Motion Seed Applier

When to Use

Use this skill when you need apply a named StyleSeed motion to a component — either one of the 5 personality seeds (Spring/Silk/Snap/Float/Pulse × entrance/exit/hover/press/layout) or a distinctive keyword move from the motion library (toggle-flip, toggle-curtain, reveal-blur, pop-in, shimmer, …). Translates vibe...

When NOT to use

• For general framer-motion docs or learning → use the framer-motion site
• For non-React motion (CSS-only transitions, GSAP) — this skill targets motion.X JSX only
• For full scroll-linked timelines or parallax — out of scope per DESIGN-LANGUAGE.md Rule 59
• For tweaking the existing FadeIn/FadeUp/Stagger wrappers — edit engine/components/ui/motion.tsx directly

Vibe → Seed mapping

Translate the user's prompt to one of the five seeds before applying. Use this lookup table from engine/motion/index.ts:

Words the user might say	Seed
bouncy, springy, playful, energetic, alive	Spring
smooth, silky, fluid, elegant, composed, continuous	Silk
snappy, quick, instant, decisive, sharp, precise	Snap
floaty, gentle, weightless, dreamy, ambient, drifting	Float
rhythmic, punchy, pulsing, heartbeat, beat	Pulse
"Toss style", "Arc style"	Spring (per brand default)
"Stripe style", "Notion style"	Silk
"Linear style", "Raycast style", "Vercel style"	Snap

If the user says only a brand name, use that brand's default seed from BRAND_DEFAULT_SEED. If the user is explicit about a seed name (spring, silk, etc.), respect it verbatim.

Recommend mode — use-case → motion (when the user describes the moment, not the vibe)

If the user describes what the thing is ("a like button", "a modal", "the loading state", "items in a feed") rather than a feeling, recommend from the use-case map (MOTION_BY_USECASE in engine/motion/library.ts, exported from @engine/motion):

Use case	Reach for	Why
Primary button / CTA press	spring · press	tactile, confident — the press should "give"
Modal / dialog / sheet enter	silk · entrance	smooth; never bounce serious/destructive content
Dropdown / popover / menu	snap · entrance	instant, precise — frequent UI shouldn't wait
Toast / inline notification	spring · entrance	small friendly arrival, non-blocking
List / feed items appearing	stagger-cascade	choreograph order, gently
Feature / marketing card hover	tilt-3d	depth/flair OK on content-light marketing
Dashboard / data card hover	snap · hover	a subtle lift only — keep dense UI calm
Like / favorite / reaction	like-burst	a celebratory one-shot; reward the tap
Live / online / recording dot	pulse-beat	looping heartbeat = "alive"
Loading / skeleton	shimmer	calm directional progress
Success / confirmation	pop-in	positive little "done"
Toggle / tab / segment switch	toggle-flip	distinctive, recognizable switch
Page / route transition	silk · entrance	smooth, minimal, get out of the way
Number / balance / KPI / price reveal	none	don't animate the payload — it must read instantly

Two anti-rules override the table (state them if you deviate):

1. One seed per product. If the project already uses a seed, match it — don't introduce a second personality.
2. Never delay the payload. Don't animate a balance, price, or search result into view; motion is for affordance, not content.

Named motion keywords (distinctive moves)

Seeds set a personality (how a fade/scale feels). The motion library in engine/motion/library.ts adds distinctive moves — a flip, a curtain wipe, a morph — each behind a unique keyword. Prefer a keyword when the user wants a specific, recognizable motion rather than a generic feel.

engine/motion/library.ts (exported as MOTION_LIBRARY / MOTION_BY_KEY from @engine/motion) is the single source of truth — every keyword carries its own runnable snippet. Pull the snippet from there; never hand-write the params.

Keyword	Move	Say it when the user wants…
toggle-flip	3D Y-axis card flip	a switch/toggle to flip between two faces
toggle-slide	slide-stack swap	a value to slide out and the next to slide in
toggle-morph	pill ⇄ circle morph	a control to change shape on toggle
toggle-curtain	top→bottom clip-path wipe	a panel to reveal like a curtain
reveal-blur	blur(12px)→0 focus-in	content to focus-pull into place
reveal-rise	masked clip-path text rise	a headline/text to climb into view
reveal-unfold	scaleY from top edge	an accordion/panel to unfold
pop-in	spring overshoot from 0	a badge/checkmark to pop in bouncily
press-squish	scale-down + skew	a button to feel jelly/tactile on tap
tap-ripple	radial ripple from tap	Material-style press feedback
pulse-beat	looping scale pulse	a live/recording/heartbeat indicator
wiggle	quick horizontal shake	error / invalid-input feedback
shimmer	skeleton loading sweep	a loading placeholder
stagger-cascade	children fade-up in sequence	a list to animate in one-by-one

Applying a keyword:

1. Read the exact recipe from engine/motion/library.ts — find the entry whose key matches, copy its snippet verbatim (it is calibrated and runnable).
2. Adapt only the element/content to the user's JSX; keep the transition values.
3. If the keyword is stateful (toggles, ripple), wire the useState shown in the snippet. If it's a one-shot reveal, a key bump replays it.
4. Tell the user the keyword you applied so they can reuse it elsewhere for consistency, and point them at /motion to preview/Copy others.

If the user describes a move but no exact keyword fits, fall back to a seed + context. If they say a keyword that doesn't exist, suggest the closest real one from the table — never invent a keyword.

Context detection

Infer one of the five contexts from the prompt:

• "on hover" / "when hovered" → hover
• "on press" / "on tap" / "on click" → press
• "when it appears" / "on mount" / "entering" → entrance
• "when it leaves" / "on close" / "exiting" → exit (requires <AnimatePresence>)
• "when layout changes" / "FLIP" / "rearranging" → layout

If ambiguous, default to entrance. If multiple contexts are reasonable (e.g., a button needs both hover and press), apply both.

Application steps

Apply seed: $0 · Context: $1 · Target: $ARGUMENTS

1. Read the target file at the path given (or, if no path was given, ask the user which file). Locate the JSX element the user is talking about — usually a <button>, <div>, <Card>, or similar.

2. Confirm the import paths. The component file must be able to import:

   • motion (and AnimatePresence for exit) from "framer-motion"
   • the chosen seed from "@engine/motion" — in a project that doesn't use the @engine/* alias, use a relative path to engine/motion

3. Replace the target tag with a <motion.X> and spread the seed's recipe:

   // hover example
   <motion.button {...spring.hover}>Save</motion.button>
   
   // press + hover combined
   <motion.button {...spring.press} {...spring.hover}>Save</motion.button>
   
   // entrance (mount)
   <motion.div {...silk.entrance}>...</motion.div>
   
   // exit (requires AnimatePresence wrapper somewhere up the tree)
   <AnimatePresence>
     {open && <motion.div {...silk.entrance} {...silk.exit} />}
   </AnimatePresence>
   
   // layout (FLIP)
   <motion.div {...snap.layout}>...</motion.div>
   

4. Do NOT inline the params. The whole point of the seed is that the values come from one source. Never expand { type: "spring", stiffness: 300, damping: 18 } into the JSX — always spread the recipe.

5. Respect prefers-reduced-motion in long-running surfaces. For one-off interactions (hover/press), framer-motion already throttles. For mount/exit/layout sequences in a long-lived page, import usePrefersReducedMotion and REDUCED_TRANSITION from @engine/motion and override the transition when reduced motion is on.

6. Validate by re-reading the file and confirming the JSX still parses (matching brackets, motion tag closed, AnimatePresence in place if exit was used).

7. Tell the user which seed and context you applied, and offer one related context they might want next ("Want press too so it feels clickable?").

Defaults if the user is vague

• No file given → ask "which file?"
• No vibe word → ask "any vibe word, brand, or seed name?"
• Vibe is "natural" or "feel like a real app" → default to Silk (the safest of the five)
• Element is a CTA button → also apply press

Forbidden

• Do not invent new seed names. There are exactly five.
• Do not edit engine/motion/seeds/*.ts from this skill — those are calibrated by hand. Add a new seed only via a separate, explicit ask.
• Do not introduce a third-party animation lib (gsap, anime.js). StyleSeed targets framer-motion exclusively.
• Do not add scroll-linked, parallax, or infinite animations (DESIGN-LANGUAGE.md Rule 59).

Limitations

• Use this skill only when the task clearly matches its upstream source and local project context.
• Verify commands, generated code, dependencies, credentials, and external service behavior before applying changes.
• Do not treat examples as a substitute for environment-specific tests, security review, or user approval for destructive or costly actions.