Vol. 01 · Internal Reference
The Snæu design system.
Tokens, type, glass, motion — the substrate from which every Snæu interface is composed. A working monograph.
Contents
- I — Identity (Mark + Wordmark)§1
- II — Palette§2
- III — Typography§3
- IV — Glass§4
- V — Motion§5
- VI — Components§6
- VII — Photography§7
Identity
Mark and wordmark,
in posture.
The mark is an abstracted IALA North Cardinal daymark — two solid isoceles triangles, both pointing up, stacked with a one-unit gap. In the real world this mark floats over Skagerrak, Oslofjord and every Nordic harbour: it signals safe water lies to the north.
Three readings travel with it — north, ascent, the prow of a hull. Drawn flat, drawn geometric, drawn unmistakable.
The wordmark holds the Æ ligature at the centre of gravity — Instrument Serif, italic Æ, tracked at 0.04em.
Filled · Coal
Filled · Fjord
Filled · Walnut
Filled · Oxide
Outline · Coal
Outline · Fjord
Outline · Walnut
Outline · Moss
Display
SNÆUHeading
SNÆUInline
SNÆULockup — mark at ~1.8× the wordmark cap-height, separated by one cap-height of clear space. The triangles always point up; never rotate the mark, never close the central gap.
Palette · Warm Nordic Modernism
Slightly warm. Never pure.
No pure black. No pure white. The palette draws from natural Nordic materials — coal, walnut, birch, moss, fjord — and is calibrated for long-form reading.
Coal
#121315
Primary text · dark surface
Coal Soft
#1B1C1F
Dark surface, second tier
Graphite
#2A2B2E
Dividers on dark, fine inks
Warm Stone
#D7D0C7
Subdued mid-tone surfaces
Birch
#EEE9E2
Primary light surface
Birch Warm
#F4F0EA
Card surfaces, soft contrast
Paper
#FAF7F2
Editorial pages, gallery
Walnut
#6B5745
Accent · institutional warmth
Moss
#5E6B5D
Spatial accents · vegetation
Fjord
#667A8A
Policy accents · water
Oxide
#A2674B
Highlight · alert · earth
Typography
Editorial restraint, architectural rhythm.
Instrument Serif sets the editorial register. IBM Plex Sans carries the body. IBM Plex Mono labels every section, table, and coordinate.
Glass
Smoked Scandinavian glass.
Not iOS frost.
Three glass treatments: light, dark, walnut-tinted. Blur is low. Borders are hairlines. The intent is architectural glazing, not candy.
.glass-light
Light glass
Birch tint, 14px blur, 8% coal border. For nav and hero overlays.
.glass-dark
Dark glass
Coal tint, 12px blur, 10% birch border. For dashboards and intelligence panels.
.glass-walnut
Walnut glass
Walnut tint, 16px blur. For accent callouts and featured quotes.
Motion
Slow. Deliberate. Architectural.
The platform breathes at institutional cadence. Defaults lean slow. The architect easing curve (0.2, 0.6, 0.2, 1) is the house default.
instant
120ms
Hover colour
fast
240ms
Link underline
med
600ms
Surface fades
slow
1200ms
Page lift-in
Components
Buttons
Meta rule
Section divider
Catalogue
Eyebrows & captions
Section · Volume 01
N 59°54′ · E 10°44′
— Caption, Instrument Serif italic
Product card · grid
Atlas
Cadastral truth, drawn at the scale of a nation.
Photography
Foggy mornings. Soft shadows.
Quiet spaces.
Photography for Snæu follows the same restraint as the interface. Diffuse Nordic light. Concrete, timber, glass. Geometry from altitude. Frames are not edited; captions are set in Instrument Serif italic, with a mono coordinate stamp.
Plate I
Foggy Oslo, December
Diffuse winter light. Native CDN, no saturation lift.
Subjects
Civic architecture · timber + concrete · glazed facades · aerial city grids · winter light · quiet interiors.
Treatment
No filters. No saturation lift. Native CDN delivery. Hairline mat on every plate; soft gradient under captions.
Source
Unsplash, under the Unsplash License. Single source of truth at lib/photography.ts.