I Built My Entire Design System in 4 Hours With AI. Full Tutorial (Claude + Cursor + Figma)

Design Systems in Code: A Game Changer?

The Speed of Development

• The speaker contrasts their team's ability to ship a new feature in two hours versus another team's two weeks, attributing the speed to having built their design system in code.

• They highlight that 62% of developers waste time due to broken handoffs between Figma and code, suggesting a need for improvement in this area.

Building a Design System

• The speaker introduces Claude as a tool to build out a style guide using their Figma component library, emphasizing the importance of establishing a design foundation.

• Instructions are given on creating a style guide named style tokens.ts, which will include all essential design variables like colors and typography extracted from the MCP connection.

Creating Components

• The single source of truth is established with all components and tokens codified in TypeScript, ensuring consistency across designs.

• The speaker discusses compiling the component library and how interactions and designs are defined based on Figma files, providing clear guidelines for developers.

Workflow for Component Creation

• A detailed workflow is introduced for building components, including initialization, setup, analysis, implementation, and documentation generation.

• Each component will have associated documentation detailing rules and specifications to ensure adherence to design standards during usage.

Execution and Testing

• Claude begins executing tasks based on the provided workflow list while documenting each step taken throughout the process.

• After completion of tasks related to building components like KPI cards, the output matches Figma perfectly with comprehensive documentation included.

Building Features with Components

• The speaker initiates building an actual feature by assembling various components into a screen layout while adhering strictly to specified workflows.

• Emphasis is placed on following design tokens closely during development; Claude generates task lists ensuring thoroughness before finalizing builds.

This structured approach highlights key insights into developing efficient design systems through coding practices while leveraging tools like Claude for streamlined workflows.

Design Implementation and Project Management Tips

Implementing Design Components

• The speaker demonstrates the successful implementation of design components that align with the Figma design, indicating a smooth transition from design to development.

• Emphasis is placed on continuing to add additional components to various pages, suggesting an iterative approach to building out the project.

Project Documentation Strategy

• A key tip shared involves saving chat records related to project discussions in a file named project context.md, which helps maintain organized documentation throughout the project's lifecycle.

• The speaker highlights the importance of tracking session details, including dates and summaries of discussions, as a best practice for managing project information effectively.