Layout and Composition

Build structured, visually compelling layouts using modern CSS.

Prerequisites

• Read .agents/design-context.md (see design-context) for Spacing System (4px/8px base), Border Radius, style archetype, and platform priority. Spacing tokens below follow the design-system scale (--space-N = N × 4px); colors use the shared --brand-* / --gray-* primitives from color-palette.
• Identify the content types (text-heavy, media-heavy, dashboard, marketing) to choose the right patterns.

Step 1: CSS Grid Patterns

12-Column Grid

.grid-12 {
  display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(12, 1fr);
  gap: 1.5rem; max-width: 1280px; margin-inline: auto; padding-inline: 1.5rem;
}
.col-full    { grid-column: 1 / -1; }
.col-half    { grid-column: span 6; }
.col-third   { grid-column: span 4; }
.col-quarter { grid-column: span 3; }
@media (max-width: 768px) { .grid-12 > * { grid-column: 1 / -1; } }

Auto-Fit Grid (no media queries needed)

.grid-auto { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(280px, 1fr)); gap: 1.5rem; }

Named Grid Areas

.page-layout {
  display: grid; grid-template-columns: 250px 1fr 300px;
  grid-template-rows: auto 1fr auto; min-height: 100dvh;
  grid-template-areas: "header header header" "sidebar main aside" "footer footer footer";
}
.header { grid-area: header; } .sidebar { grid-area: sidebar; }
.main { grid-area: main; } .aside { grid-area: aside; } .footer { grid-area: footer; }
@media (max-width: 1024px) {
  .page-layout { grid-template-columns: 1fr; grid-template-areas: "header" "main" "sidebar" "aside" "footer"; }
}

Step 2: Flexbox Layout Patterns

Navbar

.navbar { display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: space-between; padding: 1rem 2rem; gap: 2rem; }

Centered Content Page

.centered-page { display: flex; flex-direction: column; align-items: center; min-height: 100dvh; }
.centered-page main { flex: 1; width: 100%; max-width: 65ch; padding: 2rem; }

Card Row with Equal Heights

.card-row { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 1.5rem; }
.card-row > * { flex: 1 1 260px; display: flex; flex-direction: column; } /* wraps instead of squashing on mobile */
.card-row .card-footer { margin-top: auto; }

Step 3: Bento Grid Layouts

Basic Bento

.bento { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(4, 1fr); grid-auto-rows: 200px; gap: 1rem; }
.bento-large { grid-column: span 2; grid-row: span 2; }
.bento-wide  { grid-column: span 2; }
.bento-tall  { grid-row: span 2; }

Feature Showcase Bento

.bento-showcase {
  display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(6, 1fr);
  grid-template-rows: repeat(4, 180px); gap: 1rem; padding: 1rem;
}
.bento-showcase > :nth-child(1) { grid-column: 1 / 4; grid-row: 1 / 3; }
.bento-showcase > :nth-child(2) { grid-column: 4 / 7; grid-row: 1 / 2; }
.bento-showcase > :nth-child(5) { grid-column: 1 / 3; grid-row: 3 / 5; }
.bento-showcase > * { border-radius: 1rem; padding: 1.5rem; overflow: hidden; background: var(--gray-100); }
@media (max-width: 768px) {
  .bento-showcase { grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr; grid-template-rows: auto; }
  .bento-showcase > * { grid-column: auto !important; grid-row: auto !important; }
}

Bento Card Styling

.bento-card { border-radius: 1.25rem; padding: 2rem; overflow: hidden; position: relative; display: flex; flex-direction: column; justify-content: space-between; }
.bento-card--gradient { background: linear-gradient(135deg, var(--brand-100), var(--brand-50)); }
.bento-card--dark { background: var(--gray-900); color: var(--gray-50); }

Step 4: Whitespace as a Design Element

Spacing Scale

Same scale as the design-system skill: --space-N = N × 4px. Do not redefine it if the project already has one.

:root {
  --space-1: 0.25rem; --space-2: 0.5rem; --space-3: 0.75rem; --space-4: 1rem;
  --space-5: 1.25rem; --space-6: 1.5rem; --space-8: 2rem; --space-10: 2.5rem;
  --space-12: 3rem; --space-16: 4rem; --space-20: 5rem; --space-24: 6rem;
}
section { padding-block: clamp(4rem, 8vw, 8rem); }
.hero { padding-block: clamp(6rem, 12vw, 12rem); }

Density Guidelines

• Dense UI (dashboards): 4-8px gaps, 12-16px padding
• Standard UI (apps): 8-16px gaps, 16-24px padding
• Marketing / editorial: 16-32px gaps, 32-64px section padding
• Luxury / premium: double everything

Step 5: Visual Hierarchy Techniques

Ranked by impact (strongest to weakest):

1. Size -- Make the most important element the largest
2. Color and Contrast -- High contrast draws the eye; brand color for CTAs, muted grays for secondary
3. Weight and Typeface -- Bold signals importance
4. Position -- Top-left gets read first (LTR); place key content above the fold
5. Proximity and Grouping -- Related items close together, clear separation for unrelated
6. Negative Space -- Whitespace increases visual weight

Section Header Pattern

.section-header { max-width: 600px; margin-inline: auto; text-align: center; margin-bottom: var(--space-16); }
.section-label { font-size: var(--text-sm); font-weight: 600; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 0.08em; color: var(--brand-600); margin-bottom: var(--space-3); } /* 600: small text needs 4.5:1 */
.section-title { font-size: var(--text-4xl); font-weight: 800; line-height: 1.1; color: var(--gray-900); margin-bottom: var(--space-4); }
.section-description { font-size: var(--text-lg); color: var(--gray-500); line-height: 1.6; }

Step 6: Reading Patterns

F-Pattern (Text-Heavy Pages)

Users scan across the top, partway across the middle, then down the left. Place key info in first two paragraphs, start sections with bold keywords, use left-aligned headings.

Z-Pattern (Landing Pages)

Users scan: top-left logo > top-right nav > diagonal to center CTA > bottom. Build landing pages along this diagonal.

Step 7: Rule of Thirds and Asymmetric Layouts

Place focal points at 1/3 intersections, not dead center. Slightly off-center placement feels more dynamic.

.hero-content { display: grid; grid-template-columns: 2fr 1fr; align-items: center; min-height: 80vh; }

Asymmetric Split (60/40)

.asymmetric { display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1.5fr 1fr; gap: 4rem; align-items: center; }
.asymmetric--reversed { grid-template-columns: 1fr 1.5fr; }

Offset Grid

.offset-grid { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(3, 1fr); gap: 2rem; }
.offset-grid > :nth-child(3n+2) { transform: translateY(3rem); }
.offset-grid { padding-bottom: 3rem; } /* transform doesn't reserve space */
@media (max-width: 768px) { .offset-grid { grid-template-columns: 1fr; } .offset-grid > * { transform: none; } }

Step 8: Responsive Strategies

Stack Pattern (auto-responsive)

.layout { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(min(100%, 350px), 1fr)); gap: 1.5rem; }

Reflow Pattern

.reflow { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(3, 1fr); gap: 1.5rem; }
@media (max-width: 768px) { .reflow { grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr); } }
@media (max-width: 480px) { .reflow { grid-template-columns: 1fr; } }

Step 9: Container Query Layouts

.card-container { container-type: inline-size; container-name: card; }
.card { display: flex; flex-direction: column; }
@container card (min-width: 500px) {
  .card { flex-direction: row; align-items: center; gap: 2rem; }
  .card-image { flex: 0 0 200px; }
}

Step 10: Aspect Ratio for Consistent Media

.thumbnail { aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; object-fit: cover; border-radius: 0.75rem; width: 100%; }
.avatar { aspect-ratio: 1; object-fit: cover; border-radius: 50%; }
/* Common ratios: 1:1 avatars, 4:3 cards, 16:9 video, 3:2 photos, 21:9 cinematic */

Quick Reference: Layout Selection Guide

Verify the Layout

Never ship a layout you haven't looked at. Render the page and screenshot it at three widths, then view each image with Read:

for w in 375 768 1440; do
  npx playwright screenshot --full-page --viewport-size=$w,900 "file://$PWD/index.html" layout-$w.png
done

Check each screenshot for: one clear focal point per section, consistent left edges and gutters, no horizontal overflow (in the browser: document.documentElement.scrollWidth > innerWidth must be false), sensible stacking order on mobile (DOM order = reading order; don't reorder visually with order/grid placement in a way that breaks keyboard tab order), and no orphaned single card on the last grid row. Fix and re-screenshot until clean.