Vibe Design

What is Vibe Design

Design where you describe what you want and let AI generate visuals, layouts, and assets. You iterate based on results rather than pixel-pushing from scratch. Same philosophy as vibe coding applied to visual design.

Core principle: AI handles exploration and generation. You handle curation and refinement.

Quick Reference

Core Rules

1. Use Design Vocabulary, Not Art Vocabulary

AI responds differently to design vs art terms.

❌ Art words: "beautiful", "fantasy", "render", "painting", "stunning"

✅ Design words: "interface", "layout", "component", "spacing", "hierarchy"

Bad: "beautiful mobile banking product, minimal futuristic style"

Good: "mobile banking app UI in Material Design 3, clean layout, consistent spacing, data cards with financial metrics"

2. Anchor with Design Systems

Adding a design system name drastically improves structure:

• "Material Design 3" → balanced spacing, cards, shadows
• "Apple HIG" → soft radii, clear typography, native feel
• "IBM Carbon" → enterprise dashboard layouts
• "Atlassian" → B2B tone, crisp typography

3. Layer Your Prompts

Build prompts with structure:

[Project type] UI design for [product/audience],
[style keywords],
[layout type],
[color palette],
[design system reference],
[rendering style]

4. Aspect Ratios Matter

• Web: --ar 16:9
• Mobile: --ar 4:5 or --ar 9:16
• Square/icons: --ar 1:1
• Always specify for consistent output

5. Iterate, Don't Perfect First Try

Vibe design = rapid exploration.

1. Generate 4-8 variants
2. Identify elements that work
3. Remix: "Like image 2, but with the color palette from image 3"
4. Refine winner in production tool (Figma, etc.)

6. AI for Exploration, Tools for Production

• AI generates: Mood, direction, concepts, rough layouts
• Production tools refine: Pixel-perfect spacing, real content, responsive behavior

Don't try to get production-ready from AI. Use it for the 80% exploration, finish the 20% manually.

7. Reference Over Description

When possible, show don't tell:

• Attach reference images
• Link to existing designs you like
• Use "in the style of [specific designer/brand]"

8. Design System Consistency

For production work:

• Export AI concepts as references, not finals
• Rebuild in your design system
• Maintain your spacing, typography, and color tokens
• AI inspiration → human implementation

9. Know the Tool Strengths

See tools.md for detailed comparison.