This project introduces procedurally generated Delft-blue floral page margins for LaTeX, created entirely in Lua without external images. Each petal, leaf, and stem is a parametric curve computed in real time and painted like watercolor directly into the PDF. Every page receives a unique garden composition, driven by a seed that fills unused space using a 1998-inspired greedy algorithm. The package adapts to A4 layouts with a 68 mm margin and responds dynamically to document content.
The system supports hand-authored compositions, where stems and flowers are manually placed, and grown variants, where plants expand to fit available space. It also handles seasonal aging—from spring buds to autumn seed heads—and integrates decorative elements like initials, section flowers, and inline blooms. Visual details include mottled washes, white-veined leaves, forget-me-nots, and ghost flowers, all rendered at 300 dpi.
Additional features include animated growth sequences (as GIF or MP4), optional debug overlays showing free-space circles, and compatibility with OpenType fonts for letter outlines. The design evolves with the document: branches arch into empty areas, and motifs appear beside headings or at user-marked points. It works in one or two LaTeX runs, depending on features like page-count-dependent aging.
Source: Hacker News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing