Andy Bell is a UK-based designer and front-end developer specializing in CSS and design systems. He’s the founder of Piccalilli and Set Studio, helping teams and organizations build better, more resilient web interfaces.
165 articles from this blog
Author discusses the need to update a free Eleventy course due to outdated Gulp and Sass setups, but lacks time/resources to do so.
A CSS developer explains how fixing a spacing issue by reordering CSS rules, rather than adding more code, highlights the importance of specificity and source order.
A developer shares advice on writing quick, simple blog posts to build confidence and momentum, using a CSS example.
A web developer explains how using a universal CSS selector for text-decoration properties can reduce code and improve styling efficiency.
A developer praises the Eleventy Excellent starter kit for building websites, recommending it for future Eleventy projects.
Analyzes web technology market share data to show that popular JavaScript frameworks like React and Vue are used by a tiny minority compared to platforms like WordPress.
A developer's real-world example of why website performance and progressive enhancement are critical, especially on slow networks.
Announcement of The Index, a new web-first newsletter from Set Studio featuring websites, articles, tutorials, and underrated tech writing.
A guide to finding your Twitter contacts on Mastodon before Twitter's free API shutdown, with links to working migration tools.
A review of Buttondown, an email newsletter service that can automatically send content from an RSS feed, ideal for web-first publications.
A deep dive into a powerful 3-line CSS utility for managing vertical spacing and flow in web layouts, explaining its evolution and practical applications.
Discusses the impact of Twitter removing free API access on bots, tools like Fedifinder, and the author's use of the Front app.
Explains the CSS box-sizing property, how it affects element sizing, and why border-box is commonly used for predictable layouts.
A critique of modern web frameworks prioritizing developer experience over user performance, focusing on bloated JavaScript bundles and their real-world impact.
A developer's journey creating Jotter, a simple PWA note-taking app that syncs with local storage, inspired by the Mac app Tyke.
A web developer argues against mocking beginners and explains the technical reasons behind a common HTML/JSX nesting issue.
Andy Bell updates his 'Build Excellent Websites' site with a talk video and source code, focusing on letting the browser control design.
A developer details technical optimizations for displaying social media 'likes' on a personal blog, focusing on lazy loading and CSS tricks.
Explains why analytics showing high desktop usage might be misleading due to survivorship bias, urging deeper investigation into mobile performance.
A developer explains his POSSE strategy for syndicating blog posts to Twitter while avoiding the platform's negative aspects.
