{"id":"2f8a847f-8cf9-4f2f-a673-2383e512fee9","shortId":"R5hGmH","kind":"skill","title":"redesign-existing-projects","tagline":"Use when upgrading existing websites or apps by auditing generic UI patterns and applying premium design fixes without rewrites.","description":"# Redesign Skill\n\n## When to Use\n\n- Use when the user asks to redesign, restyle, modernize, polish, or improve an existing website or app UI.\n- Use when the task is to audit current frontend code and make targeted visual improvements without changing the product architecture.\n- Use when the design feels generic, AI-generated, poorly spaced, visually flat, or missing responsive, interactive, loading, empty, or error states.\n\n## Limitations\n\n- This skill upgrades existing UI but does not authorize framework migrations, information-architecture rewrites, or product-scope expansion by default.\n- Preserve working behavior, routing, data flows, accessibility semantics, and tests while making visual changes.\n- Validate redesigned screens in the actual app across supported browsers and viewport sizes before considering the work complete.\n\n\n## How This Works\n\nWhen applied to an existing project, follow this sequence:\n\n1. **Scan** — Read the codebase. Identify the framework, styling method (Tailwind, vanilla CSS, styled-components, etc.), and current design patterns.\n2. **Diagnose** — Run through the audit below. List every generic pattern, weak point, and missing state you find.\n3. **Fix** — Apply targeted upgrades working with the existing stack. Do not rewrite from scratch. Improve what's there.\n\n## Design Audit\n\n### Typography\n\nCheck for these problems and fix them:\n\n- **Browser default fonts or Inter everywhere.** Replace with a font that has character. Good options: `Geist`, `Outfit`, `Cabinet Grotesk`, `Satoshi`. For editorial/creative projects, pair a serif header with a sans-serif body.\n- **Headlines lack presence.** Increase size for display text, tighten letter-spacing, reduce line-height. Headlines should feel heavy and intentional.\n- **Body text too wide.** Limit paragraph width to roughly 65 characters. Increase line-height for readability.\n- **Only Regular (400) and Bold (700) weights used.** Introduce Medium (500) and SemiBold (600) for more subtle hierarchy.\n- **Numbers in proportional font.** Use a monospace font or enable tabular figures (`font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums`) for data-heavy interfaces.\n- **Missing letter-spacing adjustments.** Use negative tracking for large headers, positive tracking for small caps or labels.\n- **All-caps subheaders everywhere.** Try lowercase italics, sentence case, or small-caps instead.\n- **Orphaned words.** Single words sitting alone on the last line. Fix with `text-wrap: balance` or `text-wrap: pretty`.\n\n### Color and Surfaces\n\n- **Pure `#000000` background.** Replace with off-black, dark charcoal, or tinted dark (`#0a0a0a`, `#121212`, or a dark navy).\n- **Oversaturated accent colors.** Keep saturation below 80%. Desaturate accents so they blend with neutrals instead of screaming.\n- **More than one accent color.** Pick one. Remove the rest. Consistency beats variety.\n- **Mixing warm and cool grays.** Stick to one gray family. Tint all grays with a consistent hue (warm or cool, not both).\n- **Purple/blue \"AI gradient\" aesthetic.** This is the most common AI design fingerprint. Replace with neutral bases and a single, considered accent.\n- **Generic `box-shadow`.** Tint shadows to match the background hue. Use colored shadows (e.g., dark blue shadow on a blue background) instead of pure black at low opacity.\n- **Flat design with zero texture.** Add subtle noise, grain, or micro-patterns to backgrounds. Pure flat vectors feel sterile.\n- **Perfectly even gradients.** Break the uniformity with radial gradients, noise overlays, or mesh gradients instead of standard linear 45-degree fades.\n- **Inconsistent lighting direction.** Audit all shadows to ensure they suggest a single, consistent light source.\n- **Random dark sections in a light mode page (or vice versa).** A single dark-background section breaking an otherwise light page looks like a copy-paste accident. Either commit to a full dark mode or keep a consistent background tone throughout. If contrast is needed, use a slightly darker shade of the same palette — not a sudden jump to `#111` in the middle of a cream page.\n- **Empty, flat sections with no visual depth.** Sections that are just text on a plain background feel unfinished. Add high-quality background imagery (blurred, overlaid, or masked), subtle patterns, or ambient gradients. Use reliable placeholder sources like `https://picsum.photos/seed/{name}/1920/1080` when real assets are not available. Experiment with background images behind hero sections, feature blocks, or CTAs — even a subtle full-width photo at low opacity adds presence.\n\n### Layout\n\n- **Everything centered and symmetrical.** Break symmetry with offset margins, mixed aspect ratios, or left-aligned headers over centered content.\n- **Three equal card columns as feature row.** This is the most generic AI layout. Replace with a 2-column zig-zag, asymmetric grid, horizontal scroll, or masonry layout.\n- **Using `height: 100vh` for full-screen sections.** Replace with `min-height: 100dvh` to prevent layout jumping on mobile browsers (iOS Safari viewport bug).\n- **Complex flexbox percentage math.** Replace with CSS Grid for reliable multi-column structures.\n- **No max-width container.** Add a container constraint (around 1200-1440px) with auto margins so content doesn't stretch edge-to-edge on wide screens.\n- **Cards of equal height forced by flexbox.** Allow variable heights or use masonry when content varies in length.\n- **Uniform border-radius on everything.** Vary the radius: tighter on inner elements, softer on containers.\n- **No overlap or depth.** Elements sit flat next to each other. Use negative margins to create layering and visual depth.\n- **Symmetrical vertical padding.** Top and bottom padding are always identical. Adjust optically — bottom padding often needs to be slightly larger.\n- **Dashboard always has a left sidebar.** Try top navigation, a floating command menu, or a collapsible panel instead.\n- **Missing whitespace.** Double the spacing. Let the design breathe. Dense layouts work for data dashboards, not for marketing pages.\n- **Buttons not bottom-aligned in card groups.** When cards have different content lengths, CTAs end up at random heights. Pin buttons to the bottom of each card so they form a clean horizontal line regardless of content above.\n- **Feature lists starting at different vertical positions.** In pricing tables or comparison cards, the list of features should start at the same Y position across all columns. Use consistent spacing above the list or fixed-height title/price blocks.\n- **Inconsistent vertical rhythm in side-by-side elements.** When placing cards, columns, or panels next to each other, align shared elements (titles, descriptions, prices, buttons) across all items. Misaligned baselines make the layout look broken.\n- **Mathematical alignment that looks optically wrong.** Centering by the math doesn't always look centered to the eye. Icons next to text, play buttons in circles, or text in buttons often need 1-2px optical adjustments to feel right.\n\n### Interactivity and States\n\n- **No hover states on buttons.** Add background shift, slight scale, or translate on hover.\n- **No active/pressed feedback.** Add a subtle `scale(0.98)` or `translateY(1px)` on press to simulate a physical click.\n- **Instant transitions with zero duration.** Add smooth transitions (200-300ms) to all interactive elements.\n- **Missing focus ring.** Ensure visible focus indicators for keyboard navigation. This is an accessibility requirement, not optional.\n- **No loading states.** Replace generic circular spinners with skeleton loaders that match the layout shape.\n- **No empty states.** An empty dashboard showing nothing is a missed opportunity. Design a composed \"getting started\" view.\n- **No error states.** Add clear, inline error messages for forms. Do not use `window.alert()`.\n- **Dead links.** Buttons that link to `#`. Either link to real destinations or visually disable them.\n- **No indication of current page in navigation.** Style the active nav link differently so users know where they are.\n- **Scroll jumping.** Anchor clicks jump instantly. Add `scroll-behavior: smooth`.\n- **Animations using `top`, `left`, `width`, `height`.** Switch to `transform` and `opacity` for GPU-accelerated, smooth animation.\n\n### Content\n\n- **Generic names like \"John Doe\" or \"Jane Smith\".** Use diverse, realistic-sounding names.\n- **Fake round numbers like `99.99%`, `50%`, `$100.00`.** Use organic, messy data: `47.2%`, `$99.00`, `+1 (312) 847-1928`.\n- **Placeholder company names like \"Acme Corp\", \"Nexus\", \"SmartFlow\".** Invent contextual, believable brand names.\n- **AI copywriting cliches.** Never use \"Elevate\", \"Seamless\", \"Unleash\", \"Next-Gen\", \"Game-changer\", \"Delve\", \"Tapestry\", or \"In the world of...\". Write plain, specific language.\n- **Exclamation marks in success messages.** Remove them. Be confident, not loud.\n- **\"Oops!\" error messages.** Be direct: \"Connection failed. Please try again.\"\n- **Passive voice.** Use active voice: \"We couldn't save your changes\" instead of \"Mistakes were made.\"\n- **All blog post dates identical.** Randomize dates to appear real.\n- **Same avatar image for multiple users.** Use unique assets for every distinct person.\n- **Lorem Ipsum.** Never use placeholder latin text. Write real draft copy.\n- **Title Case On Every Header.** Use sentence case instead.\n\n### Component Patterns\n\n- **Generic card look (border + shadow + white background).** Remove the border, or use only background color, or use only spacing. Cards should exist only when elevation communicates hierarchy.\n- **Always one filled button + one ghost button.** Add text links or tertiary styles to reduce visual noise.\n- **Pill-shaped \"New\" and \"Beta\" badges.** Try square badges, flags, or plain text labels.\n- **Accordion FAQ sections.** Use a side-by-side list, searchable help, or inline progressive disclosure.\n- **3-card carousel testimonials with dots.** Replace with a masonry wall, embedded social posts, or a single rotating quote.\n- **Pricing table with 3 towers.** Highlight the recommended tier with color and emphasis, not just extra height.\n- **Modals for everything.** Use inline editing, slide-over panels, or expandable sections instead of popups for simple actions.\n- **Avatar circles exclusively.** Try squircles or rounded squares for a less generic look.\n- **Light/dark toggle always a sun/moon switch.** Use a dropdown, system preference detection, or integrate it into settings.\n- **Footer link farm with 4 columns.** Simplify. Focus on main navigational paths and legally required links.\n\n### Iconography\n\n- **Lucide or Feather icons exclusively.** These are the \"default\" AI icon choice. Use Phosphor, Heroicons, or a custom set for differentiation.\n- **Rocketship for \"Launch\", shield for \"Security\".** Replace cliche metaphors with less obvious icons (bolt, fingerprint, spark, vault).\n- **Inconsistent stroke widths across icons.** Audit all icons and standardize to one stroke weight.\n- **Missing favicon.** Always include a branded favicon.\n- **Stock \"diverse team\" photos.** Use real team photos, candid shots, or a consistent illustration style instead of uncanny stock imagery.\n\n### Code Quality\n\n- **Div soup.** Use semantic HTML: `