Aspen app — design review & process

The three current screens, the full design evolution to date, the source-of-truth references we aligned to, the Figma feedback, and the DO / DO NOT principles that guide every decision.

Current screens Design evolution Decisions reconciled Feedback qualities Source references Figma feedback DO / DO NOT

Current screens

Built on the approved v13 direction, enhanced with Apple Liquid Glass. Simple, elegant, authentically Aspen — a native iOS app, not a website.

Loading
1 · Splash
Real AspenDental wordmark + “The Aspen Group” lockup, quiet brand-family footer.
Home
2 · Home
One story: your next visit → Directions, Check in, treatment-plan dial. Floating, translucent Apple Liquid Glass tab bar.
Reminder
3 · Appointment reminder
A real iOS lock screen with an Aspen notification — the moment that helps avoid a no-show. (The date at the top is the iOS system clock, not app copy.)
What changed since the last pass: zero serif · zero cute / AI-flavored copy · real AspenDental wordmark + real Northstar-A app icon · native iOS with Apple Liquid Glass · one bright accent per screen. Synthetic demo data — no patient information.

Design evolution — every version, to date

Each round below (Aspen Dental home screen), in order, with the date, who reviewed it, and how it scored against the DO / DO NOT principles. Each round also produced matching launch, care, booking, check-in, and reminder screens.

Reviewers across TeamTAG over the rounds: Rafeh Masood and the TAG design team (design direction & sign-off) · Dustin DuBois (design audit) · Angeli Arndt (Figma tokens) · Sara Rossio (portal references) · Erin Karr & Jenna Blanton (ClearChoice) · Nathan Schwederske (Aspen brand system).
ConceptsJul 8
Reviewed by: Branding Brand (internal) — informed by Dustin DuBois’s design audit (“SIMPLE. STRAIGHT-FORWARD. EASY.”)
Strong native bones and a single clear story, but the type and color drift off-brand and needed to come back in line before client review.
Meets
Real Aspen wordmarkNative tab barOne storyBig legible type
To correct
Serif headline & timeStock people photoCream cardWeekday (“Friday”)
Refine — align type, color, imagery, and dates to brand
v6Jul 9
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG) — design call
Followed the Royal Caribbean launch direction — real location facade, one next-appointment story, native chrome. Copy and day-language still to tighten.
Meets
Facade, not peopleNative chromeOne storyNo payment tile
To correct
Weekday (“Tuesday”)Soft / repetitive copy
Right direction — fix day language & supporting copy
v7Jul 9
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG)
A calm, single-story home built around the next-visit reminder, now using relative-day language and a clean native layout.
Meets
Relative daysNo pillsNative tab barOne story
To correct
Cream / tan toneA few soft copy lines
Right direction — go pearly-white, tighten copy
v8Jul 9
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG) — annotated the screen
Progress shown as a plain remaining count (not a %), the clinic address on the visit card, and the background pulled back toward pearly-white.
Meets
Count, not %Clinic addressRelative dayReal wordmark
Watch
Facade still reads warm
Approved direction
v11Jul 9
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG)
A lighter, more minimal pass — the confident dial was set aside for plain stat cards, which read as needing more presence.
Meets
Authentic facade + wordmarkNativeRelative days
Learning
Too minimal — needs the dial backTip box reads as filler
Bring the confident dial back
v12Jul 9
Reviewed by: Branding Brand (internal)
The confident goal-gradient dial returns as a single hero object, with clean depth and clear hierarchy.
Meets
One hero (the dial)Native + Liquid GlassRelative daysNo pills
Watch
Tip box reads as fillerFacade warm
The dial returns — premium and focused
v13 · APPROVEDJul 9
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood + TAG design team — chosen as the reference direction
Clean, authentically Aspen, one story per section, strong contrast, native iOS feel. Selected as the reference direction for the app.
Meets
Real wordmark + navy heroOne story per cardOne bright accentBig legible type
Against the rules
✓ Clean — no violations
Approved — the reference build
Readability passJul 11
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG)
A pass exploring extra readability leaned toward a web-like card layout with softer copy and serif-styled buttons — so we returned to the approved direction.
Meets
Real wordmarkNative tab barBig legible typeRelative days
To correct
Serif button labelsStacked loud buttonsWeb-like layoutSoft, cute copy
Returned to the approved direction
CurrentJul 12
Reviewed by: Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG)
A focused build on the approved v13 system — the next visit and treatment-plan progress on one clean card, a single primary action (Check in), enhanced with Apple Liquid Glass. A deliberate simplification of v13’s inline action row into one clear action.
Meets
Real wordmark + navy heroOne storyNative + Liquid GlassRelative daysOne accent
Against the rules
✓ Clean — no violations
Current — focused build on the v13 system

Design decisions we reconciled

A handful of choices took a few passes to settle. Here’s where each one landed — the principles that now guide the build.

Palette
Pearly-white, always. The warmth comes from the light, airy composition — not from cream or tan. Clean pearly-white with brand navy.
Progress
One confident, simple dial. A plain count with a clear denominator (“2 of 4”) — present and reassuring, never an over-engineered multi-segment ring.
Simplicity with craft
Simple is not bland. We hold restraint and one-story-per-screen, but keep premium depth and a confident focal moment on every screen.
Imagery
A location facade as a full-bleed background where imagery is wanted — never a small tile, and never stock people photography.
Warmth & voice
Human through tone, not gimmicks. Warmth comes from a genuinely warm but plain voice, greeting, and composition — not from cute copy or people photos.

The qualities the feedback established — and how this design meets them

The through-lines across every round, and how the current screens reflect each.

Authentically Aspen. Real AspenDental wordmark, the real Northstar-A, brand navy — never a generic template.
Simple & elegant. One story per screen, generous space. Home is a single next-visit card.
A native app, not a website. Real iOS status bar, tab bar, and Apple Liquid Glass — tight app spacing, not web gutters.
Plain, authentic voice. Every line says exactly what it is — no cute or AI-flavored copy.
Restraint. Deep navy used sparingly; exactly one bright accent per screen (the dial).
Built for our patients. Big, legible type, high contrast, large tap targets — without ever going bland.
Real craft. Real fonts (Figtree + Work Sans, no serif), real depth, premium finish.
Purposeful. The reminder exists to help avoid no-shows; every element earns its place.

Source references we aligned to

The brand and experience references TeamTAG provided. Links open the original; several sit in TAG-owned Figma / SharePoint and need TeamTAG access.

Brand & visual identity
Figma
Aspen Dental Brand Book (Shareable-WIP) · TAG Figma (access-gated)
Nathan Schwederske (Aspen Dental) · Jun 8
Core Aspen brand guidelines — fonts (Figtree + Work Sans), colors, logo usage.
Figma
Aspen Dental 2.0 Alpha Tokens & Icons
Nathan Schwederske (Aspen Dental) · Jun 15
The Aspen 2.0 design system — color/type tokens and icon set. The build basis for the app.
PDF
ClearChoice Brand Design Guide v1
Erin Karr (TeamTAG) · Jun 8
The primary ClearChoice brand source — colors, type, logo.
PDF
ClearChoice Brand One-Pager (new Viz-ID, 0626)
Erin Karr (TeamTAG) · Jun 18
The refreshed ClearChoice visual identity “brand on a page.”
Live ref
ClearChoice composable homepage
Erin Karr (TeamTAG) · Jun 16
Interim on-brand reference (updated treatments) while the Viz-ID one-pager was finalized.
Experience & portal references
Figma
Rebrand — Aspen Portal 2.0 (prototype)
Sara Rossio (TeamTAG) · Jun 13
The on-brand 2.0 visual/interaction reference for the Aspen patient portal.
Figma
Aspen Group Prototype
Sara Rossio (TeamTAG) · Jun 4
Earlier portal experience reference.
SharePoint
Patient Portal Deep Dive (deck) · TAG SharePoint
Sara Rossio (TeamTAG) · Jun 4
Aspen patient-portal strategy deck + appendix.
PDF
Aspen Portal Deep Dive (current experience)
Sara Rossio (TeamTAG) · Jun 4
The current-state portal experience, for reference.
Video
Previsit Check-in recording · TAG OneDrive
Sara Rossio (TeamTAG) · Jun 4
Screen recording of the new-patient web check-in flow.
Voice, scope & functional
PPTX
EP Self-Service Scheduling — briefing
Sara Rossio / Alex Corey (TeamTAG) · Jun 5
Patient types + self-service scheduling features (living doc) — grounds the booking flow.
Scope
“4 jobs / brand app” scope
Rafeh Masood (TeamTAG) · Jun 16
The four jobs the brand app must do — booking, treatment plan, content & comms, everything-on-the-website-in-app.
Also shared in our BB × TeamTAG Microsoft Teams channel: ongoing brand-token and feedback notes (ClearChoice tokens — Jenna Blanton; Aspen — Eric). A couple of brand assets — confirmed font files and approved photography — are being finalized together with the TeamTAG team.

Figma & design-audit feedback

Feedback TeamTAG left in Figma, and the design audit that shaped the brand-alignment direction.

“expand accent colors”
Angeli Arndt (TeamTAG) · Jun 12 · comment left directly in Figma on Aspen Dental 2.0 Alpha Tokens & Icons (resolved) — the palette needed a wider accent range beyond the core navy/blue.
“SIMPLE. STRAIGHT-FORWARD. EASY.”
Dustin DuBois (TeamTAG) · from the design audit / alignment notes — the north-star feel for the Aspen experience.
“Without seeing the AD logo, all of these look like they could be for any organization.”
Dustin DuBois (TeamTAG) · from the design audit / alignment notes — drove the emphasis on the real AspenDental wordmark and an unmistakably-Aspen identity on every screen.
Note: the fuller design audit lives in the TAG-owned Aspen Portal 2.0 Figma (access held by TeamTAG); the points above are the load-bearing ones captured in our alignment notes.

The principles we build to

Distilled from all the feedback above — the checklist behind every screen.

✓ DO

  • Be authentically Aspen — real AspenDental wordmark + Northstar-A, brand navy.
  • Keep it simple & elegant — one story per screen, room to breathe.
  • Feel like a native iOS app — real status bar, tab bar, Apple Liquid Glass.
  • Write plain, literal copy — say exactly what it is.
  • Use relative days — “Tomorrow,” “Today.”
  • One bright accent per screen — deep blue used sparingly.
  • Big, legible type, high contrast, large tap targets — for our patients.
  • Use the real fonts — Figtree + Work Sans.
  • Hold the premium bar — Royal Caribbean, Hims, Ralph Lauren, Burberry.
  • Enhance the approved design — never regress its craft.
  • Stay focused — a few tight screens at a time.

✕ DO NOT

  • No cute or AI-flavored copy — no filler.
  • No website look — no web padding, gutters, or spacing.
  • No serif fonts — anywhere.
  • No stock people photos — a location facade if imagery is needed.
  • No pills or stacked loud buttons — no button-on-button.
  • No cost, price, balance, or financing — anywhere.
  • No redundant or repeated content.
  • No cream or tan — it’s a pearly-white brand.
  • No gold or brown — that isn’t Aspen.
  • No weekdays or calendar dates in app copy — relative days only.
  • No over-engineered or confusing elements.
  • No placeholder or fake logo — the real mark only.
Private review · TeamTAG · not indexed · synthetic demo data, no patient information.
Reviewer names are TeamTAG team members who gave input across the rounds.