I Tried “Vibe Coding” in Cursor. Here’s What Actually Happened.

I’m Kayla, and yes, I really use Cursor every day. I code front-end stuff for work and for fun. And lately, I’ve been “vibe coding” with it. Sounds silly, right? It’s not. It’s fast. It’s messy. It’s kind of fun.
(For the blow-by-blow of my very first session, see my article: I Tried Vibe Coding in Cursor—Here’s What Actually Happened.)

Let me explain.

What I mean by “vibe coding”

I keep my logic. I keep my layout. I ask Cursor (Cursor) to change the feel. The vibe. I type a plain note like, “Make this button feel cozy, like a cafe,” and it tweaks Tailwind classes (Tailwind CSS), copy tone, spacing, and color. Not perfect. But often close.

I press Cmd+K on Mac, select code, and give a short prompt. Cursor shows a diff. I accept or tweak. That loop is the magic.

You know what? It feels like telling a friend, “Make it softer,” and they just… get it.

I had a bland Next.js navbar with Tailwind. Gray on gray. Boring.

My prompt:
“Cozy cafe vibe. Warm browns, soft cream, rounded corners, small shadow. Tailwind only. Don’t change links.”

Cursor changed classes like this, and the diff made sense:

From: bg-gray-50 text-gray-800 border-b border-gray-200
To: bg-amber-50 text-stone-800 border-b border-amber-200 rounded-b-xl shadow-sm

It also bumped spacing from px-4 to px-6 and set hover to hover:bg-amber-100 with transition ease-out duration-200. It even suggested font-semibold for the active link. Not bad at all. I kept it.

Real example: “Spring picnic” cards

I had three product cards. I asked:
“Spring picnic vibe: mint, cream, raspberry accents. High contrast. No neon. Keep structure.”

It swapped:

slate colors → emerald-100, emerald-500 accents
harsh shadows → shadow-md with shadow-emerald-200/50
square corners → rounded-2xl
bland CTA → “Add to basket” (cute but still clear)

It went a bit heavy on rounded-full in badges, so I pulled it back to rounded-md. Two clicks. Done.

Real example: Empty state copy, but gentle

I had a dry empty state:
“No results.”

Prompt:
“Sound warm and helpful. Like Duolingo, but not childish. One line.”

Cursor suggested:
“Nothing here yet—try a different filter or add a new one.”

I liked it. It also nudged the text to text-stone-600 and the icon to text-stone-400. Calm, not sad.

When it got weird (and how I fixed it)

Tailwind soup: It stacked too many classes. I said, “Limit to 10 classes per element. No inline styles.” That helped.
Wrong tokens: It guessed a font var that didn’t exist. I pinned it with, “Use only Tailwind colors. No custom vars.”
Over-eager: It tried to rename props. I added, “Don’t change props or types.” It listened.
Color contrast: It made mint-on-cream that failed WCAG. I told it, “Meet AA contrast,” and it picked emerald-700. Much better.
Imports: One time it added a font import I don’t use. I rejected that chunk in the diff. Easy.

My quick workflow

I circle one component.
I press Cmd+K.
I give a two-line vibe prompt with guardrails.
I review the diff. Accept or nudge.
I hit Cmd+K again with a short follow-up like, “Less rounded. Keep colors.”

Short, tight loops. Feels great.

For a broader look at how small UX tweaks snowball into big usability wins, check out Intranets Today.

For a deeper, code-heavy walkthrough, grab The Vibe Coding Guide—My Hands-On Take with Real Snippets.

Prompts that worked best for me

“Cozy cafe vibe. Warm browns and cream. Tailwind only. Don’t change structure.”
“Playful but grown-up. Duolingo energy, not childish. One-line copy.”
“Spring picnic palette: mint, cream, raspberry accents. High contrast. No neon.”
“Only adjust styling. No logic changes. Keep props and types.”
“AA contrast at least. 10 Tailwind classes max per element.”

Want to peek at the gear I lean on the most? I broke down my favorites in The Best Vibe Coding Tools I Actually Use.

What I love

Speed: I can test a mood in 30 seconds.
The diff view: I keep control. No mystery.
Writing style shifts: Tone changes are spot on.
Little polish: Transitions, shadows, and spacing get nice fast.

I didn’t expect it, but I use it like a quick art director. It sets a mood. I refine.

What bugged me

It sometimes over-styles. Too many classes.
It can guess fonts you don’t have.
It may rewrite variable names if you don’t set rules.
Contrast checks need a push unless you ask.

Not deal-breakers, but you should set guardrails.

Where it shines

Hackathon fronts
Marketing pages
Empty states and microcopy
Onboarding screens
Theme switching (light to “moody dusk” was fun)

Speaking of interfaces that absolutely live or die by their vibe, dating and hookup apps are an extreme case study. They have to communicate excitement, trust, and intent in just a few seconds. A niche, high-energy example is Fuck Asians – Best Asian Hookup Apps where you can observe how bold color palettes, concise microcopy, and attention-grabbing CTAs work together to drive rapid engagement. Even if romance isn’t your product space, dissecting those patterns can spark transferable ideas for persuasive UI and onboarding flows in any domain. For a contrasting, hyper-local spin, check out the streamlined classifieds style of Doublelist Elko to see how minimal UI, straightforward search filters, and location-based messaging lower friction for users looking to arrange quick meet-ups in a specific city.

If you’re a Replit fan, you might enjoy my separate write-up, Replit Vibe Coding—My Take, Hands On.

Where I still go manual

Pixel-perfect brand work
Design systems with strict tokens
Complex layouts with many breakpoints

Cursor can help, but I need tight control there.

A small surprise

I asked for an October “spooky” vibe, but only in copy. Cursor gave me:
“Boo—no results roaming here. Try another path?”
Cheeky. I toned it down to:
“No results found. Try a new filter.”
It listened and kept the layout clean. Nice balance.

Wish list

A slider for “how strong is the vibe?”
Built-in AA/AAA contrast checks
A way to lock brand tokens so it never strays

My take

Vibe coding in Cursor stays in my toolkit. It’s like having a fast stylist who knows Tailwind and reads the room. Not magic. But it saves me from staring at a gray box for an hour.

Score? 8/10 for daily front-end work. Higher if you love quick mood shifts.
If you care about how these tools fit into long, focused flow states, I unpack all of that in My Take on Vibe Coding Tools—What Actually Keeps Me in Flow.

Tiny tips before you try it

Say the vibe, the rules, and what not to change.
Keep prompts short. Two lines win.
Ask for contrast. It matters.
Limit class count.
Accept the diff, then do a small follow-up pass.

If you enjoy that feeling of, “Hmm, make it softer,” this will click. I didn’t think I’d like it. Now I use it every week.