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Field notes — The toolbox

Good tools, picked on purpose.Here's what we build with.

Field notes6 min readUpdated September 2026

No tool is here because it's trendy. Each one earned its place by shipping real products fast, keeping them easy to change, and staying cheap to run.

Chapter 01 — TypeScript first

One language, front to back.Bugs caught before your users do.

Every product we ship is written in TypeScript: the web app, the mobile app, the API and the scripts in between. Types are a contract between every part of the code, so a change in one place can't quietly break another.

  • Mistakes show up in the editor, not in production.
  • Front end and back end share the same data shapes.
  • New developers read the code and know what goes where.
type Enquiry = {
  name: string;
  service: "Prototypes" | "UI design";
  budget: number;
};

const lead: Enquiry = {
  name: "Ada",
  service: "Prototypes",
  budget: "soon",
};
Caught before it ships. Type 'string' is not assignable to type 'number'.
Chapter 02 — The languages

The words we write in.Typed, tested, readable.

TypeScript leads, and it sits on top of the web's own languages. Python joins when the work is data or AI, and SQL whenever the data matters.

  • JavaScript

    The language of the browser, under every TypeScript file.

  • Python

    Data pipelines, scripts and AI model work.

  • SQL

    Precise queries over the data that runs your business.

  • HTML

    Semantic, accessible markup that search engines read.

  • CSS

    Layouts that hold up on every screen size.

Chapter 03 — The frameworks

The frame the product hangs on.Proven, fast, well supported.

React on every screen, from the browser to the phone. Node.js and NestJS on the server. We pick the framework that fits the product, not the one we used last time.

  • React

    Interfaces built from small, reusable parts.

  • Next.js

    Content-heavy sites that need to rank and load fast.

  • TanStack

    Type-safe routing, data and forms. This site runs on it.

  • React Native

    One codebase for iOS and Android apps.

  • Node.js

    Fast APIs and background jobs, in TypeScript.

  • NestJS

    Structured back ends that grow with your team.

Chapter 04 — The databases

Where your data lives.Safe, backed up, quick to find.

PostgreSQL is our default because it does almost everything well. We add a cache, a document store or an edge database only when the product needs one.

  • PostgreSQL

    Our default database for real business data.

  • MongoDB

    Flexible documents for fast-changing data.

  • Redis

    Caching, queues and live counters in memory.

  • SQLite

    Small, fast storage on the device and at the edge.

  • Supabase

    Postgres with sign-in and storage, for a quick start.

Chapter 05 — The tools

The bench we build on.From first sketch to live site.

Design starts in Figma. Code builds with Vite, gets styled with Tailwind CSS and checked by Vitest. Docker keeps every machine the same, and Cloudflare serves it close to your users.

  • Figma

    Wireframes, UI design and click-through prototypes.

  • Vite

    Instant dev server and small production builds.

  • Tailwind CSS

    Styling that stays consistent with the design system.

  • Vitest

    Fast unit and component tests on every change.

  • Docker

    The same environment on every laptop and server.

  • Cloudflare

    Hosting at the edge, close to every visitor.

Chapter 06 — Version control

Every change, on the record.Reviewed, tested, then shipped.

Every line lives in Git. Changes go through a pull request on GitHub, get reviewed, and GitHub Actions tests and deploys them. You can see the full history at any time.

  • Git

    Every change tracked, and any one can be undone.

  • GitHub

    Code review, issues and your repository, in one place.

  • GitHub Actions

    Tests and deploys run on every pull request.

Can you work with the stack we already have?

Yes. We read your code first, keep what works and only change what's holding you back.

Tell us your stack

Rather talk it through?Let’s build it.

Email, call or message us. We’ll come back with a plan, a timeline and a price.