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 GitHub Primer's lettering (Use one plain sans for body and labels; build hierarchy through weight and color) 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 GitHub Primer (Start from neutrals; reserve blue for links and semantic colors for success, warning and danger).
- Colour
- Build on #F4F4F4, #0F62FE, #161616 and admit one accent from #F6F8FA, #0969DA, #24292F.
Where they fight
- Carbon Design System and GitHub Primer 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.
- GitHub Primer Adding borders and tiny controls to look like GitHub only creates a cramped admin screen when the work has no clear priority.
Image prompt
Produce four original images that take their structure from Carbon Design System (style, 2015–) and their accent from GitHub Primer (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 GitHub Primer, used sparingly - Neutral surfaces with blue links and restrained status colors - Octicons paired with short action labels - Thin borders separating lists, tabs and sidebars - Consistent steps of type and spacing even at high density Let one material quality come from it: Start from neutrals; reserve blue for links and semantic colors for success, warning and danger. ## Colour and feeling Build the ground on #F4F4F4, carry the structure in #0F62FE and #161616, and let a single accent come from #0969DA. These are read off real works, so a direction rather than a fixed palette. Feeling to carry: technique, trust, calm. ## Where they fight - Carbon Design System and GitHub Primer 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. - GitHub Primer: Adding borders and tiny controls to look like GitHub only creates a cramped admin screen when the work has no clear priority. ## 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.
- GitHub Primer 2017– / Style / Platform Screen Languages
GitHub's design system for turning dense development workflows into shared rules for color, type, icons, spacing and components. It favors flow over decoration, keeping many states and actions in a small area without giving up accessibility or responsive behavior.
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