← All UI styles
Comic Panel
Panels with heavy ink borders and halftone dots doing the shading.
HalftoneexpressiveEntertainment productsStory and reading appsCampaign microsites
Construction · Halftone
Every tone is a dot screen coarse enough to count, printed inside a heavy ink outline. No smooth fills anywhere.
Every style renders this same screen, so the only thing changing between two of them is the style. The component above is the file below, running.
Prompt
Design this interface in the Comic Panel style. Heavy ink borders around every panel, halftone dot texture instead of gradients, and display type set like a caption box. Shading is dots, never blur. Build every surface the Halftone way: Every tone is a dot screen coarse enough to count, printed inside a heavy ink outline. No smooth fills anywhere. Use exactly these values: background #fdf6e3, surfaces #fffdf7, text #141414, secondary text #4c4c4c, accent #d62828 with #fffdf7 on it; corner radius 0/2/4px; 3px solid borders; a hard offset shadow in the ink color, never blurred; Helvetica Neue for body at 15px, line height 1.35; 4px spacing grid, regular spacing; labels in uppercase with wide letter spacing. Never: soft gradients; thin borders; muted palettes; rounded corners. Dark mode uses background #131313, surfaces #1c1b19, text #f7f3e8, accent #ff5b5b — the same style, not an inverted one.
The numbers in this prompt are printed from the tokens below, so it cannot drift from what the specimen renders.
What carries the look
- heavy ink panel borders
- halftone dot shading
- caption box type
- no gradients
What this style refuses
- soft gradients
- thin borders
- muted palettes
- rounded corners
The refusals are the half that keeps generated interfaces from converging — a prompt that only says what to add gets the default look.
Tokens
Palette
RoleLightDark
Background
#fdf6e3#131313Surface
#fffdf7#1c1b19Border
#141414#f2efe6Text
#141414#f7f3e8Muted text
#4c4c4c#a29d92Accent
#d62828#ff5b5bOn accent
#fffdf7#1a0303Shape and type
Radius0 / 2 / 4 px
Border3px solid
Shadowhard-offset
DisplayImpact
BodyHelvetica Neue
MonoCourier New
Type scale11 · 13 · 15 · 18 · 24 · 36 px
Weights500 / 800 / 900
Line height1.35
Tracking0em
Spacing4px grid · regular
Surfacegrain
Accentblock
Separatorhairline
Labelsuppercase
Blurnone
Measured contrast — body 17.08:1 light, 16.76:1 dark; secondary text 7.96:1 and 6.88:1. Every pair clears WCAG AA in both themes, checked on each build.
Specimen · Specimen.tsx
import type { CSSProperties } from "react";
/**
* Vibary · Comic Panel
*
* Panels with heavy ink borders and halftone dots doing the shading.
*
* One complete product screen, rendered from the token object below —
* the same screen every other Vibary specimen renders, so the style
* is the only variable. Self-contained: React only, no CSS file, no
* assets, no chart library.
*
* `theme` defaults to following the system setting; pass "light" or
* "dark" to pin one.
*/
export const TOKENS = {
"material": "halftone",
"color": {
"light": {
"bg": "#fdf6e3",
"surface": "#fffdf7",
"border": "#141414",
"text": "#141414",
"muted": "#4c4c4c",
"accent": "#d62828",
"accentText": "#fffdf7"
},
"dark": {
"bg": "#131313",
"surface": "#1c1b19",
"border": "#f2efe6",
"text": "#f7f3e8",
"muted": "#a29d92",
"accent": "#ff5b5b",
"accentText": "#1a0303"
}
},
"radius": {
"sm": 0,
"md": 2,
"lg": 4,
"pill": 999
},
"border": {
"width": 3,
"style": "solid"
},
"shadow": {
"level": "hard-offset",
"value": "5px 5px 0 0 currentColor"
},
"type": {
"family": {
"display": "Impact, \"Haettenschweiler\", \"Arial Black\", sans-serif",
"body": "\"Helvetica Neue\", Helvetica, Arial, \"Liberation Sans\", sans-serif",
"mono": "\"Courier New\", Courier, \"Nimbus Mono PS\", monospace"
},
"scale": [
11,
13,
15,
18,
24,
36
],
"weight": {
"body": 500,
"strong": 800,
"display": 900
},
"lineHeight": 1.35,
"tracking": 0
},
"space": {
"unit": 4,
"density": "regular"
},
"effects": {
"surface": "grain",
"accentStyle": "block",
"separator": "hairline",
"labelCase": "upper",
"blur": 0
}
};
type Palette = typeof TOKENS.color.light;
export type ComicPanelSpecimenProps = {
theme?: "system" | "light" | "dark";
/** Scopes the custom properties; only matters if you render two. */
scope?: string;
};
function vars(palette: Palette): string {
return [
`--sp-bg: ${palette.bg}`,
`--sp-surface: ${palette.surface}`,
`--sp-border: ${palette.border}`,
`--sp-text: ${palette.text}`,
`--sp-muted: ${palette.muted}`,
`--sp-accent: ${palette.accent}`,
`--sp-accent-text: ${palette.accentText}`,
].join("; ");
}
/** Fixed content: identical in every specimen, on purpose. */
const NAV: readonly { label: string; path: string }[] = [
{ label: "Overview", path: "M3 9.5 9 4.5l6 5V15a1 1 0 0 1-1 1h-2.5v-4h-5v4H4a1 1 0 0 1-1-1z" },
{ label: "Orders", path: "M4 5h10l-1 9H5zM7 5V3.5h4V5" },
{ label: "Customers", path: "M9 9a2.6 2.6 0 1 0 0-5.2A2.6 2.6 0 0 0 9 9M3.6 15.4c0-2.4 2.4-3.8 5.4-3.8s5.4 1.4 5.4 3.8" },
{ label: "Reports", path: "M4.5 15V8M9 15V4.5M13.5 15v-4.5" },
{ label: "Settings", path: "M9 11.4A2.4 2.4 0 1 0 9 6.6a2.4 2.4 0 0 0 0 4.8M9 2.6v1.4M9 14v1.4M15.4 9H14M4 9H2.6M13.5 4.5l-1 1M5.5 12.5l-1 1M13.5 13.5l-1-1M5.5 5.5l-1-1" },
];
const STATS: readonly { label: string; value: string; delta: string; up: boolean }[] = [
{ label: "Revenue", value: "$48,290", delta: "+12.4%", up: true },
{ label: "Orders", value: "1,284", delta: "+3.1%", up: true },
{ label: "Refunds", value: "42", delta: "-1.8%", up: false },
];
const BARS: readonly { day: string; value: number }[] = [
{ day: "M", value: 0.42 },
{ day: "T", value: 0.61 },
{ day: "W", value: 0.38 },
{ day: "T", value: 0.74 },
{ day: "F", value: 0.93 },
{ day: "S", value: 0.55 },
{ day: "S", value: 0.29 },
];
const ROWS: readonly { name: string; meta: string; state: string; amount: string }[] = [
{ name: "Kyoto Print Co.", meta: "Invoice 2841", state: "Paid", amount: "420.00" },
{ name: "Aurora Supply", meta: "Invoice 2839", state: "Pending", amount: "186.50" },
{ name: "Northwind Studio", meta: "Invoice 2836", state: "Overdue", amount: "678.00" },
];
const SWITCHES: readonly { label: string; on: boolean }[] = [
{ label: "Auto-pay invoices", on: true },
{ label: "Email receipts", on: false },
];
/**
* The material: how this style paints an element, as opposed to what
* color it paints it. This is the part that makes Halftone
* a different design language rather than a different theme —
* Every tone is a dot screen coarse enough to count, printed inside a heavy ink outline. No smooth fills anywhere.
*/
const MATERIAL = {
"surface": {
"background": "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 12%, transparent) 1px, transparent 1.2px) 0 0 / 5px 5px, var(--sp-surface)",
"boxShadow": "none",
"border": "2px solid var(--sp-text)"
},
"button": {
"background": "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, #ffffff 45%, transparent) 1px, transparent 1.2px) 0 0 / 4px 4px, var(--sp-accent)",
"color": "var(--sp-accent-text)",
"boxShadow": "none",
"border": "2px solid var(--sp-text)"
},
"switchOn": {
"background": "var(--sp-accent)",
"boxShadow": "none",
"border": "2px solid var(--sp-text)"
},
"switchOff": {
"background": "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 30%, transparent) 1px, transparent 1.2px) 0 0 / 4px 4px, var(--sp-surface)",
"boxShadow": "none",
"border": "2px solid var(--sp-text)"
},
"knob": {
"background": "var(--sp-text)",
"boxShadow": "none"
},
"navActive": {
"background": "var(--sp-accent)",
"boxShadow": "none"
},
"bar": {
"background": "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, #ffffff 40%, transparent) 1px, transparent 1.2px) 0 0 / 4px 4px, var(--sp-accent)",
"boxShadow": "none",
"border": "2px solid var(--sp-text)"
},
"texture": "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, #000000 14%, transparent) 1px, transparent 1.2px) 0 0 / 5px 5px"
};
const SURFACE_BORDER = `${TOKENS.border.width}px solid var(--sp-border)`;
const ROW_SEPARATOR = "1px solid var(--sp-border)";
const RING = 0.68;
export function ComicPanelSpecimen({ theme = "system", scope = "sp-comic-panel" }: ComicPanelSpecimenProps) {
const css =
theme === "light"
? `.${scope}{${vars(TOKENS.color.light)}}`
: theme === "dark"
? `.${scope}{${vars(TOKENS.color.dark)}}`
: `.${scope}{${vars(TOKENS.color.light)}}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){.${scope}{${vars(TOKENS.color.dark)}}}`;
const label: CSSProperties = {
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
letterSpacing: "0.08em",
textTransform: "uppercase",
color: "var(--sp-muted)",
};
const meta: CSSProperties = {
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.body} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
color: "var(--sp-muted)",
};
const card: CSSProperties = {
...MATERIAL.surface,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.md,
padding: 15,
};
const heading: CSSProperties = {
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[2]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.display}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.05em",
};
const primary: CSSProperties = { ...MATERIAL.button, borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.sm };
const pill = (active: boolean): CSSProperties => ({
padding: "2px 8px",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: active
? "var(--sp-accent)"
: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 10%, transparent)",
color: active ? "var(--sp-accent-text)" : "var(--sp-muted)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.07em",
});
return (
<div
className={scope}
style={{
width: 760,
display: "flex",
background: "radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 10%, transparent) 0.5px, transparent 0.5px) 0 0 / 3px 3px, radial-gradient(color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 7%, transparent) 0.5px, transparent 0.5px) 1.5px 1.5px / 4px 4px, var(--sp-bg)",
color: "var(--sp-text)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.body} ${TOKENS.type.scale[1]}px/${TOKENS.type.lineHeight} ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
letterSpacing: `${TOKENS.type.tracking}em`,
overflow: "hidden",
position: "relative",
}}
>
<style>{css}</style>
<span
aria-hidden="true"
style={{
position: "absolute",
inset: 0,
pointerEvents: "none",
background: MATERIAL.texture,
}}
/>
{/* Sidebar */}
<div
style={{
width: 176,
flex: "none",
display: "flex",
flexDirection: "column",
gap: 4,
padding: 18,
borderRight: `${TOKENS.border.width}px solid var(--sp-border)`,
background: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-surface) 70%, transparent)",
}}
>
<div style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 8, marginBottom: 14 }}>
<span
style={{
width: 22,
height: 22,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.sm,
background: "var(--sp-accent)",
display: "grid",
placeItems: "center",
color: "var(--sp-accent-text)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.display} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.display}`,
}}
>
N
</span>
<span
style={{
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.display} ${TOKENS.type.scale[2]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.display}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.06em",
}}
>
Northwind
</span>
</div>
{NAV.map((item, index) => (
<span
key={item.label}
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "center",
gap: 9,
height: 34,
padding: "0 9px",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.sm,
...(index === 0 ? MATERIAL.navActive : null),
color: index === 0 ? "var(--sp-accent)" : "var(--sp-muted)",
font: `${index === 0 ? TOKENS.type.weight.strong : TOKENS.type.weight.body} ${TOKENS.type.scale[1]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.07em",
}}
>
<svg width="17" height="17" viewBox="0 0 18 18" fill="none" aria-hidden="true">
<path
d={item.path}
stroke="currentColor"
strokeWidth={index === 0 ? 1.7 : 1.3}
strokeLinecap="round"
strokeLinejoin="round"
/>
</svg>
{item.label}
</span>
))}
<span style={{ flex: 1 }} />
<span
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "center",
gap: 8,
paddingTop: 14,
borderTop: `${TOKENS.border.width}px solid var(--sp-border)`,
}}
>
<span
style={{
width: 26,
height: 26,
flex: "none",
display: "grid",
placeItems: "center",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 12%, transparent)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
}}
>
MK
</span>
<span style={{ minWidth: 0 }}>
<span style={{ display: "block", font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}` }}>
Mika Ito
</span>
<span style={{ ...meta, display: "block" }}>Finance</span>
</span>
</span>
</div>
{/* Main */}
<div
style={{
flex: 1,
minWidth: 0,
display: "flex",
flexDirection: "column",
gap: 14,
padding: 18,
}}
>
{/* Header */}
<div style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 10 }}>
<span style={{ flex: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
<span style={{ ...label, display: "block" }}>March 2026</span>
<span
style={{
display: "block",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.display} ${TOKENS.type.scale[4]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.display}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.04em",
}}
>
Overview
</span>
</span>
<span
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "center",
gap: 7,
padding: "7px 11px",
background: "var(--sp-surface)",
border: `${TOKENS.border.width}px solid var(--sp-border)`,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.sm,
color: "var(--sp-muted)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.body} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
}}
>
<svg width="13" height="13" viewBox="0 0 18 18" fill="none" aria-hidden="true">
<circle cx="8" cy="8" r="5.4" stroke="currentColor" strokeWidth="1.5" />
<path d="M12.4 12.4 16 16" stroke="currentColor" strokeWidth="1.5" strokeLinecap="round" />
</svg>
Search
</span>
<span
style={{
...primary,
padding: "8px 13px",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}`,
textTransform: "uppercase",
letterSpacing: "0.07em",
}}
>
New report
</span>
</div>
{/* Stats */}
<div style={{ display: "flex", gap: 14 }}>
{STATS.map((stat) => (
<div key={stat.label} style={{ ...card, flex: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
<span style={{ ...label, display: "block" }}>{stat.label}</span>
<span
style={{
display: "block",
marginTop: 3,
fontVariantNumeric: "tabular-nums",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.display} ${TOKENS.type.scale[4]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.display}`,
}}
>
{stat.value}
</span>
<span style={{ display: "inline-flex", marginTop: 6, ...pill(stat.up) }}>
{stat.delta}
</span>
</div>
))}
</div>
{/* Chart + ring */}
<div style={{ display: "flex", gap: 14 }}>
<div style={{ ...card, flex: 1.6, minWidth: 0 }}>
<div style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "baseline", justifyContent: "space-between" }}>
<span style={heading}>Revenue by day</span>
<span style={meta}>7 days</span>
</div>
<div
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "flex-end",
gap: 7,
height: 92,
marginTop: 10,
}}
>
{BARS.map((bar, index) => (
<span key={index} style={{ flex: 1, display: "flex", flexDirection: "column", alignItems: "center", gap: 5 }}>
<span
style={{
width: "100%",
height: bar.value * 74,
borderRadius: `${TOKENS.radius.sm}px ${TOKENS.radius.sm}px 0 0`,
...(index === 4
? MATERIAL.bar
: {
background: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-accent) 32%, var(--sp-surface))",
border: SURFACE_BORDER,
}),
}}
/>
<span style={meta}>{bar.day}</span>
</span>
))}
</div>
</div>
<div style={{ ...card, flex: 1, minWidth: 0, display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 12 }}>
<span
style={{
width: 74,
height: 74,
flex: "none",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
display: "grid",
placeItems: "center",
background: `conic-gradient(var(--sp-accent) 0turn ${RING}turn, color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 12%, transparent) ${RING}turn 1turn)`,
}}
>
<span
style={{
width: 52,
height: 52,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: "var(--sp-surface)",
display: "grid",
placeItems: "center",
fontVariantNumeric: "tabular-nums",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[2]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.mono}`,
}}
>
68%
</span>
</span>
<span style={{ minWidth: 0 }}>
<span style={{ ...heading, display: "block" }}>Budget</span>
<span style={{ ...meta, display: "block", marginTop: 4 }}>Spent $34,120</span>
<span style={{ ...meta, display: "block" }}>Left $16,170</span>
</span>
</div>
</div>
{/* Table + controls */}
<div style={{ display: "flex", gap: 14 }}>
<div style={{ ...card, flex: 1.6, minWidth: 0, padding: 0, overflow: "hidden" }}>
<div
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "center",
justifyContent: "space-between",
padding: `${15}px ${15}px 8px`,
}}
>
<span style={heading}>Recent orders</span>
<span style={{ color: "var(--sp-accent)", font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}` }}>
View all
</span>
</div>
{ROWS.map((row, index) => (
<div
key={row.name}
style={{
display: "flex",
alignItems: "center",
gap: 10,
height: 44,
padding: `0 ${15}px`,
borderTop: ROW_SEPARATOR,
}}
>
<span
style={{
width: 24,
height: 24,
flex: "none",
display: "grid",
placeItems: "center",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.sm,
background: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 9%, transparent)",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.mono}`,
}}
>
{row.name.slice(0, 1)}
</span>
<span style={{ flex: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
<span style={{ display: "block", font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[1]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}` }}>
{row.name}
</span>
<span style={{ ...meta, display: "block" }}>{row.meta}</span>
</span>
<span style={pill(index === 0)}>{row.state}</span>
<span
style={{
width: 66,
textAlign: "right",
fontVariantNumeric: "tabular-nums",
font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.strong} ${TOKENS.type.scale[1]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.mono}`,
}}
>
{row.amount}
</span>
</div>
))}
</div>
<div style={{ ...card, flex: 1, minWidth: 0, display: "flex", flexDirection: "column", gap: 10 }}>
<span style={heading}>Preferences</span>
{SWITCHES.map((item) => (
<span key={item.label} style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 10 }}>
<span style={{ flex: 1, minWidth: 0, font: `${TOKENS.type.weight.body} ${TOKENS.type.scale[0]}px ${TOKENS.type.family.body}` }}>
{item.label}
</span>
<span
style={{
width: 34,
height: 20,
flex: "none",
position: "relative",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
...(item.on ? MATERIAL.switchOn : MATERIAL.switchOff),
}}
>
<span
style={{
position: "absolute",
top: 3,
left: item.on ? 17 : 3,
width: 14,
height: 14,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
...MATERIAL.knob,
}}
/>
</span>
</span>
))}
<span style={{ marginTop: 2 }}>
<span style={{ display: "flex", justifyContent: "space-between" }}>
<span style={meta}>Alert threshold</span>
<span style={{ ...meta, fontVariantNumeric: "tabular-nums" }}>62%</span>
</span>
<span
style={{
display: "block",
position: "relative",
height: 5,
marginTop: 7,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: "color-mix(in srgb, var(--sp-text) 14%, transparent)",
}}
>
<span
style={{
position: "absolute",
inset: "0 38% 0 0",
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: "var(--sp-accent)",
}}
/>
<span
style={{
position: "absolute",
top: -5,
left: "62%",
width: 15,
height: 15,
marginLeft: -7,
borderRadius: TOKENS.radius.pill,
background: "var(--sp-surface)",
border: `2px solid var(--sp-accent)`,
}}
/>
</span>
</span>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
);
}
export default ComicPanelSpecimen;