Usedesign

Skill jpoindexter/usedesign/skills/usedesign

Use when the user invokes /usedesign, or hands over any design/UI task (screen, component, layout, color, type, motion, flow, chart, wireframe, audit, polish, copy, case study) and it's unclear which design skills to load — a router over ALL installed design skills that reads the task and picks the best 2-5 to apply.From its SKILL.md

Install

npx -y skills add jpoindexter/usedesign --skill usedesign

Assembled from the repository path, not quoted from the project. Check it against their README if it does not work.

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SKILL.md

5.0 KB, ~1.2k tokens by cl100k_base, as published. Nobody here has run it

usedesign — design skill router

One entry point over every installed design skill. Read the task, narrow ~85 design skills down to the best 2–5, load them, apply them. Don't design from memory — the picked skills carry the concrete specs.

How to route (do this in order)

Read the task. Extract two signals:
- Surface — native iOS? web/cross-platform? data/charts? marketing page? wireframe/sketch?
- Activity — build, audit/critique, polish, wireframe, flow-design, write copy, design-system.
Consult catalog.md (this skill's folder) — every design skill grouped by family with its description. catalog.json is the machine-readable form.
Match with the heuristics below → a shortlist. Prefer leaf skills over dispatchers.
Cap at 5. If the task is squarely one family, defer to that family's dispatcher instead of hand-picking (see "Defer" below).
Announce + load. State Skills matched (N): …, load each (see "Loading"), then apply. End with Skills applied: ….

Routing heuristics (task signal → where to look)

Task signal	Prioritize
Native iOS / SwiftUI / iPhone screen	`ios26-hig-patterns` + the specific `ios-*` (typography, color-and-materials, components, layout-and-grid)
Web / cross-platform screen or component	`layout-and-composition`, `components-and-states`, `color-and-elevation`, `grid-and-spacing`
Product definition is unresolved (customer, outcome, evidence, metrics, AI fit)	`pm` first, then the matching design skills
Design system / tokens	`design-tokens`, `dec-design-system-depth`, `color-and-elevation`, `components-and-states`
Charts / dashboard / data graphic	`data-visualization`, `tufte` (+ `ios-charts-and-data-visualization` on iOS)
Motion / animation / transition	`interaction-and-motion`, `app-motion-and-animation`, `dec-motion-animation` (+ `ios-motion-and-animation`)
Accessibility	`accessibility-and-inclusive-design`, `dec-accessibility`, `inclusive-design` (+ `ios-accessibility`)
Copy / microcopy / content	`ux-writing-and-content`
A flow (onboarding, auth, checkout, settings, search, paywall, permissions, errors, tables…)	the matching `flow-*` — or defer to `/userflow`
Wireframe / sketch / block out a screen	the matching `wireframe-*` — or defer to `/wireframe`
Audit / critique / "is this good" / heuristic eval	`usability-heuristics`, `dec-nielsen-heuristics`, `visual-qa`, `accessibility-audit`, `anti-slop-design-law`, `ethical-design-and-dark-patterns`
Case study / portfolio / project narrative	defer to `case-study`; for AI agents it routes `ai-agent-case-study` plus evidence, decision, and writing skills
"Make it feel better" / polish / "feels off"	`make-interfaces-feel-better`, `polish`
Cognitive load / UX laws / clarity	`dec-cognitive-load`, `dec-ux-laws`, `laws-of-ux-and-psychology`, `dec-krug-laws`
Landing / marketing page	`hallmark`, `anti-slop-design-law`
Nutrition / food / macro app	`macro-food-app-ui`, `dense-no-scroll-layout`

Multiple signals → pick across families, still cap at 5, most-load-bearing first.

Keep the boundary explicit: pm owns what to build, for whom, why, how success is measured, and whether AI is appropriate. Design skills own how that decision becomes an interface. Count pm inside the five-skill cap when both are required.

Defer to a family dispatcher

If the whole task sits inside one family, hand off instead of hand-picking — the family dispatcher already routes within its set:

Native iOS → /ios · Web/cross-platform → /design · Design case study → /case-study · Design-eng principles → /dec · UX flow → /userflow · Wireframing → /wireframe

Use /usedesign when the task spans families (e.g. "audit this iOS chart screen for accessibility" → ios-charts-and-data-visualization + ios-accessibility + data-visualization).

Loading a skill (runtime-specific)

Claude Code / Claude: invoke each picked skill via the Skill tool by its name. Codex / other runtimes: open ~/.codex/skills/<name>/SKILL.md (or ~/.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md) and follow it.

The routing logic above is runtime-agnostic; only the load mechanism differs.

Keeping the catalog current

catalog.md / catalog.json are a snapshot of the installed design skills at build time. If a design skill seems missing (you added one since), regenerate:

node scripts/build-catalog.mjs            # scans ~/.claude/skills

Or, for a one-off check, ls ~/.claude/skills and read the frontmatter description of any candidate not in the catalog.

What ships with it: 2 files

79.6 KB alongside SKILL.md

catalog.json42.6 KB
catalog.md36.9 KB