There were a lot of great submissions in February, here are our five favorite!

1. Tom Bradshaw Design

2. Raskulls

3. Duro de Roer

4. Marvin

5. Igif

Thanks to everyone who submitted in February! Keep sending them and we’ll keep posting them!

Here are our choices for the best sites of January 2010!

1. Atom Bicycles

2. Al Ingham Online

3. Rekkiabilly

4. PhiNik Portfolio

5. Raffaele Catania

Thanks to everyone who submitted last month! As usual, keep those submissions coming and we will keep on posting!

December brought us some really wonderful submissions! Picking a top five for the month was difficult. Here are the top five for December 2009:

1. Royal Robbins

2. IndoFolio.Com

3. Dan Conaway

4. Yarn Vomit

5. Villager Kent Restaurant

It was a tough call this month, there were some really great submissions. Keep those submissions coming and we will keep on posting!

We had some really great submissions in November. Here are our top five for the month:

1. eXpresa • Diseño Web Freelance

2. Go Media

3. Rachelle Kostelyk

4. HTO Surf and Swim

5. WRVS Give Us A Lift

As usual we received a lot of great submissions. Keep those submissions coming!

Here are our choices for the 5 best websites of October 2009:

1. CSS Dharma

2. Book Schoolies

3. Le Web Defi

4. Retro Football Shirts

5. Staak A Creative Digital Agency

There were so many great sites to choose from in October. Thanks to everyone who submitted. Keep those submissions coming in November!

Here are our choices for the 5 best websites of September 2009:

1. VReplay Studio

2. Sanction Skate & Snow

3. Diseno Zaragoza

4. De Blauwe Bus

5.Niksone Graphic Design

Keep those submissions coming!

Here are our choices for the 5 best websites of August 2009:

1. Dripping In Fat – This t-shirt company’s website really stands out. The horizontal scroll is an exciting way to view their products.

2. Yodaa – Fun and playful layout for a design company’s site.

3. Levi Szekeres – Great color and presentation of art work.

4. Ctrl + N – Sometimes more is well, more. This website has a great layout and is very interactive.

5. Doña Masita – Wonderful layout, great color, easy to navigate. This website has it all.

Once again we had lots of great submission in the month of August. It was really a challenge to pick the top five. Keep those submission coming and we’ll keep posting!

Here are our choices for the best 6 websites of July 2009:

1. Igogo Online Creative Agency – This web design agency’s website is fun and animated. The graphics pack a great punch and the quick portfolio on the main page certainly is memorable.

2. Graphic Design Essex – Another great website from a design agency. The horizontal scroll is, like the rest of the design, playful yet professional.

3. Periscopix – The animation on this management service’s website is the first thing you’ll notice. However, it is the exceptional design and layout that make this website user friendly while still maintaining a light and fun atmosphere.

4. Piz’za-za – Sometimes, less is more. A sleek, clean, and hip look makes this Italian restaurant’s website really pop.

5. Vash Pravoved – At first glance, it looks like a cd-rom game. The rich colors and tones convey a message of seriousness, while the navigation keeps the site playful and interesting.

6. BEI – Sometimes a blog is just a blog. Not this time. This blog has an eye-catching graphic header and the simple navigation make it easy to move through- even when it is in another language!

Once again, there were a lot of great submissions this month and even more great ones in August so far. It feels like a privilege to be able to showcase such great work here at CSS Perk, so keep the great sites coming and we’ll keep posting them.

Here are our choices for the best 5 websites of June 2009:

1. An Najma – This site for the “An Najma” belly dancing team is has a great color scheme. It also successfully captures the feel that the team is going for: a very mysterious and exotic ambiance.

2. Duirwaigh Studios – Duirwaigh means “the door on the human heart which, when opened, cause one to remember one’s magical origins”. This site definitely looks magical with it’s intricate and flowing headers and footers.

3. Guerra Creativa – A website for a really interesting idea, Guerra Creative was an easy top pick for this month. Guerra’s “Creative War” is a contest where designers get to compete with each other while working on client projects for cash prizes. Check it out.

4. Kevin Adamson – A great standout portfolio courtesy of Kevin Adamson. Adamson is an award-winning illustrator, animator, and web/graphic designer and it really shows. We really like the blend of the sketchbook type theme and creative illustrations.

5. Marketing Informatico – A pretty crazy site. While it’s in a different language, there’s still a lot to get out of it. Just scroll up into the sky and down under the sea. See if you can find the secret mole.

Once again, there were a lot of great submissions this month and even more great ones in July so far. It feels like a privelage to be able to showcase such great work here at CSS Perk, so keep the great sites coming and we’ll keep posting them.

Gardener of RGB Garden

Rambal, also known as Gardener, is from India and has been involved in graphic and web design for the last eight years. After starting his career as a graphic designer, Gardener is now the Creative Head of an advertising agency and the owner of an array of design sites.

He launched his first CSS and Flash inspiration gallery, RBG Garden,  in July 2008. From there he went on to single-handedly launch sites like Vector Valley, a free vector art resource, and Kreative Garden, a creative design blog.

Throughout his career he has launched over fifty websites, designed hundreds of brochures, and developed his own custom website CMS. In the future he plans to continue to design and launch more sites that focus on web and graphic design and inspiration. Check out the Best of RGB Garden to get inspired.

• How long have you operated RGB Garden?
  Since July 2008.

• What gave you the idea to start a CSS Gallery?

  The evolution of Open Source. Nowadays, there are too many galleries available on the net but there is a big question mark for the quality, individuality, and identity of the showcase. It’s a bit difficult to find a good design and give it proper recognition. Recognition in terms of Webby Awards, The FWA awards and some more are available but these awards are all considering either flash or CSS only. They don’t have a mix of the two mediums. So, I had decided to start my own gallery with a different flavor.

• Your site is gaining popularity. What would you attribute your success to?

  I’m won’t claim to equate  popularity with success, but it may be the process towards success. I still have a long way to go.

• What is your favorite part about running RGB Garden?

  I get to start my day with new and fresh designs. That’s very cool.

• Do you have any special plans for RGB Garden in the future?

  I have some special plans for the first year anniversary but I’m keeping them under wraps for now.

• Are you working on any other projects?

  I am working on a lot of projects at the moment.  I’m going to be launching some more new sites in the future.

• How many hours a day do you work on RGB Garden and your other projects?

  For RGB Garden: 1 hour a day. Kreative Garden: 10 hours in a week.

• Do you have any other hobbies not related to computers/internet?

  Yes. I’m a Sunday Painter (I do painting on Sundays) and a writer (I’m currently I’m writing a novel).

• Is there anyone that you look up to and try to model yourself after?

  I have many inspirations. Too many to list.

• If you didn’t know the internet existed, what would you be doing?

  I would be a full-time Painter.

• What advice would you give a new webmaster setting up their first site?

  The best advice I can give is summed up by Pablo Picasso’s quote:  “Action is the foundational key to all success.”

Here are our choices for the best 5 websites of May 2009:

1. Piksal – Online portfolio of designer Phan Hoang out of Vietnam. Hoang is the Art Director at Firework, a web a graphic design company. When visiting “Piksal” you can choose between different headers and backrouds. Give it a try.

2. RIP IE – RIP IE is a public service announcement regarding the death of Internet Explorer 6. The creators of RIP IE beg web developers from around the world to spread the word that IE is dead, or rather “born dead”. When you’re at the site, check out the vivid images and vibrant colors.

3. Hardscore Rock – While Hardscrore rock is written in Polish, they appear to offer web services such as PSD slicing, CSS design, and CMS solutions. All we know is, the have a great design and header.

4. Designer UAE – Sanjai Nath’s Designer UAE offers web design services specifically to students who need help with design and development. The site has a somewhat unusual color scheme, but it really works. Especially cool is the main navigation and the scrolling “works” display at the bottom.

5. Lendl Allen V. Trazo – Lendl Allen V. Trazo is a graphic and web designer from the Philippines. While Trazo has earned a BS in Computer Science, she refers to herself as “self-taught”. Some especially notable elements on her online portfolio are the vivid images and animated footer.

There were some great ones this month and it made it hard to pick favorites. We’ve been getting some top quality sites lately and we feel honored to be able to showcase such great work. Thanks to everyone for all the submissions. Keep them coming!

Here are our choices for the best 5 websites of April:

1. Der Vigilant

2. Kuh Boom

3. Russell Bishop

4. Saddleback Leather

5. Patrick Bizier

This was another tough month to choose the top sites. We’ve been getting so many great sites submitted to us, its really a treat to look at them all. Thanks again everyone and great job this month.

Doug of Divine CSS

Divine CSS is made up of 4 designers and 3 programmers all based in the UK. We have combined industry experience of 22years. We are aged between 23 – 42. Some of us work for leading web design agencies here in the UK and some own their own web design businesses. We all take part in maintaining Divine CSS and each website that goes through our submission process is assessed by the whole team. The process is not a quick one which is why we always seem to have a huge backlog of submissions!

We look at design, ease of use, innovation, build quality and technology/programming. Also, where applicable we look at the products/features the website offers. Sometimes the website doesn’t make it into our showcase gallery, but we will feature it in our ‘Awesome Finds’ section of the Divine CSS blog.

• How long have you operated Divine CSS?

  We launched Divine CSS back in October 2008

 

• What gave you the idea to start a CSS Gallery?

  Well it was by accident really, we were well aware that they existed and had used them on many occasions to promote our own work.

  But it was a bit of a let down that in general, some CSS galleries seemed to be showcasing…. well pretty poor websites, seemingly slapping on anything that was submitted. There were only a few of the ‘old school’ showcase sites still keeping a high standard.

  CSS Galleries seem to have taken a bit of a side step recently. Websites are being submitted in a hope to gain some traffic and ranking – instead of because of their beautiful designs. And the showcase sites themselves seemingly just trying to make a few bucks from advertising.

  So we took it upon ourselves to pull together a team of Designers and Programmers and launched Divine CSS, with the aim to only showcase the best of the best.

  PS – Yes we do now offer advertising by only because of demand! :)

 

• Your site is gaining a lot of popularity. What would you attribute your success to?

  Good quality showcases, good quality showcases… oh and good quality showcases.

 

• What is your favorite part about running Divine CSS?

  Quite simply – getting inspiration. Remember we are made up of web designers and programmers, so it’s great to see all these fantastic websites, beautifully designed and utilizing new technology. Everyone can learn something new.

 

• Do you have any special plans for Divine CSS in the future?

  Who knows, for now we just want to keep showcasing great websites. That’s really all DivineCSS is about so we see no need to change that.

 

• How many hours a day do you work on Divine CSS, and your other projects?

  Not as much as we would like to! We do work hard to get submissions seen quickly. I can tell you that on a normal day we have around 50-70 submissions to go through but realistically we tend to actually process around 30 a day, so there is often a small backlog. But all are reviewed and if you are lucky enough to be showcased, we send you an email confirming so.

  We encourage our users to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter, that way they can keep up to date on our submissions.

 

• Are you working on any other projects?

  We are always working on new projects, but nothing to report just now :).

 

• Is there anyone that you look up to and try to model yourself after?

  Anyone involved with the great websites we showcase on Divine CSS!

 

• If you didn’t know the internet existed, what would you be doing?

  I’d be outdoors, getting fresh air!

 

• What advice would you give a new webmaster setting up their first site?

  Oh man that’s a hard one, there are so many areas to cover. I think really it’s got to be research. Know your competition; know what others are doing both in business and design. Make your website easy to use, this is especially important if you are trying to sell something…. Just keep it simple. Also… design for people, not for search engines!

Mike Archibald

Mike Archibald is the founder of 939 Design in East Yorkshire UK. 939 Design provides clients with a full array of quality web services including web design, graphic design, online marketing and more. Mike is involved in several other projects such as the well known CSS Gallery CSS Design Yorkshire and Web Design List.

• How long have you operated CSS Design Yorkshire?
  Since October 2006, so that’s 2 and a half years or there abouts.

 

• What gave you the idea to start a CSS Gallery?

  I just wanted to promote web standards design especially in Yorkshire. Believe it or not there are some very good css designers in Yorkshire. But CSS Yorkshire reviews websites form all over the world and to get in they have to be well designed, well built and validate.

 

• Your site is gaining a lot of popularity. What would you attribute your success to?

  Regular updates, careful SEO, good submissions, Google listing CSS Yorkshire number one for the phrase “CSS Web Design” helps.

 

• What is your favorite part about running CSS Design Yorkshire?

  I get to review hundreds and hundreds of websites, I guess it keeps my finger on the pulse of what’s going on and what’s new.

 

• Do you have any special plans for CSS Design Yorkshire in the future?

  Lots, but it’s getting the time!

 

• How many hours a day do you work on CSS Design Yorkshire, and your other projects?

  CSS Yorkshire, about 1 hour a day.

 

• Are you working on any other projects?

  Lots – I’ve got to eat!

 

• Is there anyone that you look up to and try to model yourself after?

  There are a lot of great web designers out there too many to mention here.

 

• If you didn’t know the internet existed, what would you be doing?

  Snowboarding.

 

• What advice would you give a new webmaster setting up their first site?

  Work hard and love what you do – even if people call you obsessive or nerdy.

As a web designer, I’m always looking for ways to speed up the design process. Anything that can save me time, is a big plus. Now creating a basic layout will take you no time at all. The resources below will help you create the initial infrastructure for your site. You will want to build upon this design and make it your own, but its a great starting point and saves a lot of time.

CSSCreator.com -This site will allow you to enter things like the color, the width and the columns and it will produce the code for you right there. You won’t need to fool around with templates here, its just straight code, which is very easy and useful.

Layout Gala – This site provides 40 different layouts for you to see and download. Very useful if you need to put something up fast.

Intensivstation - Here you will find 16 different templates that you can view and download. Great time savers to throw up something quick.

Code Sucks.com - With over 90 layouts to choose from, Code Sucks has a great selection. Fixed and Faux columns at your fingertips.

Dynamic Drive - Dynamic Drive offers over 12 easy to use layouts for your site. This site offers a lot of great coding resources, on top of these css layouts.

Every month we like to showcase the 5 best sites that were submitted to be in our gallery. Most of the sites submitted to CSS Perk are great, but there are a few that really stand above the rest. We’d like to give these sites special recognition for creating something outstanding. Feel free to congratulate these website owners for their hard work. So here you have it, the best 5 websites of March:

1. Elemental Piercing and Tattoo Studio

2. Lenordik Nature Spa

3. Battle Forge Card Game

4. Bulgarian Kendo Federation

5. Visual Wild Portfolio

There were so many great sites to choose from, it was really tough to choose our favorite 5. We are adding some sites that we feel derserve honorable mention below for their uniqueness, creativity and overall wow factor. Great job everyone!