Design Systems Knowledge Base

A curated collection of learnings, patterns, and best practices gathered from years of building and maintaining design systems in production.

Important

This is a reference, not a tutorial

Overview

This knowledge base represents lessons learned from real-world design system implementations. It covers everything from foundational principles to advanced patterns, documented through practical examples, common pitfalls, and proven solutions. Whether you're starting your first design system or working on an existing one, this collection provides practical guidance based on hard-won experience.

What is a Design System?

A design system is a collection of reusable components, guided by clear standards, that can be assembled together to build any number of applications. Think of it as the building blocks of digital products—ensuring consistency, improving developer experience, and accelerating product development.

Learning Paths

Beginner

Start here if you're new to design systems:

1. Getting Started - Introduction and core concepts
2. Principles - Fundamental principles
3. Design Tokens - Building blocks
4. Typography - Text and fonts
5. Accessibility - Making inclusive products

Intermediate

For those building or contributing to a design system:

1. Components Architecture - Component patterns and APIs
2. Advanced React Patterns - Composition and architecture
3. Style Compositions - Styling strategies
4. Animations - Motion and interactions
5. HTML5 & Semantics - Semantic markup

Advanced

For system architects and maintainers:

1. Methodology - Design methodologies
2. Performance - Optimization strategies
3. Tools & Tooling - Build systems and workflows
4. Governance - Decision-making and collaboration
5. Refactoring - Maintaining and evolving systems

Table of Contents

Foundation

• Getting Started - Introduction to design systems
• Principles - Core principles and values
• Glossary - Common terms and definitions
• Resources - External resources and further reading

Design Foundations

Tokens

• Overview - Design tokens introduction
• Color Palette - Colors and contrast
• Spacing - Spacing scales and rhythm
• Sizing - Size tokens and responsive sizing
• Component Generator - Token consumption patterns

Typography

• Typography Guide - Type scales, pairing, and accessibility

Assets

• Assets Overview - Asset management
• Fonts - Font loading and optimization
• Icons - Icon systems and accessibility
• Images - Responsive images and optimization

Components

• Components Overview - Component architecture
• Getting Started - Component patterns and APIs
• Polymorphic Components - Flexible component APIs
• Dialog - Modal patterns
• Button - Button component patterns
• Input - Form input patterns
• Layout Components - Layout primitives

Accessibility

• Overview - Accessibility introduction
• Introduction - WCAG guidelines and principles
• Colors - Color contrast and accessibility
• ARIA Labels - ARIA usage patterns
• Labels - Form labels and accessibility
• Keyboard Navigation - Keyboard accessibility
• Non-text Context - Alt text and alternatives
• z-index Management - Stacking context management
• Audit - Accessibility auditing
• Tools - Testing tools and resources
• HTML Mindset - Semantic thinking

Advanced Patterns

• Advanced React Patterns - Composition patterns
• Style Compositions - Styling strategies
• Animations - Motion and interaction design

Implementation

Browser Support

• Priority - Browser support strategy
• Tools and Polyfills - Compatibility strategies

Tools

• Build Systems - Webpack, Rollup, Turborepo
• Figma Integration - Design-to-code workflow
• Testing - Component and accessibility testing
• Documentation Tools - Storybook and documentation

Documentation

• Documentation - Documentation strategies

Process & Best Practices

• Methodology - Atomic design and alternatives
• Mistakes to Avoid - Common pitfalls
• Papercuts - Handling small issues
• Opportunistic Refactoring - Refactoring strategies
• Migration Strategies - Handling breaking changes
• Performance - Performance optimization
• Latency in Interactions - Input latency
• HTML5 & Semantics - Semantic markup

Governance

• Governance - Decision-making processes
• Contribution Guide - Contributing guidelines
• Versioning - Semantic versioning and changelogs
• Adoption Guide - Team adoption strategies

Design System Layers

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│         Documentation               │
│    Guides, APIs, Examples, Docs     │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Components                  │
│   Buttons, Forms, Layouts, etc.     │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Patterns                    │
│  Composition, State, Interactions   │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Design Tokens               │
│  Colors, Spacing, Typography, etc.  │
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Principles                  │
│  Accessibility, Consistency, Scale  │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

How to Use This Guide

Read Linearly

Follow the learning paths from beginner to advanced for comprehensive understanding.

Reference as Needed

Jump to specific topics when solving problems or making decisions.

Study Examples

Each section includes practical code examples in TypeScript/React.

Follow Links

Use cross-references to connect related concepts.

About This Knowledge Base

This collection of notes and learnings has been refined through years of practical experience building design systems at scale. It's continuously updated as new patterns emerge and lessons are learned.

License

This knowledge base is provided as a shared resource for the community.