Houdini is your direct access to the browser’s engine, allowing you to extend CSS with JavaScript. This collection demonstrates two of its key parts: the Properties & Values API, which “teaches” the browser how to animate gradients and clip-path via typed variables, and the Paint API, which provides the ability to draw custom backgrounds and borders. The key feature is that all complex code runs in isolated worklets off the main thread, ensuring maximum performance. This is your chance to create “polyfills of the future” today.
10 Houdini APIs Examples
Cinematic Black Magic Volume Knob
demo & codeThis Cinematic Black Magic Volume Knob pushes the boundaries of modern CSS, creating a tangible, high-fidelity control element. It combines a standard range input with advanced CSS Houdini features like @property and wide-gamut P3 colors. The result is a glowing, liquid-like interface where turning the dial triggers a cascade of particles and dynamic lighting effects, perfect for premium audio applications or dashboards.
Holographic 3D Interactive Card
demo & codeThis Holographic 3D Interactive Card is a premium UI component inspired by rare physical trading cards. It features a sophisticated depth effect where the logo floats independently from the iridescent background, reacting dynamically to mouse movements or touch input. The use of modern CSS APIs ensures high-performance rendering of complex gradients and masks, creating a truly immersive “collectible” feel for digital assets.
Beveled Corner Glow Cards
demo & codeThis Beveled Corner Glow Card component demonstrates the bleeding edge of CSS UI styling. It primarily utilizes the new corner-shape property to create chamfered (angled) edges without complex clip-paths, while implementing a sophisticated CSS Mask fallback for older engines. The interaction features a “scanning” light beam effect on the border, powered by CSS Houdini for buttery smooth interpolation.
Trigonometric 3D Orbit Gallery
demo & codeThis Trigonometric 3D Orbit Gallery is a stunning example of “Code Art,” demonstrating the raw power of modern CSS mathematics. Instead of relying on rigid keyframes for positioning, it uses parametric equations to place and animate 32 images along a complex, fluid 3D curve in real-time, creating a perpetual motion machine effect purely with stylesheets.
Synchronized Pure CSS Skeleton Loader
demo & codeThis Synchronized Pure CSS Skeleton Loader pushes the boundaries of modern CSS by creating a unified “shimmer” effect that sweeps across multiple disparate elements simultaneously. Unlike standard skeleton loaders that animate each block independently, this implementation ensures a single, globally aligned gradient flow using advanced CSS math and Houdini properties.
Pure CSS Synthwave 80s Animation
demo & codeThis Pure CSS Synthwave 80s Animation captures the nostalgic aesthetic of the 1980s retrowave genre. It features a complete animated scene: an infinite neon grid, a setting sun with scanlines, shaking palm trees, and a DeLorean driving into the distance. The scene is brought to life with a driving synthwave audio track and intricate CSS-only motion.
Uninvert Kitty
An interactive spotlight reveal where the cursor controls a negative mask and a physical 3D tilt effect.
See the Pen Uninvert Kitty.
Invert Radius Shape with Cool Hover Effect
A sophisticated hover effect utilizing CSS Houdini to animate a complex image mask.
See the Pen Invert Radius Shape with Cool Hover Effect.
Glowing Dropdown
A futuristic custom select menu leveraging CSS Houdini to animate gradient coordinates and dimensions for a fluid, neon-glow effect.
See the Pen Glowing Dropdown.
Glowing Tabs
A navigation menu leveraging CSS Houdini API to animate custom variables for smooth transitions. JavaScript calculates element geometry to drive a dynamic “glowing” background that slides between tabs, while CSS gradients and the :has() selector create a polished, depth-rich visual style.
See the Pen Glowing Tabs.
