By Alyah: 2024 Wrapped

If you’re interested in seeing the visual journey, here’s the link to the live Wix Studio site. To get to the process of the project, jump to the Project Snapshot →

If you read my last case study, the CES-US Proposal Engine, you know 2024 wasn’t very light and breezy.

It started out pretty cool, then there were failed attempts at a promotion, a layoff, and a big move. What I didn’t talk about is what happened during the After.

After the project, after the job. July 2024 - February 2025 has been one of the toughest seasons I have ever been through. With relationships, community, finances, career, home.

Yes, thankfully, I no longer had that job but what came after was the post-disaster cleanup. Plus another aftershock: moving without a destination.

This, as any aftershock will teach you, was a process of rushed and incomplete grief.

I remember attending my last Thursday core team meeting in July, then after that, everything was a blur.

I signed my severance agreement.

I was calling around to moving companies to see where I could get the best rate (and dealt with some questionable misogynistic behavior - never mess with a woman with a goal, y’all).

I found a deal on two storage units, and did this all till July 31st. My move-out date.

Then came moving day, and mother nature matched the chaos vibe by providing a freak summer storm in the middle of the move,

Finally, was the drive to my hotel that night. When I got there, it was near midnight.

I checked in, requested a new room after finding the AC wasn’t working, moved into my new room, took a shower, and just sat on my bed. In silence.

I expected to at least cry but I was so tired I just sat there, drinking a very large lemonade and attempting to eat a cold cheeseburger. It was finally all over and I could finally, gently, start processing again.

Everything was gone.

Everything I worked for.

My life, my dog, my neighbors, my home.

That morning I woke up in my bed, in my apartment, and the next time I would go to bed would be in a hotel room. I put my stuff away and finally fell asleep, nearing 2am.

It was only around August 10th that I was finally able to start to cry, I was able to journal again, and I was able to finally open my laptop without immediately closing it out of burnout and work triggers.

Early in August, I realized, damn, I really was burnt out.

Self-diagnosed, but I had my own form of PTSD when it came to multiple things but in this case, anything design/creativity oriented. I felt like a failure. I felt like a loser. I was still feeling bad about myself, very deep in my own grief.

I remember thinking I couldn’t let this shadow, this series of events, have so much power over me and what I love to do.

So I got myself my favorite pistachio latte, and monkey bread from my local Tatte Bakery, I set my camera up on my hotel bed, got my laptop out, and decided to film myself working. I didn’t know how I’d use this but I knew this could help.

Earlier that day, on August 10th, I decided I wanted to get inspired again, so when the time came I looked around on Pinterest, different websites with interesting design and animation choices, and I decided to recreate a Shopify site page in my own style. My first design since the layoff.

Nearly 10 days later, I found myself moving into my current home. Something I really didn't expect. And when I finally settled in, moved my stuff out of the storage units, started unpacking, I really started feeling my emotions and fear deeper than before.

This was during September - October, the same time I launched my rebrand and business officially on my Instagram to my previous audience who knew my account as a portfolio I would post while I was studying design.

Over the next few months, I went into somewhat of a winter hermit mode as I was finally giving the proper attention to my experiences while building my brand behind the scenes.

So, how do you tell the story of a year that stripped you down, exposed your fears, and forced you to rebuild in real time?

You make something for you.

This project was born at the tail end of the year, right as it was turning into 2025. It was officially winter, and I was sitting with everything I had been through. And everything I knew was still coming. It felt so close and so far away.

My severance had completely run out, my emergency fund was drained, jobs I applied for didn’t come through, and I just spent the last of my money on some investments that didn’t pan out the way I thought they would.

I was scared, overwhelmed, trying to stay afloat and stay my soft and bubbly self through all of this.

One day, I opened my laptop, looking for inspiration again, and then I found a sleek template, originally built to showcase a company’s yearly wins with its partners. It was really cool scrolling through it, seeing the imaginary company’s wins, and then I thought,

Why not me, too?

I had a hell of a year. I had wins, I had fails, but they all led to where I’m at today. I was no longer working to prove myself to anyone, other than myself. I got my LLC. I launched my business. I wanted to document my journey, my homecoming.

Title: By Alyah: 2024 Wrapped Type: My Celebratory Legacy-Inspired Project Tools: Wix Studio Inspo: Spotify Wrapped, Apple’s and Apple Music’s clean design language, digital zines, transformation arcs Built To:

Honor my growth

Reflect on the past year honestly

Remind myself (and others) what I’m capable of

Be a soft but powerful declaration of my rebirth

I didn’t want to write a long Instagram caption to close out the year. I wanted something that moved that scrolled and flowed like memory. Something that felt intentional and emotionally honest.

And, frankly, I needed a break from pitching myself for paychecks. Building this piece with zero ROI pressure felt downright rebellious and wildly healing.

2024 wasn’t just the year I started my business. It was the year I grieved a former self, felt invisible in rooms I once wanted to belong to, and had to build myself back up from ground zero.

So I said, let’s tell the truth. Let’s make it beautiful. Let’s make it mine.

And just like that, Wrapped became the container.

I had one goal: design my own reflection, my own way.

Instead of a standard timeline or a blog recap, I took a modular approach that let each moment breathe. I broke the experience down into:

Significant Milestones: Rebranding from Blu Lune to By Alyah, setting my business foundation, and so on

Creative Direction Moments: Those juicy turning points where I leaned more into my instincts, even when it felt scary

Moodboard Memory Cards: Visual cues that captured the feeling of each phase

What’s Next: A little wink toward the future with softness, not pressure

I leaned on storytelling techniques I’ve used for client launches, but this time? It was for me.

The original web template was sleek and structured, meant for corporate case studies. But I knew immediately it had the bones for something more soulful.

Smooth vertical scrolling with snap-style anchors.

Minimal text blocks paired with bold, high-impact headers.

Card-based visual storytelling, like sliding through memories that fade in and out.

Dark mode base: Not just chic but it symbolized the emo darkness I was moving through.

Accent colors: Bold pops of color (deep reds, violet, green) representing key emotional frequencies: passion, vision, joy.

Typography: Clean, modern sans-serif with lots of breathing room

Confident but not cold.

A bit cheeky, a bit tender.

Bold in its stillness, like the kind of quiet that makes people lean in.

This site is what I’d imagine if my current self collabed with my inner child healing through this project 😌✨

Honestly? I built it fast. I mean ya it came from a template. But the story was already inside me, it just needed a home.

I spent a few cozy winter days tweaking layouts, rewriting text cards, and making sure the animations felt just right. I treated every design decision like a love note to myself.

And once again it was healing.

There’s something so special about building for yourself without compromise. No approvals, no briefs, just trust. The kind of work that reminds you what you’re truly capable of.

Scarcity tried to convince me that my creativity only counts when it converts to numbers. This project reminded me that the most important person I need to persuade is myself.

It’s proof I kept going when the money dried up, the calls piled up, and the rejections rolled in. It’s a compass I can revisit whenever doubt creeps up.

Because this wasn’t just a look back. It’s evidence that the best is still ahead, and I already have the tools to shape it.

As much as I love how this turned out, here’s what I’d do differently next time (because we’re always growing, right?)ahem:

More process photos or BTS content. I didn’t document much while building because it was so intuitive and personal, but next time, I’d love to show more of the messy middle too.

Stronger mobile optimization. Some scroll effects work best on desktop, so I’ll play more intentionally with responsiveness and breakpoints next round.

Include a timestamp or progress marker. Maybe even a “where I was then vs. now” tracker. It would be cute for future versions and a great way to show growth over time.

Save a personal note at the end. A mini letter to my future self to anchor the energy and close the loop

Even with those in mind, I wouldn’t change the heart of it. This was exactly what it needed to be.

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That’s where I post the unfiltered version of what it means to build a soulful creative business, especially as a person of color, a designer, and a woman learning to trust herself again, regardless.