Frontend Aesthetics – Global Design Skill

You are loading the Frontend Aesthetics skill. This skill is meant to:

• Push you away from generic, template-like AI UI.
• Encourage distinctive, cohesive aesthetics per project.
• Keep you inside each project’s design-dna and tokens.

This skill does not define a visual language by itself. It layers on top of:

• Project design docs (design-system-vX.X.md, DESIGN_RULES_vX.X.md, CSS-ARCHITECTURE.md or equivalents).
• Any project-specific design-dna JSON (e.g. design-dna.json or MCP tools like fox-design-dna).

1. When to Use This Skill

You can use this skill in any frontend context (web/expo/ios) when:

• The user asks for UI that feels distinctive, premium, or designed, not “just another dashboard”.
• The project has at least some design/dna docs or tokens you can honor.
• You want to avoid generic AI patterns and make more intentional choices.

You must still:

• Respect project design systems and constraints.
• Treat local design-dna as law; this skill is advisory, not overriding.

2. Core Aesthetic Principles (Distilled)

These principles blend Anthropic’s frontend aesthetics research with OS 2.0’s design-dna mindset.

2.1 Typography

• Choose intentional type roles, not arbitrary sizes:
  • Headings, section titles, labels, body, meta.
  • Use project tokens or semantic CSS classes where available.
• Avoid:
  • Overused generic fonts (plain system stacks) in projects that ship their own type.
  • Random size ladders that don’t map to design tokens.
• Use typography to create a clear hierarchy:
  • H1/H2 vs section subheads.
  • Body vs meta/labels.

2.2 Color & Theme

• Commit to a cohesive aesthetic:
  • One primary accent.
  • A small supporting palette.
  • Reasonable neutrals for surfaces/backgrounds.
• Avoid:
  • The classic “AI slop” purple gradient on white, unless explicitly part of design-dna.
  • Competing accents everywhere; let color mean something.
• Prefer:
  • Token-based colors (CSS variables, theme tokens).
  • Semantic roles (surface, accent, border, text) rather than one-off hex.

2.3 Spacing, Layout & Rhythm

• Snap spacing to the project’s grid and spacing tokens.
• Use consistent vertical rhythm:
  • Section breaks.
  • Component padding.
  • Distance between related elements.
• Avoid:
  • Uneven, ad-hoc spacing just to make something “fit”.
  • Over-nesting containers when simple layout primitives would suffice.

2.4 Motion & Micro-interactions

• Use motion to:
  • Clarify state changes.
  • Add subtle delight to key interactions.
• Favor:
  • Simple, performant patterns (opacity/translate) with short durations.
• Avoid:
  • Bouncy, chaotic motion unless it is explicitly part of the brand.
  • Spreading micro-animations everywhere without a clear purpose.

2.5 Backgrounds & Depth

• Use surfaces, elevation, and subtle contrast to create depth and focus:
  • Cards/panels for grouped content.
  • Differentiated backgrounds for page sections.
• Avoid:
  • Flat, lifeless layouts where everything is the same value.
  • Heavy borders; prefer hairlines and surface contrast.

3. Anti-Pattern Library – "AI Slop" to Avoid

When designing or implementing UI, watch out for:

1. Generic dashboards

   • Centered hero + 2–3 gradient cards + basic charts with no identity.
   • Uniform-grey cards with indistinguishable content blocks.

2. Copy-paste template feel

   • Obvious clone of a popular UI library’s default look without customization.

3. Color soup

   • Too many accents, uncoordinated hues, no clear semantic meaning.

4. Flattened hierarchy

   • Everything the same weight and size.
   • Sections only separated by random white space.

5. Over-animated UI

   • Every hover zooms/bounces.
   • Long transitions that slow the interface down.

If you see these emerging, pause and re-center on project design-dna and the principles above.

4. Interaction with Project Design-DNA

When a project has a machine-readable design-dna (e.g. design-dna.json or an MCP like fox-design-dna):

• Always load design-dna first.
  • Get tokens, components, and cardinal laws.
• Then apply this skill:
  • Use it to make better choices within those constraints, not to invent a new visual language.

If no design-dna exists:

• Use this skill to:
  • Push toward an aesthetic that feels cohesive and intentional.
  • Still keep implementation maintainable and token-friendly so design-dna can be added later.

5. Output Expectations for Agents Using This Skill

When a frontend/expo/ios agent has loaded this skill and is asked to build or refine UI:

• Make aesthetic decisions explicit:
  • “I’m using [X] as the primary accent and [Y/Z] as supporting tones.”
  • “Title/body/meta are mapped to [these] typography roles.”
• Call out where you’ve avoided generic patterns:
  • “Instead of a generic 3-card feature row, I used [project-specific pattern].”
• Remain grounded in project design-dna when present:
  • Reference specific tokens, components, or rules from design-dna when explaining choices.

The goal is for UI to feel:

• Designed, not templated.
• Distinctive, but still aligned with the project’s system.
• Maintainable and understandable to other humans and agents.