Decisions SW-12 to SW-168

SW-168 — README in the Events style, with Patch peeking from a corner

Date: 2 November
Decision: The main README is rebuilt in the style of the sibling Events README: a banner in the brand palette with Patch peeking from a corner (the official art, light and dark), a tagline, palette swatches, no contributors wall. The banner generator is kept out of the repo.
Why: The owner wanted the README done now, in a familiar proven style, rather than last.
Status: current. Supersedes SW-151 and SW-152 on the mascot question.
Implemented in: mascot/, mascot/dark/ (the art). App: docs/readme/.

Date: 31 October
Decision: Render two banners, with and without a small Patch; ship the Patch one only if it still reads as polished.
Why: The owner left room for the mascot as long as quality held.
Status: superseded by SW-168.
Implemented in: n/a.

Date: 31 October
Decision: No mascot on the README banner unless the owner later asks.
Why: The owner wanted a clean, professional banner. Superseded the mascot parts of SW-106.
Status: superseded by SW-152.
Implemented in: n/a.

Date: 28 October
Decision: The ID card and certificate designer has a font library, including Indic scripts, as the one exception to the brand-fonts rule, for cards only (item C-21; the full Google Fonts catalogue, self-hosted).
Why: Cards are printed for people whose names and languages need scripts the brand fonts do not cover.
Status: current. SW-299 still applies to everything that is not a card.
Implemented in: App: card designer.

Date: 25 October
Decision: The README gets a wide poster banner (wordmark, tagline, strip of real product shots, light and dark) and a screenshot gallery, done last.
Why: Reason not recorded beyond the owner’s request for a “proper poster/banner”.
Status: partly superseded: the mascot and “last” parts by SW-151, SW-152 and SW-168.
Implemented in: App: docs/readme/.

Date: 20 October
Decision: Patch appears only on the 404 page (light and dark sticker). Elsewhere the design system’s SVG illustrations (loader, moods, companion) are used. The delight effects added then: logo unfold on hover or click, seven clicks for Maker mode, brand-shaped confetti on an on-time return, a sudo make easter egg, first-load stagger, all behind the delight switches, honouring reduced motion, and excluded from kiosk, scanner, checkout and payment screens.
Why: The mascot is the “one bold moment”, so it was held back until the brand rules were proven. The exclusions protect screens where speed and clarity matter.
Status: partly superseded: the “404 only” scope by SW-306; the logo effect by SW-362 and SW-367.
Implemented in: mascot/README.md usage rules.

Date: 20 October
Decision: The official dark-background Patch has a thin Warm Cream (#FFF4E8) die-cut sticker border, about 4 px at the 256 px walk-frame size and scaled with size, with the art otherwise untouched. In the app’s dark mode it replaces the cream card.
Why: The painted coat has dark areas that vanish on black; a light edge keeps Patch readable. It is the approved exception to the “no outlines” rule, for dark surfaces only.
Status: current.
Implemented in: mascot/dark/, site/scripts/dark-mascot.mjs, mascot/README.md. Commits 89e618b, b93db0a.

Date: 20 October
Decision: In dark mode, keep the Warm Cream card that travels with Patch (contrast rule).
Why: Contrast for the light-coloured art on a dark page.
Status: superseded by SW-56 (a sticker border replaces the card).
Implemented in: n/a.

Date: 20 October
Decision: The app takes Patch only from this repository’s main branch. The left-facing walk cycle, which the owner fixed here, is the approved one.
Why: One source of truth for the mascot art. Reason for the left-facing walk beyond “approved” not recorded.
Status: current.
Implemented in: mascot/walk-left/. Commits e7b74a3, 62a9b9e.

Date: 20 October
Decision: Delight effects and easter eggs are on by default for new and existing spaces and each space may switch them off. Reduced motion is still honoured. The dark-mode transition is always on.
Why: Reason not recorded.
Status: current.
Implemented in: docs/motion.md. App: delight switches.

Date: 18 October
Decision: Every illustration and glyph is original Space Works artwork (SVG, light and dark variants) built from the brand symbol and tokens: mood glyphs, loader, 404 tag, empty-state illustrations, default certificate and card templates. No third-party or Yuyu assets. Decorative art is hidden from screen readers; meaningful art has alt text.
Why: Brand consistency and licensing safety (no borrowed artwork).
Status: current.
Implemented in: mascot/, logo/, icons/. App: frontend/src/assets/illustrations/.

Date: 18 October
Decision: All new work uses only the Space Works theme: brand guidelines, CSS-variable tokens (light and dark), the brand fonts with one Unbounded accent per layout, lucide icons, the app shell, existing components, the accessibility floor and the colour vocabulary. No look, fonts, palettes, illustrations or copy from Yuyu or any other product.
Why: So the product reads as one brand and nothing borrowed ships by accident. A frontend design review checks this explicitly.
Status: current. The clause “Gilroy 400 to 700” was replaced by SW-299.
Implemented in: tokens/, docs/ui-brand-spec.md.

Date: 18 October
Decision: An event’s accent colour is chosen from brand-palette presets, not a free colour picker.
Why: Reason not recorded; it follows from keeping every colour contrast-checked in light and dark (compare the tenant-colour lesson in docs/lessons-learned.md).
Status: current.
Implemented in: tokens/tokens.json brand colours.

Date: 18 October
Decision: Adopt Yuyu’s new and fun elements, including easter eggs, rebuilt in the Space Works brand.
Why: The owner wanted the delight without the look; see SW-31 and DS-5.
Status: current.
Implemented in: docs/ux-spec.md; references/yuyu/.