DIRECTION B · SOFT MACHINE · v0.1

Made by a friendly machine.

A modern soft-tech system. Sherbet pastel palette, mesh gradients, restrained glassmorphism, blob motion. Reads as warm 2026 futurism, not Y2K nostalgia. Closest references: Crème Atelier, Linear, Arc Browser, Magic Spoon at its softest.

01 · ESSENCE

The premise.

VIBE

Warm futurism

2026 successor to Y2K. Soft, not cold. The product is the future but it's friendly. Pastels with chrome accents, not full chrome.

VOICE

Calm and certain

Soft-tech tone. Confident but quiet. Reads like a friendly product manual from a brand that doesn't need to shout.

PRINCIPLE

Show the object

Every page composition centres the physical product, then surrounds it with breathing room and atmospheric colour.

02 · COLOUR

A sherbet palette, layered with depth.

Three core pastel accents (peach, mint, lilac) plus a deep ink and warm cream paper. The signature move is the mesh gradient backdrop — combining all three pastels in radial blends. Used on hero and any "product surface" moment. Solid pastels for tonal cards and tags.

cream
#FAF7F2
ink
#0B0B0F
peach
#FF9E7A
mint
#B8E6C8
lilac
#C9B6FF
sky
#B8DDF0
cream-2
#F2EDE3
muted
#6A6A75

Mesh gradients

mesh-1
peach × lilac × mint over cream
mesh-2
lilac × mint × peach
mesh-3
sky × lilac soft
03 · TYPE

Instrument Serif + Geist + Geist Mono.

Instrument Serif (italic especially) carries every emotional headline moment. Geist (Vercel's typeface) handles every body, UI, and interaction layer with calm modern presence. Geist Mono on metadata, prices, technical detail.

display
Made softly.
Instrument Serif / 1.0× / -2.5%
h1
A modern soft-tech brand.
Instrument Serif / 1.0× / -2%
h2 / mixed
Section heading mixed
Geist 600 + Instrument italic
h3 / UI
Interface heading
Geist 600 / 1.2× / -1%
body
Body sits at 16px with 1.55 line height. Geist's neutrality lets the Instrument Serif do the brand work.
Geist 400 / 1.55× / 0%
small
Smaller secondary text. Card subtitles, helper copy.
Geist 400 / 1.5× / 0%
caps
EYEBROWS · METADATA · LABELS
Geist Mono / 11px / 14% / UPPER
mono
$59 AUD · 8h print · 220g PLA · USB-C
Geist Mono / 14-15px / 0%
04 · SPACING + RADIUS

Generous rhythm, soft corners.

4-based spacing scale. The system's signature is the radius scale — corners get very soft. Large cards use 24px radius; hero surfaces use 36px. Pill radius (999px) is the default button.

--r-1
8px
--r-2
14px
--r-3
24px
--r-pill
999px (pill)
05 · COMPONENTS

Glass, tonal, and ink.

Three card families: glass (translucent, used over mesh backgrounds), tonal (solid pastel fills), and ink-on-cream (default reading). Buttons live in the same three modes.

Buttons

PRIMARY · SOFT · TONAL

Pill radius. Spring easing on press (0.96 scale). Primary uses subtle gradient + inset highlight. Soft is glassmorphism. Tonal lives in peach by default.

Tags

OUTLINE · PEACH · MINT · LILAC

USB-C New Limited Bestseller

Outline is the default. Tonal fills used for state — new, limited, bestseller — never decoration.

Input

GLASS INPUT · PEACH FOCUS

Glass inputs over mesh backgrounds. Border shifts to peach on focus. No outline. Soft radius (24px).

Glass card

USED OVER MESH BACKDROPS

Translucent glass cards sit on top of mesh gradients. They float. Cream cards never overlap mesh — they live in their own band.

06 · PRODUCT CARDS

Soft objects on soft surfaces.

Square 1:1 product imagery, gradient backdrops, the object rendered as a soft blob form. Geist for the name, mono for the price. Spring lift on hover.

The Mush nightlight
USB-C · 3W warm white
New $59 AUD
The Peaks table lamp
Topographic, AU mountains
Limited $129 AUD
The Pebble mood lamp
Modular shell · LED puck
USB-C $89 AUD
07 · SAMPLE PDP

The system in context.

Mesh gradient as backdrop, the object lives in its own glass card. Specs live in mono. Buy button is primary ink. Below the fold, the page continues into mint and lilac tonal sections for "how it's made" and "specs."

IN STOCK · SHIPS IN 5 DAYS

The Pebble mood lamp

A modular sculptural USB-C lamp printed in plant-based PLA. Swap the shell, keep the base. Three colourways at launch.

$89 AUD free AU shipping
Print time
10 hours
Material
220g plant PLA
Power
USB-C, 5W
Made in
Melbourne, AU
08 · MOTION

Spring on press, soft on hover.

Two easings: a soft cubic for transitions, a gentle spring for press/release. Blob shapes and mesh backgrounds drift slowly on a 14-second loop — present but never demanding. Cursor follow on hero product objects only.

Easings

--ease-soft
cubic-bezier(0.4, 0, 0.2, 1)
--ease-spring
cubic-bezier(0.34, 1.56, 0.64, 1)

Durations

--d-1 · 200ms · hover state
--d-2 · 400ms · card press, scale
--d-3 · 800ms · section reveal

Signatures

→ Blob morph 8s infinite

→ Mesh drift 14-18s infinite

→ Press scale 0.96, release spring

→ Card lift 4px, never tilt

09 · VOICE

Calm and certain.

Confident without volume. Object descriptions read like product manuals from a friendly company. No slang. No exclamation marks. The serif italic does the warming.

Sample voice — hero

NEW · LIGHTING COLLECTION

Made by a friendly machine.

Sculptural lamps printed on demand from plant-based PLA. We design them. A small machine in Melbourne prints them. They take a day.

Sample voice — spec block

HOW IT'S POWERED

USB-C, 5 watts, 360 lumens. Use any phone charger you already own. The LED puck pops out — replace it without replacing the lamp.

10 · DO / DON'T

Stay modern, never nostalgic.

DO
Pair Instrument italic with Geist — that contrast is the signature.
DO
Use mesh gradients as background atmosphere only.
DO
Soft corners everywhere — 14px minimum on cards.
DO
Spring on press, soft on transitions.
DO
Glass cards over mesh, flat cards over cream.
DON'T
Use chrome textures or aluminium gradients — this is not Y2K pastiche.
DON'T
Stack glassmorphism on glassmorphism. One layer of blur per surface.
DON'T
Use hard 90° corners. Even the smallest tag uses radius.
DON'T
Add a fourth pastel. Three accents only.
DON'T
Animate type. The system reserves motion for surfaces and shapes.
11 · BUNDLE FIT

Where this belongs.

LAMPS

★★★ Strongest

The closest match. Crème Atelier, Wooj and current 3D-printed lamp brand DNA. Object-as-blob photography matches the system natively.

MADE-FOR

★★ Good fit

Warmth scales to gifting nicely. Personalisation UI plays well with glass cards. Risk: generic if photography isn't strong enough.

CARAVAN

★ Mismatched

Softness contradicts the utility category. Caravan accessory buyers want functional UI, not friendly futurism. Pick C if Caravan wins.