Minnow design system (current state)

Living inventory of Minnow's UI layer as implemented in code. Minnow has no React component library; the design system is CSS tokens + DOM modules (src/ui/, src/os/) paired with 96 stylesheets under src/styles/.

North star: Calm local instrument — conversation first, metrics as instrumentation, borders instead of card stacks.

Authoritative sources

Layer	Path
Palette tokens (hex/rgba only here)	src/styles/tokens.css
Theme runtime	src/theme.ts → src/ui/theme.ts
Custom overrides	src/appearance/types.ts, custom-theme.ts
Shared settings primitives	src/ui/settings-controls.ts + settings-controls.css
Dropdowns and menus	dropdowns.css, --mn-menu-* in tokens.css, context-menu.ts
Global primitives	global.css, topbar.css, input.css, messages.css, stats.css
Minnow Shell	minnowos-tokens.css, src/os/
Human spec	DESIGN.md, PRODUCT.md
Machine sidecar	.impeccable/design.json

Documentation map

Doc	Contents
tokens.md	--mn-* catalog, layout/motion tokens, derived semantics
themes.md	16 palette themes, storage keys, customization
primitives.md	Buttons, chips, inputs, settings controls, toast
dropdowns.md	Shared menu tokens, native selects, custom menus, keyboard focus
layout-shell.md	Top bar, sidebar, composer, stats strip, breakpoints
shell.md	Minnow Shell, --os-* aliases, wallpaper
css-map.md	Stylesheet → feature mapping

Architecture

tokens.css (16 themes × --mn-*)
    ↓
global.css + feature CSS (--mn-* consumers)
    ↓
src/ui/*.ts (DOM builders, no shared widget kit)
    ↓
index.html shell + Minnow (src/os/)

Rules (carry everywhere)

1. Hex/rgba literals only in tokens.css. Application CSS uses --mn-* (or --os-* in the shell).
2. Metric colors (--mn-success, --mn-warning, --mn-danger) are for instrumentation and status only, never navigation chrome.
3. Flat chrome at rest: top bar, sidebar, input bar, stats strip use borders, not box-shadow.
4. No nested cards in chat or settings.
5. Anti-patterns: neon HUD, ChatGPT-clone cream/purple, hero-metric dashboards, glassmorphism, gradient text, colored border-left stripes.

Gaps tracked (code vs older docs)

Item	Was documented	Code reality
Color model	Single OKLCH light palette	16 hex-based families in tokens.css
Default theme	Light-first	swamp-dark (DEFAULT_THEME_ID in theme.ts)
Sidebar width	240px	--sidebar-w: 300px in tokens.css
Core tokens	22 variables	26 in CORE_THEME_TOKEN_KEYS
User bubbles	Fixed bench green	--mn-accent-soft per family
Legacy aliases	--text, --accent	Prefer --mn-fg, --mn-accent; some files still fall back

Extracted: July 2026 via Impeccable extract.