This is a guest post contributed by Beth Cooper, on behalf of DesignContest.com, a crowd sourcing company using Design Contests to supply unique and affordable designs.

Cascading style sheets (CSS) are the standard method of formatting a web page and configuring its entire look and feel. CSS3 is the current version and it's supported by all major web browsers. Web designers have a hard enough job as it is when it comes to creating the perfect web page, but there are various tools available to help. CSS tools are useful for greatly simplifying the process of configuring the appearance of a website and, regardless of how much you know about coding, they save a lot of time. They also help to overcome cross-browser compatibility issues. There are various different types of CSS3 tools as outlined below.


CSS3 Layout Tools

Layout tools make it easier and quicker to configure the layout of a website including columns, headers and footers. A layout tool provides a largely self-explanatory and user-friendly way of configuring the layout within a matter of minutes making it vastly more efficient than writing dozens of lines of code. Some layout tools provide various templates of their own which can be even more convenient. If you find a template that you like, you'll have your website's layout designed within a matter of seconds. Useful tools include Templatr and CSS Template Generator.

CSS3 Grid Tools

Grids are the foundation of your website's design and development structure. An invisible design component, the grid system assists in rapid development and a better-organized layout. It also minimizes coding errors and makes cross-browser compatibility less of a problem. CSS3 grid tools provide a user-friendly interface for designing grids and some even provide extra features to further customize the layout. One of the best-known grid generators is Variable Grid System. 960gs is also a useful resource for learning more about CSS3 grid systems.

CSS3 Color Tools

CSS3 Color Tools are important for configuring color schemes. They provide a user-friendly method complete with previews, themes and other features which help to improve the look and feel of your websites. Many color tools provide a number of presets to further save you time. Useful tools include Color Scheme Designer, CSS Color Codes, CSS Colors and Ultimate CSS Gradient Generator, a tool for generating cross-browser compatible color gradients.

CSS3 Button and Menu Tools

Of course, some of the most important parts of a website's interface are the buttons and menus. Designing these from scratch through the method of coding in HTML and CSS is extremely time-consuming and the high-end web design programs don't make things a whole lot easier either. There are various tools which allow you to create and customize CSS menus and buttons in minimal time, complete with previews as you configure them. Using CSS3 tools for buttons and menus can also help to ensure that the results are cross-browser compatible. Useful tools include the CSS Menu Maker, CSS Menu Generator, CSS Button and Button maker Online.

CSS3 Font Tools

Font tools will allow you to configure and preview fonts instead of having to manually configure them by adding the relevant code to your CSS file. Instead, you will be able to test and configure your fonts in real-time. This will ultimately make it easier to get the exact results that you want. Useful tools for configuring your fonts for CSS3 include Font Tester, CSS Font and Text Style Wizard, Typetester and CSS Type Set.