Design System Edition · v0.8.3.8.4

MONARCH DESIGN SYSTEM

Living Style Guide & Component Reference for a PHP-driven, modular, documented, responsive framework.

FOUNDATIONS

Core design decisions shared by every component: colors, typography, spacing, borders, radius, and shadows.

System Foundation

Single Source of Truth

Foundation values live in /design. The dynamic assets/css/colors.php renderer converts color data into CSS custom properties.

Architecture

Design data, presentation, components, utilities, documentation, and reusable PHP partials each have one clear responsibility.

Monarch Principles

Monarch is governed by single-source-of-truth, token-first, declarative architecture.

Design Tokens First

No reusable design decision is hard-coded when it can be expressed as a token. Component values are centralized in /design/components.php.

Three Layers

/monarch contains framework and privileged Designer/Administrator tools; the project root contains the website; future security services will reside under /monarch/security.

Branding

Favicon identity is configured once in design/branding.php. Pages inside /monarch automatically use Monarch branding; website pages use the site brand.

Monarch favicon

Monarch

monarch/assets/favicon/
Website favicon

Website / Application

assets/favicon/

Semantic Site Colors

Labels and HEX values are rendered from design/palette.php and design/theme.php.

PrimaryRosewood · #B1657C
SecondarySoft Periwinkle · #AE9DED
TextDust Grey · #D7D7D7
AccentSunflower Gold · #F4C369
BackgroundMidnight Violet · #201829
MutedMuted Grey · #777777
VisitedVisited Violet · #7045A0
CodeCode Green · #7CFC7C
Code BackgroundCode Background · #11101A
ErrorError Pink · #FF9A9A

Primary Colors

Red#FF0000
Yellow#FFD700
Blue#0066FF

Secondary Colors

Orange#FF7F00
Green#00A651
Purple#8000FF

Tertiary Colors

Red Orange#FF4500
Yellow Orange#FFB000
Yellow Green#9ACD32
Blue Green#009999
Blue Purple#5A4FCF
Red Purple#C71585

Typography

Heading One

Heading Two

Heading Three

Heading Four

Heading Five
Heading Six

Body Text

Standard paragraph text for readable long-form content.

Small text

Large text

Light text

Semibold text

Bold text

Good typography makes great design.

Flow — Responsive Document Rhythm

Layout organizes space. Flow organizes rhythm. Semantic presets control relationships between direct siblings without placing exterior spacing on the elements themselves.

flow-reading

Comfortable Long-Form Reading

Paragraphs maintain a calm, responsive cadence.

A later heading receives additional separation to clearly begin a new thought.

Responsive by Design

The same markup becomes tighter on small screens and more relaxed as space increases.

flow-dashboard

Compact Application Rhythm

Dashboard information stays visually connected.

Density changes without element-specific margin utilities.

Semantic Intent

The preset names the experience rather than the CSS mechanism.

<article class="flow-reading">...</article>

Design Tokens

A concise visual reference for Monarch's core spacing, radius, and shadow values. Numeric values are highlighted in code green.

Spacing

--space-0 0
--space-xs .25rem
--space-sm .5rem
--space-md 1rem
--space-lg 1.5rem
--space-xl 2rem
--space-2xl 3rem
--space-3xl 4rem

Radius

--radius-none 0
--radius-sm .25rem
--radius-md .5rem
--radius-lg .75rem
--radius-xl 1rem
--radius-full 999px
--radius-pill 999px

Shadows

--shadow-sm 0 2px 6px rgba(0,0,0,.18)
--shadow-md 0 10px 24px rgba(0,0,0,.25)
--shadow-lg 0 18px 48px rgba(0,0,0,.35)

COMPONENTS

Reusable interface modules with documented markup and predictable variants.

Lists

All twelve list types, including the Feature List, are preserved and documented.

Unordered

  • Primary marker
  • Reusable spacing
  • Nested-list ready

Circle

  • Secondary marker
  • Open-circle style
  • Balanced indentation

Square

  • Accent marker
  • Strong rhythm
  • Compact presentation

Decimal

  1. First numbered item
  2. Second numbered item
  3. Third numbered item

Alphabetical

  1. Lower-alpha marker
  2. Ordered sequence
  3. Reusable modifier

Roman Numerals

  1. Upper Roman marker
  2. Formal sequence
  3. Classic presentation

Checklist

  • Responsive
  • Keyboard friendly
  • Theme aware

Task List

  • Create the component
  • Review the documentation
  • Complete responsive testing

Arrow List

  • Follow design tokens
  • Reuse component classes
  • Keep modules focused

Feature List

  • PHP-driven design data
  • Modular component styles
  • Living documentation

Numbered Steps

  1. Plan the component
  2. Build the styles
  3. Test responsively

Description List

Token
A reusable design decision.
Component
A reusable interface pattern.

Buttons

Cards

Cards use the increased 3px outer stroke throughout the framework.

Default Card

A flexible content container built from reusable tokens.

Image Card

Cards may include responsive media and optional footer content.

Reusable component footer

Forms

Helpful supporting text belongs close to its field.

Tables

LayerLocationPurpose
Design data/designSingle source of truth
Presentation/assets/cssVisual rules and generated tokens
Components/componentsReusable PHP markup
Documentation/docsStandards and maintenance guidance

PATTERNS

Compositions made from foundation tokens, components, and utilities.

Token-Driven Layout System

Monarch preserves familiar .container > .row > .col-* markup while generating dimensions, gutters, and responsive behavior from design/layouts.php.

Containers

.container-narrow

Narrow reading container

.container

Standard container

.container-wide

Wide application container

Traditional Twelve-Column Grid

.col-6
.col-6

Responsive Sidebar

.col-12 .col-md-8
.col-12 .col-md-4

Layout Tokens

TokenValueResponsibility
grid.columns12Column proportions
grid.gutterlgSpace between columns
containers.standard75remDefault maximum width
containers.paddinglgResponsive edge protection
<div class="container">
    <div class="row">
        <div class="col-12 col-md-8">Main content</div>
        <div class="col-12 col-md-4">Sidebar</div>
    </div>
</div>

Hero, Alert & Badge Patterns

Hero

Focused introductory content

Combine typography, spacing, labels, and buttons.

Alert

A compact status message assembled from utilities.

Badges

DefaultNewOutline

Pattern Library

Patterns coordinate Layout, Flow, and Components into reusable content compositions.

Feature Grid Pattern

Layout

Organizes the responsive spatial relationship.

Flow

Controls the rhythm inside each card.

Components

Express the purpose of each content unit.

Statistics Pattern

10Patterns
5Templates
20Page archetypes

Templates & Page Archetypes

Templates establish reusable page skeletons. The project root contains the Universal Website reference pages, including Home, About Us, Services, Contact, FAQ, Blog, Article, and 404.

Templates

/templates contains one-column, two-column, landing, article, and documentation skeletons.

Recipes

/docs/recipes documents how Patterns and Templates compose complete page experiences.

UTILITY REFERENCE

Single-purpose classes that solve small layout and presentation needs without creating a new component.

Utility Classes

Display

Inline Block
d-block d-inline d-inline-block d-flex d-grid d-none

Flexbox

StartEnd
flex-row flex-column flex-wrap justify-center justify-between align-center

Grid

123
grid-2 grid-3 grid-4 grid-auto gap-sm gap-md gap-lg

Containers

container-narrow
container container-narrow container-wide container-fluid

Spacing

Padding
m-0 m-sm m-md mt-md mb-md p-sm p-md p-lg

Sizing

50% width
w-25 w-50 w-75 w-100 max-400 max-600 max-800

Text

Utility text

text-left text-center text-right text-uppercase text-primary text-muted

Background

Primary
bg-primary bg-secondary bg-accent bg-light bg-dark

Borders & Radius

Rounded
border border-top border-primary rounded-sm rounded-md rounded-lg rounded-pill rounded-circle

Shadows

Shadow
shadow-none shadow-sm shadow shadow-md shadow-lg shadow-xl

Position & Overflow

Positioned box
relative absolute fixed sticky overflow-hidden overflow-auto overflow-scroll

Visibility & Opacity

50% opacity
visible invisible opacity-0 opacity-25 opacity-50 opacity-75 opacity-100

Cursor

Hover for help cursor
cursor-pointer cursor-help cursor-wait cursor-not-allowed

Effects

Hover me
transition transition-fast transition-slow hover-shadow hover-grow hover-primary hover-accent

Accessibility

sr-only visually-hidden focus-ring

Print

Screen-only example
no-print print-only

Animation Utilities

Reusable motion is configured in design/animations.php. View-triggered examples begin only when they enter the viewport and can be replayed for testing.

Entrance

Fade Up
data-monarch-animation="fade-up" data-monarch-trigger="view"

Scale & Attention

Pop
data-monarch-animation="pop" data-monarch-trigger="view"

Loading & Hover

Hover Lift
animate-spinner animate-skeleton hover-lift hover-grow hover-shadow

Label Utilities

The identifier styles originally demonstrated in Lists are now reusable utility classes for any module.

PrimarySecondaryAccentOutlineGradientSoft
<span class="label label-primary">Primary</span>

DEVELOPER

Debugging tools, code conventions, and version information for maintaining Monarch.

Debug Utilities

Outline

debug-card
debug debug-card

Grid Overlay

debug-grid
debug-grid

Flex Inspector

OneTwo
debug-flex debug-spacing

Standards & Version

Code Standards

See /docs/CSS-STANDARDS.md and /docs/PHP-STANDARDS.md for naming, comments, indentation, and module responsibilities.

Current Version

v0.8.3.8.4

Monarch Design System — DESIGN SYSTEM EDITION — Page Composition.

Hero Gallery

Hero default

Default Hero

The canonical responsive Hero system.

components/hero.php · .hero-default

Hero minimal

Minimal Hero

The canonical responsive Hero system.

components/hero.php · .hero-minimal

Hero left

Left Hero

The canonical responsive Hero system.

components/hero.php · .hero-left

Hero banner

Banner Hero

The canonical responsive Hero system.

components/hero.php · .hero-banner

Page Header

Pattern

Page Header

A simple title region for interior, legal, search, and documentation pages.

patterns/page-header.php

Shared Pattern Inventory

Feature Grid

patterns/feature-grid.php

Cta Banner

patterns/cta-banner.php

Statistics

patterns/statistics.php

Team Grid

patterns/team-grid.php

Timeline

patterns/timeline.php

Contact Panel

patterns/contact-panel.php

Faq List

patterns/faq-list.php

Split Content

patterns/split-content.php

Article List

patterns/article-list.php

Site Header

patterns/site-header.php

Site Footer

patterns/site-footer.php

Section

patterns/section.php

Template

Landing

Campaign and marketing pages

templates/landing.php

Template

One Column

Focused reading and simple content

templates/one-column.php

Template

Two Column

Main content with supporting rail

templates/two-column.php

Template

Article

Editorial and long-form content

templates/article.php

Template

Documentation

Technical reference and guides

templates/documentation.php

Theme Demonstrations

Primary

Primary Theme

Uses semantic Monarch tokens only; no hard-coded presentation colors.

Secondary

Secondary Theme

Uses semantic Monarch tokens only; no hard-coded presentation colors.

Accent

Accent Theme

Uses semantic Monarch tokens only; no hard-coded presentation colors.

Semantic Status Colors

Meaning-driven colors remain consistent across every brand theme.

Success

Success status treatment

Information

Information status treatment

Warning

Warning status treatment

Danger

Danger status treatment

Pending

Pending status treatment

Neutral

Neutral status treatment

Universal Website Showcase

All Universal Website sample pages are listed from the centralized sample-page inventory.