The Rise of a Side Project
First, what is Eleventy? In a world of complex web development frameworks, Eleventy (often styled as 11ty) won hearts with its simplicity. It’s a static site generator, a tool that helps developers build websites that are incredibly fast and secure. Leatherman
created it in 2017 as a side project while working at Filament Group. It was his answer to the overly complicated tools of the era, born from a desire for something more straightforward. It was a project started during nap times and developed on nights and weekends, a labor of love that quickly found an audience. Developers flocked to its simplicity and flexibility, and what began as a personal tool soon became critical infrastructure for thousands of websites.
Success and the Maintainer's Dilemma
The project’s unexpected success created a classic open-source problem: the maintainer’s dilemma. As Eleventy’s user base grew, so did the expectations. Corporations and major projects began using it, increasing the pressure on Leatherman, its solo maintainer, to fix bugs, add features, and provide support. This responsibility was immense for a project that, for its first four years, had no direct funding and was managed in his spare time. The paradox of open-source is that a project’s value often grows far beyond the resources available to its creator. Leatherman was facing the risk of burnout that plagues so many maintainers who pour their hearts into projects the world comes to depend on, often for free.
The Breaking Point
The core of the issue was sustainability. While Leatherman was grateful for the community's support, including a slowly growing Open Collective for donations, it wasn't enough to justify dedicated development time away from his day job. The pressure mounted to a point where the project's future felt uncertain. He was wrestling with burnout, trying to balance his family life with the demands of a global user base, and facing the reality that passion alone doesn't pay the bills. This is the difficult truth for many independent creators: when a side project becomes a global dependency, it can feel less like a gift and more like an unsustainable burden. This was the moment of crisis where abandoning the project became a real consideration.
A Lifeline and a New Chapter
Just as the pressure reached its peak, a lifeline appeared. In February 2022, web development platform Netlify announced it was sponsoring Leatherman to work on Eleventy full-time. This was a game-changer. The move provided the financial stability and dedicated resources the project desperately needed to not only survive but thrive. It allowed Leatherman to move from simply maintaining Eleventy to actively growing it, ensuring its longevity and enabling him to tackle larger-scale features. The sponsorship was part of Netlify's broader strategy of investing in the open-source ecosystem it relies on. For Eleventy, it meant the project could finally run after years of walking.
The Future is Sustainable
Today, Eleventy is on stable ground. After his time at Netlify, Leatherman has continued to evolve the project, joining the team at Font Awesome and recently rebranding Eleventy to Build Awesome as part of a new push for long-term sustainability. The new brand comes with a professional version, Build Awesome Pro, which aims to provide a sustainable funding model without relying on venture capital or compromising the open-source core. Leatherman’s journey is a powerful case study in the realities of open-source development. It highlights the critical need for funding models that support maintainers, prevent burnout, and allow essential tools to have a future as bright as the websites they help build.
