Talk Web Design

Although not many web designers realize the importance — and potential uses — of whitespace, this particular page element is actually very important. Whitespace is basically space or distance around elements in the design to help them stand out or separate from the other elements; it is simply the empty spaces in a design. When used correctly, whitespace can enhance the overall look and usability of your site greatly.

Whitespace can be used to improve your site’s readability. Simply use whitespace to arrange elements and contents in a way that will make the site more usable to users. If you feel a certain part of your site is overcrowded, use whitespace to separate different elements and make the area more readable.

Whitespace can also function as important keys to perfect cross-browser layout. Although different browsers handle whitespace differently, there are codes and elements you can use to make your site look perfect when viewed with different browsers with the help of whitespace.

Last but not least, I also use whitespace to tone down web pages. If you want to add elegance to the overall design, use whitespace and tone down your page layout a little. It will make your layout appears with lots of separations and good flow.

Creating a site or a page layout requires proper considerations. You need to make sure you valuable contents can be viewed comfortably. That is why tips such as keeping the layout flexible for different screen resolutions or using the right color scheme are highly important for creating the best layout for your site. Another good trick you should use is blending the actual content area with page background.

Most of us love to use distinct table or div for presenting contents, and use different color for the actual page background. This is possibly the best way to present the content of your site, and it will generate more of users’ attention to the important information. Blending the content containers doesn’t mean you should create them in a similar fashion with the page background. By blending, you are simply creating a smoother transition to the entire page, allowing the page to look nicer and more usable to visitors.

Elements such as drop shadow, borders, rounded corners, and may more can be used to create a smooth transition between the page background and the actual content containers. My personal favorite would be drop shadow combined with some transparency to create window-like layout, since the combination works best to produce a stand-out page with distinct content section.