# Continuity Log Development log for tracking changes, decisions, and next steps. ## Entry Template ```markdown ## YYYY-MM-DD - Brief Description ### Changes - What changed - Why it changed ### Decisions - Key decisions made - Trade-offs considered ### Next Steps - [ ] Follow-up items ``` --- ## 2025-12-27 - Editorial Grid, Atmosphere, & Dynamic Text Reveal ### Changes - **Structural Foundation**: - Narrowed the primary container (`--width-brand`) to **1140px** for a focused, magazine-style layout. - Implemented a strict **12-column grid system** (`.grid-12`) across all sections for precise content alignment. - Significant vertical rhythm update: Increased section padding to `py-32 md:py-48 lg:py-64` to solve the "short/stunted" section feeling. - **Atmospheric Image Integration**: - **Hero**: Implemented a **pinned/sticky background** effect using `painting1.png`, allowing content to scroll over a fixed gritty texture. - **Expertise Mosaic**: Updated bento tiles with high-texture assets (`mixing1.png`, `shavings1.png`, `cloth1.png`) and added floating `shavings` connector assets to bridge section gaps. - **Service Area**: Layered `wall2.png` as a subtle atmospheric overlay on the mountain visual. - **Dynamic Reveal Animations**: - Implemented a global **Intersection Observer** for scroll-triggered reveal animations. - Added "Sliding Line" text reveals for all major headings (H1, H2) using `text-reveal-mask` and `text-reveal-line` utilities. - Applied `reveal-item` fade/slide transitions to bento tiles, image cards, and trust badges. - **Interaction & Polish**: - **Button Refinement**: Updated `Button.astro` with premium editorial tracking, bold uppercase text, and hover-lift effects. - **Soft Edge Masks**: Applied `mask-soft-edges` (linear gradients) to dark sections to create a seamless transition into the cream page background. - **Section Alignment**: Re-balanced all elements to specific column spans (e.g., col-span-7 content, col-span-5 media) for a high-end editorial feel. ### Decisions - **Sticky Hero Background**: Chose a sticky background for the hero to create immediate visual depth and a "painterly" parallax impression. - **Strict Grid Spans**: Used the 12-column grid to intentionally limit text line-lengths, mimicking premium print layout standards. - **Connector Assets**: Used floating wood shavings (`shavings2.png`, `shavings3.png`) to literally "sew" sections together, breaking up horizontal division lines. ### Next Steps - [ ] Audit the contact page for consistency with the new 1140px container and grid-12 structure. - [ ] Review performance of high-texture images on low-bandwidth mobile devices. - [ ] Finalize any remaining dead links in the refined footer. --- ## 2025-12-27 - Vibrant Bento & Editorial Polish ### Changes - **Expertise Section Redesign**: - Rebuilt the Expertise section as a structured **Bento Grid** with high-impact imagery and interactive chips. - Added magazine-style numbering ("01", "02", "03") and hover-reveal logic for a high-end feel. - **Dynamic Brand Marquee**: - Implemented a seamless scrolling marquee with bold brand essence keywords: "TRUSTWORTHY", "EDITORIAL", "ORGANIC", "STURDY". - **Media Split Service Area**: - Refactored the Service Area into an asymmetric layout with a large, moody mountain visual on the left and neighborhood chips on the right. - **Service List (More Than Just Painting) Polish**: - Added "stat" labels (e.g., "Precise", "Clean") to each service item for editorial precision. - Refined the layout with better card spacing and a floating stat badge. - **Refined Site Shell**: - **Nav**: Updated button hierarchy and sticky behavior for better contrast and usability. - **Footer**: Added a top social bar, organized links into a three-column "Hybrid Footer" grid, and refined the "Pill" CTA section. ### Decisions - **Bento Logic**: Chose to prioritize one large card for "Premium Painting" to establish it as the primary service, with smaller auxiliary cards for secondary services. - **Marquee Integration**: Placed the marquee between the Expertise and Service List sections to serve as a high-energy visual divider. - **Media Split**: Used a grayscale-to-color transition on the mountain image to emphasize the "discovery" aspect of locating the service area. ### Next Steps - [ ] Review the mobile transition for the media split (ensure it stacks elegantly). - [ ] Finalize the "Recipes" or "Project Stories" slider if real project data becomes available. - [ ] Conduct a final cross-browser audit for animation performance (marquee and hover states). --- ## 2025-12-27 - Hero, Services, and Footer Design Revamp ### Changes - **Hero Section Redesign**: - Replaced mountain background with a dark green (`#3A4D39`) color and a custom tileable pattern texture (`tileablepattern.png`). - Added a new hero visual on the right featuring a paintbrush and color swatches image (`brushandswatchestransparent.png`). - Implemented floating decorative service cards ("Deck Restoration" and "Ext. Paint") overlaid on the hero image with hover animations. - Updated typography to match the "Craftsmanship For Your Home" editorial style. - **Services Section Redesign**: - Renamed and restructured the section to "Our Expertise". - Replaced the vertical list with a horizontal grid of three cards: "Interior & Exterior Painting", "Wood Restoration", and "Skilled Handyman". - Each card features a distinct background color (Sage or Forest green), unique service images, and "Learn More" call-to-action buttons. - **Footer Redesign**: - Restructured the footer into two main sections. - Added a branding top section with a large logo, company mission statement, and a dark green background. - Updated the bottom section with a black background, maintaining the "Ready to Transform Your Home?" CTA and navigation links. - **Lucide Icon Fixes**: - Updated all Lucide icon components in `src/pages/index.astro` to use `className` instead of `class` to resolve React linter errors. ### Decisions - **Visual Consistency**: Chose to layer the tileable pattern at low opacity (20%) to add texture without distracting from the main hero content. - **Card Styling**: Used varying shades of green (`#3A4D39` and `#739072`) for the services cards to create visual interest while staying within the brand's palette. - **Layout Adjustments**: Shifted the hero content to a split-screen layout to accommodate the large paintbrush image while maintaining readability on all devices. ### Next Steps - [ ] Verify responsive behavior across various mobile screen sizes. - [ ] Replace placeholder "Map" component with a real interactive map or high-quality image. - [ ] Connect the "Learn More" buttons and "Get a Quote" CTAs to their respective destinations. --- ## 2025-12-27 - Hero Screenshot Match Polish ### Changes - **Hero background treatment**: - Moved the tileable pattern so it lives *outside* the hero card (page background) to match the reference composition. - Updated the hero card to a smoother forest gradient with a soft vignette/highlight, closer to the mock. - **Hero visual composition**: - Added/strengthened the circular backdrop behind the brush/swatches image. - Nudged/scaled the brush/swatches to reveal more of the circle and create more negative space. - Repositioned/restyled the floating cards so they sit closer to the brush/circle like the provided screenshot. - **CTA styling**: - Tweaked the secondary button to have a subtle dark fill + light border (instead of fully transparent) to better match the mock. ### Decisions - Prioritized matching the mock’s “pattern outside the card” framing over keeping texture inside the hero card. ### Next Steps - [ ] Replace the floating card text/labels (e.g. “Woodwork Care”) with final approved copy (if needed). --- ## 2025-12-27 - Expertise Mosaic Redesign ### Changes - Replaced the prior 3-card “Our Expertise” layout with a **2-row mosaic grid** (icon tiles + image tiles + text tiles) to match the provided screenshot. - Added a **patterned frame treatment** for the expertise section using `src/assets/tileablepattern.png`, including top/bottom pattern strips and subtle vignette. - Reused existing site imagery assets (`closeupbrush4.png`, `cards.png`, `puttyknife2.png`) for the mosaic image tiles. ### Decisions - Kept the section’s semantic heading (`h2`) as **screen-reader-only** to preserve accessibility while matching the screenshot’s visual layout. - Implemented the mosaic with a responsive grid: stacks to 1 column on mobile, 2 columns on small screens, 4 columns on desktop. ### Next Steps - [ ] Review and approve the tile text copy (Premium Painting / Handyman Services descriptions). --- ## 2025-12-27 - Logo Integration & Favicon Generation ### Changes - **Generated Complete Favicon Set**: Used ffmpeg to convert logo-black.png into all standard favicon sizes - 16x16 favicon.ico (classic browser favicon) - 32x32 favicon-32.png (standard size) - 192x192 favicon-192.png (Android/PWA) - 180x180 apple-touch-icon.png (iOS) - 512x512 favicon-512.png (high-res/PWA) - **WebP Optimization**: Converted all three logo variants to WebP format for modern browsers with transparency support - logo-col.png (2.7MB) → logo-col.webp (513KB) - 81% reduction - logo-black.png (781KB) → logo-black.webp (423KB) - 46% reduction - logo-white.png (1.5MB) → logo-white.webp (578KB) - 61% reduction - Initial attempt with AVIF failed due to libaom-av1 codec not supporting alpha channel transparency - **Navigation Logo**: Replaced placeholder "S" badge with colored logo (logo-col.webp/png) in src/pages/index.astro:40-55 - Used `` element with WebP + PNG fallback - Set to 48x48px size for optimal navigation display - **Footer Logo**: Replaced placeholder "S" badge with white logo (logo-white.webp/png) in src/pages/index.astro:681-696 - Provides clean contrast against dark footer background - Maintains brand consistency across page sections - **HTML Head Updates**: Added complete favicon references in src/layouts/Layout.astro:19-24 - SVG favicon (primary, with dark mode support) - ICO fallback for legacy browsers - Multiple PNG sizes for different contexts - Apple touch icon for iOS home screen ### Decisions - **Logo Placement Strategy**: - Navigation: Colored logo for maximum brand presence on light background - Footer: White logo for contrast on dark background (#1c1917) - Favicons: Black logo as base for simple, recognizable appearance - **Image Format Strategy**: Used `` element with WebP as primary format and PNG fallback for maximum compatibility and performance - Chose WebP over AVIF due to better transparency (alpha channel) support with current ffmpeg/libaom-av1 build - **Favicon Approach**: Generated multiple sizes to support all platforms (web browsers, Android, iOS, PWA) from single source - **Compression**: Leveraged WebP format for 46-81% file size reduction while maintaining quality and transparency ### Technical Details - Used ffmpeg with lanczos scaling filter for high-quality favicon resizing - Used libwebp encoder for WebP compression with alpha channel (bgra format) to preserve transparency - All images maintain RGBA/BGRA color space for transparency support - Progressive encoding for optimal loading experience - AVIF attempted first but libaom-av1 codec incompatible with yuva420p pixel format, falling back to yuv420p which strips alpha channel ### Next Steps - [ ] Test favicon display across different browsers and devices - [ ] Consider creating a PWA manifest file to complement the favicon set - [ ] Monitor AVIF adoption and adjust fallback strategy if needed - [ ] Potentially create additional logo sizes for different marketing contexts --- ## 2025-12-27 - Hybrid "Eden" Design Implementation ### Changes - **Aesthetic Overhaul**: Transformed the template into "Eden Style" (Editorial + Organic). - Adopted `Playfair Display` (Serif) for headings. - Updated color palette to Earth Tones: Deep Forest (`#3A4D39`), Sage (`#739072`), Cream (`#ECE3CE`), and Stone Black (`#1c1917`). - **Structure Refinement (Hybrid)**: - Rebuilt "More Than Just Painting" section with a split "List + Floating Cards" layout. - **Restored** the unified "Rounded Dark Footer" to anchor the page. - **Cleaned** Hero background shapes (Geometric vs. Blurry) for a crisp look. - Updated `design.json` with new identity and tokens. ### Decisions - **Hybrid Approach**: We combined the trustworthy/sturdy feel of the original template (Rounded Footer, Clean Shapes) with the premium/editorial feel of the new reference (Serif fonts, Floating UI cards). - **Typography**: Paired `Playfair Display` with `Plus Jakarta Sans` to balance elegance with modern readability. ### Next Steps - [ ] Visual QA of all service pages (if expanding beyond single page). - [ ] Connect Contact Form to backend/service. - [ ] Replace placeholder "Map" with actual embed or image. --- ## 2024-12-27 - Minimal Template Setup ### Changes - Created minimal Astro development template - Single example blog post showing MDX structure - Minimal section examples (hero, experience, skills, featured-project) - Simple contact page example - Utility scripts: AVIF conversion, AI commit messages - Design system documentation in `dev/design.json` ### Stack - Astro 5 + React 19 + Tailwind CSS 4 - TypeScript - MDX content collections - Cloudflare Pages deployment - pnpm package manager ### Structure - Content-driven architecture with type-safe schemas - Example content showing data structures - Utility scripts for common tasks - Clean development environment ### Next Steps - [ ] Replace example content with your own - [ ] Customize design system as needed - [ ] Configure deployment --- ## 2025-12-27 - Homepage Redesign & Component Refactor ### Changes - **Aggressive Component Refactor**: Broke monolithic `src/pages/index.astro` (780+ lines) into reusable Astro components: - **Site Shell**: `src/components/site/Nav.astro` (sticky nav with mobile menu using `details/summary`), `src/components/site/Footer.astro` - **UI Primitives**: `src/components/ui/Container.astro`, `src/components/ui/Button.astro`, `src/components/ui/Section.astro`, `src/components/ui/SectionHeading.astro` - **Homepage Sections**: `src/components/home/Hero.astro`, `src/components/home/ExpertiseMosaic.astro`, `src/components/home/ServiceList.astro`, `src/components/home/WhyUs.astro`, `src/components/home/ServiceArea.astro` - **Fixed Dead Navigation Links**: All CTAs and nav links that pointed to non-existent `#contact` now route to `/contact` page - **Created `/contact` Page**: New `src/pages/contact.astro` with: - Contact information card (phone, email, location, hours) - Service areas chips - Contact form with name, phone, email, service dropdown, project details - Consistent styling with homepage - **Mobile Navigation**: Added functional hamburger menu using native `details/summary` (no JavaScript required) - Shows all nav links, phone number, and CTA - Toggle icon changes from hamburger to X when open - **Services Section Redesign**: Replaced confusing mosaic grid with clean 3-column card layout: - Each card has image, icon badge, title, description, and "Get a Quote" CTA - Clear visual hierarchy and relationship between elements - Bottom CTA for consultation - **Footer Links Fixed**: Service links now point to `#services` instead of dead `#` links ### Decisions - **No JavaScript Mobile Menu**: Used `details/summary` HTML pattern for mobile nav to stay Astro-first and reduce client-side JS - **Separate Contact Page**: Chose dedicated `/contact` page over inline section to allow for future form integration - **Component Granularity**: Created both low-level UI primitives and page-specific section components for flexibility - **Phone Number**: Using placeholder `(312) 456-7890` from `dev/design.json` - needs updating with real number ### Technical Details - All components use brand tokens from `src/styles/global.css` (`--color-brand-green`, `--color-brand-sage`, etc.) - Button component supports `primary`, `secondary`, `outline`, `ghost` variants - Section component supports `default`, `white`, `dark`, `accent` backgrounds - Mobile menu auto-closes when navigating (native browser behavior) ### Next Steps - [ ] Update placeholder phone number/email with real contact info - [ ] Add form submission handler (Cloudflare Functions or external service) - [ ] Create `/privacy` and `/terms` pages (footer links currently dead) - [ ] Add scroll-margin-top to sections for better anchor navigation with sticky header - [ ] Consider adding subtle entrance animations to homepage sections --- ## 2025-12-27 - Editorial Cohesion & Moody Identity Implementation ### Changes - **Layout Refinement**: - Narrowed the primary content container (`--width-brand`) to **1200px** for a more focused, high-end editorial feel. - Increased section vertical spacing and added significant breathing room between blocks. - **Hero Transformation**: - Replaced the split-screen hero with a centered, high-impact "Moody Hero" layout. - Integrated `brush1.png` as an atmospheric background texture with radial lighting and blended gradients. - Enhanced typography with larger, more intentional serif and italic pairings. - **Visual Depth & Texture**: - Implemented a page-wide subtle texture using `tileablepattern.png` on the `body` background. - Refactored `ExpertiseMosaic`, `ServiceList`, and `ServiceArea` to use semi-transparent backgrounds (`bg-brand-cream/50`) and backdrop blurs to melt into the page texture. - Standardized all section rounding to match the "Pill" design language. - **"Pill" Footer Implementation**: - Rebuilt the footer to precisely match the brand identity guide. - Added a floating dark green "Pill" CTA section that anchors the page. - Refactored the bottom links into a "Hybrid Footer" three-column grid (Contact, Branding, Links). - **Design Token Standardization**: - Renamed all remaining `stone-` and `#3a4d39` references to brand tokens (`brand-dark`, `brand-green`, etc.) across the entire codebase. ### Decisions - **Centered Hero**: Moving to a centered hero created a more direct and atmospheric first impression, allowing the `brush1.png` texture to serve as the "canvas" for the site. - **Narrower Width**: Reducing the width from 1440px to 1200px immediately improved the "editorial" feel, making long paragraphs more readable and visual assets more balanced. - **Page-wide Texture**: Using a very subtle (1.5% opacity) texture on the `body` instead of per-section backgrounds eliminated the "abrupt transition" issue. ### Next Steps - [ ] Review mobile responsiveness for the new centered hero and layered footer. - [ ] Finalize the interactive map or neighborhood visualization in the `ServiceArea` section. - [ ] Audit all secondary pages (Contact) for the new container width. --- ## 2025-12-27 - Full-Page Beautification & Bento Refactor ### Changes - **Expertise Mosaic Redesign**: - Completely rebuilt the section as a high-impact **Bento Mosaic**. - Replaced standard cards with large, background-image-driven tiles. - Added hover-reveal descriptions and magazine-style numbering ("01", "02", "03"). - Integrated glassmorphism UI elements for icons and CTAs. - **Service List (More Than Just Painting) Polish**: - Rebuilt as a premium card with a subtle pattern background and rounded layout. - Replaced the simple list with a grid of icon chips for handyman services. - Added a floating "200+ Jobs Completed" badge for social proof. - **Service Area (Service Area) Redesign**: - Transformed into a "Community Card" with a full-width mountain backdrop (`mountains.png`). - Added a floating, glowing map marker badge and stylized neighborhood tags. - Included a bottom trust bar with core value indicators (Licensed & Insured, etc.). - **Navigation (Nav) Refinement**: - Enhanced the sticky header with backdrop-blur glassmorphism. - Added a sub-brand line ("& Handyman Services") and refined typography with better tracking and bold uppercase weights. - Improved hover states with animated underlines and subtle shadow transitions on CTAs. - **Layout Breathing Room**: - Increased vertical margins between large sections (to `mb-48` in some cases) to create an airy, premium "editorial" feel. ### Decisions - **Photography First**: Shifted the design to lead with high-quality, large-scale photography to better showcase craftsmanship. - **Micro-Interactions**: Added scale and rotate animations on hover for cards and images to make the site feel responsive and high-end. - **Glassmorphism**: Used backdrop filters (`backdrop-blur-xl`) on navigation and floating elements to maintain legibility while overlaying beautiful imagery. ### Next Steps - [ ] Add smooth-scroll behavior to the whole page for better anchor navigation. - [ ] Finalize mobile responsiveness for the new bento tiles (ensure text remains readable over images). - [ ] Update the placeholder project counts/years once real data is available.