Blocklock
Description
My first-ever ETH hackathon experience — where I joined a team mid-way and designed BlockLock, a decentralized password manager. While we didn’t win a bounty, our work stood out: we were selected to present onstage as one of the Top 10 out of 60+ teams at ETHDam 2024. Later, we placed Top 5 in the Quadratic Funding round, receiving 18,454 community votes.
Client
Project
Presenting Blocklock onstage on the final day of the ETHDam hackathon in Amsterdam.
Why a Decentralized Password Manager?
Problem
Traditional password managers are centralized honeypots. The 2022 LastPass breach exposed data from over 30 million users. At the same time, Web3 users face increasing friction managing credentials securely across dApps.
Hypothesis
Could we combine the UX smoothness of Chrome’s built-in autofill with the cryptographic guarantees of on-chain storage?
Challenge
Design a password manager that feels familiar to Web2 users, while staying trustless, permissionless, and user-sovereign.
Our Goal
Minimize trust assumptions
Eliminate central points of failure
Offer native crypto interactions (e.g., wallet signatures) in a non-technical, friendly way
Stand out visually in a sea of “techy-blue” products
My Role & Design Process
Team Formation & Kickoff
I joined the team mid-hackathon through the ETHDam speed-dating session. The developers had a compelling prototype idea — BlockLock — but no designer. I jumped in as the sole designer to help shape both product and brand.
UX/UI Design
Sketched quick wireframes referencing Chrome’s password prompt and 1Password’s inline menu
Designed primary flows:
Inline password prompt when a user hits a password field
Save on-chain interaction with MetaMask
Feedback UI: progress loaders, estimated time, and confirmation messages
Management dashboard: update, delete, share credentials
Created a dark, minimal UI with highlights of turquoise — signaling clarity and safety
Design Highlights
Inline Interaction: UI sits inside the form itself, no modal disruption
CTA transforms dynamically from “Save on-chain” to “Processing…” after signature
Subtle microcopy below menu shows time estimate and adds trust
Vault logic designed around domain-specific keys — no need for manual folder structures
Branding & Visual Design
Designed the logo using Diamond Grote, chosen for its keyhole-like ink traps
Created a unique turquoise palette to move away from cold, fintech blues
Animated the logo reveal in After Effects for the live on-stage demo
Marketing Site
Designed and built a single-page website in Framer, complete with:
Problem framing
Demo video
Team section
On-chain storage explainer
All done within the 36-hour hackathon timeframe
Results, Feedback & Learnings
Recognition
Selected as one of Top 10 teams out of 60+ at ETHDam 2024
Presented live on stage to judges and participants
Ranked Top 5 in the Quadratic Funding round, receiving 18,454 votes
Key Takeaways
Design can build trust faster than whitepapers — especially in Web3
Designing in-line, minimal interactions makes unfamiliar flows (like MetaMask popups) feel native
Great brand design pays off: many attendees remembered us as “that turquoise password tool”
Collaborating with engineers in real-time pushed me to prototype faster than usual — focusing more on clarity than perfection
Do check out the video demo
I have written a thorough blog post on Little Nice Thing's substack: READ HERE
Also checkout the live presentation 👇
Curious to See the Real Work?
See how I actually design — not just the pretty screens. Book a walkthrough of my Figma files, UX flows, and strategic thinking.
