Agency-Level UI and Frontend Craftsmanship on Real-World Budgets

👋 Let’s Connect! Follow me on GitHub for new projects and tips. Introduction “Agency-level” frontend isn’t magic; it’s repeatable constraints: consistent spacing/typography, predictable components, fast interactions, and zero visual regressions. On real budgets, you don’t buy polish with more meetings, you buy it with a small set of enforceable standards, automated checks, and a workflow that makes the “right” thing the easiest thing. This article focuses on the highest ROI moves: tokens, component contracts, accessibility defaults, performance budgets, and regression tooling that prevents slow decay. Define “Craft” as Measurable Budgets (Not Opinions) Treat craftsmanship like SLOs: Visual consistency: spacing/typography/colors come from tokens; ad-hoc values are exceptions with justification. Accessibility: keyboard support and focus states are non-negotiable; color contrast is validated. Performance: set budgets for JS/CSS size, LCP/INP targets, and enforce them in CI. Regression res