Design a sleek navigation menu with Figma's Auto Layout

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Design a sleek navigation menu with Figma's Auto Layout

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Creating an Auto Layout Button
  3. Applying Auto Layout to Create a Navigation Menu
  4. Adding List Items to the Navigation Menu
  5. Nesting Auto Layout Frames
  6. Adjusting the Distance Between Items
  7. Changing the Direction of the List Items
  8. Adding More List Items and Elements
  9. Hiding Items within Auto Layout Frames
  10. Adding Logo and Navigation Menu Header
  11. Fixing the Size of the Navigation Menu Header
  12. Distributing Space Between Logo and Navigation Menu
  13. Adding Padding to the Navigation Menu Header
  14. Turning the Navigation Menu Header Into a Component
  15. Using the Navigation Bar in Designs
  16. Making the Navigation Bar Responsive
  17. Conclusion

Applying Auto Layout to Create a Navigation Menu

In this tutorial, we will Continue building upon what we learned in the previous video and Apply those methods to create a navigation menu using auto layout in Figma. Auto layout is a powerful tool that allows you to create responsive designs and easily arrange elements within a frame.

1. Introduction

Before we dive into creating the navigation menu, let's briefly introduce auto layout and its benefits. Auto layout in Figma enables you to create dynamic designs that automatically adapt to different screen sizes. By using auto layout, you can easily adjust the spacing between elements and create reflowable layouts.

2. Creating an Auto Layout Button

To create an auto layout button, you first need to create a text layer with the desired label. Then, you can apply auto layout by pressing Shift + A and add a text style to the layer. This will allow you to easily update the styling of multiple buttons simultaneously.

3. Applying Auto Layout to Create a Navigation Menu

Now that we have covered the basics of creating an auto layout button, let's move on to applying auto layout to create a navigation menu. Start by creating a text layer that says "list item" and apply auto layout using Shift + A. You can also apply a text style and set the color to gray 400. Rename this layer to "nav list item" and turn it into a component.

4. Adding List Items to the Navigation Menu

To create a horizontal row of list items in the navigation menu, create three instances of the "list item" component. Select them and use Shift + A to add auto layout. This will automatically arrange the list items in a row. You can also adjust the direction of the list items by setting the direction property to horizontal.

5. Nesting Auto Layout Frames

Nesting auto layout frames within other auto layout frames can help you create more complex and responsive designs. In this case, the list item components are nested within the navigation menu component. This allows you to easily control the layout and spacing of the list items.

6. Adjusting the Distance Between Items

Before adding auto layout, the distance between the list items is automatically set to the space between the items. However, you can adjust this distance to your desired value. In this tutorial, we will set the distance between items to 16 pixels.

7. Changing the Direction of the List Items

By default, the list items are arranged horizontally since they were duplicated into a row. However, You can easily change the direction to vertical by clicking the down arrow icon. For our navigation menu, we will keep the direction as horizontal.

8. Adding More List Items and Elements

If you need to add more list items to your navigation menu, you can simply duplicate one of the instances using Command + D. This will add an instance into the auto layout frame, which will grow to fit the additional item. You can also add new elements like buttons by dragging them from the assets panel and dropping them into the navigation component.

9. Hiding Items within Auto Layout Frames

In some cases, you may want to hide certain items within an auto layout frame. For example, if a user is already signed in, you may want to hide the sign-up button. This can be done by setting the layer transparency to zero percent or by toggling the layer visibility. Both methods have their own benefits and can be used depending on your specific Scenario.

10. Adding Logo and Navigation Menu Header

To create a navigation menu header, we can add a logo component and the navigation menu component. Align them using the auto layout frame and customize them as needed. This header will appear at the top of the navigation menu.

11. Fixing the Size of the Navigation Menu Header

By default, the navigation menu header will resize Based on its Contents. However, if you want to keep the size fixed, you can change the resizing property to a fixed width. This will allow you to enter a specific width for the header.

12. Distributing Space Between Logo and Navigation Menu

To create space between the logo and the navigation menu, we can use the space between option in the alignment settings of the auto layout frame. This will distribute the empty space evenly between the two elements, giving them some breathing room.

13. Adding Padding to the Navigation Menu Header

To add padding to the navigation menu header, we can adjust the values on the top, bottom, left, and right. In this tutorial, we will add 24 pixels of padding on the left and right sides and 8 pixels of padding on the top and bottom.

14. Turning the Navigation Menu Header Into a Component

Once We Are satisfied with the design of the navigation menu header, we can turn it into a component. This allows us to reuse it in other designs and easily make changes to all instances of the component.

15. Using the Navigation Bar in Designs

To use the navigation bar in our designs, we can create a frame and then align the navigation bar component within it. By using the alignment tools, we can center the navigation bar at the top of the frame. This ensures that the navigation menu will be properly positioned in our designs.

16. Making the Navigation Bar Responsive

To make the navigation bar responsive, we need to adjust the resizing property of the navigation bar component. By setting the width constraints to both the left and right of the parent frame, the navigation bar will dynamically resize as we adjust the size of the parent frame. This ensures that the navigation menu will adapt to different screen sizes.

17. Conclusion

In this tutorial, we have explored various aspects of applying auto layout to create a navigation menu in Figma. We have learned how to add list items, nest auto layout frames, customize spacing, and make the menu responsive. By understanding these techniques, you can create powerful and flexible designs with auto layout.

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