About
Hi, I'm Mara. I make the web a little faster.
I've been building for the web since 2015: a university library, an agency in Stockholm, a product team in Copenhagen, and since 2023 my own practice in Lisbon. I like small teams, plain tools and launches that nobody notices because nothing broke.
- Based in
- Lisbon, Portugal
- Building for the web
- Since 2015
- Languages
- English, Swedish, Portuguese (getting there)
- Projects a year
- Three or four
How I work
Working software every week
You get a preview link in the first week and a new one with every change. Opinions about a real page beat opinions about a mock-up.
Fast is a feature
I budget kilobytes the way you budget money. Every project ships with a performance budget and a test that fails when we go over it.
Accessible from the first commit
Keyboard, screen reader and contrast checks run with every build, not in a panic the week before launch.
Your keys, your code
Everything lives in your accounts from day one. When we're done, you can carry on without me, and you'll know how.
Experience
2023 – now
Independent developer
Lisbon
Websites, web apps and performance work for small product teams across Europe.
2020 – 2023
Lead front-end developer
Fieldnote, Copenhagen (remote)
Led the front end of a field research dashboard: islands architecture, a design system and a team of four.
2018 – 2020
Front-end developer
Atelier Nord, Stockholm
Forty sites for museums, a ferry operator and a chain of bakeries; built the agency's accessibility checklist.
2015 – 2018
Developer
Lund University Library
Catalogue search, a booking system for study rooms and the library's first public API.
Uses
What's on the desk and in the editor. Nothing here is sponsored.
Desk
- 27-inch 4K monitorone screen, never two
- 14-inch laptopfor cafés and trains
- Mechanical keyboardbrown switches, quieter than it sounds
Editor and terminal
- Neovimwith a config I keep under 200 lines
- Visual Studio Codewhen I pair with someone
- Ghosttyterminal
Every day
- Gitsmall commits, real messages
- Figmafor interfaces with designers
- Obsidiannotes and project logs
Questions
Are you available for full-time roles?
Not at the moment. I'm happy to talk about long-term contracts of two or three days a week.
Do you speak at events?
Two or three times a year, on performance and accessibility. Write to me with the date and the audience.
Do you mentor?
I keep one slot a month for a free hour with someone starting out. Ask through the contact page.