Brand exploration · 14 October 2026

Components, round 1: decided

Ten places where the site has competing versions of one component, or none. Each choice shows the versions side by side on the same real copy, with exact CSS, contrast and a house-style check. All ten choices are decided. The decided version is outlined in navy, and it is what components/ builds. The losing versions stay here for the record. Settled components are at the bottom. All components, with code: components gallery.

Choices and decisions
ChoiceDecisionStatus
1. Eyebrow specB: 13px/600/0.12em; slate, gold on navy, gold ink on plateDecided
2. Secondary button styleD: tinted pill, for card and dialog actions onlyDecided
3. Button sizesB: 48px and 40pxDecided
4. Text link hoverB: underline turns navy, text staysDecided
5. Link inside body copyB: gold underline plus weight 500Decided
6. Link card hoverB: border turns navy; no liftDecided
7. Tab and chip active stateB for chips, C for tabs; never gold (built in round 2)Decided
8. Neutral note (callout)C: soft with line-strong barDecided
9. Body text colourA: ink; slate for secondary textDecided
10. Page head H1 size on utility pagesA: one H1 stepDecided
SettledPrimary and navy buttons, heading and rules, navy ground, bands, card shape, focus, status calloutsDecided
Choice 1 of 10

Eyebrow spec

Decided: B

Which size, weight, tracking and colour does the label above a heading use?

Today on: A on / (homepage). B on the page head of /benefits, /membership-tiers, /certificate-and-frames, /faqs. C on /articles and the member profile cards. D on /my-membership. The ring size tool also uses 14px action gold on white (1.19:1), which fails, so it is not shown.

A. Homepage

Free to join

Turn your achievement into opportunity.

CSS
0.72rem/700, 0.16em, uppercase, #1F2F6E
Size
11.5px
Contrast
12.4:1 on white
Breaks: VISUAL.md eyebrow 12–14px, semibold, 0.12em

B. Page head

Decided

Free to join

Turn your achievement into opportunity.

CSS
0.8125rem/600, 0.12em, uppercase, #596172
Size
13px
Contrast
6.2:1 on white, 5.9:1 on soft
Fits house style

C. Gold ink

Free to join

Turn your achievement into opportunity.

CSS
0.75rem/600, 0.12em, uppercase, #8A5A00
Size
12px
Contrast
5.9:1 on white, 5.4:1 on plate
Breaks: gold ink is a recognition colour; on white it reads as an honor mark

D. Hub

Free to join

Turn your achievement into opportunity.

CSS
0.8125rem/700, 0.06em, uppercase, #8A5A00
Size
13px
Contrast
5.9:1 on white
Breaks: tracking 0.12em
Choice 2 of 10

Secondary button style

Decided: D

What does an action look like when it is not the primary one, but a text link is too weak (a repeated card action, the second action in a dialog)?

Today on: No secondary style exists in the house rules. Today: B on /benefits (29 per page, .hs-bf-btn--outline); C on the editor page /ForProfessionals; white-fill secondaries on 7 editor-page heroes; the navy-outline “See more” pager on /articles.

A. No button: text link

Careers

Career Insider

Job listings, resume upload and Career Insider guidebooks from Vault.

CSS
.hs-link: 600 navy, 2px #FAF053 underline
Height
24px line, not a tap-size control
Contrast
label 12.4:1
Fits house style

B. Grey outline (Benefits today)

Careers

Career Insider

Job listings, resume upload and Career Insider guidebooks from Vault.

CSS
transparent; border 1.5px #CFD5E6; color #1F2F6E; hover navy fill
Height
38px
Contrast
label 12.4:1; border 1.5:1 on white
Breaks: “no ghost or outline buttons”

C. Navy outline

Careers

Career Insider

Job listings, resume upload and Career Insider guidebooks from Vault.

CSS
transparent; border 1.5px #1F2F6E; color #1F2F6E
Height
40px
Contrast
label and border 12.4:1
Breaks: “no ghost or outline buttons”

D. Tint (proposed)

Decided

Careers

Career Insider

Job listings, resume upload and Career Insider guidebooks from Vault.

CSS
.hs-button--secondary: fill and 1.5px border #EAF0FF, navy label; hover border navy. On navy: white 8% fill, white label
Height
40px (--sm) or 48px
Contrast
label 10.9:1 on #EAF0FF
Fits house style: secondary is now the third style
Choice 3 of 10

Button sizes

Decided: B

How many button heights does the system carry?

Today on: Three gold sizes today: 51px on /, 48px on the page head of /benefits, /membership-tiers, /certificate-and-frames, 38px on /benefits cards and the blog.

A. One size

Start Free Membership

Study abroad scholarship

Merit, service and study abroad awards.

CSS
48px: 12px 32px, 17px/600
Note
A 48px pill in every card is heavy in a grid of 30
Fits house style

B. Two sizes

Decided
Start Free Membership

Study abroad scholarship

Merit, service and study abroad awards.

CSS
48px default; --sm 40px: 8px 24px, 16px/600
Note
40px is the house minimum tap target
Fits house style

C. Three sizes (today)

Start Free Membership

Study abroad scholarship

Merit, service and study abroad awards.

CSS
51px 14px 30px 17px; 48px 12px 28px; 38px 10px 20px 14.72px
Note
The 51px and 48px steps look the same
Breaks: tap target at least 40px (the 38px size)
Choice 6 of 10

Link card hover

Decided: B

What reacts when the pointer is on a card that is one link?

Today on: A on / (.hb-card) and the old magazine cards. B is not used yet. C is the literal VISUAL.md rule (“only its text label reacts: the gold underline turns navy”), not built anywhere.

Choice 7 of 10

Tab and chip active state

Decided: B for chips, C for tabs

How does the current item in a row of tabs or filter chips show that it is current?

Today on: A on the category bar of /articles and the article page. B on the Articles tab filter of the member profile. C on the member profile tabs (Profile, Articles). The Benefits jump pills fill with the tier colour, a fourth version.

A. Gold fill

CSS
pill, 12px/700 uppercase; current: background #FAF053, navy text
Contrast
10.4:1
Breaks: “one gold element per viewport”; a gold pill reads as a button
Choice 8 of 10

Neutral note (callout)

Decided: C (D stays the info status)

What does a plain note look like, when it is not a status message?

Today on: A on the editor pages /what-honorsocietyorg, /study-abroad-scholarship, /career-services, /society-leadership and 4 more (4–6px bars, 3 radii). C on /faqs (.hs-faq-help). D is the info status colour.

A. Cream and action gold (editor pages)

CSS
#FFFDF5, 4px #FAF053 bar, radius 0 8px 8px 0
Bar
1.17:1 on cream: almost invisible
Breaks: #FFFDF5 is not a token; gold as decoration

B. Plate and honor gold

CSS
#FAF3E9, 4px #C9A227 bar
Bar
2.2:1 on plate
Breaks: honor gold is for recognition only

C. Soft and line-strong (FAQ)

Decided
CSS
#F7F8FB, 4px #D9DDE7 bar, slate icon, ink text
Text
ink 12.2:1
Fits house style

D. Info surface and blue

CSS
#EAF0FF, 4px #175CFF bar
Bar
4.6:1
Fits house style
Choice 9 of 10

Body text colour

Decided: A

Is running text ink or slate?

Today on: A (ink) on the homepage bands, the article body and the profile prose. B (slate) is the VISUAL.md palette entry for body text, and is used on page-head leads, card lines and FAQ answers.

A. Ink

Decided

Success is built on focus, balance and resilience. Honor Society® encourages a balanced approach to growth, so you stay on track toward your goals.

CSS
color: #2B3142, 17px/1.7
Contrast
13.0:1 on white
Fits house style

B. Slate

Success is built on focus, balance and resilience. Honor Society® encourages a balanced approach to growth, so you stay on track toward your goals.

CSS
color: #596172, 17px/1.7
Contrast
6.2:1 on white, 5.9:1 on soft
Breaks: nothing; but it conflicts with the reference pages
Choice 10 of 10

Page head H1 size on utility pages

Decided: A

Does a utility page (FAQ, ring sizer, contact) get a smaller H1 than other pages?

Today on: A is built: every page head (/benefits, /membership-tiers, /faqs, /certificate-and-frames) uses the hero H1 clamp. B was in the old house style only.

A. One H1 step

Decided

Frequently Asked Questions

Answers about joining Honor Society®, member benefits, scholarships and your account. If your question is not here, Member Services can help.

CSS
clamp(2.25rem, 2.2vw + 1.1rem, 3.25rem) = 36→52px
Fits house style

B. Smaller utility H1

Frequently Asked Questions

Answers about joining Honor Society®, member benefits, scholarships and your account. If your question is not here, Member Services can help.

CSS
clamp(1.75rem, 3.4vw, 2.25rem) = 28→36px
Fits house style
No real conflict

Settled

These follow the decisions already made, or the site has one version only. Each is shown once.

Marking the moment.

Heading and gold rule

Didot 700 only. One heading colour, navy: the article and profile use ink today, and ink to navy is 1.04:1. The rule is 56×4px, 2px radius.

Avery Example

Honor rule

Honor gold #C9A227 under member names and on credentials. Automatic on a plate band.

Class Ring

Recognize your journey.

Navy ground: treatment B

Token --hs-ground-navy, painted over flat navy. Body text 6.4:1 at the lightest corner, gold eyebrow 6.8:1.

White
Soft
Navy
Plate

Band grounds and container

White, soft, navy, plate. Padding clamp(2.5rem, 5vw, 4rem). Container at Bootstrap widths with a 12px gutter. No borders between bands.

Mentorship

Resume critiques, mock interviews and first-hand advice from people already in the role.

Card shape

8px radius, 1px #E6E8EF, padding 20px (24px from 768px). Shadow only on link cards.

Focus

3px action gold outline, 3px offset, plus a 1px navy ring for light grounds. One rule in base.css.

Status callouts

Info, success, warning, danger: tinted surface, 4px bar in the status colour, ink text. Blue only as a bar, never as small text.