Directionally aware button effect without JavaScript

Embrace the Cascade

Creative Coding CSS

October 8, 2025

Learn to create a directionally aware button hover effect using only CSS. This tutorial refactors existing code for improved efficiency, utilizing a single pseudo-element. Modern CSS techniques, including anchor positioning, are demonstrated to achieve a smooth, responsive effect.

🔗 Links

Finished CodePen: https://codepen.io/kevinpowell/pen/VYvWKBV

LukyVJ's CodePen: https://codepen.io/LukyVj/pen/PwwrYRR

Anchor positioning polyfill: https://github.com/oddbird/css-anchor-positioning