What it is
CSS, Cascading Style Sheets, is the language that controls how HTML is presented: layout, colour, type, spacing and animation. Rules cascade, so a site can set its look once and let individual pages or components override only what they need. Keeping style separate from content means one change to a stylesheet can update every page at once.
Modern CSS handles layout with Flexbox and Grid, adapts to screen size with media queries, and can follow a visitor's light or dark preference. Much of what used to need JavaScript, such as responsive layouts and simple transitions, is now plain CSS. The standard is developed by the W3C and implemented by every browser.
How I use it
- The Zero Cut Tax Disability Society site runs on twelve hand-written pages and one stylesheet, with no framework.
- Used Tailwind on the Rail & Sail Montessori House site, built in Next.js.
- Every screen is checked on a real device before it ships, because a layout that passes on a laptop and breaks on an iPhone is a common bug.
CSS is always part of the job. The choice is how to write it. On a small content site I write one plain stylesheet, because it is fast and easy to hand over. On a component-based app I let a framework like Tailwind keep styles next to the components.
Questions
Will my site work on phones?
Every screen is checked on a real device before it ships. Responsive CSS does most of the work, and checking catches the rest.
Do you use a CSS framework?
Sometimes. Tailwind suits component builds like Rail & Sail. A small site like Zero Cut is better served by one plain stylesheet.