Web Artifacts Builder Skill

Web Artifacts Builder

"Build powerful, multi-component web artifacts deployable directly in Claude conversations."

Overview

This skill enables building elaborate React applications that bundle into a single self-contained HTML file. The output is deployable as a Claude artifact or shared as a standalone file with all JavaScript, CSS, and dependencies inlined.

Stack: React 18 + TypeScript + Vite + Parcel (bundling) + Tailwind CSS 3.4.1 + shadcn/ui

When to Invoke

Use this skill when:

Building an interactive tool, calculator, dashboard, or form
The artifact needs React state management (not a static page)
The artifact uses shadcn/ui components (buttons, dialogs, tables, etc.)
Multiple components with routing or complex interactions
User says "build me an artifact" or "create a React app"

Do NOT use for simple single-file HTML artifacts — just write the HTML directly.

Five-Step Workflow

Step 1: Initialize Project

bash scripts/init-artifact.sh <project-name>
cd <project-name>

The scripts/init-artifact.sh script creates a fully configured project:

React 18 + TypeScript (via Vite)
Tailwind CSS 3.4.1 with shadcn/ui theming
Path aliases (@/) configured
40+ shadcn/ui components pre-installed
All Radix UI dependencies included
Parcel configured for bundling via .parcelrc
Node 18+ compatibility (auto-pins Vite version)

After init, project structure:

<project-name>/
├── src/
│   ├── App.tsx          # Main application component
│   ├── main.tsx         # Entry point
│   └── components/      # Your components here
├── index.html           # Entry HTML (required for bundling)
├── package.json
├── tailwind.config.js
└── tsconfig.json

Step 2: Develop the Artifact

Edit the generated files. Key patterns:

Using shadcn/ui Components

All 40+ components are pre-installed. Import directly:

import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';
import { Card, CardContent, CardHeader, CardTitle } from '@/components/ui/card';
import { Input } from '@/components/ui/input';
import { Badge } from '@/components/ui/badge';
import {
  Dialog,
  DialogContent,
  DialogHeader,
  DialogTitle,
  DialogTrigger,
} from '@/components/ui/dialog';

export function MyArtifact() {
  return (
    <Card>
      <CardHeader>
        <CardTitle>My Tool</CardTitle>
      </CardHeader>
      <CardContent>
        <Input placeholder="Enter value..." />
        <Button className="mt-2">Submit</Button>
      </CardContent>
    </Card>
  );
}

State Management Pattern

import { useState } from 'react';

interface AppState {
  items: string[];
  input: string;
  loading: boolean;
}

export function App() {
  const [state, setState] = useState<AppState>({
    items: [],
    input: '',
    loading: false,
  });

  const addItem = () => {
    if (!state.input.trim()) return;
    setState(prev => ({
      ...prev,
      items: [...prev.items, prev.input],
      input: '',
    }));
  };

  return <div className="min-h-screen bg-background p-8">{/* ... */}</div>;
}

Available shadcn/ui Components

accordion, alert, alert-dialog, aspect-ratio, avatar,
badge, breadcrumb, button, calendar, card, carousel,
chart, checkbox, collapsible, command, context-menu,
dialog, drawer, dropdown-menu, form, hover-card,
input, input-otp, label, menubar, navigation-menu,
pagination, popover, progress, radio-group, resizable,
scroll-area, select, separator, sheet, sidebar,
skeleton, slider, sonner, switch, table, tabs,
textarea, toast, toggle, toggle-group, tooltip

Design Guidelines

Avoid AI slop patterns:

No font-family: Inter or font-sans as primary (use a distinctive font)
No purple gradient headers
No centered-everything layout
No uniform rounded-lg on every element

Use intentional design:

// Good: distinctive typography + intentional colors
<h1 className="text-4xl font-black tracking-tight text-slate-900">
  Tool Title
</h1>

// Good: purposeful layout with breathing room
<div className="grid grid-cols-[300px_1fr] gap-8 min-h-screen">
  <aside className="border-r border-slate-200 p-6">...</aside>
  <main className="p-8">...</main>
</div>

Step 3: Bundle to Single HTML File

bash scripts/bundle-artifact.sh

Requirements: index.html must exist in the project root.

What the script does:

Installs bundling dependencies (parcel, @parcel/config-default, parcel-resolver-tspaths, html-inline)
Creates .parcelrc config with path alias support
Builds with Parcel (no source maps, optimized)
Inlines all assets (JS, CSS, fonts, images) into bundle.html

Output: bundle.html — a single self-contained file, shareable as a Claude artifact.

Step 4: Share Artifact

Display bundle.html in the Claude conversation. The artifact renders directly in the conversation interface.

For file system access, the artifact is at:

<project-name>/bundle.html

Step 5: Test (Optional)

Testing is optional. Present the artifact first — test only if issues arise or if explicitly requested. Testing adds latency between request and delivery.

If testing is needed:

# Playwright/Puppeteer for visual verification
npx playwright screenshot bundle.html screenshot.png

Common Development Tasks

Adding a New Page/View

// Simple tab-based navigation (no router needed for single-page artifacts)
import { Tabs, TabsContent, TabsList, TabsTrigger } from '@/components/ui/tabs';

export function App() {
  return (
    <Tabs defaultValue="overview">
      <TabsList>
        <TabsTrigger value="overview">Overview</TabsTrigger>
        <TabsTrigger value="settings">Settings</TabsTrigger>
      </TabsList>
      <TabsContent value="overview">
        <OverviewPanel />
      </TabsContent>
      <TabsContent value="settings">
        <SettingsPanel />
      </TabsContent>
    </Tabs>
  );
}

Adding Data Tables

import {
  Table,
  TableBody,
  TableCell,
  TableHead,
  TableHeader,
  TableRow,
} from '@/components/ui/table';

interface Item {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  value: number;
  status: 'active' | 'inactive';
}

function DataTable({ items }: { items: Item[] }) {
  return (
    <Table>
      <TableHeader>
        <TableRow>
          <TableHead>Name</TableHead>
          <TableHead>Value</TableHead>
          <TableHead>Status</TableHead>
        </TableRow>
      </TableHeader>
      <TableBody>
        {items.map(item => (
          <TableRow key={item.id}>
            <TableCell className="font-medium">{item.name}</TableCell>
            <TableCell>{item.value}</TableCell>
            <TableCell>
              <Badge variant={item.status === 'active' ? 'default' : 'secondary'}>
                {item.status}
              </Badge>
            </TableCell>
          </TableRow>
        ))}
      </TableBody>
    </Table>
  );
}

Adding Charts

// Recharts is available via shadcn/ui chart component
import { ChartContainer, ChartTooltip } from '@/components/ui/chart';
import { BarChart, Bar, XAxis, YAxis } from 'recharts';

const data = [
  { month: 'Jan', value: 400 },
  { month: 'Feb', value: 300 },
  { month: 'Mar', value: 600 },
];

function MyChart() {
  return (
    <ChartContainer config={{ value: { label: 'Value', color: '#2563eb' } }}>
      <BarChart data={data}>
        <XAxis dataKey="month" />
        <YAxis />
        <ChartTooltip />
        <Bar dataKey="value" fill="var(--color-value)" />
      </BarChart>
    </ChartContainer>
  );
}

Troubleshooting

| Issue | Cause | Fix | | ---------------------------------- | ----------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- | | Bundle fails with path alias error | @/ not resolved | Check .parcelrc has parcel-resolver-tspaths | | Styles not applying | Tailwind not in content paths | Verify tailwind.config.js includes ./src/**/*.{ts,tsx} | | Components not found | shadcn not installed | Run npx shadcn@latest add <component> | | Bundle too large | External dependencies inlined | Use CDN-linked deps or tree-shake imports | | White screen in artifact | Runtime error | Check browser console, add error boundary |

Memory Protocol

Before starting artifact development:

cat .claude/context/memory/learnings.md | grep -i "artifact\|react\|shadcn\|tailwind"

Record patterns after completion:

Effective component combinations → .claude/context/memory/learnings.md
Bundling issues → .claude/context/memory/issues.md

Related Skills

frontend-design — Aesthetic principles, anti-AI-slop guidelines
react-expert — React hooks, patterns, performance
shadcn-ui — Deep shadcn/ui component customization
styling-expert — Tailwind CSS advanced patterns
webapp-testing — Testing web artifacts with Playwright

Agent Skills: Web Artifacts Builder

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