v2.2.0

SilkCircuit v2.2.0 💜

Released: 2026-09-16

Helix finally wears the same chrome as Neovim. The statusline and bufferline now follow the heirline contract from the AstroNvim config, so mode color, section surfaces, and the active buffer accent read identically whether you are in Helix or Neovim. All five variants ship the change, and the gallery has screenshots to prove it.

🌟 Highlights

🔮 Helix chrome matches Neovim

The Helix statusline moves off the darkest surface. Sections now sit on bg_highlight with fg text, which is the same layering heirline uses in Neovim. The bar reads as part of the editor instead of a black strip glued to the bottom, and unfocused splits now sit visibly lower in contrast than the active bar.

⚡ Mode colors you already know

Insert mode is pink, select is cyan, normal stays purple, each with the page background as text and bold weight. Previously insert was green and select was pink, which meant Helix and Neovim disagreed about what mode you were in. They agree now.

🦋 Active buffer reads as the front tab

The bufferline inverts: inactive buffers sit on the section surface (bg_highlight), and the active buffer drops to the editor background (bg) with a bold purple accent. Same trick as the heirline tabline, so the front tab looks lifted instead of merely lighter.

🌈 Screenshots for all five variants

assets/screenshots/helix-{neon,vibrant,soft,glow,dawn}.png are in the repo. The README gallery gains a Helix section showing neon and dawn side by side, and docs/extras/helix.md now opens with a wide neon shot before the install steps.

🔧 Neovim Theme

• lua/silkcircuit/extra/helix.lua updates the generator template, so every regenerated Helix theme picks up the new chrome automatically.
• Inline comments in the template document the heirline contract the values are meant to satisfy, which keeps future edits from drifting.

💎 Editors and Apps

• extras/helix/silkcircuit-neon.toml, -vibrant.toml, -soft.toml, -glow.toml, and -dawn.toml are regenerated with the new statusline and bufferline values. Syntax, markup, diffs, and diagnostics are untouched.
• extras/vscode/package.json moves to 2.2.0 as part of the automated release version bump. No color changes in the VS Code theme this cycle.

📝 Docs

• README gains a collapsible Helix gallery block above the Terminal & CLI Tools section.
• docs/extras/helix.md leads with the neon screenshot so the page shows the theme before describing it.

Breaking Changes

None. Color role names and the palette are unchanged.

One visual change worth knowing about: if you had muscle memory tied to green = insert in Helix, that is now pink, matching Neovim. Nothing to migrate, just recalibrate.

Install and Upgrade

• Neovim: update the plugin through your manager (:Lazy sync or equivalent). Nothing else to do.
• Helix: copy the refreshed TOMLs into your runtime themes directory, then reselect your variant:

  cp extras/helix/silkcircuit-*.toml ~/.config/helix/themes/

  Set theme = "silkcircuit-neon" in ~/.config/helix/config.toml and restart Helix to pick up the new chrome.
• Regenerating locally: if you build the extras yourself, rerun the generator so lua/silkcircuit/extra/helix.lua writes the updated statusline and bufferline blocks.
• VS Code: install or update SilkCircuit Theme by hyperb1iss from the marketplace.