POD 62 - The component library for Awwwards-level work - with Ilja van Eck

In this episode, I sit down with Ilja van Eck, a designer and Webflow developer from the Netherlands, now living in Belgium. Ilja has quietly built one of the strongest track records in our space, with more than 20 Awwwards Site of the Day wins, two Independent of the Year nominations, and a seat on the Awwwards jury. He is also one half of Osmo, the component library he built with Dennis Snellenberg. We talk about how Osmo started, why the two of them decided to go all in on it, and how a launch they hoped would reach 300 members in three months hit that number in 48 hours. Ilja breaks down the tech stack behind the platform, from Outseta to Bunny CDN to the thousands of lines of custom JavaScript that sit on top. We also get into his creative process, working with designers on highly visual builds, and where the craft fits now that AI can fake the result. He shares an honest take on the slop and the grifters in the space, how he uses AI in his own work, and why he still does not reach for a framework. We close on where he thinks Webflow is heading. Check Out Ilja: ‪@iljavaneck‬   / by.ilja     / ilja-van-eck   https://www.awwwards.com/ilja-van-eck/ https://x.com/iljavaneck Check Out Osmo: https://www.osmo.supply/   / osmo.supply     / osmosupply   https://x.com/osmosupply Also Mentioned: Dennis Snellenberg - https://dennissnellenberg.com/ VRTL WRLD - Iljas Favorite Project - https://vrtl-wrld-staging.webflow.io/ Awwwards - https://www.awwwards.com/ Holographik - https://holographik.co/ Outseta - https://www.outseta.com/ Bunny CDN - https://bunny.net/ Relume - https://www.relume.io/ Joseph Berry -   / joseph-berry-51993268   Jordan Gilroy -   / jordangilroy   Eduard Bodak - https://www.eduardbodak.com/ Niccolo Miranda -   / niccolomiranda   Cassie Evans -   / cassie-codes   Timestamps: 00:00 teaser 00:40 Awwwards and Recognition 02:48 Intors & Osmo 04:32 Will Osmo always be Webflow first platform? 06:02 Osmo Origin Story 09:29 How Ilja and Dennis Share Responsibilities? 11:22 Tech Stack Behind Osmo 13:57 The Role of Outseta in Osmo 14:59 Osmo vs Relume 16:54 Ilja's Favorite Osmo Resource 18:08 Future of Osmo 21:31 Osmo Button Pack 22:39 Collaborating with Designers and Studios 27:26 Awwwards as a Goal 30:41 Awwwards Categories 35:32 Ilja's Take on AI 38:42 How Ilja Uses AI 40:58 Beaver Sneezes 41:22 Could Osmo Integrate with Osmo? 42:57 Webflow MCP 43:47 The Framework Question 46:43 Improvements to Webflow Components 51:08 Webflow Community in Belgium 53:19 The Weird Finnish Thing --- 🙋‍♂️ About Janne I'm Janne, a freelance Webflow developer and podcast host based in Finland. On this channel, I talk to agency owners, award-winning designers, and experienced builders about the business and strategy side of Webflow work. I also try out new features and share what I learn from building with Webflow day to day. --- 🛠️ Tools I Use (Some might be affiliate links, but all are genuine recommendations.) Web Design Figma - https://www.figma.com/ Affinity suite - https://affinity.serif.com/ Web Development Webflow - https://webflow.com/ Relume - https://www.relume.io/ Finsweet Attributes - https://finsweet.com/attributes Concent Pro - https://my.finsweet.com/affiliates?vi... Productivity Todoist - https://www.todoist.com/ Rize - https://rize.io