilot AI to explain console errors.

Publishing your work increases your luck - A great reminder and guide to working in public & a piece that reminds me of my first conference talk, which was about luck and landing your dream job and showing up in public spaces as the person you wanted to be and the role you wanted to have.

Reading

I’ve started the year strong and have been really focusing on reading more than mindlessly scrolling. I even deleted reddit from my phone (my husband gasped).

I’m keeping track of what I’m reading on an Amazon List.

I finished books 8 & 9 of the Outlander Series: Written In My Own Heart’s Blood and Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone. (Can’t believe there’s only one book left in the series).

I’m currently reading:

Over the Edge: Death at the Grand Canyon - which is honestly probably a bit grimmer of a read (especially for me) but if you’ve been to the Grand Canyon, it’s even more powerful of a read.

Soul Journeying: Shamanic Tools for Finding Your Destiny and Recovering Your Spirit - I bought this ages ago in 2018 and never read it but it called to me and seems like a timely read especially after a very hard 2023.

Have a lovely weekend!

The Web Witch (Stephanie)

website | blog | twitter | instagram | mastodon | linkedin | tiktok | youtube | discord server

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

Summer seems to be slipping away despite my best efforts to hold on tight. I can feel autumn in the wind and even though I am not ready for colder nights and short days, I find myself dreaming of the crisp autumn air, pumpkins and sweaters. And then I snap out of it and enjoy the warmth outside. No I am not ready.

I also wanted to share a note on this newsletter, as I write and see what people engage with the most, I’ll adjust the content so that you’re getting something in your inbox you want to read.

No Code Development

I signed up bubble.io after wanting to see what was possible with no code development beyond building a website. I managed to create a proof of concept for an AI app. I watched a 10 minute YouTube video and at first glance it seemed fairly straight forward but took two hours of mostly debugging the options for setting things up in the bubble UI.

No code doesn’t necessarily mean able to build without coding knowledge and might even be slower than just using code.

I’m pleased that I got things working though and have the most basic working proof. I’ll plan to do a writeup when I have a bit more time.

Career Things

I’m starting to think about conferences next year and talks focusing on the intersection of design and code. I had been hoping to maybe do some smaller events this autumn but based on when I’ll be applying for a UK Visa (and won’t have a passport), it’s going to be a bit too up in the air.

I’m doing design and product consulting work, If you’re in need of design work, a design and/or UX audit of your website, or product strategy work feel free to get in touch. I’m booking out beyond September at this time.

Jhey and I are in the process of building a new resource for CSS. CSS Tricks was such a vital source of information for people and to lose that resource is incredibly sad. We’re wanting to keep the community involved as much as possible. Stay tuned for news. I’ll share more here as we progress.

I received my copies of my book and I must say how exciting it feels to finally hold it in my hands!

Book links: Manning | Amazon (even adding it to your wishlist helps bump up visibility)

On the Web

Check to see if your PWA qualifies for a free developer account for the Microsoft Store on Windows. Start here with the PWA Builder blog post.

CHM: Art of Code Program - the Computer History Museum has been releasing historic code from Adobe and Apple, and celebrating the magic of technology this year.

“Why Does Email Development Have to Suck?” - Perhaps we should reduce our expectations when it comes to email development/

“What Does It Mean for Web Browsers to Have a Baseline?” - An overview of the new project Baseline that helps developers learn what they can rely on in the web platform.

“Coding Randomized Zelda Patterns” - Coding and Zelda, two of my favorite things collide.

Reading

• The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You

• Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain

• The Last Sunset in the West - I’ve paused reading as it’s been a far more emotional read for me than I was expecting especially with the news that Tokitae (also known as Lolita) passed away in captivity in Miami. The Orca Network has a tribute to her on their home page.

Have a lovely week!

The Web Witch (Stephanie)

website | blog | twitter | instagram | mastodon | linkedin | tiktok | youtube | discord server

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

Welcome to the end of another week. I’ve found myself rather busy trying to get a routine in place to balance the work I have coming in with lots of personal admin. I was ill at the start of the week and took it easy and then bounced back rather quickly. I’m looking forward to a barre class this weekend and hopefully a return of the sunshine.

Keep It Simple

I’ve been thinking about simplicity lately.

I love the puzzle shrines in Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. I like that it feels like I’m using a different part of my brain and I actually am disappointed when I come across a shrine that isn’t a puzzle. I was reading a reddit thread about something Zelda related and came across a comment that said something along the lines of “the shrines are designed so that small children can figure them out, stop overcomplicating things.”

Do we as adults make things needlessly complicated? I think we do. Especially in our careers and in companies. Teams and hierarchy structures and who makes the decisions can become a muddle, and even if you’ve built a culture of accepting failure as okay, we’re still human and are afraid of failure. We often work hard to avoid failure, but this can make things more complicated unintentionally. We might even trick ourselves into thinking that complexity is always needed, instead of realizing that simplicity could teach us important lessons through hands-on experience.

And so I find myself in a video game, needlessly complicating the solution because it couldn’t be that simple, could it? A friend shared a clip from his wife’s Zelda stream of attempting to solve a shrine puzzle and it all went wrong. Suddenly I find myself letting go of the notion of how something should be solved and letting it be simple.

I’ve been listening to this song by Mt. Wolf with spoken word over a very mellow and moody instrumental (I personally love tracks like this).

“It's just we get so messy, it's not that we are doing lots of wrong things / Our mind is so messy / We don't keep it simple / And we end up making the life that we are living, so in-ordinarily complicated / Completely unnecessarily, and it's such a shame to end up feeling, in a real muddle / When actually, you ought to be having the time of your lives”

Will everything be simple? Probably not, and I’m certainly not advocating to avoid challenging yourself but to let go and lean in.

Suggested reading: How to Uncomplicate Your Life, Regain Control and Live Happily

Career Things

My work contract with Rapid officially ended on July 31st, finally ending that chapter of my career and life. I’ve written a few thoughts about the experience and shared what’s next over on the blog.

I’m doing design and product consulting work, If you’re in need of design work, a design and/or UX audit of your website, or product strategy work feel free to get in touch. I’m booking out beyond September at this time.

My book is officially in print and is 45% through August 18th with the code pbstimac! Grab a copy today!

On the Web

“What is a PWA?” - Justin Willis gives us a nice intro to Progressive Web Apps. A good refresher if you’ve forgotten what the benefits are.

“Introducing perfwork” - Tim Kadlec has launched a job board for web performance engineering roles. It’s even got an RSS feed (hooray!).

“Frosted glass depth-based blur in CSS” - Really cool CSS demo

”Igalia Mid-season Rankings” - Brian Kardell goes over Igalias contributions to the web platform.

“Do we need WCAG 3 (now)?” - Eric Eggert gives some thoughts on WCAG 3 as the next standard and what’s happening in that space.

Books of Note & Music

I am usually reading multiple books at once because what I want to read changes day-to-day unless I’m really hooked in a good fantasy novel.

Currently Reading:

• The Last Sunset in the West

• The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You

• Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain

Finished Reading:

• Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander Book 2) (A re-read)

Music:

I’ve been revisiting old playlists and listening to lots of Depeche Mode and Lord Huron.

• Emotional Tracks playlist, for when you want to lean into feeling moody. I used to take my pup on walks around Redmond, WA and listen to this in the winter.

• Essential Depeche Mode playlist

• Strange Trails album by Lord Huron

Cheers and have a great weekend,

The Web Witch (Stephanie)

website | blog | twitter | instagram | mastodon | linkedin | tiktok | youtube | discord server

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

After two really lovely but busy weeks in Seattle and parts of British Columbia, I’m in the Valley of the Sun which is living up to its name with an unusual heatwave even for this area. It’s been over 110F everyday I’ve been here and I’ve got to say, I’m a northern gal through and through. Summer is so vital to me because it feels as through 7 months out of the year I’m hibernating in cold weather. This inability to go outside is driving me a bit stir crazy and I’m looking forward to returning to more manageable temps soon.

4th of July Sunset in West Seattle

After what’s felt like a very uncertain few months, touching base and visiting friends and family was just what I needed to snap me back on course. I’ve had some really good conversations with friends about careers, jobs, big tech and choosing a job in an area you’re passionate about even if it means taking a pay cut. It’s been refreshing and a lovely little reset.

Now Pages & Lists

I recently stumbled upon the concept of “Now” pages while deep in research about frameworks for setting goals. It’s meant to serve as a public facing list of priorities that you can direct people to when they ask what you’re working on right now. I like this idea as so rarely do we capture what we’re focused on in the different areas of our lives.

I’ve started to scribble down a few things to make a list and I’ve been thinking about how to apply this in a business and product sense. The list of initiatives and OKRs can get so long sometimes, especially as priorities shift. A Now List could be a good exercise to bring teams and/or the company back into alignment when there’s disarray. I’ve experienced too many priorities and too many goals that shift weekly and amidst the chaos its necessary to pause and keep it simple and ask, “What are we focused on right now?” Too many different answers? Then you’ve got a problem.

I can see this scaling in different ways too. What customer segment are we focused on? Too many can spell disaster for a limited product and engineering organization.

Taking a step back to ask:

• What are we focused on?

• Who are we focused on?

Can be a good way to refocus and make sure everyone is aligned and keep it simple. Looking back I can see where I was being pulled in too many directions in a way that was detrimental. Using a Now List to refocus and prioritize on the fly when things seem chaotic is a cheap tool to refocus amongst all the noise, and one that I’ll use in the future.

Eventually I’ll get a Now page up on my website but it’s low on the priority list to share with the world compared to the rest of my focus areas right now.

Career Things

My book is officially done! It’s gone to print and I can’t wait to hold a copy in my hand. Manning is having a number of sales this week. As of sending this email, it’s 30% off.

I’m doing design and product consulting work, and it’s as if the contract work gods knew I was ready for it. I’m booked out into August. If you’re in need of design work, a design and/or UX assessment, or product strategy work feel free to get in touch. 

I’m very excited to be working with the Pinetree Music Collective (Facebook Link) based out of Seattle, WA. They’ve brought me so much joy on many a Thursday evening at my favorite West Seattle spot so I’m happy to be designing their website. It’s a nice creative break from developer tooling UI!

I received my first order through my webwitchinc shop and honestly that’s something to celebrate. Through the end of the July you can get 15% off your order with the code WEBWITCH15. Thank you for being a subscriber!

On the Web

“I am leaving” - Heydon Pickering’s latest Webbed Brief accurately (and briefly) encapsulates the current state of social media.

“CSS Glowy Spotlight Effect Using One Magic Property” - Jhey Tompkins shows us how to make a glowy spotlight effect in CSS.

“So long, Calibri: Microsoft has settled on a new font for its Office apps” - The default font for Microsoft is finally be refreshed after more than a decade.

“Good code is like a love letter to the next developer who will maintain it.” - A short post from Addy Osmani on writing good code.

“Design for Developers Foreword” - Aaron Gustafson graciously wrote the foreword for my book and with permission from the publisher, has posted it on the web.

Books of Note & Music

I am usually reading multiple books at once because what I want to read changes day-to-day unless I’m really hooked in a good fantasy novel.

Currently Reading:

• The Last Sunset in the West

• The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You

• Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander Book 2) (A re-read)

Paused Reading:

I’m taking a break from tech reads so I’ve paused these two.

• The Creative Programmer (Early Access)

• How to Lead in Product Management 

Finished reading:

• Your Best Year Ever: A 5-Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals (This has a great framework to spell out the reasoning behind your goals so you’re setting yourself up for success).

Music:

Bass Coast Festival this year was wonderful in ways I wasn’t expecting and I while I only made it into the actual festival for a few sets, the music I did catch was great. I missed the set of weekend from Marcellus Pittman however (I was asleep), so I’ve been living vicariously through this RA Live Set. I’m now stalking his live dates to see if I can catch him somewhere in Europe.

Cheers and have a great week,

The Web Witch (Stephanie)

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

Hello again after a very long break.

This draft has been sitting waiting to be sent since the middle of March. A lot has happened since then and I’m finally feeling a bit more like me after having lots of time to rest.

In March, I had just finished my move at the end of February to Berlin. I was attempting to get settled but hadn't taken any time off to rest and was consumed by burnout by the end of March. I took two weeks off in April and started to feel better about where I was and dear reader, after my break, Rapid laid off a large number of their workforce, and I was included in that.

It was whiplash to say the least. I very quickly jumped into interviewing but decided to take a step back. I am just now starting to feel like I’ve recovered from the burnout. It’s been a process and I’m looking forward to some time with friends and family coming up.

Career Things

I would like to get back into doing some design and product work as a consultant and have a few gigs lined up for later this summer in regards to design consulting. If you’re in need of design services, a design assessment, or product work, feel free to get in touch.

My book is still in production and I think we’re getting very close to printing. I’m looking forward to having a copy in my. hand! I just recorded a podcast about the book and it was really enjoyable. It had been a while since I’d recorded one and I would love to do some more again.

I’ve also started designing a few web witch / developer themed bits with an alternative twist.

Through the end of the July you can get 15% off your order with the code WEBWITCH15. Thank you for being a subscriber!

On the Web

How are you protecting your employees in public facing roles from harassment? - I write about my experience the past year dealing with someone who followed my career at Microsoft and has harassed me online for over a year.

Considering content warnings in HTML - Aaron Gustafson talks about the idea of spoiler and warning HTML elements that came in through the Web We Want initiative.

What's a basic use-case for cascade layers in CSS? - Chris Coyier gives us exactly what the title says.

Books of Note & Music

Currently Reading:

• The Last Sunset in the West

• The Creative Programmer (Early Access)

• How to Lead in Product Management

Finished reading:

• Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

• The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive #1)

• Braving the Wilderness

• Running on Red Dog Road

• Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive #2)

• Oathbringer (The Stormlight Archive #3)

Music:

It's been out for a bit but Depeche Mode's new album, Memento Mori, has been a staple since it came out. My favorite album since Playing the Angel. I just saw them play in London and they’ve still got it after all this time. I had a great evening out but I think that may be the last time I buy floor tickets

Cheers, The Web Witch (Stephanie)

Some of the links in my newsletter may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you and help support the newsletter.

Time is moving incredibly quickly for me right now! Two weeks ago, I was in Marrakech, Morocco with the rest of Rapid for our annual kickoff (also, we're hiring). We spent the week hearing updates and plans for 2023 from leadership and teams. It was also a chance to connect with our coworkers we don't typically see every day, we have offices in San Francisco, Berlin and Tel Aviv with a number of remote workers spread throughout Europe and the USA.

I'm finding this time together in person is so incredibly valuable because it allows you to connect on a new level compared to when you're all just on a screen. I love remote work and allowing people the flexibility of remote work, but these touchpoints are incredibly important if you have a remote team. I got to chat with people in the company I probably wouldn't have as we traveled on buses to dinner and other activities. It was lovely.

It was also a lot. As an introvert, there wasn't a whole lot of time to recharge so by Thursday night I was exhausted. It was a really awesome trip. Rapid is a partner with Scuderia AlphaTauri and we had the F1 car onsite and few of the team came to do a panel with our Field CTO. They came with us out to our afternoon activity in the desert after and I can now say that I've been mountain biking in the Moroccan desert with some of an F1 team.

I'm extremely grateful for the experience we had as a company. It was one of those moments where you know it's special so you just want to soak it up. I felt incredibly taken care of by Rapid. Not just on the trip but some updates to the company really left me feeling like I made the right choice to step out of my comfort zone and take this job last year.

Good things are coming and I'm excited for working to unlock the next level at the company this year.

Career Things

I feel as if I've been saying this since October, but I think my book is finally done. I submitted the last round of edits from the 3rd review feedback last Friday. I had to create a bunch of website examples from scratch as well because I couldn't get permission for a handful. That was perhaps the most time-consuming bit. I'm just waiting for the thumbs up before I let out a giant exhale. That will be a massive weight off my shoulders, and I can't wait to see it in print!

On the Web

PWA Checklist - I will be speaking on visual and UX design in regard to PWAs quite a bit this year. This checklist is based off the talk I gave last May. I'll be delivering the talk a few times this year, but this is the checklist to reference when you're thinking about the design of your PWA.

Three attributes for better web forms - Jeremy Keither talks about how to improve form UX with attributes.

Hex colors aren't great at anything except being popular - Chris Coyier talks about HEX codes and where our tools are failing us when it comes to utilizing better color modes on the web.

Books of Note & The Weekly Music Find

All books at Manning.com are 40% off this week! Snag some new books to level up your technical skills here.

Some of these may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you.

Currently & Still Reading:

I decided that my goal is to read 24 books this year. 12 books related to work, and 12 books about whatever: history, fantasy, etc. I'm on 2/24 so far. It's February so that's on track.

• Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

• The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive Book 1)

• The Creative Programmer (Early Access)

Finished reading:

• Time-Blocking: Your Method to Supercharge Productivity & Reach Your Goal - This offered a great blueprint for something I've been trying to do with work and my personal life - time block for specific tasks, not just meetings and appointments. I'm experimenting with it right now and will report back soon.

Weekly Music:

I rediscovered Fall Out Boy in 2020. I hadn't realized they'd still been making music, let alone music that spoke to my angsty teenage soul. Love From the Other Side hits that spot again.

February is incredibly hectic for me travel wise so I'm hoping to find routine somehow in it all, but we'll see. Have a great week everyone!

Cheers,The Web Witch (Stephanie)