If you observe the development of interior and exterior design, or even trends in social interaction in various spheres (politics, education, mass media, the internet, etc.), you’ll often hear about concepts like “openness” and “transparency.” But here’s the interesting part — these concepts can be applied effectively even in more narrow fields, such as web design. And the reason is rather unique: general design principles, being universal, find their way into every branch of design, including web.
The concept of openness helps create layouts that are fun and functional, visually appealing and structured at the same time. It makes it easier for users to navigate a site and interact with the content you offer them. Of course, this concept has its nuances in use, implementation, and style combinations — but these fall more within the scope of general design theory.
In this article, we’ll take a different approach and explore how the concept of openness is applied in practice — through examples of various formats, sizes, scales, and themes. That way, we’ll try to “kill two birds with one stone”: discover new ideas for web design and dive slightly deeper into theory. Let’s see what comes of it...
Characteristics of the Openness Concept in Web Design
In interior design, the concept of openness means combining multiple spaces into one large area that flows like a stream, filling the apartment or house. For example, a wide, unified passageway between rooms that gradually merges into the kitchen. No doors — only arches or partial walls. This is especially relevant in large open-plan studio apartments, without the standard division into small rooms.
In web design, the implementation is somewhat similar. An “open” layout is created by designing a spacious path between elements — one that feels airy and bright. This allows free space to be used to the fullest, while the elements themselves are incredibly simple yet harmonious, striking a balance between the white space and the content.
Color... It can be rich, but not too bright or flashy. Its purpose is to gently wrap around the elements and enhance the feeling of openness. Naturally, that’s why white or light shades are often preferred. As for page dimensions, they’re not crucial — scroll can be long or short, or pages can have fixed width and height. It doesn’t matter. Openness and freedom can be created under any structure.
The bigger question is when it’s appropriate to use openness. Let’s be honest — this concept doesn’t suit every type of website. Yes, web designers try to adapt it for e-commerce and business projects too. But that becomes a blend of styles, which is tricky and time-consuming to plan properly. The most suitable use of openness is in layouts with a clear call to action or detailed service descriptions — in other words, where there aren’t too many elements or conflicting design styles. A few icons/images and a bit of text — that’s all you need.
Still, all of this is general theory. Even though it may sound clear and logical, it doesn’t always guarantee the desired visual result. The key when working with openness is this: the visual “flow of freedom” should be obvious — not to you as the designer, but to the user. They need to clearly understand what to do on the site, where to go, what is what, and what leads where. Only then can you confidently say that your layout follows the openness concept. Otherwise, it will feel like everything’s in place (menus, buttons, images), but where to click and why — isn’t clear. What does this site want from me as a user, anyway?
Bold Colors vs. White
The NooFlow project is quite interesting from many angles. What stands out right away is the lightness and speed of the website overall. That’s definitely a big plus.
Most openness-based designs use a light or white background. But imagine — it's totally possible to use another color. And here, a soft pink-red (not crimson) is used for the homepage. Later pages feature a lighter background with a subtle geometric pattern of lines. Still, it looks impressive and intriguing — without being garish.
As you explore the site, you’ll notice a split-screen layout and a well-balanced combination of elements and text. Everything is readable, user-friendly, and intuitive. Even the pop-up menu is transparent, keeping visitors focused.
Ultimately, the idea is that bold color usage can still feel simple and tasteful. The design maintains plenty of free space and flow, which makes exploring the content easy — and encourages the user to keep scrolling.
Multiple Content Paths
Sometimes, the idea of flow links not only content elements but also creates a path from the logo, menu, or personalization to the main content of the site. This is what the designers at Brightscout aimed for. Or it may be the other way around — depending on where users’ eyes land first: image, then logo, or vice versa.
What’s the openness idea here? Imagine a building’s floor plan. This design follows a similar structure. There are multiple entry points and visual flow paths — you can explore the content top-down, bottom-up, from the middle outward, or jump between pages that offer different exploration routes. Still, large call-to-action buttons, aligned with the color palette, are clearly visible, though not overly emphasized.
The site’s functionality is simple, clear, and convenient. The logo is used throughout — between sections, as an extra icon, and so on. Take a look yourself and you’ll see everything we’ve described in action.
A Lot of White Space or Just Efficiency?
Can there be too much white space? Yes — sometimes. But sometimes, a large amount of open space looks completely appropriate: elements don’t get lost, and the site doesn’t feel “empty.” Many designers believe that the more white space, the more visible the concept of openness becomes. But really, that’s not the point. The purpose of space is to guide users — to show them where one section ends and another begins.
That’s exactly what was implemented on the Duotix website — to visually separate content blocks, each of which has its own call to action. And they even split the pages in half for better structure.
When it comes to background colors, you’ll notice a soft alternation of white and colored tones — subtly guiding visitors through the site. So even with the use of openness and lots of space, the design feels fresh and highly functional. It’s pleasant and clear. Probably one of the best examples of how to implement openness and freedom in web design.
Partial Freedom
The idea of making content visually easy to explore was present in all our examples. But sometimes, openness is applied not to the entire layout, or at least not fully. Take the project abelodor , for instance — the page is mentally divided horizontally into two parts. The top half feels clean, bright, spacious, and cozy. The bottom half is packed with objects (cards), images, and information.
As you scroll down, the concept continues: the elements shrink and group together, creating the illusion of a clean canvas under which new content appears. See it for yourself to better understand how openness is used here.
Still, this project clearly proves that e-commerce sites don’t always need to be overloaded with product cards, promotions, recommendations, and so on. An online store can be modern, even with a design that seems thematically “inappropriate.” It feels fresh and original!
And this style could apply just to the homepage — inside, product pages can follow a standard grid with categories and sorting.
Asymmetry in Colors and Layout
Asymmetry is a great ally of the openness concept. A good example is hampshirelight . When you look at the design, you get a sense of airiness — of things floating. Everything feels lightweight: every element, whether image or text, typography, and even the mix of bright and neutral colors.
This feeling is mostly achieved through typography and generous line spacing. The font is thin and sans-serif. Although that’s a risky choice ( as we mentioned earlier , such fonts can be hard to read), the large spacing allows each letter to stand out — independent but cohesive. The text doesn't feel disjointed.
So, if they had used a standard font with typical spacing, the sense of openness wouldn’t be fully realized. It would feel like the designer was just filling empty space with colored blocks. But in this case, the layout tells the user: there’s room here, it’s wide open.
There are many other web design examples based on the openness concept. Of course, some people may find better or more creative ones. But we selected the ones that, in our view, best represent the range of how this concept can be applied. We also recommend checking out: cruxmedia (with glitch effect), walkingmen (light and airy from images to typography), open-wear (informative yet completely open in layout), icon-shop, jt, hesterslife, bucketlistly.
Conclusion
We’ve explored how the concept of openness and freedom in web design can completely transform a project and change how it’s presented online. That’s because the roots of this concept lie in core design theory. Layouts using this approach never go out of style.
Freedom never ages — at least philosophically. Which means that regardless of trends, fashions, or design styles, openness is always appropriate and always welcome.
And no — it’s not just about white space. Openness is a combination: layout, spacing, color use, font size in relation to elements — all of it comes together to create a single flow, a path to explore the content. But how simple and intuitive is that path? Is it light and unobtrusive, not overwhelming? The project could be a blog, a news portal, or an online store — the concept still applies.
And this brings us back to the essence of web design: a deeply creative profession that requires inner vision and awareness of how your work will be perceived — not by you, but by users and clients.