Agent skill

Design System

by espennilsen in espennilsen/pi

Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency.

MITAuto-check passedFrontend & Design

Install Design System

skills CLI
$ npx skills add espennilsen/pi --skill design-system -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install espennilsen/pi design-system --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/espennilsen/pi.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/design-system .claude/skills/design-system && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
design-system
GitHub stars
122
Token cost
~1.5k tokens
SKILL.md length
282 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
36
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency.

  • Works in 5 steps: Color Tokens → Typography Tokens → Spacing Tokens → …
  • Asked to create a design system
  • SKILL.md covers Design Token Architecture, Component Library Structure, Design System Audit and Cross-Project Consistency, plus 1 more section
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Design System is an agent skill from espennilsen/pi. Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency. Use when asked to create a design system, define tokens, audit component consistency, generate a style guide, or sync design tokens with code.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.5k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

It sits in Frontend & Design, covering Design systems and Design tokens. It works with Tailwind CSS. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Asked to create a design system
  • Audit component consistency
  • Generate a style guide
  • Sync design tokens with code

Example prompts

  • “/design-system”

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

  1. Color Tokens
  2. Typography Tokens
  3. Spacing Tokens
  4. Layout Tokens
  5. Motion Tokens

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 79d019b. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are markdown, json and javascript).

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Design System loads about 1.5k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 69 tokens; SKILL.md has 282 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~69
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.5k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from espennilsen/pi at commit 79d019b, republished under its MIT licence (© espennilsen). 282 words, ~1,543 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/design-system/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
design-system
description
Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency. Use when asked to create a design system, define tokens, audit component consistency, generate a style guide, or sync design tokens with code.

Design System Management

Structured workflows for building and maintaining design systems across Espen's projects.

Design Token Architecture

Design tokens are the single source of truth — they flow from Penpot → JSON → Tailwind config → components.

Token Categories
1. Color Tokens
primitive/          — raw color values (gray-50 through gray-950, blue-500, etc.)
semantic/           — meaning-based aliases
  ├── background    — page, card, surface, overlay
  ├── foreground    — text-primary, text-secondary, text-muted, text-inverse
  ├── border        — default, muted, focus, error
  ├── accent        — primary, secondary
  └── status        — success, warning, error, info
interactive/        — state-based
  ├── hover         — bg-hover, text-hover
  ├── active        — bg-active
  ├── focus         — ring-color, ring-offset
  └── disabled      — bg-disabled, text-disabled
2. Typography Tokens
font-family/        — sans, mono, serif (if used)
font-size/          — xs (12px), sm (14px), base (16px), lg (18px), xl (20px), 2xl-5xl
font-weight/        — normal (400), medium (500), semibold (600), bold (700)
line-height/        — tight (1.2), normal (1.5), relaxed (1.75)
letter-spacing/     — tight (-0.025em), normal (0), wide (0.025em)
3. Spacing Tokens

Aligned with Tailwind's 4px base:

0: 0px, 0.5: 2px, 1: 4px, 1.5: 6px, 2: 8px, 2.5: 10px, 3: 12px, 4: 16px,
5: 20px, 6: 24px, 8: 32px, 10: 40px, 12: 48px, 16: 64px, 20: 80px, 24: 96px
4. Layout Tokens
radius/             — none (0), sm (4px), md (8px), lg (12px), xl (16px), full (9999px)
shadow/             — none, sm, md, lg, xl, 2xl, inner
border-width/       — 0, 1px, 2px, 4px
z-index/            — dropdown (50), sticky (100), modal (200), popover (300), toast (400)
breakpoint/         — sm (640px), md (768px), lg (1024px), xl (1280px), 2xl (1536px)
5. Motion Tokens
duration/           — fast (100ms), normal (200ms), slow (300ms), slower (500ms)
easing/             — ease-in, ease-out, ease-in-out, cubic-bezier(0.4, 0, 0.2, 1)
Token Format (JSON)

Store tokens in a structured JSON file that can be consumed by both Penpot and Tailwind:

json
{
  "$schema": "design-tokens",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "colors": {
    "primitive": { "gray": { "50": "#fafafa", "900": "#171717" } },
    "semantic": {
      "background": { "page": "{colors.primitive.gray.50}", "card": "#ffffff" },
      "foreground": { "text-primary": "{colors.primitive.gray.900}", "text-secondary": "#737373", "text-muted": "#a3a3a3" },
      "accent": { "primary": "#7c6ff0", "primary-foreground": "#ffffff", "secondary": "#6b7280" }
    }
  },
  "typography": { ... },
  "spacing": { ... }
}

Component Library Structure

Component Documentation Template

For each component in the design system, maintain:

markdown
## Component: [Name]

**Category:** atoms | molecules | organisms
**Shadcn equivalent:** [shadcn-svelte component name, if applicable]

### Variants
- [List all visual variants]

### States
- Default, Hover, Active, Focus, Disabled, Loading, Error

### Props / Slots
- [What's configurable — size, color, icon, label, etc.]

### Accessibility
- Role: [ARIA role]
- Keyboard: [Tab, Enter, Escape, Arrow keys behavior]
- Screen reader: [What gets announced]

### Usage Guidelines
- When to use vs. alternatives
- Do's and don'ts

### Token Dependencies
- Colors: [which tokens]
- Typography: [which tokens]
- Spacing: [which tokens]

Design System Audit

Run periodically to catch drift between design and code:

Audit Checklist
  1. Token sync — do Penpot colors/typography match the exported token JSON?
  2. Component coverage — are all coded components represented in Penpot?
  3. Orphan styles — any one-off colors, fonts, or spacing in Penpot that aren't in the token set?
  4. Naming consistency — do component names match between Penpot and code?
  5. State completeness — does every interactive component have all required states?
  6. Accessibility — do all color combinations pass WCAG AA contrast ratios?
  7. Dark mode — if supported, are all semantic tokens mapped for both themes?
  8. Documentation — is the component documentation up to date?
Audit Output Format
markdown
## Design System Audit — [Date]

### Summary
- Components: X in Penpot, Y in code, Z fully synced
- Token drift: [list mismatches]
- Missing states: [list components with incomplete states]

### 🔴 Critical
- [Issues that break consistency or accessibility]

### 🟡 Important
- [Issues that should be fixed soon]

### 🔵 Minor
- [Nice-to-haves, polish items]

### ✅ Healthy
- [What's in good shape]

Cross-Project Consistency

When multiple projects share a design system:

  1. Shared token package — publish tokens as a versioned JSON/NPM package
  2. Penpot shared library — use Penpot's shared library feature for cross-project components
  3. Version the system — use semver for breaking changes (color removal, spacing scale changes)
  4. Changelog — track every design system change with rationale

Tailwind Integration

Map design tokens to Tailwind config:

javascript
// tailwind.config.js (generated from tokens)
export default {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        // From semantic tokens
        background: 'var(--color-background)',
        foreground: 'var(--color-foreground)',
        primary: { DEFAULT: 'var(--color-accent-primary)', foreground: 'var(--color-accent-primary-foreground)' },
      },
      borderRadius: {
        // From radius tokens
        sm: 'var(--radius-sm)',
        md: 'var(--radius-md)',
        lg: 'var(--radius-lg)',
      }
    }
  }
}

This ensures design tokens are the single source of truth — change them in Penpot, export, and the Tailwind config updates automatically.

© espennilsen, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

Just SKILL.md in skills/design-system of espennilsen/pi.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 79d019b

Compare with similar skills

Design System next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Design System compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Design System this skillespennilsen/pi122—~1.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Design SystemOhh-889/skyroc79511 repos~1.7kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Scalar Design Systemscalar/scalar16k—~2.7kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Tailwind Design SystemSuFxGIT/scoutarr1155 repos~5.6kAutomated safety check: PassNone
Extract DesignManavarya09/design-extract4.2k—~786Automated safety check: NotesMIT
Tailwind Design Systemjh941213/my-cc-harness12610 repos~4.7kAutomated safety check: PassNone

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Works with

Questions about Design System

What does Design System do?

Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency. Design System is an agent skill from espennilsen/pi. Build, maintain, and audit design systems — tokens, component libraries, style guides, and cross-project consistency.

When should I use Design System?

Design System fits situations like: asked to create a design system; audit component consistency; generate a style guide; sync design tokens with code.

How do I install Design System in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add espennilsen/pi --skill design-system -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/design-system in espennilsen/pi) into .claude/skills/design-system in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Design System in Codex?

Run `npx skills add espennilsen/pi --skill design-system -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/design-system in espennilsen/pi) into .agents/skills/design-system in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Design System in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add espennilsen/pi --skill design-system -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/design-system, .gemini/skills/design-system, .github/skills/design-system and .opencode/skills/design-system in your project.

What does Design System need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Design System is instructions for the agent only.

Does Design System access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Design System safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Design System use?

Design System is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Design System use?

About 1.5k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.2k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Design System?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Design System: Design System (Ohh-889/skyroc, 795 stars), Scalar Design System (scalar/scalar, 16k stars), Tailwind Design System (SuFxGIT/scoutarr, 115 stars) and Extract Design (Manavarya09/design-extract, 4.2k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Design System?

espennilsen (a GitHub user) maintains it in espennilsen/pi, which has 122 GitHub stars. The repository holds 36 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 21, 2026.

Source: espennilsen/pi on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.