Ever wondered if you need to master CSS? If you’re hoping to build a customized website, whether from scratch or using a CMS like WordPress, it’s a necessity.
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is one of the most highly-used components for building websites. Its popularity is so much that almost 96% of all the websites on the internet use it. The main reason for its popularity is the fact that it’s beginner-friendly, which allows novice coders to change website appearance even with a basic understanding of how it works.
If you have no experience, you might ask, “How does CSS work?” It doesn’t matter if you want to customize a website or make a template. Here are tips that will get you started on your journey to becoming a CSS expert.
When learning CSS, make sure that you know the proper format. There are two ways to write it, and if you have experience coding with the use of HTML, you can write it like HTML tags. This is a great way to start off, especially if you’re not planning to put a lot of customization for an element.
As you progress, you might need to put more than one style for a single element. If you continue formatting it like an HTML tag, it gets messy. The second way to write CSS is to format it like a Java class, which makes it easier for you to organize the elements’ properties.
Keep your codes organized with proper format spacing and indention. Otherwise, you will end up confused while coding. This will lead you to have difficulties in referring your previous codes.
Always make sure to put comments on each section. That way, you know where it begins and ends.
After you’re finished learning about the formatting, you can start learning about selectors and properties. It’s especially important to know how these function when using a theme. There are a lot of ways for you to practice without the need to start your own blog.
For example, W3Schools have live examples that allow you to tweak codes. You can check the changes you made using a simple press of a button. It’s perfect if you want to learn more.
The box model is something that you need to memorize. At its core, the box model is the basic layout elements in CSS necessary for you to gain an understanding of a lot of properties. These elements include:
It also includes a lot of the basic places where you can style using CSS. It isn’t difficult to learn, so keep it in mind whenever you’re learning how to use CSS.
Once your familiarity level increases, a good way to enrich your self is to put it into a hands-on experience. Choose a theme with a basic design and edit the stylesheet to change it. This lets you understand the effects of changing the style in terms of the theme.
Doing as much practice as possible helps in seeing the changes you make on a visual level. It aids you in connecting the code you write to its final result. Once you connect the dots, you can write CSS and troubleshoot the possible issues that may arise in the future.
After getting comfortable with CSS, you can start changing a theme’s layout. You can do this by changing the lengths and widths of various selectors and content areas. It helps you familiarize yourself with the various layout areas, especially if you’re aiming for a WordPress theme.
You can make layouts using CSS alone with the use of floats and positioning. It becomes tricky to handle due to the fact that these properties aren’t made to make entire layouts. Even so, it’s a common means for people to help get their layout right.
If you’re struggling, make sure to check out themes out there. The more you check, the more you can make comparisons when it comes to their usage of floats and positioning.
Moving forward, you need to discover a lot of other things to make your CSS experience better. Some of the elements you should study on are the pseudo-classes, complex selectors, and CSS3 animations. You can use these elements to shape the type of theme you want to go for in future websites you’ll make.
Always remember that you can only study these when you’ve mastered the basics. Use this as a test to hone your skills on a more practical application.
If you stick to the tips above, you’ll know the ins and outs of CSS provided you persevere and practice. With this, you’re now ready to learn more about the preprocessors, especially SASS and LESS. It’s important to master these because it aids in organizing your CSS to ensure that you can write and edit your codes easily.
By using a framework, your theme development becomes much faster. Frameworks are structures that you use to make dynamic websites. Its goal is to make websites run quicker without compromising its functional capabilities.
You should only start learning about this once you master CSS. If you want to start with it, you can use Twitter Bootstrap. It’s one of the most popular frameworks out there due to its responsiveness, use of both SASS and LESS, and its many custom CSS components.
How does CSS work? Visit us today and discover the more intricate tips and tricks to develop your skills.
The hardest part of learning CSS is starting. It needs you to have the determination to persevere. It can get discouraging especially when you have no background in coding and web development.
However, as long as you stick to these tips, you can progress at a steady rate. Make sure that you learn the basics first. Don’t rush and be sure to read up on various CSS tutorials out there.
Do you need more information about web designing? Read our content and learn more, like this post about the 5 social media integration tips you should keep in mind while building a website.
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