Design Tokens

Varve's Variables and Tokens tools are for values in your artwork. An imported token source does not change the Varve interface theme. Source updates are reviewed and applied by you; there is no background file watcher.

Open Variables and Tokens

Choose View > Panels > Variables and Tokens…, or run Open Variables and Tokens from the command palette. The dialog contains the document's Variables and the Token Sync center for importing, reviewing, and exporting sources.

Import, bind, and update

Import: choose a supported DTCG JSON source and review its parse, validation, and mapping diagnostics. Nothing changes in the document until you approve the preview.
Bind: connect supported variable values to artwork properties through the Inspector. Current property bindings cover colors, numbers, and pixel dimensions.
Update: when the source file changes, start a re-import. Varve compares the imported base, your local token value, and the new source value. Review conflicts per token, then apply the approved update as one undoable transaction.
Export: download canonical JSON from the current document token data. Export does not write back to the original source file.

For Resolver projects, choose the modifier contexts before import. The selected context is resolved into document tokens; retain the project files if you need to work with other contexts or composition later.

Current boundaries

Synchronization is manual: there is no live file watching, Git-backed source, or write-back. Vendor-specific token dialects are not advertised as DTCG-compatible interchange. Font-family and weight pickers, composite property bindings, and group metadata updates are still incomplete; unsupported values remain in token data but may not bind to artwork. Downstream tools can interpret aliases and extensions differently, so check the output in your target tool.

The Design Tokens feature page has the detailed capability matrix and standards evidence.