Design Handoff

Design Handoff

Handoff Checklist

What Developers Need

• All states designed (default, hover, focus, disabled, loading, error, empty)
• Responsive behavior specified (mobile, tablet, desktop)
• Spacing values (use tokens, not arbitrary pixel values)
• Typography specs (font, size, weight, line-height, color)
• Color values (token names preferred over hex)
• Animation specs (duration, easing, properties)
• Edge cases (long text, no data, many items, error recovery)
• Accessibility notes (focus order, ARIA labels, keyboard behavior)

What Developers Don't Need

• Pixel-perfect mockups of every possible state combination.
• Detailed redlines (modern tools provide inspection).
• A 50-page spec document nobody will read.

Collaboration Model

1. Include developers early. Feasibility check during design, not after.
2. Pair on complex interactions. Sometimes building together is faster than specifying.
3. Design review in browser. Final QA in the actual implementation, not in Figma.
4. Shared language. Use design system token names in conversation.
5. Fast feedback loops. Small PRs, quick design reviews, iterate.