references/design-direction-method.md

# Visual exploration and implementation handoff

1. Collect primary user story, reference(s), copy/assets, target device sizes, brand constraints, and intended emotion.
2. Identify 2–3 viable styles relevant to this exact product (e.g. utilitarian dense workspace, expressive consumer utility, editorial reading experience). Distinguish hierarchy and interaction, not merely hue.
3. Decide on a direction if user requests build and doesn't require selection; if user asks for alternatives, show choices and wait for selection before implementing.
4. Write a brief: typography, palette, grid, whitespace rhythm, navigation anatomy, surface depth, icon/illustration roles, state transition principles, adaptive behavior.
5. Create a UI inventory: each screen/state, reusable component, data source, user action, success path, error path, desktop/mobile variations.
6. Map chosen references to *principles* and record provenance. No downloaded copyrighted assets without rights.
7. When assets are necessary, only use actual tools that can create/retrieve them; never infer that supporting assets were generated.
8. Implementation and QA must receive this spec and check actual render against it. Record deviations explicitly.