The Cicada Principle, Now With CSS Variables
Lea Verou has resurrected a classic CSS trick to give code blocks background clipping that looks naturally varied. Her twist on the old technique relies on a straightforward concept: write a primary rule with CSS variables, then use :nth-of-*() selectors to assign distinct values to those variables every N items. With enough variables and prime-number intervals for N, you can fake organic randomness using relatively small counts.
What sets the update apart is how she narrows the selector's work. Rather than restyling a full block of code for each case, a single custom property updates just the piece of the clipping path that needs to change. Verou's original post applies the same variables trick to further effects worth a look.
