.png)
Designing an event app that actually understands your vibe.
OVERVIEW
Horizon is a mobile app that helps users discover curated local events based on personal energy levels, preferences, and social comfort. Designed with accessibility and simplicity in mind, it empowers users to find experiences that feel good — not just look fun.
ROLE
TIMELINE
TEAM
PROCESS
Product Designer- UX/UI Designer
4 weeks
Solo project — responsible for everything from UX research and wireframes to visual design and prototyping
User Research · Competitive Analysis · Wireframing · Prototyping · Visual Design · Accessibility
ABOUT THE PRODUCT
Horizon is a mobile app designed to help users discover local events based on their energy level, mood, and social preferences. Instead of overwhelming users with every event happening nearby, Horizon curates suggestions that actually feel right for them — whether that means a quiet poetry reading, a food truck rally, or a game night with new friends.
​
Built with a user-first mindset, Horizon focuses on intuitive interaction, minimal distraction, and accessibility — giving people an easy way to find experiences that align with their comfort zone and interests.
WHO IS THE USER?
The core users of Horizon are people who want to go out — but on their own terms. This includes introverts, neurodivergent users, casual planners, and anyone who doesn’t vibe with traditional event platforms.
​
Rather than appealing to mass audiences, Horizon centers people who value intention, mood-matching, and low-pressure social spaces. These users want something more personalized than an endless scroll of concerts and bar crawls — they want relevance, not just popularity.
INTRODUCTION: DISCOVERING EVENTS
Most event apps prioritize volume over value. They highlight what’s trending, not what’s right for the individual. This creates friction for users who are overwhelmed by options or who don’t enjoy high-energy environments.
​
Horizon challenges this norm by rethinking event discovery. It starts with the user’s emotional state and social comfort, then filters experiences accordingly. The goal? Fewer wasted nights, more meaningful ones.
UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM SPACE
Event discovery apps are often built for extroverts, group planners, or users who are fine sifting through hundreds of loud, ad-heavy listings. But through interviews, usability scans, and personal experience, I discovered a major gap: users who want social options, not pressure — and tools that feel intuitive instead of overwhelming.
​
Horizon set out to address several key UX pain points I identified during early exploration:
Navigation
Most existing apps threw too much at users — filters, icons, pop-ups, and carousels — with no clear sense of direction. Users often felt lost or distracted while trying to browse events based on their actual interests or comfort levels.
Discoverability
The “recommended” section felt generic, and users struggled to find events that matched their vibe (e.g., introvert-friendly or casual meetups). Instead of feeling guided, they felt like they were guessing.
Visual Noise
From competing CTAs to mismatched card layouts, UI inconsistencies made it harder for users to process information quickly. Event cards lacked hierarchy, and users skipped over options simply because the design didn’t help them prioritize.
No Room for Growth
There was no consideration for users with sensory sensitivities, accessibility needs, or mood-based filtering — leaving little flexibility for evolving feature sets like group planning, accessibility tags, or user-curated lists.
Research & Insights
To build something that truly resonates, I needed to understand what event discovery felt like for different types of users — especially those who don’t fit the “party every weekend” mold.
​
I conducted a mix of casual interviews, empathy mapping, and competitor audits to understand how people discover, choose, and experience events. What I found confirmed my hunch: most platforms are built for extroverts, not for everyone.
“Too many options stresses me out.”
Users often abandoned event apps after a few minutes because the experience felt like information overload. They wanted help making fewer, more relevant decisions.
Energy level matters.
Users said their social energy fluctuates day to day, and they wanted event suggestions to match how they’re feeling, not just where they are.
"I wish it knew what I liked without me digging."
Manual filtering wasn’t cutting it. People wanted curated experiences that felt personal — without needing to scroll endlessly or fill out long preference forms.
Neurodivergent & accessibility needs were overlooked.
Several users shared that most apps are overstimulating and not designed for sensory-friendly browsing. Bright visuals, loud notifications, and chaotic layouts made it harder to trust or use the apps regularly.
Defining the Vision
With the insights in hand, I distilled everything into a clear product vision:
Make event discovery feel more human — intuitive, low-pressure, and aligned with how people actually feel.
​
Instead of just surfacing what’s happening, Horizon needed to surface what feels right. That meant designing with flexibility, emotional awareness, and accessibility at the core.
Match energy, not just location.
Give users event suggestions that reflect their current mood or vibe, not just what’s popular nearby.
Reduce decision fatigue.
Simplify the path to discovery. Curate suggestions to avoid endless scrolling or overly complex filters.
Design for neurodivergent and sensitive users.
Prioritize calm visual language, minimal distractions, and sensory-friendly interactions.
Keep it intuitive.
The interface should feel like a helpful guide — never overwhelming or cluttered. Clear paths, clean layouts, and smart defaults were key.
Ideation & Early Design
With my design goals in place, I jumped into low-fidelity exploration to figure out how Horizon could deliver a curated, calm event discovery experience. My focus was on simplicity, personalization, and visual clarity — even at the sketching stage.
Onboarding with intent
Rather than asking for endless preferences up front, I tested a vibe-based onboarding flow that let users select their mood or energy level for the day (e.g., “chill,” “social,” or “creative”).
Event discovery by comfort, not distance
Instead of flooding users with every event within a radius, I explored grouping events by social comfort level: solo-friendly, small groups, sensory-friendly, etc.
Modular event cards
I sketched multiple versions of event cards with visual hierarchy in mind: date, location, energy tag, and vibe summary. The goal was to make them skimmable and reduce cognitive load.
Dark mode first
A large portion of my target users preferred darker interfaces due to sensory sensitivity or late-night browsing, so I explored a dark mode-first UI as the default instead of an afterthought.
I created wireframes using Figma to explore how these pieces could work together, focusing on layout logic, user flow clarity, and accessibility from the beginning.
High-Fidelity Design & Final Solution
Once the wireframes felt solid, I moved into high-fidelity design — bringing Horizon’s personality to life through calming visuals, clean layout, and thoughtful interaction. I leaned into a minimal, dark mode-first interface with soft edges, clear hierarchy, and subtle motion to create a low-pressure, sensory-friendly experience.
Reflection & Next Steps
Horizon started as a personal frustration — and turned into one of my favorite projects to date. It challenged me to think deeply about emotional UX, accessibility, and how design can support people’s social energy instead of draining it.
​
Designing for comfort and inclusion — not just function — helped me grow in ways that go beyond visuals. I had to unlearn some of the assumptions I picked up from mainstream event apps and really tune into why users feel the way they do when faced with too many options.
What I Learned
Less really is more.
The more I stripped away, the more the experience opened up. Prioritizing clarity over content overload made the app feel more trustworthy and approachable.
Designing for emotion takes intention.
Energy level isn’t a common filter — but it should be. Users don’t always want more, they want relevant. And relevance is emotional.
Accessibility isn’t a layer, it’s a mindset.
From dark mode-first thinking to clear language and flexible input, every decision shaped how inclusive the app could be — and how welcome users would feel.