sip and savor

Mobile First Recipe App

2024

Sip and Savor focuses on creating a recipe app designed for busy young professionals who find meal planning and cooking stressful. Unlike many existing apps with cluttered navigation and limited flexibility, this app emphasizes quick, healthy, and easy-to-follow meals. Core features include simple navigation, recipe saving, step-by-step instructions, and smart ingredient substitutions - making cooking faster, easier, and more enjoyable.

Tools Used

Figma

Chat GPT

Pen and Paper

Microsoft office

Solo Project

My role

I led end-to-end product design for Sip and Savor from:

Concept to User Research

Concept to User Research

Flow Mapping to Wireframes

Flow Mapping to Wireframes

Visual Design

Visual Design

Interactive Prototyping

Interactive Prototyping

Problem Statement

The Problem

Busy young professionals find meal planning and cooking time-consuming. Existing solutions add friction rather than removing it.

  • Busy young professionals find meal planning and cooking time-consuming and stressful

  • Meal planning and cooking is time-consuming and stressful

  • Most recipe apps are , not efficient. They lack fast navigation, contextual ingredient swaps, and layouts built for someone cooking on a tight schedule

  • Recipe apps lack fast navigation, contextual ingredient swaps.

The Solution

A mobile-first recipe app that brings up quick, healthy meals and removes every unnecessary step between a user and their next meal.

  • Design a mobile-first recipe app with quick, healthy, easy-to-follow meals for busy professionals

  • Mobile-first recipe app with quick, healthy, easy-to-follow meals

  • Prioritize fast navigation, one-tap recipe saving, clear step-by-step instructions, and smart ingredient substitutions that adapt to what users actually have on hand

  • Fast navigation, one-tap recipe saving, clear step-by-step instructions, and smart ingredient substitutions

Goal Tracking

Budget Visualization

Cross-Platform

Personalized Plans

Target Users

Busy young professionals who cook but need speed and simplicity

Busy young professionals

Core Need

Fast, frictionless access to healthy meals without the overwhelm

Fast, healthy meals

Design Approach

Mobile-first · Iterative testing · Cross-device responsive

Mobile-first · Responsive

Design Thinking Framework

How might we make cooking easier for busy professionals?
Develop

  • Validated layout decisions through rapid low-fidelity testing before committing to high-fidelity design

  • First iteration: Refined layout and revamped onboarding for a smoother entry experience

  • Second iteration: Built scalable UI components, enlarged recipe cards, reduced visual noise, strengthened hierarchy

Deliver

  • Adapted layouts for bottom navigation on tablet and large-screen displays, ensuring a fully responsive cross-device experience

Discover

  • Conducted competitive analysis and user research to identify key pain points in existing recipe apps

  • Created low-fidelity wireframes to map core user flows for browsing, saving, and ingredient substitution

Define

  • Synthesized research findings to define navigation patterns and establish a prioritized feature roadmap aligned with user needs

How might we make cooking easier for busy professionals?
Develop

  • Validated layout decisions through rapid low-fidelity testing before committing to high-fidelity design

  • First iteration: Refined layout and revamped onboarding for a smoother entry experience

  • Second iteration: Built scalable UI components, enlarged recipe cards, reduced visual noise, strengthened hierarchy

Deliver

  • Adapted layouts for bottom navigation on tablet and large-screen displays, ensuring a fully responsive cross-device experience

Discover

  • Conducted competitive analysis and user research to identify key pain points in existing recipe apps

  • Created low-fidelity wireframes to map core user flows for browsing, saving, and ingredient substitution

Define

  • Synthesized research findings to define navigation patterns and establish a prioritized feature roadmap aligned with user needs

How might we make cooking easier for busy professionals?
Develop

  • low-fidelity testing

  • First iteration: refined layout

  • Second iteration: UI components, , strengthened hierarchy

Deliver

  • Adapted layouts for a fully responsive experience

Discover

  • Competitive analysis and user research

  • Low-fidelity wireframes

Define

  • Defined navigation patterns and establish roadmap

5 Ws

HOW

The Approach

Through fast filtering, smart ingredient substitutions, clear step-by-step cook mode, and a saved recipes library all accessible in two taps or less.

Through fast filtering, smart ingredient substitutions, clear step-by-step cook mode,

WHAT

The App

A mobile-first recipe app primarily accessible as a phone app or tablet experience.

A mobile-first responsive recipe app

WHEN

The Moment

Used at home, when the user has limited time and wants to cook something without the overwhelm of searching.

Used at home to cook something without the overwhelm of searching.

WHY

The Need

The app will assist the user to turn cooking from a chore into a confident, enjoyable daily habit.

The app will assist the user to turn cooking into a fast, enjoyable daily habit.

Wh0

The User

Busy young professionals health-conscious, time-poor, and looking for a smarter way to eat well without spending hours planning meals

Busy young professionals health-conscious, time-poor

Jobs to be done

When I get home after a long day, I want to find a quick, healthy recipe using what I already have, so I can cook without wasting time or ingredients.

This core job statement drove the MVP of Sip and Savor. Users aren't looking for culinary inspiration, they're looking for a reliable, fast meal to prepare wit "what's in my fridge".

User Persona

Persona 01

The Busy Professional

Busy
Professional

25–35 · Urban · Full-time job · Cooks 3–4x per week

Persona 02

Persona 02

The Health-Conscious Cook

Health-Conscious
Cook

28–40 · Fitness-aware · Tracks nutrition · Meal preps weekly

Persona 03

Persona 03

The Occasional Explorer

Occasional
Explorer

22 and up · Cooks occasionally · Price-conscious

Name

Name

Lilit

Lilit

Age

Age

45

45

Role

Role

Senior QA Analyst

Senior QA Analyst

Location

Location

Framingham, MA

Framingham, MA

Interests

Interests

Music, Skating

Music, Skating

Platform

Platform

Website

Website

Tablet

Tablet

Mobile App

Mobile App

Motivations

Motivations

Healthy family meals

Healthy family meals

Goals

Goals

Fast, easy recipes

Fast, easy recipes

Likes

Likes

Easiest recipes

Short videos

Appealing names

Easiest recipes

Short videos

Appealing names

Dislikes

Dislikes

Too many scrolling

Bloggers’ text

Too many scrolling

Bloggers’ text

About

About

Lilit is a working mom deeply committed to her carrier and family. She finds her moments of creativity in the kitchen, whipping up quick, delicious meals to keep everyone nourished and happy.

Lilit is a working mom deeply committed to her carrier and family. She finds her moments of creativity in the kitchen, whipping up quick, delicious meals to keep everyone nourished and happy.

Quote

Quote

“If it takes more than 15 min it’s not dinner – it’s a project”.

“If it takes more than 15 min it’s not dinner – it’s a project”.

Name

Name

Ani

Ani

Age

Age

36

36

Role

Role

Molecular Biologist

Molecular Biologist

Location

Location

Stockholm, Sweden

Stockholm, Sweden

Interests

Interests

Music, Skating

Music, Skating

Platform

Platform

Website

Website

Tablet

Tablet

Mobile App

Mobile App

Motivations

Motivations

Picky eater

Budget friendly

Picky eater

Budget friendly

Goals

Goals

Short Recipes

Quick meals

Short Recipes

Quick meals

Likes

Likes

Informative images

Step by step instructions

Informative images

Step by step instructions

Dislikes

Dislikes

Pop up windows

Adds

Pop up windows

Adds

About

About

Ani is a young mom with a very busy schedule. She lives with her partner and her little boy who always keeps them on their toes. Ani is a very picky eater, so it’s hard for her to find options that she will like. She is looking for short and simple recipes that the whole family will like.

Ani is a young mom with a very busy schedule. She lives with her partner and her little boy who always keeps them on their toes. Ani is a very picky eater, so it’s hard for her to find options that she will like. She is looking for short and simple recipes that the whole family will like.

Quote

Quote

I need something simple, and easy to cook and it’s not easy to find recipes for exactly what I am craving

I need something simple, and easy to cook and it’s not easy to find recipes for exactly what I am craving

Name

Name

Armine

Armine

Age

Age

31

31

Role

Role

Marketing Manager

Marketing Manager

Location

Location

Boston, MA

Boston, MA

Interests

Interests

Sports, Gym

Sports, Gym

Platform

Platform

Website

Website

Tablet

Tablet

Mobile App

Mobile App

Motivations

Motivations

Healthy Eating

Healthy Eating

Goals

Goals

Healthy Eating

Healthy Eating

Likes

Likes

Quality images

Engaging videos

Video recipes

Quality images

Engaging videos

Video recipes

Dislikes

Dislikes

Heavy ads

Difficult recipes

Heavy ads

Difficult recipes

About

About

Armine is an active and extroverted young professional. She is always on the move and looks for new adventures to take on with her husband and dog. She is a big hockey enthusiast.

Armine is an active and extroverted young professional. She is always on the move and looks for new adventures to take on with her husband and dog. She is a big hockey enthusiast.

Quote

Quote

“I am a person who enjoys beautiful visual content, so having nice images that go with recipes is going to catch my attention”

“I am a person who enjoys beautiful visual content, so having nice images that go with recipes is going to catch my attention”

User Flow Diagram

The user flow is designed to ensure a seamless and intuitive experience, minimizing friction and maximizing efficiency for busy professionals. Each step in the flow supports the core needs of the target audience

The user flow is designed to ensure efficiency for busy professionals. Each step supports the core needs of the target audience

Style guide

moodboard

Gathered visuals, colors, and textures to capture the overall feel and guide the app's aesthetics . The palette leans warm and approachable.

Logo and icons

The design invites the user to enjoy both food and drink. The gold color at the center adds a touch of sophistication. The logo is fully scalable across screen sizes. All icons were custom-designed to ensure visual consistency throughout the experience.

Component Examples

Color and typography

desiGn evolution.Paper prototype

Explore the Paper Prototype

Low-fidelity wireframes. Usability testing

First-time users

Mobile & Desktop

Task-based testing

I conducted usability testing with low-fidelity wireframes to assess how first-time users navigate the app on mobile and desktop- observing whether users could log in, find a recipe, and interact with key functionalities without guidance.

Testing Scenario

What was tested

  • Sign in and sign up, including SSO via Google and Facebook

  • Browsing by category and finding a specific recipe

  • Applying filters and accessing the recipe card

key observations

  • Navigation flow was intuitive and users completed tasks without prompting

  • Filter interactions needed clearer visual feedback on selected state

outcome

  • Validated core navigation structure before committing to high-fidelity

  • Identified filter UX as a key area to refine in the next iteration

  • Confirmed that step-by-step instructions required a dedicated cook mode

Explore Low Fidelity Prototype

A/b Testing

The goal of this test was to compare two variations of the homepage logo design to determine which version provided better clarity and engagement for users. 11 participants, across the United States, Germany, and Sweden.

Result

Launch page A performed significantly better -with a 95% confidence level that the result is statistically significant and not due to random chance. Version A was adopted as the final design direction before the final iteration round .

Feedback loop. peer testing

Incorporating feedback from users throughout the design process was crucial. Peer testing sessions helped uncover usability issues, validate design decisions, and guide iterations toward a more user-friendly final product.

  • I really like the name of the product. It's very catchy.

  • The gold color is also really nice and gives the recipe app a more regal vibe when paired with the name.

  • I love the desktop version it has more space between items, and the alignments on the menu bar are good. I think it is a good idea to add transparency to the minutes field on the recipe picture, so that it highlights more when the recipe is selected, maybe you can apply that too all the screens.

  • Better to center text in the Buttons

  • Maybe a bit more space between icons will improve usability

  • Like icon maybe too close to the edge

  • Is it necessary to use only bold type?

  • More padding for headline. It's closer to the top bar, but it's related to meals

iterations

Sip & Savor began as my second project, created when I was still learning the fundamentals of design. As my skills grew, I revisited it with two focused redesigns first refining the layout and launch screen, then building scalable components to simplify recipe management and navigation. The result is a more modern, user-friendly app that reflects my growth as a designer.

Hi fidelity screens

Onboarding

Home

Home

Meal

Filters

Search

Recipe card and instructions

Explore the Prototype

Takeaways

What I Learned

The importance of testing- usability testing at every stage would have surfaced issues earlier and reduced rework

To gather valuable feedback, recruit participants who genuinely reflect the target audience through clear user criteria, social media communities, screening surveys, and personal network

Designing Sip & Savor reinforced theat the best design decisions are based on balancing simplicity with functionality.

next steps

Create a personalized meal prep plan feature for a more tailored, goal-driven user experience

Explore AI integration to help users utilize ingredients they already have on hand, reducing waste and decision fatigue

Carry out additional testing to understand how users interact with new features and how intuitive the app is for users outside the primary age group

See all works