Code Components with Basic CSS

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Create Basic Code Components with CSS in Framer

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Master No-Code Web Design with Framer

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Search and Navigation

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Why Code Component

In Framer, code components are supercharged bits that let you bring your designs to life with real, interactive elements. They're built using React, which means you're essentially using cutting-edge web tech to create or customize interactive UI components. Best practices? Keep it clean and reusable. Think modularly, so you can tweak without a complete redo, and always, always comment your code for clarity.

To implement background blur on hexagon shapes in Framer, which are currently vector graphics lacking standard frame styling options, let's consider a few things:

Recognize the limitation: Vector graphics in Framer don't support background blur due to their nature, missing out on typical layout or frame styling options.
Opt for CSS: To achieve the desired effect and add uniqueness to your design, turning to CSS is the recommended approach. CSS allows for more flexibility and customization, especially for complex shapes.
Learn to create a code component: Framer supports the creation of code components, enabling you to incorporate custom CSS. This method allows for the implementation of background blur on hexagon shapes by utilizing CSS's advanced styling capabilities.

Create Code Component

Cmd + Shift + K to create a code component. Name it Hexagon.
This will open in the Assets section and show the code file Hexagon.tsx.

Default Code

When diving into a React component, it helps to break it down into manageable chunks. Here's a quick guide on making sense of it all:

Import Essentials: Kick off with bringing in the components you need.
Adjust Sizes: Make sure it fits well on any screen with size settings.
Structure It: Understand the layout and how your component is built.
Styling: Swap in your CSS for a personalized look, skipping the default styles.
Clean Up: Get rid of extra bits like unnecessary code, comments, and div styles to keep it neat.

Basic Code Component with CSS

Starting from scratch with code components, especially in React, introduces a blend of design and functionality. Here's a simplified breakdown:

Using Styled Components: We're kicking things off with Styled Components, a library that marries the power of CSS with the flexibility of Sass for more dynamic styling capabilities. Importing styled from 'styled-components' is step one, setting the stage for real CSS coding with extra features like nesting.
Creating the Component: Next up, we're crafting our actual component. By declaring a constant (let's call it Hexagon), we're essentially defining a new piece that we can style and manipulate as we please.
Styling with Sass: Inside this component, we're leveraging Styled Components to declare styles in a Sass-like manner, allowing for a more organized and powerful way to handle CSS. For instance, creating a div styled as a Hexagon serves as our canvas, much like a frame in Figma.
Translating Design to Code: The magic happens when we start to translate design directly from tools like Figma into our component. By extracting CSS properties from a design element (like a hexagon shape) in Figma, we directly apply these styles to our component, ensuring our code mirrors our design vision.
Bringing it to Life: With just a few lines of code—defining the component, setting its properties, styling it, and rendering it—we've crafted a basic yet functional code component. This approach not only simplifies the development process but also bridges the gap between design and code seamlessly.

import styled from "styled-components"

export default function Hexagon() {
    const Component = styled.div`
        width: 141px;
        height: 148px;
        background: red;
    `

    return <Component />
}

Hexagon CSS

To style a hexagon in React using Styled Components, follow these steps after setting up your basic component structure:

Copy Layout from DevMode: Start by examining a hexagon in your design tool (like Figma) and enter DevMode to access the CSS code. Copy the layout properties, which usually include width and height, to establish the size of your hexagon component.

Apply Basic Style: Replace the initial basic component styling with the layout properties you've copied. This step ensures your component matches the design specifications in terms of size.

Add Styling Details:

Backdrop Filter: Implement a backdrop filter for a background blur effect, enhancing the visual depth of your component.
Box Shadow: Use box shadow for an inner glow effect, adding a subtle highlight inside your hexagon.
Stroke (Outline): Define the stroke for your hexagon, creating a clear outline or border around it.
Fill Color: Set a low-opacity white fill color for the base appearance of your hexagon, making it visually coherent with your design.

import styled from "styled-components"

export default function Hexagon() {
    const Component = styled.div`
        width: 175px;
        height: 151px;
        flex-shrink: 0;
        fill: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.04);
        stroke-width: 1px;
        stroke: rgba(225, 246, 255, 0.30);
        box-shadow: 0px 30px 30px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.05) inset;
        backdrop-filter: blur(10px);
    `

    return <Component />
}

Masking with Clip-Path

To achieve a hexagon shape in your React component with Styled Components, leveraging the clip-path CSS property is a creative and powerful solution. This property allows you to mask your component into a specific shape, in this case, a hexagon. Here’s a quick guide on how to do it:

Find the SVG Shape: Look for the hexagon shape in SVG format. SVGs define shapes with a path element, where the d attribute contains a series of coordinates and commands that outline the shape.
Copy Path Coordinates: Inside the SVG code, locate the path element and copy the entire string of coordinates found in the d attribute. These coordinates precisely define the hexagon's outline.
Apply Clip-Path: In your styled component, after setting up any foundational styles like the backdrop filter, introduce the clip-path property. Use it as follows: clip-path: path('your_copied_coordinates_here');. Replace 'your_copied_coordinates_here' with the string of SVG path coordinates you copied. This clips your component's visible area into a hexagon shape, masking anything outside this path.
Finalize Styling: Once the clip-path is applied, your component now visually represents a hexagon. You can then proceed to apply additional styles as needed, such as background color, shadows, or borders, to enhance the hexagon's appearance.

The use of clip-path with SVG path data is a testament to the versatility and power of CSS, enabling you to craft intricate shapes and visual effects that go beyond basic rectangular or circular designs.

clip-path: path('M171.095 70.4863C172.892 73.5872 172.892 77.4128 171.095 80.5137L133.139 146.014C131.351 149.1 128.054 151 124.487 151H48.5129C44.9459 151 41.649 149.1 39.8606 146.014L1.90532 80.5137C0.108386 77.4128 0.108386 73.5872 1.90532 70.4863L39.8606 4.98625C41.649 1.89999 44.9459 0 48.5129 0H124.487C128.054 0 131.351 1.89999 133.139 4.98625L171.095 70.4863Z')

Using the Code Component

To incorporate Code Components into your Framer designs, utilize Quick Actions by pressing CMD + K, or simply drag and drop them from the Assets Library. This approach enables you to go beyond the standard framework elements, offering more versatility in your design process. By using Code Components, you unlock a wider array of options, allowing for more customized and dynamic design solutions.

In Content → Hexagons → Hexagon for Uber, Insert Hexagon from the Quick Actions (Cmd + K).
Place the Hexagon code component underneath the existing Hexagon graphic.
That's it! Now you are using real CSS instead of a strictly Framer element.

Import From Figma

We're planning to bring the Customers page design over from Figma into Framer and give it a bit of a makeover. The idea is to tweak the layout so it looks great on any device, making it super flexible and custom-tailored.

Open Figma and select the Customers section.
Copy to HTML for Framer.
Open Framer and create a new page named "customers."
In Framer, set the page layout to Desktop with dimensions 1400x1440 pixels.
Paste the copied section from Figma onto the new page.
Set the background to Position Absolute and center.
Set the background's z-index to 0.
Locate and adjust any missing elements, such as hexagons, to Position Absolute and center them.

Adaptive Layout

To make your design responsive across devices, you're working on adding breakpoints for tablet and phone. Here’s a simplified overview of the process:

Add breakpoints for tablet and phone views.
Select Customers and set to Width 100%, Distribute Center.
Adjust padding for Customers to 100, 40, 100, 40. Set 30 (L, R) for Tablet and 20 (L, R) for Mobile.
Lock Background to allow for easier selection.
Select Content and set to width Fill and Layout align center. Set Max width to 652.
Change Title and Testimonial frames width to Fill for flexibility across devices. Same for Testimonial text.
In Phone view, set Title to vertical alignment and adjust gap to 20.
Set Desktop height to Fit.

Conclusion

In wrapping up our exploration of code components within Framer, we've embarked on a journey through the foundational aspects of utilizing CSS to enhance our designs. From the basics of crafting a hexagon shape to implementing a sophisticated background blur, we've uncovered the potential of CSS to transform our components into visually stunning elements.

Here's a quick recap of the key takeaways:

Styled Components: We kicked off with Styled Components to inject real CSS into our React components, allowing for dynamic styling and the use of advanced CSS features like Sass for nesting and more.
Clip-Path for Shapes: By leveraging the clip-path CSS property, we learned how to mask components into complex shapes, such as hexagons, using SVG path data. This trick enables us to create designs that are not natively supported by Framer, showcasing the versatility of CSS.
Background Blur: The backdrop filter property came into play for adding depth and texture to our components, illustrating how subtle CSS effects can significantly enhance the user experience.
Integration with Design Tools: We saw the power of integrating designs from tools like Figma, demonstrating that with basic CSS knowledge, you can bring sophisticated design concepts into your Framer projects seamlessly.

This exploration underscores the limitless creativity CSS offers to developers and designers alike, enabling us to bridge the gap between design and development. By harnessing these techniques, we can elevate our Framer projects, creating engaging, interactive, and visually appealing components that stand out. Whether you're a seasoned developer or a designer venturing into the world of code, these tips and tricks serve as a foundation for experimenting with and mastering code components in Framer.

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We all try to be consistent with our way of teaching step-by-step, providing source files and prioritizing design in our courses.

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