About
Hello there! Welcome to Dawghouse Design Studio. My name is Jan Cavan and this is my personal website, visual playground and testing ground. This website showcases some of the work that I have created in digital media. This blog also aims to provide creative resources, tutorials, freebies and design inspiration to fellow designers and developers all over the world.
In 2005, I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Engineering and have since then worked professionally as a Web Designer. I took up crash courses in multimedia while attending college in a university, but most of the things I have learned are self-taught through online tutorials off the internet and constant self-study.
I am a flexible artist. I can render any kind of approach to design – minimal to maximal, bright to dark, clean to grungy… and can translate my designs into hand-coded and valid XHTML/CSS.
Would you like to learn more about me? Connect with me now on Twitter or join me on Facebook
If you are interested to work with me, check out my portfolio or get it touch!
Recognition
During the course of my career, I feel very honored for my work and myself to be featured on printed publications, interviewed on websites and showcased in design galleries all across the Internet.
Update: My work has been featured and I also wrote for magazines and books to be published in France, Japan and Australia. I haven’t gotten copies of them yet so stay tuned as I’m posting photos soon!
Web Designer Magazine Issue #149
A few months after the launch of my portfolio, I was really happy since it received a lot of great feedback from people and was very well-received that it got featured on a magazine. Thanks everyone!
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.NET Magazine #181 (Distributed as Practical Web Design in the USA)
In this issue, I’m very thrilled to be featured alongside Adobe and Converse. It’s also great to see the magazine displayed at Barnes & Noble!
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Web Designer Magazine Issue #152
In this issue, it’s another honor for me to be featured alongside notable people in the design industry such as Larissa Meek, Veerle Pieters and Vitaly Friedman of Smashing Magazine
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Web Designer Magazine Issue #155
Before the release of version 2.7 of Wordpress, it was really great to be given the opportunity to share my thoughts about it before it was officially launched to the public.
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Blogger’s Handbook Volume #1
This was the very first time I had been featured in a book. You can guess how I felt when I found out about it. Stoked! :)
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Savoir Tout Faire Avec Photoshop: Effects de Texte (France)
I had the opportunity to be asked to write a tutorial for a book called “Savoir Tout Faire Avec Photoshop: Effects de Texte” a popular French book containing various Photoshop tutorials and resources.
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Interviews
- Snatch59: The Gathering of the Designers Clan
- The Web Squeeze: Jan Cavan’s Tools of Trade
- Designm.ag: How Did You Find Your First Client?: Group Interview
- Smashing Magazine: Women In Web Design: Group Interview
- DesignInstruct: How to Get Creatively Inspired
- DesignMess: Designers and Their Workspaces
- The Web Design Blog: Interview with Freelance Web Designer Jan Cavan
- Design Investigator Interview: Learning New Technologies with Jan Cavan
- Design Investigator: 7 Questions with Jan Cavan
- Boxed In Design Interview:7 Design Questions with Jan Cavan
- Spicy Web Designers: Interview with Marie January Cavan
Inspiration Gallery Showcases
- Pelfusion: Top 40 Authors Of The Famous Design Blogs
- DeepuBalan: Geeky Girls – Showcase of 50+ Incredibly Talented Female Web Designers
- PBS Interactive: Are There No Women in Web Design?: The Divas of Web Design
- Line25: 40 Amazing Female Role Models for Web Designers
- InDeziner: 50 Best Female Web Designers Around the World
- Sitepoint: Sketchy Design Style Still Going Strong: 10 Examples
- Web Design Ledger: 25 Excellent Examples of Using Texture in Web Design
- Abduzeedo: Collage Sites
- Instant Shift: 90 Inspirational And Creative Portfolio Designs
- SmashingApps: 23 Colorful And Inspiring Web Designs Where Textures Are In Full Action
- Six Revisions: 30 Creative Examples of Using Paper in Web
- Naldz Graphics: 40+ Beautiful Examples of Paper Websites Design
- Six Revisions: 30 Creative Examples of the Hand Drawn Style in Web Designs
- Smashing Magazine: 50 Beautiful And Creative Portfolio Designs
- Web Designer Depot: The Workstations of Popular Websites
- Smashing Magazine: A Short Story About Back To Top Links
- Crazy Leaf Design: Most Beautiful Websites of 2008
- 1st Web Designer: 46 Sites To Get Inspired And Familiar With Hand Drawing Style
- Web Designer Depot: 10 Characteristics of Excellent Portfolio Sites
- Spoon Graphics: 30 Stylish Examples of Doodles in Web Design
- Design Mag: 101 Awesome Portfolio Sites
- Vandelay Design: 25 Examples of Creative Navigation
- Lee Munroe Blog: 25 Hot Female Web Designers
- We Love WP: Best of September 2008
- Vandelay Design: 25 More Incredibly Artistic Website Designs (Part 3)
- CSS Leak: July’s 15 Best
- CSS Clip: Best of the Year
- Fuel Your Creativity: Typography is Sexy (Part3/Web)
- The Daily Slurp: Site of the Day (August 13, 2008)
- Design Meltdown: Site of the Day (August 13, 2008)
- Hidden Pixels: Ultimate Website Navigations
- 2 Experts: 24 Beautiful Wood Texture Sites
- RGB Garden: Garden of the Week
More Design Gallery Showcases
- Best Web Gallery
- Website Design Awards
- Creattica
- CSS Drive
- Mows SK Awards
- CSS Elite
- Design Shack
- Design Snack
Credits
My photo on this page was taken by a very talented photographer, Ms Lyra Cindy Paires.
Thank yous
First of all, I would like to give my sincerest thank yous to online tutorials and resource sites, the countless efforts of people who provide them; my mom and dad, the rest of my family and friends for all their love and support; my dogs for never failing to cheer me up after a long, busy day; to ClickStream Marketing for making me learn the very skills that I needed. You guys have given me my wings… and all the companies I’ve worked for, for helping me hone my skills and helping me grow as an artist; and last but not the least, to God – the Alpha and the Omega – for the talents he has given me. Without Him, none of these would be possible.
Thinking of having a website built? How about a blog, logo, business card, letterhead, poster, showreel... you name it! Why don't we work together? Write me an email!
Hello there!
My name is Jan Cavan and this is my online portfolio, visual playground and testing ground...
Get to know me more
Twitter Updates
- Create a Realistic Grunge Peeling Sticker in Photoshop
- Ain't this familiar? Tsk, tsk, tsk
- Win 500 Free Business Cards from UPrinting!
- Free Icons: Worn-Out Soda Cans Social Media Icon Pack
- Free Icons: Vintage Postage Stamps Social Media Icon Pack
- Craft a Vintage Postage Stamp in Photoshop
- Create A Cute Vector Octopus in Illustrator with Simple Shapes
- Free Social Media Icons: Old Bottle Crowns Icon Set
- Free Icons: Woven Fabric Social Media Icon Set
- Giveaway: Win Training Videos in Professional Photography Retouching
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