Nerd Show and Tell: Meet Kelsey Jackson, Designer and Front-End Developer

🎧 Episode Summary: Design Systems, B-Grade Horror, and a Splash of Rum with Kelsey JacksonIn this episode of Nerd Show and Tell, Matt kicks back with Font Awesome’s (now a part of the Web Awesome team) Designer and Front-End Developer, Kelsey Jackson. If you’ve admired how snappy and stylish the Font Awesome site looks lately — yep, that’s Kelsey’s handiwork. From refining a slick internal design system to mixing tiki drinks and geeking out over B-horror classics, this convo serves up career insights and cult movie nerdery with a twist.You'll hear how Kelsey conned "convinced" Dave Gandy to bring him onboard the FA crew, his high school art teacher’s pivotal advice, and why middle-shelf rum might just be the real MVP of mixology. Oh, and if you're into “Killer Klowns from Outer Space,” buckle up.🔍 What We Cover in This Episode🎨 Creating an internal design system that doesn’t suck 🍿 Kelsey’s wishlist for horror-themed icons 🧪 Drawing-to-design transitions and nerdy career pivots 👟 Bourbon, sneakers, and the legend of the Snuggle swag 🍔 Cooking inspo from The Bear and YouTube foodies 🍹 Why expensive rum is a scam (probably)⏱️ Timestamps00:00:16 – Creating an Internal Design System and More 00:02:43 – Kelsey’s Job at Waco Media as Developer/Designer 00:04:28 – Drawing vs. Design: The OG Connection 00:07:29 – Refining Font Awesome’s Design System 00:11:57 – Why Design System Consistency Matters 00:13:27 – Web Components, AI, and the Content Creation Game 00:15:34 – Horror Movie Icon Wishlist 00:17:32 – B-Horror and Bad Job Flashbacks 00:22:07 – Car Wash Reflections + Disaster Relief Vibes 00:27:49 – Bourbon at the Snuggle, Kicks, and Spirits 00:29:47 – Cooking Steak & Mixing Tiki Drinks 00:31:25 – Thoughts on The Bear 00:33:29 – Matty Matheson’s Culinary Comedy 00:35:18 – Resources for Building Design Systems🎤 Noteworthy Quotes 🎨 On Becoming a Designer“If you want to sort of stay connected to the art world and not be broke, you might want to look into design.” — on advice from his high school art teacher🤝 On Meeting Dave Gandy“It's weird how people were just afraid to walk up to the man and introduce themselves, and I was one of the few that did that... I’ve kind of been working that angle up since I met the guy. I wanted to work at Font Awesome.”🛠️ On Building a Design System“A design system is a set of standards to help manage design at scale. It reduces redundancy and creates a shared visual language.”📚 On Learning Design Systems“I just jumped in... I landed on Brad Frost and his Atomic Design, and that helped me figure it out.”🔗 Links & ResourcesAtomic Design by Brad FrostNielsen Norman GroupThe Bear – HuluMatty MathesonKiller Klowns from Outer Space – IMDBSam the Cooking Guy – YouTubeBabish Culinary UniverseJoshua Weissman – YouTubeStay up to date on all the Font Awesomeness!