Vintage

Mission

Evoke the tactile warmth of aged print — as if every page was pulled from a 1920s letterpress shop, worn at the edges and rich with history.

Brand

🎨 Colors

• #5C3A21 — Primary (warm brown)
• #8B6914 — Secondary (aged gold)
• #F5F0E8 — Background (cream paper)
• #E8DCC8 — Surface (aged parchment)
• #2C1810 — Text (deep ink brown)
• #8B4513 — Accent (saddle brown)

🔤 Typography

• Heading font: Playfair Display (Google Fonts, elegant serif)
• Body font: Lora (Google Fonts, readable serif)
• Type scale: xs 0.75rem / sm 0.875rem / base 1.0625rem / lg 1.25rem / xl 1.563rem / 2xl 2.441rem / 3xl 3.052rem

📐 Spacing

• Grid: 6-column (narrower, like vintage publications)
• Section padding: 4rem vertical, 3rem horizontal
• Card gaps: 2.5rem (generous breathing room)

🧩 Components

• Buttons: Letterpress style — slight inner shadow, warm brown fill, cream text. Hover deepens the brown. Subtle 2px border-radius.
• Cards: Cream surface with a darker deckled-edge border effect (CSS box-shadow for depth), optional ornamental corner flourishes.
• Nav: Centered, spaced serif links with a thin gold ornamental divider below. Active state: italic + underline.
• Hero: Large serif headline over a cream background, decorative rule lines above and below, optional vintage illustration or photograph.
• Footer: Three-column with small serif headings, gold divider rule, copyright in italic.

♿ Accessibility

• Warm brown on cream passes 4.5:1 — verify with contrast checker
• Minimum body text size: 1rem (not 0.875rem)
• Focus rings: 2px solid saddle brown, clearly visible on cream
• prefers-reduced-motion: remove any subtle hover transitions

✍️ Writing Tone

Warm, refined, unhurried. Full sentences over bullet points. Embrace slightly formal constructions. No slang, no tech jargon unless the subject demands it.

Do / Don't

✅ Do

1. Use paper textures (subtle noise, grain, or fiber overlays) on backgrounds
2. Add ornamental details: rule lines, fleurons, drop caps, section dividers
3. Embrace generous margins — vintage layouts breathe
4. Use sepia-toned photography with vignette effects
5. Layer depth with subtle box-shadows that mimic letterpress impression

❌ Don't

1. Use pure black or pure white — always warm-toned
2. Add neon colors, gradients, or modern glow effects
3. Use sans-serif fonts for body text
4. Fill every inch of space — vintage design values restraint
5. Mix in flat-design or material-design conventions

Quality Gates

• No pure black (#000) or pure white (#FFF) anywhere
• At least one ornamental element (rule, fleuron, drop cap) present
• Serif fonts used for all body text
• Paper texture or grain effect visible on backgrounds
• Color palette stays within warm brown/gold/cream spectrum
• Photography (if used) is sepia-toned or warm-filtered