| name | horizenlabs-design-system |
| description | Design system for the Horizen Labs company website (www.horizenlabs.io). Use this skill whenever building UI, components, pages, or layouts for Horizen Labs — including when the user mentions Horizen Labs, hl- tokens, horizenlabs.io, or needs to create institutional/technical UI following Horizen Labs' navy/teal/magenta brand with sharp corners. Also use when the user references horizenlabs-design-system.html or asks about Horizen Labs design tokens, typography (Azeret Mono, Roboto), component patterns, or the sharp-corner design philosophy. |
Horizen Labs Design System
1. Brand Identity
Company: Horizen Labs — developer company building blockchain infrastructure (NOT the Horizen protocol).
Tagline: "Building the Infrastructure of the Verifiable Web"
Style: Sharp, institutional, monospace-driven. Navy/teal dominance, no rounded corners.
Surfaces: Almost entirely light mode (~100%) — white/grey-light default. Dark (navy) ONLY for nav CTA, modal overlays, drawers, rare dark cards.
Target: www.horizenlabs.io
Source: Figma "HL WEB 2.0" (4vyFlIPGnd66tBXk764WXA)
Visual Reference: horizenlabs-design-system.html — all 33 sections rendered
2. Quick Color Reference
| Token | Hex | Usage |
|---|
--hl-navy | #041742 | Primary brand, text, dark accents |
--hl-teal | #4CDFDD | Accent, borders, highlights |
--hl-teal-text | #00C0BD | Teal text for links and emphasis |
--hl-white | #FFFFFF | Page backgrounds |
--hl-grey | #BABDC3 | Secondary text, borders |
--hl-grey-light | #F5F6F8 | Alt section backgrounds, inputs |
--hl-magenta | #F251EA | Accent, highlights, special CTAs |
Full color tables (semantic, status, extended 50-900 scales, gradients) in references/tokens.md.
3. Typography Overview
- Headings: Azeret Mono, 700 Bold (monospace, technical feel)
- Body/UI: Roboto, 400/500/600/700 weights
- CTAs, nav links, badges, labels: ALWAYS uppercase with wide letter-spacing (2.4-3.8px)
Full type scale in references/tokens.md.
4. Key Design Rules
- Always use CSS custom properties (
--hl-*) for all colors, spacing, typography, shadows, transitions.
- Almost entirely light mode (~100%) — white/grey-light default. Dark (navy) ONLY for nav CTA, modal overlays, drawers, rare dark cards.
- EVERYTHING sharp-cornered —
border-radius: 0 on buttons, cards, inputs, badges, modals, avatars. This is THE core brand distinction.
- CTAs, nav links, badges, labels are ALWAYS uppercase with letter-spacing (2.4-3.8px).
- Headings: Azeret Mono. Body: Roboto. Never swap them.
- Footer uses teal background (not dark like other brands).
- Cards hover with three-part effect — lift (
translateY) + shadow escalation + gradient border reveal. See references/polish.md.
- Alerts use left-border style — 4px solid left border, status color bg at 12%.
- Link buttons use square arrow-box icons — 25x25px, 2px border, 45-degree chevron.
- Nav CTA is an integrated navy block — not a standard button.
- Gradient accent bar at top of every page — 3px magenta→teal, fixed position. Footer mirrors it.
- Frosted glass navbar —
rgba(255,255,255,0.85) + backdrop-filter: blur(20px), sits below accent bar.
- Button/card hover always lifts —
translateY(-2px) buttons, -4px to -6px cards, with shadow escalation.
- Background patterns on hero/feature sections — grid lines or dot patterns, always with radial mask fade.
- Ambient glow blobs on hero sections — large blurred teal/magenta circles, max 2 per section.
Full V2 polish patterns in references/polish.md.
5. Spacing
Custom scale (not strict 8px grid). All spacing uses --hl-space-* tokens.
| Token | Value | Token | Value |
|---|
--hl-space-1 | 4px | --hl-space-10 | 40px |
--hl-space-2 | 8px | --hl-space-12 | 50px |
--hl-space-3 | 10px | --hl-space-14 | 60px |
--hl-space-4 | 12px | --hl-space-16 | 80px |
--hl-space-5 | 16px | --hl-space-20 | 100px |
--hl-space-6 | 20px | --hl-space-24 | 120px |
--hl-space-8 | 25px | --hl-space-28 | 150px |
| | --hl-space-32 | 200px |
Section padding: 150px 100px large desktop, 80px 40px tablet, 40px 20px mobile.
6. Border Radius
| Token | Value | Usage |
|---|
--hl-radius-none | 0px | DEFAULT for everything |
--hl-radius-sm | 2px | Rare, subtle rounding |
--hl-radius-md | 4px | Occasional, minor elements |
KEY RULE: Everything defaults to 0. Sharp corners are the core brand identity. Never use border-radius: 9999px or large radii.
7. Layout Patterns
Page structure:
- Light surfaces ~100% (white
--hl-white, grey-light --hl-grey-light)
- Teal footer background
- Dark (navy) only for nav CTA, overlays, rare accent cards
- Gradient CTAs are rare and reserved for special emphasis
Container: max-width: 1440px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 0 100px (20px mobile).
Grid: CSS Grid, responsive collapse.
desktop: repeat(12, 1fr), gap: 30px
tablet: repeat(6, 1fr), gap: 20px
mobile: 1fr, gap: 16px
Section padding (responsive):
large desktop: 150px 100px
desktop: 100px 60px
tablet: 80px 40px
mobile: 40px 20px
8. Responsive Breakpoints
| Name | Min-width | Typical use |
|---|
| Mobile | 0 | Single column, stacked |
sm | 640px | Small adjustments |
md | 768px | Tablet, 2-col grid |
lg | 1024px | Desktop nav, 3-col |
xl | 1280px | Full desktop layout |
2xl | 1536px | Large screens |
9. Z-Index Scale
| Token | Value | Usage |
|---|
--hl-z-dropdown | 100 | Dropdowns, popovers |
--hl-z-sticky | 150 | Sticky headers |
--hl-z-nav | 200 | Navigation |
--hl-z-overlay | 300 | Overlays, backdrops |
--hl-z-modal | 400 | Modals, drawers |
--hl-z-toast | 500 | Toasts, notifications |
--hl-z-tooltip | 600 | Tooltips |
10. Transitions & Animation
| Token | Value |
|---|
--hl-transition-fast | 150ms ease |
--hl-transition-normal | all 0.3s ease |
--hl-transition-slow | 500ms ease |
--hl-transition-border | 0.4s ease |
Key animations:
fadeIn — opacity 0 to 1, 300ms
slideUp — translateY(20px) to 0, 300ms
slideDown — translateY(-20px) to 0, 300ms
log-blink — teal bg pulse, 0.6s, 3 repetitions
pulse-text — opacity 1→0.4→1, 2s infinite (processing labels)
V2 Polish interactions (see references/polish.md):
- Button hover:
translateY(-2px) + shadow lift
- Card hover:
translateY(-4px to -6px) + shadow escalation + gradient border reveal
- Border reveals:
0.4s ease (staggered behind the faster card lift)
11. Accessibility
- Color contrast: WCAG 2.1 AA minimum (4.5:1 text, 3:1 large/UI)
- Focus visible:
outline: 2px solid var(--hl-teal); outline-offset: 2px
- Keyboard navigable: all interactive elements reachable via Tab
- ARIA labels on icon-only buttons
prefers-reduced-motion: reduce — disable animations, use opacity-only transitions
- Semantic HTML: proper heading hierarchy, landmarks, lists
- Skip navigation link
- Touch targets: 44x44px minimum
12. Key Differences from Horizen (Protocol)
| Aspect | Horizen Labs (this system) | Horizen Protocol |
|---|
| Entity | Developer company | Blockchain protocol |
| URL | horizenlabs.io | horizen.io |
| Token prefix | --hl-* | --hz-* |
| Primary palette | Navy / Teal / Magenta | Yellow / Black / Blue |
| Headings font | Azeret Mono (monospace) | Funnel Display |
| Body font | Roboto | Proxima Nova |
| Border radius | 0 — sharp corners everywhere | Pill buttons (9999px), 12px cards |
| Surface split | ~100% light | ~80% light, ~20% dark |
| Footer bg | Teal | Dark (black) |
| Card hover | Teal-light background | Shadow-based |
| Button shape | Sharp rectangle | Pill (9999px) |
| Alert style | Left-border (4px solid) | Standard rounded |
| Nav style | White bg, integrated navy CTA block | Dark bg |
| Text treatment | Uppercase + wide letter-spacing on CTAs/nav/badges | Standard casing |
13. Reference Pointers
| File | Contents |
|---|
references/tokens.md | Full color tables (brand, semantic, status, extended 50-900 scales, gradients), typography scale, spacing tokens, shadows, glow tokens, opacity scale, transitions |
references/components.md | Buttons (with hover lift), cards (with three-part hover), modals, navigation (frosted glass), forms, alerts, badges, toasts, tables, unique HL patterns, Web3 components, icons & illustrations |
references/polish.md | V2 visual polish: gradient accent bar, frosted glass navbar, card/button hover animations, ambient glows, background patterns (grid/dot), glow blobs, gradient text, section labels, micro-animations, dark section treatment, color-coded meaning, responsive clamp values, polish checklist |
references/mobile-ux.md | Mobile nav, typography scale, buttons, cards, forms, bottom sheets, tables, spacing, gestures, safe areas, performance, bottom nav bar, toasts, loading, search, orientation, sticky headers, accessibility, FAB, AI agent interface, Web3 mobile patterns |
horizenlabs-design-system.html | Visual HTML reference (33 sections) |
14. HTML Reference Sections
| # | Section | Key Components |
|---|
| 1 | Brand Colors | Primary, semantic, status swatches |
| 2 | Extended Color Palette | Teal, Navy, Magenta 50-900 scales |
| 3 | Gradients | Brand, brand-reverse gradients |
| 4 | Typography Scale | All heading/body/subheading styles |
| 5 | Spacing System | 4px-200px visual tokens |
| 6 | Shadow Elevation | 4 shadow levels rendered |
| 7 | Border Radius | none, sm, md examples |
| 8 | Buttons — Primary & Secondary | Sharp rectangle, all states |
| 9 | Buttons — Teal & Ghost | Teal fill, ghost outline variants |
| 10 | Buttons — Link & Arrow Box | Link with arrow-box pattern |
| 11 | Cards — Standard & Grey | White/grey bg, teal-light hover |
| 12 | Cards — Teal & Dark | Teal-border and navy bg variants |
| 13 | Cards — Expertise & Blog | 330px expertise, borderless blog |
| 14 | Cards — Research & Horizontal | Research horizontal layout |
| 15 | Navigation | White bg, uppercase links, navy CTA block |
| 16 | Mobile Navigation | Fullscreen navy overlay |
| 17 | Form Inputs | Text, select, textarea, sharp corners |
| 18 | Newsletter Combo | Input + button combo pattern |
| 19 | Alerts | Left-border style, 4 status variants |
| 20 | Badges | Sharp, uppercase, 6 variants |
| 21 | Modals | Sharp corners, navy overlay |
| 22 | Toasts | Navy bg, sharp, uppercase |
| 23 | Tables | Teal header underline, teal-light hover |
| 24 | Numbered List Items | Grey-light bg, "01"/"02" format |
| 25 | Left-Border Tabs | 6px border, teal active |
| 26 | Accordion | Azeret Mono, + to x rotation |
| 27 | Wallet Connection Modal | 36x36 icon box, teal hover |
| 28 | Transaction Modals | Pending, success, error states |
| 29 | Network Badge & Address | Sharp badge, Azeret Mono address |
| 30 | Avatars | SHARP SQUARE, navy bg, initials |
| 31 | Footer | Teal background, multi-column |
| 32 | Stats & Testimonials | Large numbers, quote cards |
| 33 | Icons & Illustrations | 44 icons, 29 illustrations, SVG sprites |
15. File Reference
| File | Purpose |
|---|
SKILL.md | This file — main guide, quick reference, rules |
references/tokens.md | Full design token tables |
references/components.md | Component patterns and specs |
references/mobile-ux.md | Mobile UX patterns and responsive behavior |
horizenlabs-design-system.html | Visual HTML reference (33 sections) |