Between the Lines: July 2026
A couple of new training clients, what we heard on a recent discovery call, and the harder question we're working through about who design systems are really for.
The Project We Walked Away From
There's a project the team and I still think about often, one that never moved forward at all. It's stuck with me for what it taught us about the questions we ask before the work ever begins. A little while back, we here at Baseline were
The Guess Dressed Up As A Plan
Why we started flagging scope gaps instead of estimating around them
Naming Is The Argument
Names are how your system explains itself. To designers, engineers, and AI.
Config 2026: Everything New in Figma
I just got back from 2026’s Figma Config, held in San Francisco, and I’m still sorting through everything I saw and heard while I was there. But after some rest and getting over the annual Config Cold 🤧, I’m excited to share many of my thoughts about what’
Between the Lines: June 2026
Announcing our partnership with Southleft, what we're watching at Config, and why we've been telling some teams to hold off.
What Being Ready Actually Means
And why it has less to do with your system's polish than you might think
Governance Without Gatekeeping
What a good contribution process is actually protecting
Six Months Later
What a good engagement actually leaves behind
Between the Lines: May 2026
Documentation that looks complete but isn't useful. Token foundations under pressure. Slot architecture on a live project.
What the System Is Trying to Tell You
What you find when you audit a design system you didn't build, and why most of it makes more sense than it looks
You're Not Behind
These past few days have felt like a lot. On top of everything, there's been new tools, strong opinions, and a constant stream of hot takes about what all of this means for design. I shared a short post about it, mostly as a reminder to myself, and