Supported Footer Archetypes (Ft1‑Ft8) in Hallmark: A Complete Guide

Hallmark supports eight distinct footer archetypes labeled Ft1 through Ft8, each defining a specific layout-and-voice pattern for page closures—ranging from mast-headed brand strips to kinetic marquee scrolls.

The Nutlope/hallmark repository codifies these patterns as self-contained components with dedicated markup, styling, and behavioral guidance. Understanding these archetypes allows you to match footer design to content genre and user intent.

What Are Footer Archetypes in Hallmark?

Hallmark treats footers as first-class architectural decisions, not afterthoughts. Each archetype (Ft1 … Ft8) encapsulates:

• Visual structure — column count, rules, typography
• Voice — brand-forward, personal, dense, playful
• Functional priority — navigation, conversion, identity, or narrative closure

Archetype IDs appear throughout the system: in JSON schemas (e.g., "archetype": "Ft1 | Ft2 | … | Ft8" in study.md), routing tables, and page definitions that pair footers with macrostructures.

The Complete Ft1‑Ft8 Reference

ID	Name	Core Pattern	Best For
Ft1	Mast-headed	Word-mark + tagline with small adjacent links	Classic product sites needing concise identity
Ft2	Inline-rule single line	Hairline rule above one-line credits/copyright	Minimalist pages, documentation, lean colophons
Ft3	Index-style category list	3-4 column grid with category headers and navigation links	Hubs, documentation roots, brand portals
Ft4	Dense typographic	Monospaced text block (credits, license, address)	Editorial colophons, space-constrained footnotes
Ft5	Statement	Large display sentence closing the page, minimal meta beneath	Atmospheric, narrative-driven editorial pages
Ft6	Letter close	"Yours, the team" sign-off with optional postscript	Personal-tone portfolios, letter-like presentations
Ft7	Newsletter first	Subscription form as primary element, supporting meta below	Conversion-focused sites, community building
Ft8	Marquee scroll	Infinite horizontal scroll of repeating tagline/brand	Playful, fashion/sport-oriented kinetic branding

Selecting the Right Footer Archetype

The Hallmark system maps genre to default footer to reduce decision fatigue. Selection logic is documented in references/structure.md and SKILL.md.

Genre/Default	Recommended Footer	Why It Works
Playful	Ft8	Motion and repetition reinforce energy
Atmospheric	Ft5	Narrative closure matches tonal ambition
Modern-minimal	Ft2	Restraint aligns with aesthetic discipline
Editorial	Ft4 or Ft5	Typography-first treatment respects content
Hub/portal	Ft3	Categorical organization scales with link volume

Practical Usage: YAML Page Definition

Configure your footer archetype directly in page metadata. Hallmark's build pipeline resolves the reference and injects the corresponding component from skills/hallmark/references/components/.

{
  "macrostructure": "H2 Split Diptych",
  "nav": "N5 Floating pill",
  "footer": "Ft5 Statement",
  "theme": "Bloom"
}

This declaration instructs Hallmark to:

• Render the H2 Split Diptych hero layout
• Apply N5 Floating pill navigation
• Insert the Ft5 Statement footer component (components/ft5-statement.md)

The Statement footer renders a full-width closing sentence in display type, followed by minimal branding meta—ideal for narrative pages that end with intentional impact.

Design Tokens and Component Structure

Each archetype defines standardized layout tokens documented in references/component-cookbook.md (lines 126-146):

Token	Description	Examples
Column count	Grid structure	Ft3 uses 3-4 columns; Ft2 uses 1
Heading style	Visual hierarchy of section labels	Small-caps/mono for Ft3; display for Ft5
Rule type	Separator treatment	Hairline for Ft2; none for Ft8
Typography family	Typeface selection	Monospace for Ft4; variable if supported for Ft5
Animation speed	Motion parameters	Scroll velocity for Ft8 marquee

Individual component specifications live in references/components/ft1-mast-headed.md through ft8-marquee-scroll.md.

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

The component cookbook flags contextual mismatches (lines 89-92):

• Avoid Ft8 on editorial pages — kinetic motion undermines reading absorption
• Avoid Ft3 unless the page is a genuine hub — category grids imply navigation depth that shallow pages cannot fulfill
• Avoid Ft7 without email infrastructure — newsletter-first placement amplifies friction if the form non-functional

Where the Archetypes Are Defined

File Path	Purpose
references/component-cookbook.md	Master index of all archetypes with design tokens and selection logic
references/components/ft1-mast-headed.md … ft8-marquee-scroll.md	Individual component specifications
references/structure.md	Pairing guidelines: footer × macrostructure × genre
references/study.md	JSON schema defining valid "footer" values
SKILL.md	Practitioner guidance for archetype selection

Summary

• Hallmark defines eight footer archetypes (Ft1‑Ft8) as standardized, reusable components
• Ft1-Ft4 prioritize information density and navigation; Ft5-Ft6 emphasize voice and closure; Ft7 optimizes for conversion; Ft8 delivers kinetic brand expression
• Selection is genre-driven with documented defaults in structure.md and SKILL.md
• Each archetype exposes design tokens for layout, typography, and motion
• Anti-patterns are catalogued to prevent contextual misuse

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I reference a footer archetype in my Hallmark configuration?

Use the Ft# identifier as a string value in your page definition's "footer" field. Valid values are Ft1, Ft2, Ft3, Ft4, Ft5, Ft6, Ft7, or Ft8. The build system resolves this to the corresponding component file in references/components/.

Can I customize a footer archetype beyond its design tokens?

The archetypes are intentionally prescriptive. For substantial deviations, Hallmark expects you to either (a) select a different archetype with closer alignment, or (b) define a custom component outside the Ft1-Ft8 system. The component files themselves serve as reference implementations rather than extensible base classes.

What happens if I omit the footer field entirely?

Hallmark applies genre-based defaults defined in structure.md. If no genre is detected or the pairing is ambiguous, the build may warn or fall back to Ft2 (Inline-rule single line) as the most neutral, universally applicable option.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "instagit@latest"]
    }
  }
}