From Forum Threads to FigJam Widgets: A Conversation with Tekeste Kidanu
When an API opens to outside developers, the first wave of creations often reveals what the community has been missing. Figma recently extended plugin and widget support to FigJam after internal testing, and a small group of external developers got early access. Tech Report spoke with Tekeste Kidanu, a frontend developer who has been building for both Figma and FigJam, about his work and his approach to solving designer pain points.
From User to Builder
Kidanu, who goes by tkmadeit online, is largely self-taught in the Figma ecosystem. After moving to the U.S. in 2016 to study computer science, he became a contributor to the Figma Community, focusing on plugins that improve productivity. Although he is a frontend developer by trade, he admits his design skills lag behind his coding ability. To fix that, he is currently studying the fundamentals of UI design, including color theory and typography.
The Flagship Plugin: SPELLL
His favorite project so far is SPELLL, a grammar and spell checker for both Figma and FigJam. The tool functions similarly to Grammarly, scanning an entire document to catch and correct errors in one place.
The idea did not originate in a moment of inspiration, but from direct feedback channels. Kidanu says most of his ideas come from the Figma Forum, design communities, and requests from designers on Twitter. His advice to other developers searching for project ideas: look at where users are asking for features natively—chances are, an extension can fill the gap in the meantime.
When it came time to build, he relied on the official plugin API docs and the Figma Plugins Slack workspace to learn the ropes. He was surprised at how accessible the development process was, noting that his existing JavaScript and web development experience provided a solid foundation for building his first design plugin. His goal for SPELLL is simple: save designers the time spent manually proofreading files and spare them the embarrassment of presenting with typos.
Pivoting to FigJam
Moving his plugins to FigJam was a logical step, says Kidanu. The decision was driven by two factors: the similarity of the APIs and the appeal of a new platform. "When I heard FigJam would also support plugins, it was a no-brainer," he said.
He is currently developing a FigJam widget called Notes, allowing users to write detailed notes in plain text or markdown without cluttering their board. He has also released a color picker for FigJam that enables custom-colored stickies and shapes.
Looking ahead, Kidanu is iterating on a recently released voting widget. The widget supports both anonymous and non-anonymous voting sessions, and he wants to keep refining it until it is the definitive option for the platform.
What Comes Next
He is particularly excited about a feature no one has built yet: a widget that shows what everyone in a file is currently listening to. He suggests it would be a fun way to share team members' music tastes during collaborative sessions.
Outside of his own roadmap, Kidanu is energized by the public release of the FigJam plugin and widget APIs, noting that he is eager to see what other builders create. He also points to a broader trend in UI design he finds inspiring: playful, bouncy interfaces. He cites Apple Maps' 3D landmark imagery, the app Honk, and the landing page for Superlist as examples of this aesthetic done well.
