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Agent-skills-standard common-ui-design

Design distinctive, production-grade frontend UI with bold aesthetic choices. Use when building web components, pages, interfaces, dashboards, or applications in any framework (React, Next.js, Angular, Vue, HTML/CSS). (triggers: build a page, create a component, design a dashboard, landing page, UI for, build a layout, make it look good, improve the design, build UI, create interface, design screen)

install
source · Clone the upstream repo
git clone https://github.com/HoangNguyen0403/agent-skills-standard
Claude Code · Install into ~/.claude/skills/
T=$(mktemp -d) && git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/HoangNguyen0403/agent-skills-standard "$T" && mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && cp -r "$T/skills/common/common-ui-design" ~/.claude/skills/hoangnguyen0403-agent-skills-standard-common-ui-design-6693b0 && rm -rf "$T"
manifest: skills/common/common-ui-design/SKILL.md
source content

UI Design Direction

Priority: P0 (FOUNDATIONAL)

Before writing any code, commit to deliberate aesthetic direction.

Phase 0: Design Thinking (Mandatory Pre-Code)

Answer these before touching implementation:

  1. Purpose: What problem this UI solve? Who uses it?
  2. Tone: Pick one extreme and commit — brutally minimal | maximalist | retro-futuristic | editorial/magazine | luxury/refined | brutalist/raw | playful/toy-like | organic/natural | art deco | industrial/utilitarian
  3. Differentiation: Name one thing user will remember about this interface.

Bold maximalism and refined minimalism both work — intentionality, not intensity, key.

Aesthetic Dimensions

Typography

  • Pair distinctive display font + refined body font; never default to system fonts.
  • Self-host via 
    next/font
    , 
    @font-face
    , or Google Fonts API — never CDN 
    <link>
    in production.
  • See Font Pairing & Tone Examples

Color & Theme

  • Dominant color + sharp accent > timid, evenly-distributed palettes.
  • Use CSS custom properties (
    --color-primary
    , 
    --color-accent
    ) for consistency.
  • Commit: dark or light — don't default to light because it feels "safe".

Motion

  • One well-orchestrated entrance (staggered reveals, 
    animation-delay
    ) > scattered micro-interactions.
  • CSS-first: 
    @keyframes
    , 
    transition
    , 
    animation-delay
    ; React: Motion library for complex sequences.
  • See Motion Patterns

Spatial Composition

  • Break grid intentionally: asymmetry, overlap, diagonal flow, grid-breaking elements.
  • Generous negative space OR controlled density — never accidental middleground.

Backgrounds & Depth

  • Create atmosphere: gradient meshes, noise textures, layered transparencies, grain overlays.
  • Dramatic shadows and decorative borders should match chosen tone.
  • Solid white/gray backgrounds = missed creative opportunity.

Anti-Patterns

  • No generic font defaults: Inter/Roboto/Arial/system-ui produce forgettable UIs; choose characterful fonts.
  • No purple-gradient-on-white: Most overused AI aesthetic; commit to something context-specific.
  • No scattered animations: One orchestrated entrance beats ten random hover effects.
  • No accidental layouts: Every spacing and positioning decision must serve aesthetic intent.
  • No same aesthetic twice: Vary light/dark, font style, tone — never converge on single style.

References