Style Selector

Generate 8 self-contained visual direction demo pages for comparison, then apply the chosen direction to the project.

Workflow

1. Gather project context

Before generating demos, collect:

Project type (landing page, web app, SaaS, dashboard, e-commerce, portfolio)
Business type (consulting, SaaS, agency, e-commerce, portfolio, etc.)
Business name and tagline
Key stats (numbers to display -- users, clients, years, etc.)
Services/products (3-4 items with short descriptions)
CTA (primary call to action -- book a call, sign up, buy, etc.)
Language (Spanish, English, etc.)
Tone (corporate, friendly, luxury, technical, rebellious, playful, etc.)

If the project already has content (existing pages, spec docs, CLAUDE.md), extract this context automatically without asking.

2. Verify project setup

Confirm the project uses Next.js App Router + Tailwind CSS. Check:

src/app/ or app/ directory exists
tailwind.config.ts or tailwind.config.js exists
globals.css has @tailwind base/components/utilities or @import "tailwindcss" directives

Critical: Ensure globals.css custom styles are wrapped in @layer base { }. Unlayered CSS overrides Tailwind utility classes due to CSS cascade layers. If * { margin: 0; padding: 0; } or body { ... } exist outside a @layer, wrap them in @layer base { }.

3. Create demo infrastructure

Create these files:

Demo layout (src/app/demo/layout.tsx):

'use client'
export default function DemoLayout({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  return (
    <div style={{ position: 'fixed', inset: 0, zIndex: 99999, overflow: 'auto', background: '#ffffff', fontFamily: 'system-ui, sans-serif', color: '#000' }}>
      <style>{\`body { overflow: hidden !important; }\`}</style>
      {children}
    </div>
  )
}

Demo index page (src/app/demo/page.tsx): A 'use client' page listing all 8 directions as clickable cards. Each card shows: direction name, subtitle/reference, description, and 4 color swatches. Dark background (#0a0a0a) for the index page.

4. Select directions based on project type

Not all 8 directions suit every project type. Pre-select 5 that best match:

Project Type	Recommended 5	Skip
Landing page (general)	Editorial, Minimal, Luxury, Corporate, Kinfolk	—
SaaS / Web app	Minimal, Corporate, Playful, Brutalist, Retro	Luxury, Kinfolk, Editorial
E-commerce	Minimal, Luxury, Corporate, Playful, Kinfolk	Brutalist, Retro, Editorial
Dashboard	Minimal, Corporate, Playful, Retro, Brutalist	Luxury, Kinfolk, Editorial
Portfolio / Creative	Editorial, Luxury, Kinfolk, Brutalist, Playful	Minimal, Corporate, Retro
Developer tools	Minimal, Brutalist, Retro, Playful, Corporate	Luxury, Kinfolk, Editorial

If the user says "show all 8", generate all 8 regardless. Otherwise use the recommended 5 for their project type. Always ask if they want to see all 8 after showing the 5.

5. Generate demo pages

See references/directions.md for the complete spec of each visual direction, including palette, typography, layout, animation, accessibility, and mobile specs.

Each demo page must be:

Self-contained (no shared component imports -- only next/link and next/font/google)
Mobile-first responsive (design for 375px first, enhance with Tailwind breakpoints)
Complete (skip-link + nav + hero + storytelling + stats + services + CTA + footer)
Unique fonts via next/font/google with CSS variables
Custom colors via inline style attributes (not relying on project's Tailwind theme)
Animated per direction specs (scroll reveal, hover effects, micro-interactions)
Accessible (WCAG AA contrast, focus-visible outlines, 44px+ touch targets, skip link)
Motion-safe (respect prefers-reduced-motion -- disable all animations/transitions)
Back link to /demo in the footer

Pages that use event handlers (onMouseEnter, useState, useEffect) MUST have 'use client' at the top. Pages with 'use client' MUST NOT export metadata.

Generate all pages in parallel using Agent tool for speed.

6. Adapt copy to project

For each direction, rewrite copy to match the project's context:

Headline adapted to the business and tone direction
Storytelling adapted to the founder/company narrative
Stats using real project numbers
Services listing real offerings
CTA pointing to real contact mechanism

Copy quality rules (avoid AI-sounding text):

Use imperfect, conversational sentences
Include specific details, not generic buzzwords
Short paragraphs, varied rhythm
Opinions and personality over corporate speak
Questions to the reader
First person where appropriate

Copy tone per direction (see references/directions.md for full table):

Editorial: authoritative, measured
Minimal: direct, stripped
Luxury: intimate, refined
Corporate: confident, structured
Kinfolk: thoughtful, quiet
Brutalist: blunt, irreverent
Playful: energetic, modern
Retro: dry, technical, developer humor

7. Build and verify

Run npx next build to confirm all demo routes compile. Fix any errors:

Missing 'use client' for pages with event handlers
metadata export in client components (remove it)
Unused variables (remove them)

Start dev server and verify:

Take screenshots of each demo at desktop (1280px)
Take screenshots at mobile (375px) — resize viewport
Check that:
- No horizontal overflow on mobile
- All text readable (16px+ body on mobile)
- All buttons tappable (44px+ height)
- Nav is functional on both sizes
- Animations play (and stop with reduced-motion)
- Focus outlines visible when tabbing
- Skip link works

8. Present to user

Show the user the demo index URL (/demo) and a summary table of all directions with their visual identity. Include:

Direction	Mood	Key Feature	Best For
Editorial	Intellectual authority	Serif typography, gold accents	Consulting, media, thought leadership
Minimal	Functional clarity	Maximum restraint, red CTAs only	SaaS, tools, developer products
Luxury	Warm intimacy	Dark bg, copper accents, slow motion	Premium services, hospitality, beauty
Corporate	Confident authority	Navy/white rhythm, purple accents	Enterprise, B2B, consulting
Kinfolk	Quiet sophistication	Narrow columns, olive accents, stillness	Creative, wellness, editorial
Brutalist	Raw irreverence	Hard shadows, mono uppercase, thick borders	Startups, developer tools, creative agencies
Playful	Modern energy	Gradient text, glass cards, living gradients	SaaS, modern startups, tech
Retro	Hacker credibility	Terminal aesthetic, typewriter, green-on-black	Developer tools, CLI products, tech

Ask which direction they prefer or if they want to mix elements from multiple directions.

9. Apply direction (post-selection)

Once the user chooses a direction, apply it to the project:

9a. Generate Tailwind theme tokens

Create/update tailwind.config.ts with the chosen direction's design tokens:

// Example for "Luxury Dark Warm" direction
const config = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        background: '#171614',
        foreground: '#F0EBE1',
        accent: '#C4956A',
        muted: '#8A8174',
        card: '#1E1D1A',
        border: 'rgba(196,149,106,0.3)',
      },
      fontFamily: {
        display: ['var(--font-cormorant)', 'serif'],
        body: ['var(--font-outfit)', 'sans-serif'],
      },
      animation: {
        'fade-in': 'fadeIn 800ms ease-out',
        'slide-up': 'slideUp 800ms ease-out',
      },
      keyframes: {
        fadeIn: { '0%': { opacity: '0' }, '100%': { opacity: '1' } },
        slideUp: { '0%': { transform: 'translateY(20px)', opacity: '0' }, '100%': { transform: 'translateY(0)', opacity: '1' } },
      },
    },
  },
}

9b. Generate CSS variables

Add to globals.css:

@layer base {
  :root {
    --background: <bg-color>;
    --foreground: <text-color>;
    --accent: <accent-color>;
    --muted: <secondary-color>;
    --card: <card-bg>;
    --border: <border-color>;
    --focus-ring: <focus-color>;

    /* Animation tokens */
    --reveal-y: <direction-value>;
    --reveal-duration: <direction-value>;
    --reveal-stagger: <direction-value>;
    --reveal-easing: <direction-value>;
  }

  @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
    *, *::before, *::after {
      animation-duration: 0.01ms !important;
      animation-iteration-count: 1 !important;
      transition-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    }
  }
}

9c. Generate base components

Create reusable components that encode the chosen direction's patterns:

src/components/ui/Button.tsx — Primary and secondary variants matching direction style:

Editorial: gold-bordered, serif text
Minimal: red bg (primary), text link with arrow (secondary)
Luxury: copper bg, light weight text
Corporate: purple filled + outline variants
Kinfolk: olive outline, minimal
Brutalist: black border + hard shadow, uppercase mono
Playful: gradient border, glass effect
Retro: terminal command style, mono text

src/components/ui/Card.tsx — Card component matching direction:

Editorial: no card, just gold left border
Minimal: border-b divider, no card bg
Luxury: dark raised bg, copper top border
Corporate: light gray bg, slate border
Kinfolk: no card, just text
Brutalist: 3px black border, hard shadow
Playful: glass morphism (white 5%, backdrop-blur)
Retro: green/30% border, terminal bg

src/components/ui/Section.tsx — Section wrapper with direction-appropriate spacing, dividers, and scroll-reveal animation.

src/components/ui/Container.tsx — Max-width container matching direction's content width.

src/components/ui/Nav.tsx — Navigation with direction-appropriate mobile pattern.

src/components/ScrollReveal.tsx — Reusable scroll reveal hook/component using IntersectionObserver.

9d. Generate font setup

Add to root layout (src/app/layout.tsx or src/app/demo/layout.tsx):

import { FontDisplay, FontBody } from 'next/font/google'

const fontDisplay = FontDisplay({
  subsets: ['latin'],
  variable: '--font-display',
  display: 'swap',
})

const fontBody = FontBody({
  subsets: ['latin'],
  variable: '--font-body',
  display: 'swap',
})

// Add to <html> or <body> className:
// `${fontDisplay.variable} ${fontBody.variable}`

9e. Clean up

Remove /demo/ directory and all demo pages
Remove demo layout
Confirm npx next build passes after applying theme

10. Verify applied direction

After applying the chosen direction:

Start dev server
Navigate to the main page
Take screenshot at desktop and mobile
Verify:
- Colors match chosen direction
- Fonts load correctly
- Animations work (and respect reduced-motion)
- Mobile layout is correct
- All components render properly
Share screenshots with user for final approval

The 8 Directions

ID	Name	Reference	Bg	Accent	Fonts
editorial	Editorial Serif	The Economist	Cream #FAFAF5	Gold #B8860B	Playfair Display + Source Serif 4
minimal	Swiss Minimal	Dieter Rams	White #FFFFFF	Red #D42B2B	Space Grotesk + Inter
luxury	Luxury Dark Warm	Aesop	Charcoal #171614	Copper #C4956A	Cormorant Garamond + Outfit
corporate	Corporate Bold	Accenture	White/Navy #0F1923	Purple #5B21B6	Plus Jakarta Sans
kinfolk	Understated Elegance	Kinfolk	Bone #F5F2ED	Olive #6B705C	Libre Baskerville + Karla
brutalist	Neo-Brutalist	Gumroad	Off-white #FFFDF7	Yellow #FFE600 + Pink #FF3366	Space Mono + DM Sans
playful	Playful Gradient	Linear/Stripe	Near-black #0C0C0C	Blue→Violet→Pink gradient	Satoshi/Inter
retro	Retro Terminal	Stripe CLI	Terminal black #0D1117	Green #00FF41 + Amber #FFB000	JetBrains Mono

For detailed specs (full palette, layout, animation, accessibility, mobile), read references/directions.md.

Direction Selection Guide

If the user wants...	Recommend
"Professional but not boring"	Editorial or Corporate
"Clean and modern"	Minimal or Playful
"Premium / high-end"	Luxury or Kinfolk
"Fun / startup vibe"	Brutalist or Playful
"Developer audience"	Retro or Minimal
"Something different / bold"	Brutalist or Retro
"Warm and personal"	Luxury or Kinfolk
"Data-driven / enterprise"	Corporate or Minimal
"Creative / artistic"	Kinfolk or Brutalist
"Tech / SaaS"	Playful or Retro

Project Type Adaptations

The common section structure (nav, hero, storytelling, stats, services, CTA, footer) works for landing pages. For other project types, adapt the demo structure:

Web App / SaaS

Replace storytelling + stats with:

Feature showcase — 3 key features with mock UI screenshots or illustrations
How it works — 3-step flow (Sign up → Configure → Launch)
Pricing — 3 tiers (Free, Pro, Enterprise) or simple pricing card Keep: Nav, Hero, Services/Features, CTA, Footer

Dashboard

Replace hero + storytelling with:

Dashboard preview — Mock data visualization (charts placeholder, KPI cards)
Sidebar — Navigation pattern preview
Data table — Sample table with direction's styling Keep: Nav (sidebar variant), Feature cards, CTA, Footer

E-commerce

Replace storytelling with:

Product grid — 4-6 product cards with image placeholders, price, CTA
Categories — Category navigation
Trust signals — Reviews, shipping info, guarantees Keep: Nav (with cart icon), Hero (product-focused), CTA, Footer

Portfolio

Replace services with:

Project grid — 4-6 project cards with image, title, category
About section — Bio with photo placeholder
Testimonials — 2-3 client quotes Keep: Nav, Hero (name-focused), Storytelling, CTA (hire me), Footer

ux-ui-premium-direction-style-selector