DEV Community

Cover image for ⚡ My Experience Rebuilding a Harry Potter–Themed Website (Version 2.0)
Arish N
Arish N

Posted on

⚡ My Experience Rebuilding a Harry Potter–Themed Website (Version 2.0)

*#harrypotter #webdev #frontend #uidesign #fanproject #javascript #html #css
*

When I built the first version of my Harry Potter–themed website, I thought I had created something special.

But after stepping away for a while and looking at it again, I realized something important — the idea was magical, but the execution could be so much more. So I decided to rebuild it… from scratch.

This is the story of Version 2.0 — cleaner, faster, more immersive, and more magical than ever.

✨ Why I rebuilt it

Version 1 was built from pure excitement and nostalgia. I experimented with:

  • Torchlight mouse effects
  • Wand-style cursors
  • Rain & lightning animations
  • Character hover transitions
  • Magical ambient design

It looked good and felt fun…
But as a developer, I knew I could:

✅ Structure the code better
✅ Improve performance
✅ Refine animations
✅ Create a smoother user journey
✅ Make it feel more premium

So instead of tweaking the old code, I wiped everything and started again.

🏰 What’s new in Version 2.0?

This time, I didn’t just build a website…

I designed a full Hogwarts-inspired digital experience.

🔮 Major Improvements

  • A completely redesigned landing page with smoother animations
  • A new layout inspired by the feeling of Hogwarts
  • More refined wand cursor interactions
  • Better lightning, atmosphere and background effects
  • Cleaner, easier-to-understand code structure
  • Improved character sections
  • Enhanced typography & color palette for that “magical” look Everything was rebuilt with better logic and cleaner code.

No bloated mess. No shortcuts.
Just structured, readable, reusable code.

⚙️ Technologies I used

  • HTML
  • CSS
  • JavaScript
  • AOS (Animate on Scroll)
  • Custom cursor animations
  • Custom slanted & layered UI sections
  • Hover-based 3D-style interactions
  • Optimized image handling

No heavy frameworks. Just pure creativity + front-end power.

🧠 What I learned from this project

This project taught me that:

  • Nostalgia is powerful in design
  • Details = experience
  • Clean code = confidence
  • UI is storytelling
  • Web development is art

This wasn’t just a fan project.
It was a challenge to myself as a developer.

🎥 Demo of Version 2

I’ve recorded a brand new walkthrough video of Version 2 here:

👉 Demo video: https://youtu.be/NnHtl79HLBU

You’ll see the full atmosphere, transitions, sections, and improvements compared to v1.

💻 Want the source code?

A few people asked me for the source code after version 1.
So for Version 2, I decided to make it available as a premium fan template.

If you’re:
✅ Learning front-end
✅ Practicing animations
✅ Building fantasy-themed websites
✅ A Harry Potter fan & developer

You can get the full Version 2 source code here:
👉 https://buymeacoffee.com/clicktogain/e/483957

This supports my work and lets me keep building more creative projects.

Final Thoughts

Some people grow out of Harry Potter.

I turned it into a website.

And honestly… this is one of the most satisfying projects I’ve ever created.

If you grew up with Hogwarts, I think you’ll understand the feeling.

Thanks for reading — and welcome to Version 2 ⚡

Top comments (0)