About Me

Hello, I am Nikki Purcell. I am a web designer and a front end developer from Los Angeles, California. I love building great websites and keeping up with cutting edge technologies!

I have been a professional web designer for over 5 years but the path that lead me here is not that ordinary. I began my career life as a Mechanical Engineer, working on programs such as the Space Shuttle, and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft. Pretty serious stuff! After 10 years in engineering I decided to take my interests in web technologies and art to the next level. At UCLA, I completed the Design Communication Arts Certificate program and voila…I began my new career in web design. I continued my education by learning PHP and mySQL and have been incorporating this functionality into my sites ever since. The rest as they say is history. I love building sites that are creative and original, and feel that the user experience is of utmost importance and should not be compromised.

So you want to know even more about me? Well okay…I LOVE THE OUTDOORS. That includes almost everything, hiking, camping, biking, snowboarding, basically anything that involves discovery and action. When I’m not building websites, I’m probably planning a new adventure of some kind.

FAQ's

1. Are you available for full-time work or freelance work?

The short answer is both! I am actively looking for a full-time position in a company as a web developer, web designer or PHP programmer. Please download my resume from the home page and look at examples of my work on the portfolio page. I am also currently accepting freelance web design work. The next couple questions are questions I receive frequently that pertain to my freelance design work.

2. How much does a website cost?

Obviously, this is the most frequently asked question and one of the hardest to answer. The cost is based on many things, including how large (how many pages) or how much content is expected in the site. It also depends on how complex a client wants the site to be. The cost ranges below have been provided to help you decide what type of site you would like to build.

Cost Range 1: $1000 - $3000

  • This is a very basic website.

  • This may include some pages of text and image artwork.

  • The design will be original, but simple as time allows.

Cost Range 2: $3000 - $5000

  • This is a more complex site.

  • Could have lots more technologies such as a blog incorporated into it.

  • Can include some level of flash animation.

Cost Range 3: $5000+

  • This might be a larger corporate site with unusually large amount of pages.

  • Can include a high level of flash animation.

  • E-commerce or other more complex-type sites would fall into this category.

Of course, this is all just a guide, so if you have an idea for your website, send me an email and I can see what I can do for you.

3. What's steps are involved in getting my website built?

After you've chosen Firefly Design Studio to build your website, you can expect your web project to follow the simplified six-step process described below:

  1. The Initial Meeting

    2. In the first meeting, we will discuss your ideas, desires, and direction for your web project. I will take some initial notes discussed in the meeting. This can be either over the phone or in person.

  2. Project Estimate

    3. Based on our first meeting, I will estimate how much the site will cost to build. I will also give you an idea for how long the production will take. If the estimate is approved by you, I will send you an invoice for the initial 1/3rd of the project fee.

  3. Designing The Visual Graphics

    4. In this step, I will layout static Photoshop mock ups for you to view and critique. If your not happy with any of them, I will scrap them and try again from a different direction. This can be done a maximum of three times. If you do like the layout, we will tweak it till it is exactly what you want. At the end of this phase, I’ll send you an invoice for the second 1/3rd of the project fee.

  4. Building The Website

    5. After the graphics have been agreed on and the navigational layout has been decided on, I will begin coding and building the site. This will include lots of HTML and CSS coding.

  5. Testing The Site

    6. In this step of the design process, I will test the site to make sure there are no errors. I will also be testing to make sure it is cross browser compatible.

  6. Site Launch

    7. Finally after the testing phase is complete, I will launch the site live. Since this is the final step of the process I will send you an invoice for the final 1/3rd of the project fee.

4. Any other questions?

Don't hesitate to ask me more questions. Simply go to my contact page and either send me an email or fill out the contact form and send it. I look forward to hearing from you!