Inherent.css

Write plain HTML without adding a single class: get automatic light/dark mode, 1-token color branding, and responsive layouts out of the box.

Built out of pure retinal self-defense against AI purple gradients by lalithaar

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Why Inherent.css?

Inherent.css styles semantic HTML by default, with automatic light/dark mode and one-token color branding in a small CSS footprint.

Inherent.css returns to first principles: plain HTML elements should look like polished, responsive software by default.

• Zero Classes Required: Write native <article>, <nav>, <button>, <dialog>, and <table> — they look right immediately.
• Automatic Light & Dark Mode: Zero JavaScript. The browser's native Canvas and CanvasText primitives handle theme shifts automatically.
• Single-Seed Color Branding: Powered by color-mix(in oklch, ...). Change one line (--theme: #10b981) and your entire design system — pastels, borders, hover states, badges, and focus rings — recalibrates automatically.
• Pragmatic App Layouts: Not 12-column fraction soup. Just the layouts apps actually use: .sidebar-left, .sidebar-right, .grid-2/3/4, and .split.
• Ultra-Lightweight: ~4 KB gzipped over the wire covering 58+ native HTML elements.

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Quickstart

1. Via CDN (Drop-in, Zero Build)

Paste this into your <head> and start writing plain HTML:

<link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/inherent.css/dist/inherent.min.css">

2. Via NPM

npm install inherent.css

Import it in your CSS or JavaScript entrypoint:

@import "inherent.css";

import "inherent.css/dist/inherent.min.css";

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Usage

Via CDN (Drop-in)

<link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/inherent.css/dist/inherent.min.css">

Via npm

npm install inherent.css

@import "inherent.css";

import "inherent.css/dist/inherent.min.css";

Static Theme Override (No JavaScript / No Build Tools)

If you want a custom brand color without runtime tuning, define it yourself:

:root { --theme: #facc15; }

Include this override after Inherent.css. For WCAG tuning, either choose an accessible color or load the optional runtime script below.

Runtime Accessibility Guardian (Optional)

<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/inherent.css/dist/autotune.min.js" defer></script>

Theme Switching

• Default theme: Neutral
• Presets: data-theme="emerald", rose, amber, cyan, violet, neutral, indigo
• Or override one token: :root { --theme: #10b981; }

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Customizing Your Theme

Inherent.css uses a pure mathematical color engine. You don't have to define 30 hex codes for light mode and another 30 for dark mode.

Option A: The One-Token Override

Override --theme in your stylesheet with any hex, oklch, or rgb color:

:root {
  --theme: #10b981; /* Emerald, Amber, Rose, Cyan, Violet, etc. */
}

• In light mode: Generates crisp tinted borders and soft pastel surfaces.
• In dark mode: Generates deep atmospheric glows and high-contrast readable text.

Option B: Built-in Data Theme Presets

Apply data-theme to your <html> element:

<html data-theme="emerald">
<html data-theme="rose">
<html data-theme="amber">
<html data-theme="cyan">
<html data-theme="violet">
<html data-theme="neutral">

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🛡️ Optional: Automatic Accessibility Guardian (autotune.js)

Inherent.css includes an optional drop-in companion script powered by cm-colors. When installing via npm, cm-colors is included automatically; CDN users can load its global bundle alongside the script below.

If you would rather avoid runtime JavaScript, use the static override approach shown in Usage: define :root { --theme: #facc15; } with an accessible color, or run any external tuner you prefer.

If you (or your users) pick an inaccessible custom theme color (e.g. bright yellow --theme: #facc15 on white), autotune.js silently intercepts it and auto-tunes the CSS custom property on the fly to the closest WCAG-compliant shade (#b78f00) with minimal perceptual difference:

<link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/inherent.css/dist/inherent.min.css">

<!-- Drop-in accessibility guardian: auto-tunes failing brand colors silently -->
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/inherent.css/dist/autotune.min.js" defer></script>

• Zero configuration: Automatically detects --theme or --primary on :root.
• Light & Dark Mode Aware: Seamlessly adapts if the user switches themes or system preferences.
• Retinal Self-Defense: Guarantees your site is always WCAG accessible without writing a single class or calculation.

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Pragmatic App Layouts

When you need real-world app containers, Inherent.css gives you clean, intuitive classes that automatically collapse on mobile (<= 768px):

<!-- App Shell: Sidebar on Left -->
<div class="sidebar-left">
  <aside>
    <!-- Nav / Inspector -->
  </aside>
  <main>
    <!-- Workspace -->
  </main>
</div>

<!-- 4-Column Metric Cards -->
<div class="grid-4">
  <article><strong>14,820</strong> <small>Active Users</small></article>
  <article><strong>$92k</strong> <small>Revenue</small></article>
  <article><strong>0.04%</strong> <small>Errors</small></article>
  <article><strong>18ms</strong> <small>Latency</small></article>
</div>

<!-- 50/50 Split View -->
<div class="split">
  <article>Left Pane</article>
  <article>Right Pane</article>
</div>

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HTML Elements Styled by Default (58+ Tags)

Category	Elements Covered
Document Shell	html, body, header, nav, main, footer, section, article, aside, hr
Typography	h1–h6, p, blockquote, cite, mark, kbd, code, pre, small, sub, sup, del, ins
Navigation & Lists	nav ul (responsive touch scrolling on mobile), ul, ol, li, dl, dt, dd
Forms & Controls	<form>, <fieldset>, <legend>, <label>, <input> (15 types), <select>, <textarea>, <button>
Interactive	<dialog> & ::backdrop blur, <details> & <summary>, <progress>, <meter>
Data & Media	<table>, caption, thead, tbody, tfoot, tr, th, td, figure, figcaption, img, video, svg

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Live Demo & Documentation

Check out the interactive playground with live theme switching at: https://lalithaar.github.io/inherent.css/

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License

Inherent.css is released under the MIT License.

Core CSS: MIT. Optional accessibility guardian (autotune): MIT, using color-science code under the author's explicit permission. See NOTICE.