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201 entries, 447 steal-notes — 281 by hand, 166 model drafts. 201 results have public source URLs. Source and classification review are recorded separately on each reference.

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Saturated color, chunky rounded forms, springy motion, jokes in the copy. Interfaces that feel like objects you want to poke. Read it as a style sheet →

Active filters:family: Playful / Toy-like

13 references in Playful / Toy-likeClear search & filters

Craft — tactile collage around a product preview

Playful / Toy-like · landing page

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Original principle diagram · Draft explanation
Let the product anchor an expressive scene.
**What to borrow:** Frame a legible product preview with expressive material cues while leaving the headline and action clear.
When to use this principle
When it works
Creative tools whose product experience benefits from a warm, personal visual identity.
When to avoid it
Texture or overlapping artwork that obscures the action, product detail or text contrast.
Original teaching diagram with illustrative content; not a screenshot or reconstruction of the source. Trova · AI-assisted illustration. Original Trova diagram.

Steal · texture/materialmodel draft
The hero combines a blue sky field with torn-paper edges and notebook-like fragments around the product preview. The material references relate to note-taking rather than functioning as unrelated decoration.
Steal · typographymodel draft
A large serif headline sits above a compact sans-serif action. Use the display face for the promise and keep navigation and controls visually direct.
Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
The preview enters from the lower part of the scene beneath the headline and centered action. Keep a recognizable product surface visible so the atmosphere still explains what is being offered.

Fonts: UntitledSansFont, UntitledSerifFont · Original: Craft

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Craft. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

The Pudding — visual essay index with format shortcuts

Playful / Toy-like · editorial

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Original principle diagram · Draft explanation
Keep a consistent frame for varied stories.
**What to borrow:** Give visually different stories the same metadata, image and headline sequence.
When to use this principle
When it works
Editorial archives where each story has a distinctive visual treatment.
When to avoid it
Letting expressive title lettering replace readable summaries or clear browsing controls.
Original teaching diagram with illustrative content; not a screenshot or reconstruction of the source. Trova · AI-assisted illustration. Original Trova diagram.

Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
The captured index uses three columns. Each story follows a stable sequence: issue number and date, a large preview image, a display title and a short description. The repeated frame makes varied artwork scannable.
Steal · component patternmodel draft
A story search sits opposite labelled format shortcuts such as video and audio. Pair distinctive icons with text so the browsing categories remain understandable.
Steal · typographymodel draft
Chunky expressive story headings contrast with quieter descriptions and compact metadata. Limit the playful display treatment to short titles while preserving ordinary reading text.

Fonts: Atlas Grotesk, Atlas Typewriter, Gooper SemiCondensed · Original: The Pudding

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: The Pudding. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Figma Slides — product explanation with an editor preview

Playful / Toy-like · landing page

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Original principle diagram · Draft explanation
Show the working context around the result.
**What to borrow:** Show the output inside its editor, including the tools and context that make the product understandable.
When to use this principle
When it works
Creative tools where the workflow is part of the value, not just the final image.
When to avoid it
A miniature interface whose labels become unreadable or imply features your product does not have.
Original teaching diagram with illustrative content; not a screenshot or reconstruction of the source. Trova · AI-assisted illustration. Original Trova diagram.

Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
The product name, explanation and two actions sit above a broad editor preview. The preview includes a slide rail, central canvas and settings region, so the visitor sees the working environment around the slide.
Steal · colormodel draft
Bright geometric artwork occupies the right side of the hero while the main text and actions remain black on white. Concentrate expressive color where it can support the composition without weakening the copy.
Steal · component patternmodel draft
The primary action uses a solid dark fill and the sales action uses an outline. Distinguish self-serve and contact routes without making them identical competing buttons.

Fonts: figmaSans, figmaMono · Original: Figma

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Figma. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Excalidraw — a first sketch

Playful / Toy-like · product UI flow

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · component patternmodel draft
Selecting a tool opens its properties as a narrow left column (stroke, fill, width, roundness). The panel exists only while a tool is in hand, so the empty canvas stays empty.
Steal · texture/materialmodel draft
Shapes are drawn with a deliberate hand wobble. The roughness says 'draft', which makes people willing to put half an idea down.

Fonts: Assistant

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Squoosh — codec switched to WebP

Playful / Toy-like · product UI flow

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · motion/interactionmodel draft
Changing the codec recompresses in place and the saving badge updates. There is no apply button; the preview is the confirmation.
Steal · component patternmodel draft
Options grow with the codec. WebP adds lossless, effort and quality controls under the same header, and the rarely-touched ones stay folded under 'Advanced settings'.

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Squoosh — editor, before/after split

Playful / Toy-like · product UI flow

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · component patternmodel draft
The editor opens on a full-bleed split: original left, compressed right, one draggable divider. The comparison is the screen, not a preview inside a form.
Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
Each half gets its own floating settings card in its own corner, so the two sides read as two jobs set against each other.
Steal · copywritingmodel draft
The result sits in the bottom corner as a number before any setting is touched: the size and a percentage saved. The first thing shown is what you get.

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Squoosh — start screen

Playful / Toy-like · product UI flow

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · component patternmodel draft
The first screen is one drop target: three overlapping pink blob shapes centered under the logo, an add-image icon, and "Drop OR Paste" with "Paste" underlined as a link. Steal a single oversized drop zone with paste offered as the second input, for a tool whose only first step is supplying a file.
Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
Below a wave-edged blue band, "Or try one of these:" leads to four circular sample-image thumbnails. Steal sample inputs placed directly under the upload target, so the tool can be tried by someone with no file at hand.
Steal · texture/materialmodel draft
The ground is a pale grey-and-white checkerboard, the image editor's transparency convention, so the page reads as an empty image canvas; a "Ready to work offline" toast with "DISMISS" sits at the bottom edge. Steal the medium's own background convention as the app ground, and announce offline readiness in a dismissible toast.

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Excalidraw — empty canvas

Playful / Toy-like · product UI flow

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · component patternmodel draft
The empty canvas is annotated with handwritten hints and hand-drawn arrows pointing at real controls: "Export, preferences, languages, ..." at the menu, "Pick a tool & Start drawing!" at the toolbar, "Shortcuts & help" at the help button. Steal onboarding drawn in the product's own medium and aimed at the actual controls.
Steal · component patternmodel draft
The top-center toolbar holds twelve tools, ten with a single-letter shortcut set small at the icon's lower right (V, R, D, O, A, L, P, T, N, E), and a grey line below explains panning with keycaps for "Scroll wheel" and "Space". Steal the shortcut letter printed on each toolbar button, which teaches the keyboard while the mouse is in use.
Steal · copywritingmodel draft
The center block puts the logo over a three-line warning ("Your drawings are saved in your browser's storage. Browser storage can be cleared unexpectedly. Save your work to a file regularly to avoid losing it.") and then a short menu: Open (Ctrl+O), Help (?), Live collaboration..., Sign up. Steal an empty state that says where the data is stored before the first stroke, followed by the few actions with their shortcuts.

Fonts: Assistant

private-reference-only

View original ↗

Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Piper at the Gates of Dawn

Playful / Toy-like · poster

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · typographymodel draft
The circular title treatment is placed at the optical centre (one-third down from top) and sized so its diameter exactly matches the width of the largest swirling limb. Lettering is treated as notan of line: the white-on-orange circle reads as a single tone mass that interrupts the purple/blue swirl without breaking its rhythm.
Steal · grid/layoutmodel draft
Composition is built by subordination to a single radiating axis that begins at the figure's raised knee and spirals outward. Every element — limbs, fabric folds, text circle — is attached to that axis; moving any one forces the others to shift to maintain the vortex.
Steal · colormodel draft
Four values only: solid purple, solid blue, black line, and white paper. The purple and blue are used as flat notan masses, never modulated. The white circle is the sole warm accent and the only place where hue and value both change at once.

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Textile fragment (Binakol)

Playful / Toy-like · packaging

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · texture/materialmodel draft
Alternating diagonal bands of plain weave and supplementary-weft floats create a stepped optical pattern. Each band is two to three threads wide; the weft-float sections sit exactly one thread above the ground, producing a crisp moiré shift when viewed at arm’s length. The repeat unit is a 4×4 block that tiles without visible seam.
Steal · component patternmodel draft
The pattern is built from two values only: ground (natural linen) and float (slightly raised off-white). No outline, no fill colour. The optical vibration comes entirely from the change in surface angle and thread direction, not from hue.

public-domain

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: public-domain. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-10-10. Capture does not establish source verification.

Poolsuite FM

Playful / Toy-like · full website · via Httpster

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · texture/materialNotes by Will
Mac OS 7 chrome + VHS grain + Garamond: three eras collaged into one coherent 'summer memory' texture.
Steal · motion/interactionNotes by Will
Cursor leaves a brief shimmer trail — pure delight, zero utility, perfectly on-brand.

Fonts: Chicago, Garamond

private-reference-only

View original ↗

Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-07-07. Capture does not establish source verification.

Figma Config

Playful / Toy-like · landing page · via Godly

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · colorNotes by Will
Brand colors used at full saturation but never adjacent — always separated by white or black. Loud yet never muddy.
Steal · motion/interactionNotes by Will
Speaker cards squash-and-stretch on hover with spring physics (mass 1, tension 280) — cartoon rules applied to UI.

Fonts: Whyte Inktrap, Whyte

private-reference-only

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Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-07-06. Capture does not establish source verification.

Phantom

Playful / Toy-like · landing page · via Curated.design

Source: pending · Classification: pending

Steal · colorNotes by Will
Lavender as a primary brand color in crypto — category-defiant palette choice that owns the shelf.
Steal · component patternNotes by Will
Ghost mascot reacts to scroll position and form errors — mascot as system feedback, not decoration.

Fonts: PP Mori, PP Fraktion Mono

private-reference-only

View original ↗

Source & usage rights

Original: Creator not recorded. Source verification: pending review.

Recorded rights label: private-reference-only. Original work and reproduction rights belong to their owners. A note license does not grant rights to copy a screenshot, trademark or design.

Trova notes: apply the principles in your own work, including commercial projects. Bulk republication or resale is not permitted. Usage terms.

Captured: 2026-07-05. Capture does not establish source verification.

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Provenance & takedown

Publicly sourced references link to an original; private or concept examples are labelled separately. All referenced work belongs to its creators. What this vault adds — and what it is for — is the commentary: the steal-notes are the content, not the pixels. Notes are written by hand unless their card says otherwise; a model draft is always labelled. Study use only.

Made something shown here and want it removed? Email hello@trova.design with the entry title or a link to this page — it comes down promptly, no questions asked.

Try it in your agent · no key

One command puts these notes inside Claude Code. Without a key the agent sees 5 families and gets 5 calls a day — enough to judge the taste before you rent it. The key opens every family and lifts the meter.

claude mcp add --transport http trova https://trova.design/api/mcp