How to Make Angled HTML Containers With CSS

Angled HTML containers are a great way to add interest and lead the eye on a website. It’s a simple tool to make a website stand out from the crowd. This fast and easy tutorial can be used on any HTML block element. It is done by creating a pseudo container after and behind the original. Then aligning, matching and transforming it to create the illusion of a continuous container.

First select the element you wish to angle. Style it as you wish and set position to relative.

header{
position: relative;
width: 100%;
height: 10em;
background-color: #FF3300;
}

Next target the element and use the pseudo selector “after”. Then add the following styles.

header::after{
position: absolute;
width: 100%;
height: 100%;
content: '';
background-color: inherit;
top: 0;
right: 0;
bottom: 0;
left: 0;
z-index: -1;
transform-origin: top left;
transform: skewY(6deg);
}

How the Code Works

This code creates a pseudo element after the header. The content of this pseudo element is empty which is determined by the content property having a value of empty single quotes. The width and height property has it completely fill its parent. The position property along with the top, right, left and bottom, sets its position and prohibits it from moving within inside of its parent. The background inherit makes sure the slant automatically matches its parent’s background color. The z-index places the pseudo element behind the original element. The transform origin and transform sets the placement and quantity of the angle.

Change the “transform-origin” and “transform” property to adjust the effect.