Site Launch: Monica Chadelle

Some projects are enjoyable because of the creative challenge. Others are enjoyable because of the person you’re building them for. Monica Chadelle’s new website happened to be both.

From our first conversations, Monica described herself as warm, sweet, approachable, and genuine. As the project evolved, it became clear those weren’t just marketing words – they’re who she is. The goal wasn’t simply to create a beautiful website. It was to create something that felt unmistakably Monica.

Embracing the Monogram

I’m usually a bit of a snob when it comes to monograms. Too often they’re the design equivalent of low-hanging fruit – take the first letter of a name, put it in a circle, and call it a logo. Every now and then, though, a particular letterform deserves a second look.

When I was exploring type options for Monica’s branding, the capital M in this font was simply too interesting to ignore. I forced myself to give it a chance, fully expecting to abandon the idea later. Instead, the more I worked with it, the more it felt right. Monica loved it too, which made the decision easy.

Rather than placing the full logo front and center throughout the site, we let the monogram do most of the work. Hover over it and the complete wordmark is revealed – a small moment of discovery that rewards curiosity. The brand system feels confident, understated, and just a little playful.

Bringing the Background to Life

I wanted the site to feel alive without feeling busy. Throughout the experience, delicate SVG line artwork drifts and animates as visitors scroll. The movement is intentionally subtle – just enough to add a little whimsy without distracting from the content.

The lines started as a fun experiment in Adobe Illustrator. I spent more time than I’d like to admit playing with the Curve Tool and the surprisingly magical Smooth slider, turning rough paths into flowing organic shapes. Once I had a collection I liked, I brought them into the site as GSAP-powered animated SVGs.

It’s a small detail, but those are often the details that make a website feel crafted rather than assembled.

Discovering OKLCH

This project was also a great excuse to spend more time exploring OKLCH, a modern color space that’s quickly becoming one of my favorite tools for building design systems.

The site’s palette revolves around soft Sand and Mist tones, creating a calm, welcoming atmosphere. What makes OKLCH exciting is how naturally it handles color variations. Instead of manually creating dozens of shades, I could generate lighter and darker versions from a single source color while keeping everything visually balanced.

Beyond the aesthetics, it made the entire system easier to maintain and experiment with—a win for both design and development.

  --color-sand-10:  oklch(0.97 0.012 75);
  --color-sand-20:  oklch(0.93 0.018 75);
  --color-sand-30:  oklch(0.88 0.024 75);
  --color-sand-40:  oklch(0.83 0.030 75);
  --color-sand-50:  oklch(0.78 0.036 75);
  --color-sand-60:  oklch(0.73 0.042 75);
  --color-sand-70:  oklch(0.68 0.048 75);
  --color-sand-80:  oklch(0.63 0.054 75);
  --color-sand-90:  oklch(0.58 0.058 75);
  /* base */
  --color-sand-100: oklch(0.53 0.060 75);
  --color-sand-110: oklch(0.47 0.054 75);
  --color-sand-120: oklch(0.41 0.048 75);
  --color-sand-130: oklch(34.851% 0.04144 74.563);
  --color-sand-140: oklch(0.29 0.036 75);
  --color-sand-150: oklch(0.22 0.028 75);

This approach makes it easy to generate harmonious variations while maintaining visual consistency across buttons, cards, backgrounds, hover states, and typography.

The result is a design system that’s both flexible and surprisingly easy to maintain.

The Best Part

At the end of every project, I usually have a favorite design detail or technical accomplishment.

This time, my favorite part was the client. Monica was an absolute joy to work with throughout the entire process – kind, collaborative, enthusiastic, and genuinely appreciative. I spend a lot of time helping clients express who they are online. In Monica’s case, the person behind the brand turned out to be exactly who she says she is.

That made creating this site even more rewarding. I’m proud of how it turned out and excited to see where Monica takes it next.