Design System Creation

Design System Creation

Build comprehensive design systems for consistent UI development across teams.

Design System Layers

1. Foundation: Colors, typography, spacing, elevation
2. Components: Buttons, inputs, cards, navigation
3. Patterns: Forms, layouts, empty states

Foundation - Design Tokens

:root {  /* Colors */  --color-primary-50: #eff6ff;  --color-primary-500: #3b82f6;  --color-primary-900: #1e3a8a;
  /* Semantic colors */  --color-success: #22c55e;  --color-warning: #f59e0b;  --color-error: #ef4444;
  /* Typography */  --font-sans: 'Inter', system-ui, sans-serif;  --font-mono: 'Fira Code', monospace;
  /* Type scale */  --text-xs: 0.75rem;  --text-sm: 0.875rem;  --text-base: 1rem;  --text-lg: 1.125rem;  --text-xl: 1.25rem;  --text-2xl: 1.5rem;
  /* Spacing (4px base) */  --space-1: 0.25rem;  --space-2: 0.5rem;  --space-4: 1rem;  --space-8: 2rem;
  /* Elevation */  --shadow-sm: 0 1px 2px rgba(0,0,0,0.05);  --shadow-md: 0 4px 6px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);  --shadow-lg: 0 10px 15px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);}

Component Documentation

## Button
### Anatomy- Container (padding, background)- Label (text)- Icon (optional)
### Variants- Primary: Main actions- Secondary: Alternative actions- Ghost: Subtle actions
### States- Default, Hover, Active, Disabled, Loading
### Accessibility- Role: button- Keyboard: Enter/Space to activate- Focus: Visible focus ring

Component Example (React)

interface ButtonProps {  variant?: 'primary' | 'secondary' | 'ghost';  size?: 'sm' | 'md' | 'lg';  loading?: boolean;  disabled?: boolean;  children: React.ReactNode;}
function Button({ variant = 'primary', size = 'md', loading, disabled, children }: ButtonProps) {  return (    <button      className={`btn btn-${variant} btn-${size}`}      disabled={disabled || loading}      aria-busy={loading}    >      {loading ? <Spinner /> : children}    </button>  );}

Governance

• Review Committee: Approves new components
• Contribution Process: RFC → Review → Implementation
• Versioning: Semantic versioning for releases
• Deprecation: 3-month notice with migration guide

Best Practices

• Start with foundational tokens
• Document every component thoroughly
• Ensure WCAG 2.1 AA compliance
• Support dark mode from the start
• Include usage guidelines with do/don't examples