| name | frontend-design |
| description | Create distinctive, production-grade frontend interfaces with high design quality. Generates creative, polished code that avoids generic AI aesthetics. Use when the user asks to build web components, pages, artifacts, posters, or applications, or when any design skill requires project context. |
| license | Apache 2.0. Based on Anthropic's frontend-design skill. See NOTICE.md for attribution. |
This skill guides creation of distinctive, production-grade frontend interfaces that avoid generic "AI slop" aesthetics. Implement real working code with exceptional attention to aesthetic details and creative choices.
Context Gathering Protocol
Design skills produce generic output without project context. You MUST have confirmed design context before doing any design work.
Required context — every design skill needs at minimum:
- Target audience: Who uses this product and in what context?
- Use cases: What jobs are they trying to get done?
- Brand personality/tone: How should the interface feel?
Individual skills may require additional context — check the skill's preparation section for specifics.
CRITICAL: You cannot infer this context by reading the codebase. Code tells you what was built, not who it's for or what it should feel like. Only the creator can provide this context.
Gathering order:
- Check current instructions (instant): If your loaded instructions already contain a Design Context section, proceed immediately.
- Check .impeccable.md (fast): If not in instructions, read
.impeccable.md from the project root. If it exists and contains the required context, proceed.
- Run teach-impeccable (REQUIRED): If neither source has context, you MUST run /teach-impeccable NOW before doing anything else. Do NOT skip this step. Do NOT attempt to infer context from the codebase instead.
Design Direction
Audience-Driven Design (Stakeholder Pages)
When building stakeholder-facing pages (project reports, portfolio presentations, progress sites), consult references/audience-driven-design.md. The core rule: design for the reader's questions, not the builder's pride. Cut engineering metrics (PRs, commits, skill lists, CI details). Show: the problem, how it works (plain English), proof it works (before/after), sample output they can judge, and verification evidence.
Refinement Workflow (critique → animate → polish)
When asked to improve an existing page, consult references/polish-workflow.md. Run critique first to diagnose (through the audience's lens), animate to add scroll-reveals and hover states, polish for spacing/consistency. Apply all three in a single file rewrite for efficiency.
Inline SVG Diagrams
When a page needs architecture, flow, or pipeline diagrams, prefer inline SVG over Excalidraw screenshots or images. Consult references/inline-svg-diagrams.md for construction patterns, style conventions, and responsive handling. Inline SVG matches the page's fonts and colors exactly, renders crisp at any resolution, and requires no third-party assets.
Client-facing visual proposal pages
When the user asks to turn recommendations, copy strategy, product critique, or design feedback into a shareable before/after page, read references/visual-proposal-pages.md. Build a polished static page rather than returning only prose. The page should make the recommendation visible: side-by-side before/after panels, proof strips, diagrams, roadmap, copy translation table, and a final recommended architecture. For Surge delivery, write both index.html and a primary asset file such as styles.css, deploy, then open the production URL and visually verify styling loaded.
Stakeholder progress report sites
When the user asks to present development progress, research results, or project outcomes as a shareable site for stakeholders/investors, read references/stakeholder-report-sites.md. These differ from sales assets: the audience already has context, they want to verify quality and see evidence, not be sold. Lead with proof (sample output, verification data, accuracy metrics), not claims. Key patterns: inline SVG diagrams matching site typography, slide-over panels for full document viewing, details/summary accordions for appendix drill-down, single-hue progress bars (not traffic light colors).
Commit to a BOLD aesthetic direction:
- Purpose: What problem does this interface solve? Who uses it?
- Tone: Pick an extreme: brutally minimal, maximalist chaos, retro-futuristic, organic/natural, luxury/refined, playful/toy-like, editorial/magazine, brutalist/raw, art deco/geometric, soft/pastel, industrial/utilitarian, etc. There are so many flavors to choose from. Use these for inspiration but design one that is true to the aesthetic direction.
- Constraints: Technical requirements (framework, performance, accessibility).
- Differentiation: What makes this UNFORGETTABLE? What's the one thing someone will remember?
CRITICAL: Choose a clear conceptual direction and execute it with precision. Bold maximalism and refined minimalism both work—the key is intentionality, not intensity.
Then implement working code that is:
- Production-grade and functional
- Visually striking and memorable
- Cohesive with a clear aesthetic point-of-view
- Meticulously refined in every detail
Frontend Aesthetics Guidelines
Typography
→ Consult typography reference for scales, pairing, and loading strategies.
Choose fonts that are beautiful, unique, and interesting. Pair a distinctive display font with a refined body font.
DO: Use a modular type scale with fluid sizing (clamp)
DO: Vary font weights and sizes to create clear visual hierarchy
DON'T: Use overused fonts—Inter, Roboto, Arial, Open Sans, system defaults
DON'T: Use monospace typography as lazy shorthand for "technical/developer" vibes
DON'T: Put large icons with rounded corners above every heading—they rarely add value and make sites look templated
Color & Theme
→ Consult color reference for OKLCH, palettes, and dark mode.
Commit to a cohesive palette. Dominant colors with sharp accents outperform timid, evenly-distributed palettes.
DO: Use modern CSS color functions (oklch, color-mix, light-dark) for perceptually uniform, maintainable palettes
DO: Tint your neutrals toward your brand hue—even a subtle hint creates subconscious cohesion
DON'T: Use gray text on colored backgrounds—it looks washed out; use a shade of the background color instead
DON'T: Use pure black (#000) or pure white (#fff)—always tint; pure black/white never appears in nature
DON'T: Use the AI color palette: cyan-on-dark, purple-to-blue gradients, neon accents on dark backgrounds
DON'T: Use gradient text for "impact"—especially on metrics or headings; it's decorative rather than meaningful
DON'T: Default to dark mode with glowing accents—it looks "cool" without requiring actual design decisions
Layout & Space
→ Consult spatial reference for grids, rhythm, and container queries.
Create visual rhythm through varied spacing—not the same padding everywhere. Embrace asymmetry and unexpected compositions. Break the grid intentionally for emphasis.
DO: Create visual rhythm through varied spacing—tight groupings, generous separations
DO: Use fluid spacing with clamp() that breathes on larger screens
DO: Use asymmetry and unexpected compositions; break the grid intentionally for emphasis
DON'T: Wrap everything in cards—not everything needs a container
DON'T: Nest cards inside cards—visual noise, flatten the hierarchy
DON'T: Use identical card grids—same-sized cards with icon + heading + text, repeated endlessly
DON'T: Use the hero metric layout template—big number, small label, supporting stats, gradient accent
DON'T: Center everything—left-aligned text with asymmetric layouts feels more designed
DON'T: Use the same spacing everywhere—without rhythm, layouts feel monotonous
Visual Details
DO: Use intentional, purposeful decorative elements that reinforce brand
DON'T: Use glassmorphism everywhere—blur effects, glass cards, glow borders used decoratively rather than purposefully
DON'T: Use rounded elements with thick colored border on one side—a lazy accent that almost never looks intentional
DON'T: Use sparklines as decoration—tiny charts that look sophisticated but convey nothing meaningful
DON'T: Use rounded rectangles with generic drop shadows—safe, forgettable, could be any AI output
DON'T: Use modals unless there's truly no better alternative—modals are lazy
Motion
→ Consult motion reference for timing, easing, and reduced motion.
Focus on high-impact moments: one well-orchestrated page load with staggered reveals creates more delight than scattered micro-interactions.
DO: Use motion to convey state changes—entrances, exits, feedback
DO: Use exponential easing (ease-out-quart/quint/expo) for natural deceleration
DO: For height animations, use grid-template-rows transitions instead of animating height directly
DON'T: Animate layout properties (width, height, padding, margin)—use transform and opacity only
DON'T: Use bounce or elastic easing—they feel dated and tacky; real objects decelerate smoothly
Interaction
→ Consult interaction reference for forms, focus, and loading patterns.
Make interactions feel fast. Use optimistic UI—update immediately, sync later.
DO: Use progressive disclosure—start simple, reveal sophistication through interaction (basic options first, advanced behind expandable sections; hover states that reveal secondary actions)
DO: Design empty states that teach the interface, not just say "nothing here"
DO: Make every interactive surface feel intentional and responsive
DON'T: Repeat the same information—redundant headers, intros that restate the heading
DON'T: Make every button primary—use ghost buttons, text links, secondary styles; hierarchy matters
Responsive
→ Consult responsive reference for mobile-first, fluid design, and container queries.
DO: Use container queries (@container) for component-level responsiveness
DO: Adapt the interface for different contexts—don't just shrink it
DON'T: Hide critical functionality on mobile—adapt the interface, don't amputate it
UX Writing
→ Consult ux-writing reference for labels, errors, and empty states.
DO: Make every word earn its place
DON'T: Repeat information users can already see
The AI Slop Test
Critical quality check: If you showed this interface to someone and said "AI made this," would they believe you immediately? If yes, that's the problem.
A distinctive interface should make someone ask "how was this made?" not "which AI made this?"
Review the DON'T guidelines above—they are the fingerprints of AI-generated work from 2024-2025.
Implementation Principles
Match implementation complexity to the aesthetic vision. Maximalist designs need elaborate code with extensive animations and effects. Minimalist or refined designs need restraint, precision, and careful attention to spacing, typography, and subtle details.
Interpret creatively and make unexpected choices that feel genuinely designed for the context. No design should be the same. Vary between light and dark themes, different fonts, different aesthetics. NEVER converge on common choices across generations.
Remember: Claude is capable of extraordinary creative work. Don't hold back—show what can truly be created when thinking outside the box and committing fully to a distinctive vision.
