The inspiration:
I found a few portfolios that brought back the 90s:
The nostalgia hit hard. But more importantly I wanted to test if AI tools could help me build something similar. Fast.
The setup:
Started with:
- Cursor AI as my coding environment
- Claude Opus 4.5 for complex architectural decisions
- Claude Sonnet 4.5 as the main development agent
- Vercel for deploying
Then found a gem: React95 this is an open source library with authentic Windows 95 components. Storybook had everything I needed to start immediately.
The process:
Claude Opus 4.5 built the foundation. One solid prompt → complete architecture.
Claude Sonnet 4.5 handled the rest. The speed was insane: describe what I wanted, get code, test it, refine, repeat. No waiting. No overthinking.
React95 did the heavy lifting on visuals. Pre-built components meant I could focus on functionality, not CSS archaeology.
The result:
First version deployed.
It's rough. Bugs exist. But that's exactly the point—ship fast, learn what works, iterate.
What this proves: you can build something very fast when you:
- ✓ Set clear design constraints
- ✓ Match AI models to task complexity
- ✓ Leverage quality open source libraries
Live demo: your vercel link