Color is more than just aesthetics—it's a powerful tool for communication, branding, and accessibility. But as applications grow, maintaining consistent and accessible color schemes becomes a daunting challenge. In this talk, we’ll explore how to turn the chaos of ad-hoc color choices into a cohesive, scalable color system that evolves with your product.

I’ll begin by breaking down the building blocks of a robust color system, including primary, secondary, surface, and on-colors, while highlighting their role in creating a harmonious design language.

We’ll then dive into the science of accessibility, leveraging the APCA contrast algorithm to ensure color palettes are not only visually appealing but also accessible to all users, regardless of their visual abilities.

The heart of the talk will focus on dynamic palette generation—transforming a single base color into a comprehensive theme that seamlessly supports light and dark modes. I’ll demonstrate how to achieve this with Tailwind CSS and advanced configuration techniques, allowing your color system to grow effortlessly with your product needs.

But we won’t stop at theming. I’ll show how a well-designed color system can power infographics, animations, and other UI elements, enhancing the overall user experience without compromising on performance.

Finally, I’ll share practical insights from real-world implementations, including strategies for overcoming challenges like extreme light themes and maintaining consistency across complex component libraries.

Whether you’re building a new design system or scaling an existing one, this talk will equip you with the tools and knowledge to master color at scale. Join me and learn how to transform your color game from chaotic to cohesive, creating dynamic and accessible color systems that stand the test of time.