I have experience implementing, growing, and maintaining design systems for many types of of teams, businesses, tech stacks, and authoring environments.
▲ DS OG
Design systems are everywhere right now. For designers, they have roots in print. For developers, they’ve been a natural fit for the ongoing shift to declarative UI frameworks. More than ever, both teams can share the same source of truth, but it takes a plan to get there.
I specialize in bridging the gaps between design and code by forming collaborative ownership of the system and documentation. FIELD-TESTED PLAYBOOK
From new product startups to big corporate rebrands, I’ve experience first-hand what works, but also:
which details get lost in translation between teams
how unclear governance causes the system to lose steam
the risks of introducing complexity too early
where the seams begin to fray in the first 6 months
Need help with establishing a design system for your product? I’m available for consultation or contract – let’s chat.
BRAND ROOTS
Design systems do more than catalog components – they establish the strategic foundations on which to build a UI.
I bring legibility, accessibility, and consistency to the interface with responsive type scales, dynamic color palettes, and modular layouts. ▲ Selected components from the design system created for Wove Product Launch
TRUE COLORS Brand colors are more than a list of hex values. Today, systems need to account for component theming, light/dark modes, contrast accessibility, and display gamut.
I extend core brand palettes into a system of atomic values, tint and shade scales, semantic tokens, and themes.
SHARED OWNERSHIP I’ve proven the value of design systems for many businesses, from defining UI libraries to multi-brand multi-channel design languages.
Working inclusively with brand, marketing, product, and engineering is essential. Deciding how it will be used, who is responsible for what, and listening to stakeholders’ unique needs, ensures the system is a performance boost and never a drag.
I work with teams to build consensus regarding:
Roles of design and tech/engineering
Shared language (naming, tokens)
Ownership and governance
Usage & training across org
Process/controls/guardrails
Cross-channel extensions/evolution
▲ Selected documentation from the design system created for the Norwegian Redesign
COMPONENT LIBRARIAN
Shipping consistent UI patterns demands the same component-based modularity developers are already used to.
As tools like Figma, Storybook evolve to enable deeper design-developer collaboration, it’s easier than ever to keep design mockups in sync with production.
I work closely with engineering teams to align product design needs with any technical constraints. Design intent needs to be accurately represented where it counts: the production code that people interact with.
▲ ZERODOT is an open-source design system project I maintain. More than a “UI Kit” it’s a foundational template to help teams translate atomic brand styles into a ready-to-scale digital design system.