tailwindcss-advanced-layouts
Tailwind CSS advanced layout techniques including CSS Grid and Flexbox patterns. PROACTIVELY activate for: (1) building complex layouts with CSS Grid, (2) grid-template-areas via Tailwind v4 arbitrary values, (3) responsive grid (grid-cols-*, auto-fit, minmax), (4) Flexbox patterns (flex-1, flex-grow, gap), (5) sticky headers and footers, (6) holy grail layout, (7) masonry-style layouts, (8) container queries (@container) with Tailwind, (9) subgrid usage, (10) aspect-ratio utilities, (11) magazine-style multi-column layouts. Provides: Grid template recipes, container-query patterns, holy-grail templates, masonry alternatives, and aspect-ratio examples.
What this skill does
# Tailwind CSS Advanced Layout Techniques
## CSS Grid Mastery
### Complex Grid Layouts
```html
<!-- Holy Grail Layout -->
<div class="grid min-h-screen grid-rows-[auto_1fr_auto]">
<header class="bg-white shadow">Header</header>
<div class="grid grid-cols-[250px_1fr_300px]">
<aside class="bg-gray-50 p-4">Sidebar</aside>
<main class="p-6">Main Content</main>
<aside class="bg-gray-50 p-4">Right Sidebar</aside>
</div>
<footer class="bg-gray-800 text-white">Footer</footer>
</div>
<!-- Responsive Holy Grail -->
<div class="grid min-h-screen grid-rows-[auto_1fr_auto]">
<header>Header</header>
<div class="grid grid-cols-1 md:grid-cols-[250px_1fr] lg:grid-cols-[250px_1fr_300px]">
<aside class="order-2 md:order-1">Sidebar</aside>
<main class="order-1 md:order-2">Main</main>
<aside class="order-3 hidden lg:block">Right</aside>
</div>
<footer>Footer</footer>
</div>
```
### Grid Template Areas
```css
@utility grid-areas-dashboard {
grid-template-areas:
"header header header"
"nav main aside"
"nav footer footer";
}
@utility area-header { grid-area: header; }
@utility area-nav { grid-area: nav; }
@utility area-main { grid-area: main; }
@utility area-aside { grid-area: aside; }
@utility area-footer { grid-area: footer; }
```
```html
<div class="grid grid-areas-dashboard grid-cols-[200px_1fr_250px] grid-rows-[60px_1fr_40px] min-h-screen">
<header class="area-header bg-white shadow">Header</header>
<nav class="area-nav bg-gray-100">Navigation</nav>
<main class="area-main p-6">Main Content</main>
<aside class="area-aside bg-gray-50 p-4">Sidebar</aside>
<footer class="area-footer bg-gray-800 text-white">Footer</footer>
</div>
```
### Auto-Fill and Auto-Fit Grids
```html
<!-- Auto-fill: Creates as many tracks as fit, even empty ones -->
<div class="grid grid-cols-[repeat(auto-fill,minmax(250px,1fr))] gap-6">
<div class="bg-white rounded-lg shadow p-4">Card 1</div>
<div class="bg-white rounded-lg shadow p-4">Card 2</div>
<div class="bg-white rounded-lg shadow p-4">Card 3</div>
</div>
<!-- Auto-fit: Collapses empty tracks -->
<div class="grid grid-cols-[repeat(auto-fit,minmax(250px,1fr))] gap-6">
<!-- Cards stretch to fill available space -->
</div>
<!-- With arbitrary values -->
<div class="grid grid-cols-[repeat(auto-fill,minmax(min(100%,300px),1fr))] gap-4">
<!-- Handles edge case where container is smaller than minmax min -->
</div>
```
### Subgrid
```css
/* Enable subgrid in v4 */
@utility subgrid-cols {
grid-template-columns: subgrid;
}
@utility subgrid-rows {
grid-template-rows: subgrid;
}
```
```html
<div class="grid grid-cols-4 gap-4">
<!-- Span 2 columns but align children to parent grid -->
<div class="col-span-2 grid subgrid-cols gap-4">
<div>Aligned to parent column 1</div>
<div>Aligned to parent column 2</div>
</div>
</div>
```
## Advanced Flexbox Patterns
### Space Distribution
```html
<!-- Equal spacing with first/last at edges -->
<div class="flex justify-between">
<div>First</div>
<div>Second</div>
<div>Third</div>
</div>
<!-- Equal spacing everywhere including edges -->
<div class="flex justify-around">
<div>Item</div>
<div>Item</div>
<div>Item</div>
</div>
<!-- Double space between items vs edges -->
<div class="flex justify-evenly">
<div>Item</div>
<div>Item</div>
<div>Item</div>
</div>
```
### Flexible Item Sizing
```html
<!-- Items share space equally -->
<div class="flex">
<div class="flex-1">1/3</div>
<div class="flex-1">1/3</div>
<div class="flex-1">1/3</div>
</div>
<!-- First item takes 2x space -->
<div class="flex">
<div class="flex-[2]">2/4</div>
<div class="flex-1">1/4</div>
<div class="flex-1">1/4</div>
</div>
<!-- Fixed + flexible -->
<div class="flex">
<div class="w-64 shrink-0">Fixed 256px</div>
<div class="flex-1 min-w-0">Flexible (can shrink)</div>
</div>
<!-- Prevent shrinking with text overflow -->
<div class="flex min-w-0">
<div class="shrink-0">Icon</div>
<div class="min-w-0 truncate">Very long text that should truncate</div>
</div>
```
### Masonry-Like with Flexbox
```html
<!-- Column-based masonry -->
<div class="flex flex-col flex-wrap h-[800px] gap-4">
<div class="w-[calc(33.333%-1rem)] h-48">Item 1</div>
<div class="w-[calc(33.333%-1rem)] h-64">Item 2</div>
<div class="w-[calc(33.333%-1rem)] h-32">Item 3</div>
<!-- Items flow vertically then wrap to next column -->
</div>
```
## Container Queries
### Basic Container Queries
```css
@plugin "@tailwindcss/container-queries";
```
```html
<!-- Define container -->
<div class="@container">
<!-- Respond to container width -->
<div class="flex flex-col @md:flex-row @lg:grid @lg:grid-cols-3 gap-4">
<div>Item 1</div>
<div>Item 2</div>
<div>Item 3</div>
</div>
</div>
```
### Named Containers
```html
<!-- Multiple named containers -->
<div class="@container/sidebar">
<nav class="@[200px]/sidebar:flex-col @[300px]/sidebar:flex-row">
Navigation
</nav>
</div>
<div class="@container/main">
<article class="@[600px]/main:prose-lg @[900px]/main:prose-xl">
Content
</article>
</div>
```
### Container Query Units
```html
<!-- Size relative to container -->
<div class="@container">
<h1 class="text-[5cqw]">Scales with container width</h1>
<p class="text-[3cqi]">Scales with container inline size</p>
</div>
```
## Position and Layering
### Sticky Positioning
```html
<!-- Sticky header -->
<header class="sticky top-0 z-50 bg-white/80 backdrop-blur-sm border-b">
Navigation
</header>
<!-- Sticky sidebar -->
<aside class="sticky top-20 h-[calc(100vh-5rem)] overflow-auto">
Sidebar content
</aside>
<!-- Sticky table header -->
<div class="overflow-auto max-h-96">
<table>
<thead class="sticky top-0 bg-white shadow">
<tr>
<th class="sticky left-0 bg-white z-10">Corner cell</th>
<th>Column 2</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>...</tbody>
</table>
</div>
```
### Fixed Elements
```html
<!-- Fixed bottom navigation (mobile) -->
<nav class="fixed bottom-0 inset-x-0 z-50 bg-white border-t md:hidden">
<div class="flex justify-around py-2">
<a href="#">Home</a>
<a href="#">Search</a>
<a href="#">Profile</a>
</div>
</nav>
<!-- Fixed action button -->
<button class="fixed bottom-6 right-6 z-40 rounded-full bg-brand-500 p-4 shadow-lg">
<PlusIcon />
</button>
```
### Z-Index Management
```css
@theme {
--z-dropdown: 100;
--z-sticky: 200;
--z-fixed: 300;
--z-modal-backdrop: 400;
--z-modal: 500;
--z-popover: 600;
--z-tooltip: 700;
--z-toast: 800;
}
@utility z-dropdown { z-index: var(--z-dropdown); }
@utility z-sticky { z-index: var(--z-sticky); }
@utility z-fixed { z-index: var(--z-fixed); }
@utility z-modal-backdrop { z-index: var(--z-modal-backdrop); }
@utility z-modal { z-index: var(--z-modal); }
@utility z-popover { z-index: var(--z-popover); }
@utility z-tooltip { z-index: var(--z-tooltip); }
@utility z-toast { z-index: var(--z-toast); }
```
## Overflow and Scrolling
### Custom Scrollbars
```css
@utility scrollbar-thin {
scrollbar-width: thin;
}
@utility scrollbar-none {
scrollbar-width: none;
-ms-overflow-style: none;
}
@utility scrollbar-none::-webkit-scrollbar {
display: none;
}
/* Custom scrollbar styling */
@utility scrollbar-custom {
scrollbar-color: oklch(0.7 0 0) oklch(0.95 0 0);
}
@utility scrollbar-custom::-webkit-scrollbar {
width: 8px;
height: 8px;
}
@utility scrollbar-custom::-webkit-scrollbar-track {
background: oklch(0.95 0 0);
border-radius: 4px;
}
@utility scrollbar-custom::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb {
background: oklch(0.7 0 0);
border-radius: 4px;
}
@utility scrollbar-custom::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb:hover {
background: oklch(0.5 0 0);
}
```
### Scroll Snap
```html
<!-- Horizontal carousel -->
<div class="flex snap-x snap-mandatory overflow-x-auto gap-4 pb-4">
<div class="snap-start shrink-0 w-80">Card 1</div>
<div class="snap-start shrink-0 w-80">Card 2</div>
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