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# Build brief — an original admin dashboard in the taste of Next.js Dashboard Template
> Reference: https://dashboard-template.vercel.app · UIDiscovery: https://uidiscovery.com/sites/app-next-js-dashboard-template · captured 2026-09-23 at a 1440px desktop viewport (+ 390px iPhone shots)
## 1. Goal
Build an original admin dashboard for **[the user's brand]** that feels as considered as Next.js Dashboard Template — same structure, rhythm and polish, entirely new identity and content.
## 2. Originality rules
- Build an ORIGINAL design for the user's own brand in the same *taste* as Next.js Dashboard Template: structure, rhythm, hierarchy, palette mood and type pairing.
- Never reuse Next.js Dashboard Template's logo, name, product imagery, illustrations, icons, screenshots or copy. Write new copy for the user's product.
- If the user hasn't said what their product is, ask first (or use clearly marked placeholders like [Brand], [Product], [Audience]).
- Reference screenshots are for looking at, not for embedding or tracing.
## 3. The taste, in short
- Next.js Dashboard Template (dashboard-template.vercel.app): Design & Agency admin dashboard, dark, minimal, dashboard.
- 2 product screens captured in the browser — real product UI, not marketing pages.
- Type: one family (Inter). Imagery: mostly product UI screenshots/mockups.
## 4. Screens
Typical dashboard anatomy (confirm in the screenshots): sidebar or top nav, page header with title + primary action, KPI cards, a chart, a filterable/paginated table, and empty/loading/error states.
1. [Screen](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/app-next-js-dashboard-template/s-01.webp)
2. [Screen](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/app-next-js-dashboard-template/s-02.webp)
## 5. Design system
### Colour
| Role | Hex | Use | Contrast on background |
|---|---|---|---|
| background | `#000000` | page background | — |
| foreground | `#ffffff` | body text, headings | 21.0:1 |
| accent | `#ffffff` | none captured — monochrome. Primary buttons invert (foreground fill, background text); add your brand colour only for small highlights | — |
| surface | `#111111` | cards, inputs, alternate bands | text on it 18.9:1 |
| muted | `#666666` | secondary text, borders | 3.7:1 — borders / large text only |
Captured palette: `#000000` `#ffffff` `#111111` `#666666` `#888888`. Roles are assigned automatically — sanity-check them against the screenshot. Keep the palette's *mood* (dark, neutral, desaturated) and proportions; swap the accent for the user's brand colour.
### Tokens
```css
:root {
--background: #000000;
--foreground: #ffffff;
--accent: #ffffff;
--surface: #111111;
--muted: #666666;
--font-heading: "Inter", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
--font-body: "Inter", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
--radius: 12px; /* calibrate from the screenshot */
}
/* Tailwind v4 — in globals.css after @import "tailwindcss"; */
@theme {
--color-background: var(--background);
--color-foreground: var(--foreground);
--color-accent: var(--accent);
--color-surface: var(--surface);
--color-muted: var(--muted);
--font-heading: var(--font-heading);
--font-sans: var(--font-body);
}
```
### Typography
- Headings: **Inter** (Google Fonts) — reference uses Inter. Free to use — load it directly.
- Body: same family — a single-family system; create contrast with size and weight, not a second face.
- Scale (starting point, sizes weren't measured — calibrate against the 1440px screenshot): display clamp(2.5rem, 5vw, 4.25rem), h2 clamp(1.75rem, 3vw, 2.5rem), h3 1.25rem, body 1rem–1.125rem / 1.6, small 0.875rem. Headings: tight tracking (-0.02em), line-height 1.05–1.15.
### Shape, depth & theme
Flat surfaces, hairline 1px borders in the muted colour, small radii (4–8px), almost no shadow; on dark, separate layers with 1px borders at ~8–12% white and soft glows instead of drop shadows; dense but calm: 8px radii on cards, 1px borders, subtle shadow only on overlays (menus, dialogs). Read exact corner radius, border and shadow treatment from the screenshots. Dark-first; for a light mode swap background ↔ foreground, lighten the surface, keep the accent and re-check contrast.
## 6. Imagery plan
Best guess: mostly **product UI screenshots/mockups** (dark, neutral, desaturated, Design & Agency). Inferred from element counts, colours and industry — not from the pixels — so open the linked screenshots and match the real style before sourcing anything.
### Slot 1 · 1. Screen, 2. Screen → product UI
- Design & Agency sections with many image elements — most likely product UI screenshots/mockups plus icons. Count: one consistent treatment across these sections. Aspect: 4:3. Look first: [ref 1](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/app-next-js-dashboard-template/s-01.webp) [ref 2](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/app-next-js-dashboard-template/s-02.webp)
- **Generate** — `Minimal empty-state illustration for a design & agency web app: one simple object or scene, flat shapes, palette #000000, #ffffff, #111111, lots of white space, centred, friendly. Aspect ratio 4:3. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.`
- App screens need little imagery: build the UI in code with realistic sample data; use initials or generated avatars (never real people's photos without consent), your own product thumbnails, and one consistent empty-state illustration style (prompt above).
### If the screenshots show a different style
Open the refs first and name what you actually see (photo / product UI / illustration / abstract gradient or 3D / type only). If it differs from the guess, switch routes — UI is built in code, type-only needs no image, otherwise:
- **photography** — generate `Photograph: design studio workspace. Composition: wide shot, subject off-centre to one side, generous clean negative space for the headline. Lighting: low-key, moody directional light with deep shadows. Neutral, desaturated colour grade that sits on #000000, #ffffff, #111111. Photorealistic, natural textures, shallow depth of field, 35mm lens. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“design studio workspace dark” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/design-studio-workspace-dark?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **abstract 3D / gradient** — generate `Abstract 3D render: soft, glossy glass-like shapes and a smooth gradient in #666666 and #111111 on a #000000 background. Lighting: low-key, moody directional light with deep shadows; neutral, desaturated tone. Minimal and calm, generous negative space on one side for text. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“abstract dark gradient 3d” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/abstract-dark-gradient-3d?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **illustration** — generate `Flat vector illustration: design studio workspace, friendly simplified shapes, limited palette of #000000, #ffffff, #111111 plus one soft neutral, plenty of empty background, consistent line weight, neutral, desaturated mood. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“lifestyle flat illustration” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/lifestyle-flat-illustration?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **Licences:** Unsplash and Pexels images are free for commercial use under their own licences; Pixabay under the Pixabay Content License. Check each image's page before use, credit the photographer when asked (good practice anyway), and skip images showing logos, trademarks, branded products or identifiable people without a release.
- **AI generation:** the prompts work with any image model (GPT Image, Imagen, Flux, Midjourney, Firefly, SDXL…) — check its commercial-use terms. Never put the reference brand's name or “in the style of <brand>” in a prompt.
- **Never** download, trace or re-host the reference's own images, illustrations, product shots or logos.
## 7. Build steps
1. Confirm brand, product, audience and the primary action with the user.
2. Set up the tokens (CSS variables / Tailwind @theme) and load the fonts.
3. Build the navigation shell first, then each screen, with each reference screenshot open.
4. Write original copy for every slot — match length and tone, never the words.
5. Source every image via the imagery plan (stock or generated); compress it and record credits.
6. Run the checklist at 390 / 768 / 1440px and fix what fails.
## 8. Acceptance checklist
- [ ] Responsive at 390px, 768px and 1440px — no horizontal scroll, tap targets ≥ 44px on mobile.
- [ ] Colour contrast WCAG AA: 4.5:1 body text, 3:1 large text and UI; visible focus states; full keyboard navigation.
- [ ] Semantic HTML: one <h1>, ordered headings, landmarks (header/nav/main/footer), labelled form fields, alt text on meaningful images.
- [ ] Performance: modern image formats with width/height set, lazy-load below the fold, ≤ 2 font families with font-display: swap, LCP < 2.5s.
- [ ] prefers-reduced-motion respected; animations under ~300ms and never blocking content.
- [ ] Originality: no copied logos, images, illustrations or copy from the reference; every image licensed or generated; credits recorded.
## 9. If you use Next.js + Tailwind
Paste the @theme block into globals.css, load fonts with next/font/google, make each section a server component in components/sections/, use next/image with explicit sizes, and keep client components for interactive bits only (menus, toggles, accordions).
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More: tokens https://uidiscovery.com/api/v1/sites/app-next-js-dashboard-template/tokens · kit https://uidiscovery.com/api/v1/sites/app-next-js-dashboard-template/kit · MCP `get_design_brief({ slug: "app-next-js-dashboard-template" })`, `get_image_plan({ slug: "app-next-js-dashboard-template" })`. Cite the reference as https://uidiscovery.com/sites/app-next-js-dashboard-template.
