Form Styling

Input styling, validation states, custom controls, and form layouts.

Overview

Well-styled forms improve user experience.

Key Concepts

• Input Styling — Consistent input appearance
• Validation States — Visual feedback
• Custom Controls — Checkboxes, radios, selects
• Form Layout — Responsive form structures
• Focus States — Accessibility styling

Code Examples

/* Base form styles */
.form-group {
  margin-bottom: 1.5rem;
}

.form-label {
  display: block;
  margin-bottom: 0.5rem;
  font-weight: 500;
}

.form-input {
  width: 100%;
  padding: 0.75rem 1rem;
  border: 2px solid #ddd;
  border-radius: 8px;
  font-size: 1rem;
  transition: border-color 0.2s, box-shadow 0.2s;
}

.form-input:focus {
  outline: none;
  border-color: var(--primary);
  box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px rgba(0, 123, 255, 0.25);
}

/* Validation states */
.form-input:valid {
  border-color: var(--success);
}

.form-input:invalid {
  border-color: var(--danger);
}

.form-input.error {
  border-color: var(--danger);
}

.form-error {
  color: var(--danger);
  font-size: 0.875rem;
  margin-top: 0.5rem;
}

/* Custom checkbox */
.checkbox-custom {
  display: flex;
  align-items: center;
  gap: 0.5rem;
  cursor: pointer;
}

.checkbox-custom input {
  display: none;
}

.checkbox-custom span {
  width: 20px;
  height: 20px;
  border: 2px solid #ddd;
  border-radius: 4px;
  display: flex;
  align-items: center;
  justify-content: center;
  transition: all 0.2s;
}

.checkbox-custom input:checked + span {
  background: var(--primary);
  border-color: var(--primary);
}

.checkbox-custom input:checked + span::after {
  content: '✓';
  color: white;
  font-size: 12px;
}

/* Custom select */
.select-custom {
  appearance: none;
  width: 100%;
  padding: 0.75rem 2.5rem 0.75rem 1rem;
  border: 2px solid #ddd;
  border-radius: 8px;
  background: url("data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' width='12' height='12' viewBox='0 0 12 12'%3E%3Cpath fill='%23666' d='M6 8L1 3h10z'/%3E%3C/svg%3E") no-repeat right 1rem center;
  cursor: pointer;
}

/* Form layout */
.form-row {
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(200px, 1fr));
  gap: 1rem;
}

/* Input group */
.input-group {
  display: flex;
}

.input-group .form-input {
  border-radius: 0;
}

.input-group .form-input:first-child {
  border-radius: 8px 0 0 8px;
}

.input-group .form-input:last-child {
  border-radius: 0 8px 8px 0;
}

.input-group-text {
  padding: 0.75rem 1rem;
  background: #f8f9fa;
  border: 2px solid #ddd;
}

/* Disabled state */
.form-input:disabled {
  background: #f5f5f5;
  cursor: not-allowed;
  opacity: 0.7;
}

/* Textarea */
.form-textarea {
  min-height: 150px;
  resize: vertical;
}

Practice

Build a styled registration form with validation feedback.