Hi, I’m Leda!
a Cypriot, NL- based,
Multidisciplinary Designer,
with a background in
Architectural Engineering.
With a growing interest in user experience and interaction design, I am curious how spaces and smart tangible products influence human behaviour in shared environments. My work explores how digital and physical elements in everyday settings can encourage social engagement through user-centered design and emerging technologies. Over the years, I shifted from designing temporary living spaces, markets and museums to focusing on how spaces are experienced and used by people.
In the past, I worked on user-driven projects using participatory design in international workshops, from modular shelters for backpackers in the Swiss Alps to playful museum furniture, co-designed with children in Armenia, making users active contributors in the process.
Currently, my work explores how interactions can be subtly supported, addressing different forms of social challenges within shared environments. I like working hands-on, constantly zooming in and out [1] to empathize with users [2] and understand their habits and challenges [3]. Through a research-based, holistic approach [4], I design spaces and products that blend aesthetics, functionality and user experience, aiming in influencing behaviour and supporting shared moments.
I see design as a lens
to explore everyday human “rituals” and
a way to invite people into these moments, sparking interactions
in subtle, meaningful ways that support collective well-being.
Understand
I combine design with in-depth research, taking time to understand competitors [5], stakeholders [6] and their needs, not just what they say, but what they do, feel, and how the act in context, observing routines, “rituals” and how they interact with each other, before forming any solutions [3]. “It is difficult to design something compelling without picturing a face or feeling empathy for a person’s wants, needs, and behaviours”[7].
Explore
I experiment through making, mapping expressivity in Interaction [8], testing and observing, letting the process guide me using approaches like double diamond [1], user-centre [3] or empathetic design [2] depending on the project. I explore future feasibility using tools like the business model canvas [9] and value creation methods [10].
Innovate
I look for new ways to support social interaction and shared experiences, using a mix of spatial design, technology and user insight to create meaningful experiences. I focus on everyday moments, routines and subtle interactions that can be enhanced through design.
References
[1] D. Gustafsson, ‘Analysing the Double diamond design process through research & implementation’, 2019.
[2] J. Thomas and D. McDonagh, ‘Empathic design: Research strategies’, Australas. Med. J., vol. 6, no. 1, p. 1, 2013.
[3] Interaction Design Foundation - IxDF., ‘What is User Centered Design (UCD)?’, Interaction Design Foundation - IxDF., May 2016. Accessed: Jun. 10, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/user-centered-design
[4] R. C. Richey and J. D. Klein, ‘Design and development research’, in Handbook of research on educational communications and technology, Springer, 2013, pp. 141–150.
[5] R. Brugha and Z. Varvasovszky, ‘Stakeholder analysis: a review’, Health Policy Plan., vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 239–246, 2000.
[6] C. S. Fleisher and B. E. Bensoussan, Strategic and competitive analysis: methods and techniques for analyzing business competition, vol. 457. Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003.
[7] A. Murray and V. Scuotto, ‘The business model canvas’, Symphonya Emerg. Issues Manag., pp. 94–109, 2015.
[8] A. Heideveld, J. Kerkhof, A. Fischer, and B. Ahsmann, ‘Master Circular Business with the Value Hill with the Circle Economy & Sustainable Finance Lab.’, 2016. Accessed: Jun. 01, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.circle-economy.com/resources/master-circular-business-with-the-value-hill
[9] R. Jacoby and D. Rodriguez, ‘Innovation, growth, and getting to where you want to go’, Des. Manag. Rev., vol. 18, no. 1, p. 10, 2007.
[10] M. Bruns, S. Ossevoort, and M. G. Petersen, ‘Expressivity in Interaction: a Framework for Design’, in Proceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, in CHI ’21. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery, 2021. doi: 10.1145/3411764.3445231.
Check out some project from
