"Wear who you are".
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UX Case Study
UX Researcher & Experience Designer
Research, Insight Synthesis, Journey Mapping, Experience Strategy
Confidential (under NDA)
Fashion Tech Brand
This case study is based on real client collaboration conducted under a signed NDA. Certain details, visuals, and proprietary elements have been intentionally altered or omitted to protect confidentiality. The goal is to demonstrate my UX research process, emotional design thinking, and problem-solving capabilities within a real-world setting.
Style is not just about how we look.
It’s how we arrive in the world
Every day, people scroll through endless images of outfits, trends, and aesthetics.
And yet, most still wake up feeling unsure of what truly represents them.
Aravue was born from that gap.
A fashion-tech platform that doesn’t just deliver looks... It understands people.
By combining the sharp instinct of real fashion stylists with the speed and insight of AI, Aravue redefines how style is discovered, curated, and embodied.
This wasn’t a product about fashion.
It was a product about confidence, identity, and choice, designed to make people feel seen.
"As the UX researcher and experience designer, my goal was to make every interaction feel personal, elevated, and emotionally grounded."
Before we designed anything, we listened.
The goal wasn’t just to understand what users wear, but why they wear it, and how it makes them feel.
My approach was grounded in empathetic research, aiming to uncover the emotional, functional, and aesthetic needs of both users and stylists. This meant not only identifying patterns in behavior, but also recognizing patterns in silence, hesitation, and longing.
Framing the Questions
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How do people choose what to wear when no one's watching?
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What does “confidence” look like in fashion, and how does it vary across bodies and minds?
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Why do users hesitate to trust AI or algorithms for personal expression?
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How do stylists interpret identity beyond aesthetics?
With these questions in mind, I structured a focused research plan combining both qualitative insight and lightweight quantitative feedback.
To uncover the emotional and behavioral truths behind style choices, I used a blend of methods tailored for depth over volume:
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User Survey – 10+ responses from fashion enthusiasts, stylists, and everyday users
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Stylist Conversations – 1:1 discussions with working stylists to understand their creative process and platform challenges
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Competitor Scan – Studied products like Pinterest, The Yes, and StitchFix to identify behavioral gaps and missed opportunities
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Behavioral Observation – Informal logging of how users browse, screenshot, and reference style in daily life
"The goal wasn’t mass data. It was resonance and insight that felt lived."
Insights That Shaped the Product
These weren’t just research notes. They were emotional truths that shaped Aravue’s strategy, flow, and core experience.
1. Fashion fatigue is real
Users are tired of endless options and “inspiration dumps.” They crave clarity and simplicity, and something made for them.
2. Trust trumps trend
Users want advice they can trust, not just what's popular. Real stylists offer reassurance that AI alone cannot replicate.
3. Confidence is personal
The best styling is not about trend compliance; It's about how someone wants to feel. Confidence, not conformity, drives real choice.
4. Stylists feel commodified
Existing platforms treat stylists like replaceable services. Aravue needed to elevate them as creative partners, not just backend helpers.
Understanding the User
They're not looking for more clothes, they’re looking for a reflection.
Most users don’t lack options. They lack clarity. They scroll through endless outfits, but nothing feels like them. They’ve tried Pinterest, Instagram, and AI apps, but it all feels generic.
What they want is something quiet, intelligent, and personal.
They want styling that…
Knows their body and what makes them feel good in it
Understands their budget without making them feel small
Speaks to their mood,
not just their taste
Doesn’t try to impress them, but understands them
They don’t want 1,000 options.
They want one answer that feels right.
"Aravue had to act like someone who already knows you, before you explain yourself."
The Journey
The experience wasn’t built as a feature set; it was crafted as a journey.
Every screen, every interaction, was designed to move the user from uncertainty to confidence, without noise or overwhelm.
Arriving with doubt
They land on Aravue not knowing what they need, just knowing that the mirror hasn’t felt right lately.
The sign-up is calm. No pressure. Just a space that feels gentle, premium, and theirs.
Guided or intuitive
From the first tap, users choose their path:
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Get matched with a stylist
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Or try the AI assistant for quick curation
This wasn’t about hierarchy. It was about emotional availability—some users want human connection, others want fast answers.
Sharing their truth
Users fill out a short style quiz, designed less like a form and more like a conversation.
"What makes you feel powerful?" was just as important as "What's your height?"
The Explore Page
Wandering with intention
Users are invited to browse the Explore page.
A quiet, visual world of looks, textures, and ideas.
Curated by stylists and users alike, it's like a Pinterest board—but built for people, not algorithms.
Seeing themselves styled
They begin to receive curated looks. Not endless scrolls.
Just clean, smart options built on who they are.
Each look was tagged with notes from the stylist or AI, explaining why it works... offering reassurance, not sales.
Saving their identity
Users could save looks, revisit past outfits, and slowly build a wardrobe that felt like their own emotional timeline.
They didn’t just collect outfits. They collected pieces of clarity.
What We Stood For
The beliefs that shaped every interaction, decision, and silence in Aravue.
1. Confidence Is a Silent Interface
The best styling experience doesn’t shout, it reassures. Aravue was designed to remove noise, comparison, and pressure. What remains is clarity. Calm. Confidence.
2. Emotion Is the First Input
Before data. Before preference. We ask: How do you want to feel in this outfit? That one question shaped how every recommendation, tone, and flow was built.
3. You’re Not a Category
Aravue rejects the idea of “target segments.” Instead, it listens for nuance; skin tone, confidence gaps, overlooked sizes, and non-standard expressions.
"We don’t generalize, we personalize with dignity."
4. AI Should Feel Like a Human, Not Replace One
We didn’t use AI to automate styling; rather, we used it to understand emotion faster. And when users needed a human touch, we made sure it was present, not performative.
5. Curation Is Emotional Architecture
The Explore feed, the saved looks, and the stylist notes were designed like memories: easy to revisit, honest in tone, quiet in function. Because style is never just about now.
The System Journey
Designing Aravue wasn’t just about creating screens...It was about orchestrating a system that respected both the user and the stylist.
The experience had to feel human, adaptable, and emotionally aware, whether someone was exploring their identity or curating looks for someone else.
The platform’s flow was intentionally non-linear, allowing users to move between stylist support, AI guidance, and inspiration at their own pace. At the same time, stylists were given a thoughtful space to create, refine, and respond, not just fulfill requests.
Below are two interconnected flows representing how the system functions from both perspectives.
That’s All I Can Share
Due to confidentiality, only a surface-level glimpse of the Aravue experience is presented here.
The full scope includes in-depth flows, emotional design systems, and long-form user testing, all of which remain protected under NDA.
If you're curious about my process or want to dive deeper...
I’m always up for a good conversation about empathy, systems, and design that makes people feel seen.