Okay, before you get the wrong idea:  Andrea Mignolo does not literally design for beer. (Not anymore, anyway.)

She is not hurting for clients, nor does she work cheap. If you want her to design your web site or software front end, it will cost you way more than a case of some amber-bottled beverage.

The beer reference is just a line on her website (which she no doubt regrets by now).  “If the project is right, I’ve also been known to work for beer. Good beer.”

It’s simply Andrea’s way of saying she loves design.  She aches to do it.

Which is precisely why she ended up a freelance.

Her story. After a few years doing design and sysadmin work for Free Speech TV, Andrea moved with her husband to Japan, where she took a job teaching English to executives at Japanese corporations like Yamaha and Suzuki. She was, apparently, masterful at it.

But to pass the time on the long drives between company campuses — long drives on the left side of the road, no less — she took to listening to podcasts on design.

After a while, the siren call of design got to her. She itched to get elbow-deep into front ends and interfaces again. But in Japan, design jobs for expatriate English teachers were scarce.

So, with her husband’s encouragement she quit the itinerant English teaching and created her own design job, internationally.

From Japan, she began chasing freelance work for clients back in the States and the UK.

By the time she relocated to Vancouver, B.C, she was 100% freelance, 100% busy.  And loving it.

She has now moved 3,170 miles to New York, and is still 100% busy. Still loving it.  (And understandably, after the wrong-side-of-the-road driving thing, finds safer ways to get around. )

I chased her down for an interview. This is what she said.

Your work? Your clients?

AM: My typical freelance work ranges from discovery and wireframing to visual design to front-end implementation and CMS integration. Clients tend to be small companies, artists, non-profits, and individuals, with a good balance of repeat clients and new ones (the ongoing clients are great for cash flow).

I’m also working full-time for East Media in NYC, a kick-ass Rails team that can implement anything we or anybody can dream up.

What do you like about the freelance life?

AM:  It’s the independence and the ability to work from anywhere, be it my couch or another country.

There is a strong sense of accomplishment and ownership in freelance work  successes (and failures) are directly yours and reflect the effort and focus you’ve put in.

Everything that has happened (or hasn’t) is because of my own merits and shortcomings, and gives me the perspective analyze both sides of the spectrum and adjust accordingly.

The parenthetical nod to failures or non-happenings was thrown in because I like that side of freelance as well; it’s a litmus test to show howfar you’ve come, and how far you need to go.

If you aren’t failing, you aren’t reaching far enough.

Of all the avenues you’ve tried, what has been most productive in landing work?

AM: Mostly, word of mouth. Doing good work and making clients happy begets more clients.  In the last year 90% of my work has come from referrals from previous clients, and 10% through my website.

Getting out and meeting people, not in a schmoozy false way, but genuinely connecting with people in your industry, and people in general, is a good way to lay some groundwork and get your name out there.

Frustrations? Challenges?

AM: Managing both work and cash flow.  When you are taking on client projects that range in timeline and price, payments come in irregular bursts so you have to make sure you’ve balanced and budgeted correctly.

The most difficult thing is taking time off.  It’s hard for me to stop working. If my laptop is in view it’s tempting to just do a little more work (and I often do).

Which segues into another difficult aspect of freelance: the ability to say no — either to projects that aren’t a good fit, or that can’t fit on top of my workload, no matter how awesome of a project it might be.

Best type of client?

AM:  The most enjoyable client is one that is excited about the project and can put their trust in you to do the job.

Clients that think they know best and try to micro-manage every stage of the project are more difficult, but are good because they are clearly invested.

The most difficult client is one that doesn’t really care one way or the other, and can’t be bothered to be involved in the project.  Sometimes you can tell which are which before the project kicks off, and sometimes you are knee-deep before you realize what is going on.

Your ultimate career fantasy?

AM:  My holy grails: to design and develop a product that could be a long-term source of income.  And to to teach.  Write a book.

You have worked in Japan, Vancouver, New York. How has location affected your freelance potential?

AM:  Overall I’ve found location hasn’t been an issue when working, though there are clients who prefer being able to have face-to-face or in-office workdays with freelancers.  Some of my Vancouver-based freelancing will come to an end, but other than that, things should stay pretty much the same.

You have a flair for photography. Have you ever considered that as an income source? As part of your freelance repertoire?

AM: Photography is just something I do for fun.  I’ve pretty much ditched my SLR for my iPhone with a couple of filter apps.  I love snapping photos with the iPhone because it’s both discreet and basic; I’m unencumbered by the form factor and the simplicity/convenience keeps me from over-thinking a shot.  I see something, I take a picture.

More Andrea Mignolo:

Her design site:  AndreaMignolo.com

Her blog, Protocol 7

On Twitter, she is pnts.

Her free downloadable WordPress Themes:  Oulipo,  Ocular Professor, Zack 990, Hanami.

And for Tumblr: Wakalixes

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Post-game commentary

- What Andrea Mignolo does — about as well as anyone I’ve seen — is  come across as supremely competent in the nitty-gritty of her craft, while still infusing everything with personality.

She talks stuff like CMS integration and javascript, while mentioning she’s fond of windmills. You see someone who knows the intricacies and technology, and incidentally, someone you like.

It is devilishly hard to strike this balance, especially if you’re calculating it.

I’m guessing — and only guessing — that Andrea pulled this off simply because she isn’t trying to.  She is being herself.  I’m reluctant to recommend this, because it is so easy to screw it up.  But Andrea doesn’t.

- Andrea puts stuff out there. As of this afternoon, her free WordPress themes have been downloaded some 43,264 times. Is that huge for WordPress themes?  I have no idea. The point is, they are out there, with her name on them.  And every one, somehow, looks and feels exactly like Andrea Mignolo.  There is no mistaking her stuff for someone else’s.

- Andrea also puts herself out there, in person. The web, Twitter and LinkedIn can’t come close to getting out there in person, where the people are. Face-to-face is so retro, but it sure works.  Andrea gets that.

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