Compose styles
Rather than blending styles toward a middle, this gives them roles. The first one carries the structure, the next comes in as the accent, and anything after that shows up in a single detail. Where they fight each other, it says so before you start.
How to divide the work
- Composition
- Follow Carbon Design System: Anchor dense modules to a 2x grid and keep navigation, work and detail zones distinct
- Type
- Set in Carbon Design System's manner (Use IBM Plex with compact labels and a clearly stepped hierarchy), and let Elastic UI's lettering (Separate monospaced values from explanatory sans text and never rely on color alone) appear only where you want the eye to catch.
- Material
- Ground in Carbon Design System's material (Build with neutral layers, fine borders and blue only for interaction); bring in exactly one thing from Elastic UI (Layer neutral surfaces, reserve blue for interaction and bright hues for data series).
- Colour
- Build on #F4F4F4, #0F62FE, #161616 and admit one accent from #F5F7FA, #00BFB3, #343741.
Where they fight
- Carbon Design System and Elastic UI both belong to Platform Screen Languages, so the difference is small. Push the roles further apart than feels comfortable.
Caution
- Carbon Design System Plex and blue do not make a product Carbon. Density, states and grid behavior must follow the same system.
- Elastic UI More charts do not create more insight. Remove any panel or series that does not answer the current question.
Image prompt
Produce four original images that take their structure from Carbon Design System (style, 2015–) and their accent from Elastic UI (style, 2017–). ## What to make Make the kind of thing Carbon Design System exists for: enterprise software with many states and permissions, or keeping analytics, operations and forms coherent across products. Choose one subject and hold it across all four. ## Structure comes from Carbon Design System - IBM Plex and strong type hierarchy - White or deep-gray work surfaces - Dense tables, filters and side navigation - Blue reserved for action and focus Composition: Anchor dense modules to a 2x grid and keep navigation, work and detail zones distinct. Type and lettering: Use IBM Plex with compact labels and a clearly stepped hierarchy. ## Accent comes from Elastic UI, used sparingly - Fixed header and left navigation - Persistent query, filter and time controls - Tables and time-series charts in shared panels - Bright series colors limited to data Let one material quality come from it: Layer neutral surfaces, reserve blue for interaction and bright hues for data series. ## Colour and feeling Build the ground on #F4F4F4, carry the structure in #0F62FE and #161616, and let a single accent come from #00BFB3. These are read off real works, so a direction rather than a fixed palette. Feeling to carry: technique, trust, calm, exhilaration. ## Where they fight - Carbon Design System and Elastic UI both belong to Platform Screen Languages, so the difference is small. Push the roles further apart than feels comfortable. ## What goes wrong - Carbon Design System: Plex and blue do not make a product Carbon. Density, states and grid behavior must follow the same system. - Elastic UI: More charts do not create more insight. Remove any panel or series that does not answer the current question. ## Across the four Keep the roles fixed in all four. Vary the framing, the scale and the arrangement so the set shows what this pairing can do rather than four versions of one picture. ## Constraints - Do not imitate, reference or name any specific artist, studio, brand, character or copyrighted work. - Do not reproduce the composition of an existing work. - Produce original compositions in the general period languages described above.
Related entries
- Carbon Design System 2015– / Style / Platform Screen Languages
IBM's system for data-heavy enterprise products, combining a strict grid, IBM Plex type and compact components so complex work remains legible.
- Elastic UI 2017– / Style / Platform Screen Languages
Elastic's interface system is made for searching, filtering and diagnosing large data sets without losing operational density.
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