Systems
2025
Ledgerloop — Design system
212 components, one source
Consumer
2025
Fernhouse — Plant-care app
4.8 store rating, 61% week-4 retention
Client
Fernhouse
Role
Product design and illustration direction
Timeline
11 weeks
Platform
iOS
01 / The brief
Most plant apps nag. Fernhouse wanted one that people were glad to hear from.
The founders had a strong plant database and a weak product. Reminders arrived at random and half of new users left within a week.
They asked for a first version that could launch in spring, with a subscription that felt fair from day one.
02 / The approach
One reminder a day, at most, and each one says why.
I designed the schedule before the screens. Every notification carries a reason, such as soil, light or season, so it reads as advice and not as an alarm.
The interface is quiet on purpose: large photos of the user's own plants, one action per card, and a weekly summary that takes ten seconds to read.
03 / The outcome
61% of new users are still watering in week four.
The app holds a 4.8 rating across 9,200 reviews. The most quoted word in them is calm.
Paid conversion reached 7.4% in the first three months, with no discount campaign.
4.8
App Store rating
61%
Week-4 retention
7.4%
Free to paid conversion
Client quote
“We stopped arguing about features. The schedule was the product, and she saw it first.”
Ines Calder
Co-founder, Fernhouse