Scaffold design/ for the frontend's first design contract, extracted as-built from index.html (document-as-is): - DESIGN.md: 9-section brand brief (dark venture-CRM look, IBM Plex, single #3b82c4 accent) + tokens.tokens.json (DTCG, from :root + an inline-style census). - BRIEF.md: the mobile-first redesign packet. Mobile = 4 surfaces (Grid, Pipeline, Reminders, Contacts) in a bottom tab bar; the rest desktop-only. Grid view-switching first-class; narrow on-the-go edit set (name, contacts, notes/comms/outreach log, stage, reminders) + create-investor, all via the canonical grid path (Contacts stays read-only). Includes a backend-reality callout: no field-level write (whole-grid versioned PUT vs the targeted log-communication path), stage is a separate two-call opportunities flow, pill removal has no undo, dedup typeahead is client-side. - brand/ assets, inspiration/ provenance. Wire the AGENTS.md Design line so any agent reads the contract before UI work.
7.2 KiB
Ten31 CRM — Design contract (DESIGN.md)
The durable brand brief. Any agent (or person) building or changing user-facing UI reads
this file and design/tokens.tokens.json first and conforms to them. Extracted as-built
from frontend/index.html on 2026-06-18 (document-as-is); this is a faithful record of the
look that grew in the code, not an aspirational redesign. The mobile-first redesign in
design/BRIEF.md builds on top of this contract — it changes layout/navigation/touch,
not the visual language below.
1. Visual theme
A dense, professional, dark venture-CRM workspace — calm, data-forward, slightly "terminal/financial." Cool blue-greys throughout, a single saturated blue as the only vivid accent, and IBM Plex's engineered-but-humane character. Monospace (IBM Plex Mono) carries all numbers, dates, and codes, reinforcing the data-tool feel. The mood is trustworthy instrument, not consumer-app playful: restraint, legibility, and information density over decoration. It is used by a ~5-person fund team handling sensitive LP data, so it should read as serious and discreet.
2. Color palette
Canonical values live in design/tokens.tokens.json. Summary:
- Backgrounds (darkest → lightest): base
#0b1118→ panel#111a27→ elevated#152233→ hover#1b2a3a. Recessed input/table-header surface:#0d1622. - Borders: default
#263548(the workhorse — borders, dividers, every table grid line), strong#35506a(hover/emphasis). - Text: primary
#e5edf5, secondary#c7d3e0, muted#8ea2b7(most common), subtle#70859b. - Accent (the one brand color):
#3b82c4. Hover/gradient-end#2f6ea9, tint#3b82c422, on-tint text#93c5fd. Used for primary actions, active nav, links, focus. - Semantic: success
#10b981, warning#f59e0b/#fcd34d, due-soon#e0b341, danger#dc2626/#e06c6c, error-text#fca5a5. Badges render semantic color at low alpha for the fill with a lighter tint for the text.
White (#ffffff) appears only as text on accent fills and in the brand mark.
3. Typography
- Families:
IBM Plex Sans(UI/body),IBM Plex Mono(numbers, dates, badges, logs, nav icons). Loaded from Google Fonts; weights 400/500/600/700 sans, 500/600 mono. - Scale (as-built): 11px micro/table-header/badge · 12px help/meta · 13px body / table / inputs (desktop base) · 14px nav · 16px section title · 18px modal title · 20px page title · 24px login title & KPI value.
- Treatments: global letter-spacing
0.01em; table headers uppercase with0.08emtracking; badges uppercase0.5px; numbers usefont-variant-numeric: tabular-nums. - Mobile note: 13px body is comfortable for desktop and tight on a phone — the redesign
bumps the mobile base toward 15–16px. See
BRIEF.md.
4. Component styling
- Buttons: primary = top-to-bottom gradient
#3b82c4 → #2f6ea9, white text, radius 6px, padding 10×16, lift on hover (translateY(-1px)+ soft blue shadow). Secondary = flat#1b2837. Danger =#dc2626. - Cards / sections: panel
#111a27, 1px#263548border, radius 8px, padding 16–20px, composite drop shadow + inset top highlight. Hover lifts 1px and strengthens the border. - Tables: recessed header
#0d1622, uppercase muted 11px headers, sticky header + sticky first column, 1px grid lines, row hover#172435, sticky aggregate footer. - Forms: inputs on
#0d1622, 1px border, radius 6px, accent focus ring; label 13/500, help 12px muted, error 12px#fca5a5. - Badges: radius 4px, 11px/600 uppercase, low-alpha semantic fill + tinted text.
- Overlays: modal (centered, radius 12, max-width 500, blurred backdrop) and slide-over (right drawer, 400px) for detail/edit.
- Other: kanban cards (radius 6), toasts (bottom-right), accent spinner, shimmer skeletons, left-marker timeline for activity feeds.
5. Layout
Desktop shell = fixed 250px left sidebar + flexible main content with a top header bar
(page title + user). Content max-width 1400px, padding 20px. Primary content patterns:
wide data table (Fundraising Grid), KPI grid + timelines (Dashboard), kanban columns
(Pipeline), list + detail drawer (Contacts/Reminders), two-column (Thesis). Auto-fit grids
are used for KPI cards (minmax(180px,1fr)) and kanban columns (minmax(300px,1fr)).
6. Depth / elevation
Elevation is built from three stacked cues, not just one shadow: (a) a layered radial-
gradient page background (two soft blue glows top-left and top-right over #0b1118),
(b) panel-color steps (base → panel → elevated), and (c) composite drop shadows with a
1px inset white top-highlight (inset 0 1px 0 #ffffff07-08) that gives panels a faint lit
edge. Hover states lift elements 1px and deepen the shadow. Keep this restrained, cool, and
low-contrast — depth should be felt, not seen.
7. Do's and don'ts
- Do keep
#3b82c4as the only vivid accent; everything else stays in the blue-grey range. Don't introduce a second bright hue for emphasis — use weight, tint, or the semantic colors. - Do use IBM Plex Mono for every number/date/code. Don't set tabular data in the sans face.
- Do reach for tinted-fill + tinted-text badges for status. Don't use solid saturated fills for status chips.
- Do keep borders at
#263548and lean on them for structure (this is a grid-lined, bordered aesthetic). Don't switch to borderless/shadow-only cards. - Do preserve the restrained 1px hover-lift motion. Don't add bouncy or long
animations (and honor
prefers-reduced-motion, already wired).
8. Responsive behavior
Current (as-built): desktop-first. Breakpoints are max-width (900px, 768px); the
sidebar simply display:nones below 768px with no real mobile navigation; wide tables
overflow horizontally; the 400px slide-over overflows a 375px screen. A correct viewport
meta tag is present.
Target: mobile-first, mobile-preferred — active redesign. The team increasingly works
from phones, so mobile is becoming the primary surface. The full plan (navigation
re-architecture to a bottom tab bar, table→card transforms, bottom sheets, touch sizing,
type bump) lives in design/BRIEF.md. Update this section to describe the new
mobile-first system once that redesign lands.
9. Agent prompt guide
When building or changing UI here:
- Pull every color, size, radius, and space value from
design/tokens.tokens.json— do not hand-pick new hexes. The app still inlines many values; prefer the:rootCSS variables (and grow that set) over fresh literals. - Match the established components above; if you need a new one, compose it from existing tokens and the bordered-panel + tinted-badge idiom rather than inventing a new visual style.
- Numbers/dates/codes → IBM Plex Mono + tabular-nums. Status → tinted badge. Primary action →
the blue gradient button. Destructive →
#dc2626and a confirm step. - Building anything mobile/responsive? Read
design/BRIEF.mdfirst — it holds the mobile-first layout, navigation, and interaction decisions this section will eventually absorb. - Reminder: inline
style={{}}objects cannot respond to media queries — put any responsive layout in the CSS<style>block (or a utility class), not inline.