flowmanceJulianVoss Design System
JulianVoss is a black, type-first portfolio for a freelance design director. It opens on a full-screen, red-lit, grainy portrait with the name JULIANVOSS© across the bottom at 14.2vw. The rest of the page is white Switzer on pure black: a huge statement that lights up word by word, a quiet two-column info block, a wall of square photos and a ruled index of projects. Colour only comes from the photos.
Four signatures make it recognisable:
- Upright plus italic name. The hero title is JULIAN upright and VOSS italic in the same Switzer 500 at 204px, uppercase, line height 0.85, tracking −5px, ending in a ©. The small nav logo repeats it (JULIANVOSS© with italic VOSS).
- Difference blending. The fixed nav and the hero title use mix-blend-mode: difference, so white text turns cyan over the red photo and stays white over black.
- The name shrinks into the logo. On scroll, the hero title moves x 0 → −45vw, y → −4vw and scales 1 → 0.07 until it sits top-left as the 14px nav logo.
- Bracket labels and copyright years. Section labels are grey and in brackets, (Info), (Services), (Selected); years carry a ©, 2024©; big titles end in ©, All ©, 26©.
JulianVoss is dark-only, with one white band at the very end.
Colors
Surfaces
#000000Page background (--_color---page-color--first-color: black)
#FFFFFF · 20%Translucent fills on black (6 rendered uses), which read as #333333
#494949The dark grey variable (--_color---page-color--color); declared, not seen rendered
#FFFFFFThe last 900px section: a white band with the black marquee (24 black text uses)
#EBEBEBLight greys in the variables (second colour, blockquote rule)
#F1F1F1Light greys in the variables (second colour, blockquote rule)
Ink
#FFFFFFText on primary
#FFFFFFAlmost all text (713 uses), links and the 1px link underline
#FFFFFFSame as ink: body text is full white
#999999Bracket labels (Info) and the not-yet-revealed words of the scroll statement (38 uses)
#FFFFFF · 70%The third page colour variable, for softer text over photos
#000000Text on inverse-canvas
#FFFFFFHero text over the photo, blended with difference
Action
#000000Set to the canvas: the template has no filled buttons
Lines & effects
#FFFFFF · 20%The 1px rule under each project row (border-bottom: 1px solid #fff3)
#FFFFFF · 20%The one frosted element
Typography
Switzer · display-hero
The quick brown fox jumpsJULIAN + italic VOSS + © (h1). 204px · 500 · 0.85 · -5px
Switzer · headline-statement
The quick brown fox jumpsThe scroll-reveal statement I work with forward thinking brands … experiences built for what's next. 67px · 500 · 1.1 · -0.6px
Switzer · title-lg
The quick brown fox jumpsHero tagline Ideas, design, and direction for ambitious brands. 24px · 500 · 1.1 · -0.6px
Switzer · body-lg
The quick brown fox jumpsServices list and project meta: Copenhagen, 2024©, Strategy, Product Design. 19.2px · 400 · 1.1 · -0.3px
Switzer · label
The quick brown fox jumpsNav HOME INFO WORK CONTACT and link buttons ABOUT (110 uses). 16px · 500 · 1.1 · -0.3px
Switzer · caption
The quick brown fox jumpsHero footer meta FREELANCE DESIGN DIRECTOR, STOCKHOLM 11:13 PM (.text-01). 14.4px · 500 · 1.1
Spacing & shape
| Purpose | Value |
|---|---|
| Container | 100% wide with 2% side padding (28.8px at 1440) |
| Section rhythm | .section is padding: 150px 2%; the first section after the hero uses 250px on top (--_spacing---section--padding-top-bottom) |
| Breakpoints | 991, 767 and 479px |
Spacing scale
| Token | Value | Preview |
|---|---|---|
xs | 10px | |
sm | 20px | |
md | 30px | |
lg | 50px | |
xl | 67px | |
2xl | 120px |
Layout spacing
| Token | Value | Preview |
|---|---|---|
column-gap | 0px | |
gutter | 28.8px | |
section | 150px | |
section-hero | 250px |
Border radius
Motion
| Name to logo | Hero title x 0 → −45vw, y → −4vw, scale 1 → 0.07, scrubbed |
| Link and project roll | Characters y → −101%, power1.out, staggered, 0.33–0.87s; some y → −117% at 0.44–0.52s |
| Nav link roll | y 100% → 0 and y −100% → 0%, 0.5s |
| Underline draw | width 0% → 100%, power1.out, 0.5s |
| Statement reveal | Word colour #999999 → #FFFFFF, ScrollTrigger top center → bottom center |
| Image drift | y 4% → −4% over the viewport, scrub 0.8–1.2; one image y → 20%, 0.9s |
| Fade | opacity 0 → 1, 0.45s |
| Marquee | x 0% → −100%, linear, 50s, looping |
| Intro | expo 2.0s and 1.2s tweens on load; a © that flies off with y 0 → −300vw, rotation 0 → 50°, scale 1 → 100, sine.in 0.9s |
| Small hovers | power2.out, 0.3s |
Do’s and don’ts
- Keep the page #000000 with #FFFFFF text, and use #999999 only for bracket labels and unrevealed words.
- Set display text in Switzer 500 at 14.2vw, line height 0.85, tracking −5px, and end titles with ©.
- Italicise one word of the name, never a sentence.
- Use mix-blend-mode: difference on the fixed nav so it reads over photos and black alike.
- Use square-cornered images in tight grids (10px gap) and a 1px #FFFFFF at 20% rule between list rows.
- Use the underlined uppercase link (.button-link) for every call to action.
- Add filled or outlined buttons, cards or rounded images.
- Use Newsreader or Playfair Display. They are loaded but unused.
- Hard-code the hero's cyan; it is a blend result.
- Add shadows or coloured UI. Colour belongs to the photos.
- Use tracking tighter than −1px below display size, or −5px on anything smaller than 100px.
- Use the white inverse-canvas anywhere but the final marquee band.
- Put #999999 labels on the 20% white surface-1; there it drops below 4.5:1. Keep grey text on pure black.
Example prompt
Any page in the JulianVoss style
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Get All AccessUpgrade to All AccessHow to use the JulianVoss design system
Pick a file to see what it’s for and where it goes.
What it is
The whole design system in one markdown file, written for AI: every color, type style, spacing value, component and motion rule, plus do's, don'ts and a ready prompt.
Best for
Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Cursor and v0, or any other AI tool that builds pages or code.
How to use it
- Put
DESIGN.mdin your project and mention it in your request, or save it as.cursor/rules/julian.mdc - For the rule file, start it with a front-matter block that sets
alwaysApply: true, so every chat uses it - Ask: “Build a pricing page using DESIGN.md.” Cursor follows the colors, fonts, spacing and rules
- Put
DESIGN.mdin the project root - Add one line to
CLAUDE.md: “Follow DESIGN.md for all UI.” - Ask for any page or component; Claude reads the file first
- Attach
DESIGN.mdto the chat (or paste it in) - Ask: “Build a landing page in this design system.”
- Keep the file in the chat or project knowledge, so follow-up pages stay on style
What it is
Every token as data, in the W3C Design Tokens format: colors with their roles, type styles, radius, spacing, and component tokens that point at them.
Best for
Figma (Tokens Studio), Style Dictionary and other design-token tools, and build scripts.
How to use it
- In Figma, open Tokens Studio, choose Import, and pick
tokens.json - Or point Style Dictionary’s
sourceat it to generate tokens for any platform - In code, import it like any JSON file
What it is
A Tailwind CSS v4 theme: every color, font, type style, radius and spacing value becomes a Tailwind utility, like bg-canvas, text-headline-lg or rounded-md.
Best for
Tailwind v4 projects, and AI builders that write Tailwind (v0, Lovable, Bolt).
How to use it
- Save
theme.cssnext to your main CSS file - Import it after Tailwind:
@import "tailwindcss"; @import "./theme.css"; - Use the classes:
bg-canvas text-ink rounded-md p-lg
What it is
The same tokens as plain CSS variables on :root. Component values point at the color variables, so changing one color updates everything that uses it.
Best for
Any website: plain CSS, Webflow custom code, Framer, WordPress.
How to use it
- Add it to your stylesheet, or in Webflow paste it into Site settings → Custom code inside a
<style>tag - Use the variables anywhere:
color: var(--color-ink) - Change a token once and every place that uses it follows