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Design Tokens: The Foundation of Consistent UI

Design Tokens: The Foundation of Consistent UI

What Are Design Tokens?

Design tokens are the atomic values of your design system - colors, typography, spacing, and more. They're the building blocks that ensure consistency across your entire application.

Why Design Tokens Matter

When you define tokens at the start of your project:

  • Consistency - Every component uses the same values
  • Scalability - Change once, update everywhere
  • Collaboration - Designers and developers speak the same language

How Dolfy Uses Design Tokens

In Dolfy's workflow, Step 3 is dedicated to establishing your design foundation:

Colors

Primary: violet-600
Secondary: cyan-500
Neutral: slate

Typography

Choose from curated font pairings that work beautifully on mobile devices.

Spacing

Consistent spacing scales ensure harmonious layouts.

From Tokens to Code

Dolfy automatically generates theme configurations from your tokens:

const COLORS = {
  primary: { light: '#7c3aed', dark: '#8b5cf6' },
  secondary: { light: '#06b6d4', dark: '#22d3ee' },
  // ...
};

This means your exported React Native components are ready to use immediately.

Best Practices

  1. Start with a limited palette
  2. Use semantic naming (primary, secondary, not blue, green)
  3. Consider light and dark mode from the start
  4. Document your token decisions

Design tokens aren't just nice-to-have - they're essential for building maintainable apps.