There have been many eureka moments while developing my CSS "framework" (called CSS Blade).
The first came when I decided to separate the modules into "classless" and "class-lite". That worked beautifully.
The class-lite modules came together really well, I am proud to say.
While I did not completely rule out Flexbox for the grid system, I avoided it favoring instead the CSS Grid system. Quite frankly, I've run into too many issues with Flexbox, plus it's a one-dimensional grid. CSS Grid is two-dimensional, has a functional gap feature. I do want to be clear though, I am not advocating for CSS Grid over Flexbox. Both work better than other "grid" systems (like tables and floats).
The original CSS Blade grid amazed me with its simplicity and small CSS file. I've used it a few times ... successfully, I thought.
I recently discovered some issues with the responsive aspect of my grid. It forced me to revisit the grid code in its entirety. Fortunately, it's small enough. I found some issues and decided that a re-write was in order.
My approach for this re-write is to focus on a mobile-first approach. Last time, just getting to know CSS Grid meant a focus on desktop and then back into (meaning desktop-first, mobile-last) mobile.
I always check out other minimalist "frameworks". I found that all of the minimalist frameworks have progressed nicely and offer versions that are acceptable for use in 2025 and leading to 2026. I did fine one new one that is quite impressive. It's "simpledev.css" with a grid module that is about 1Kb raw. The grid module is quite basic but functional allowing any number of columns and fully responsive – and mobile-first. SimpleDev CSS is a class-lite system. In total it is 12Kb raw. The developer also has a demo and offers a number of templates to get your started.
Whatever you decide to do, avoid the kitchen sink frameworks. Bulma is now at version 1.0.4 and 747Mb raw or 663Mb minified. Bulma is an excercise in what not to do.
There are some guidlines by Google on page load times ... suggesting that many user's abandon a website when page load times exceed 4 seconds. That's actually quite slow – any slower and it's 'snooze, you lose'. Over 4 seconds, user has gone away to find the information, service or product elsewhere.
Fast internet services help quite a bit, but we all have to remind ourselves that not everyone has fast internet. Especially mobile users that now make up the majority of visitors to websites. Desktop has consistently fallen in market share over the past ten years. In 2025, the market share of desktop is 35.96%. Mobile market share is 64.04%. It's interesting that marketers now include another metric. That is the number of users that report using only mobile devices to access the internet. That metric is 24.3% – and growing.
It's clear then. Developers must use a mobile-first approach to designing websites. That puts a heavy burden on CSS frameworks to be lean.
I seriously doubt that I'll ever release CSS Blade. I always encourge others to avoid the kitchen-sink frameworks (Bulma especially, but that also includes Bootstrap). In the past, I have guided others to use Tailwind CSS, a utility framework. It's also getting into the kitchen-sink category. So, have a close look at class-light frameworks like Chota that uses Flexbox for its grid and SimpleDev that uses CSS Grid.
As for me, I continue to develop my own. I am nearly done a full re-write of my grid component and it is mobile-first.