Everest is a set of core components based on Ant Design, built to establish a UI system for the existing MNTN platform. Designed to streamline workflows, promote consistency, and foster creativity across teams, Everest is the foundation for creating intuitive, user-focused experiences.
Everest already existed when I joined MNTN, but it had a lot of gaps. As my first project, I focused on how the system was run as much as on what was in it. I created a release system and a way for teams to collaborate and get components approved. The system was organized in three months.
In Everest, a release is the merging of a Figma branch. We branch when a design already in production needs significant changes, such as rethinking a whole section of the UI, and to bring older global files up to date after a feature ships. Most features don't need a branch. Small changes get their own simple file, which keeps files easy for stakeholders to follow.
Every branch merge is reviewed by at least two members of the design team. Early on, reviews came through me. As the team settled, any peer could review, so approval became a shared responsibility.
Everest's styles page documents color, type, and shadow, with usage rules beside each one. Values below come from the Everest file in Figma.
Open the Everest file in Figma ↗Everest was the basis for the design system that now powers MNTN's newest product, and it has since been deprecated. Some of its thinking is still visible in the successor:
A design system depends on process as much as components. Everest was my first lesson in that at MNTN, and I carried it into the system that replaced it.
I've built three of them, and I'm always up for comparing notes.