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