Writing
Notes on design engineering — process, tools, and the occasional rabbit hole.
August 28, 2026 · 3 min read
Moving builds from Framer to code made specs checkable
Framer approved me as an Expert in April 2025. I still moved TasteLed's builds to code, where a specification can be versioned and rejected before a client sees it.
August 22, 2026 · 2 min read
One engagement record now feeds my client portal
I kept each project's status twice, once for me and once for the client. Rendering the portal from my working file removed the copy, and deciding became the limit.
August 15, 2026 · 2 min read
Four exhibits shipped blank while every check passed
Production refused a loader my dev server allowed, and four animations went live as empty rectangles. Nothing logged an error. I found it by opening the deployed page.
July 16, 2026 · 3 min read
Three graph prototypes changed how I review AI work
The lab graph was built three times from the same data. Reviewing each working version settled a question the written plan had left open: how to organize it.
July 1, 2026 · 3 min read
My portfolio had no client, so I set its limits first
With no client and no deadline, every decision stayed open. A scope ceiling, a visual baseline and two launch gates gave each review one question: is this ready to ship?
February 14, 2026 · 3 min read
I learned enough code to read the AI's homework
In February 2026 I expected AI to turn two months of design-system work into a week. The site I built next was not a fair test, but I can now read and check its code.
August 19, 2026 · 10 min read
Cutting this site from five typefaces to two families
This site launched wearing someone else's five-face type system. The change that answered most of the critique was deleting two CSS rules that swapped face mid-sentence.
August 12, 2026 · 8 min read
Two logo systems: the mark was the cheap part
A client changed their mind about a finished logo. Swapping the drawing took an afternoon. Updating everything the old drawing decided took the rest of the week.
July 8, 2026 · 5 min read
Mentor Buddies, 2022: two-thirds quit at the profile form
The app asked new users for a profile before showing them a single mentor. The redesign's highest-leverage move was letting them skip the form and browse first.
July 9, 2026 · 3 min read
A local editing menu ended repetitive AI image swaps
Swapping a portfolio image meant asking an agent to find the right file every time. I had it build a right-click menu that edits the source directly instead.