Today feels special.
I successfully implemented a fully resizable sidebar UI — the same style you see in tools like VS Code, where you can drag the edge and adjust the width with your mouse.
For many developers, this might look like a small feature.
For me, it was a dream I had 3–4 months ago.
Back then, I used to wonder how professional applications create such smooth UI interactions. I didn’t fully understand concepts like useRef, mouse event handling, or dynamic layout control. They felt complicated and out of reach.
But today, I didn’t just understand them —
I built the feature myself from scratch.
What This UI Does
- Sidebar width adjusts dynamically with mouse drag
- Minimum and maximum width limits are applied
- The main container stays stable while resizing
- Event listeners are handled properly
- Cleanup is implemented to avoid memory leaks
This wasn’t just about resizing a panel.
It was about finally connecting theory with real implementation.
The Bigger Picture
This app is actually part of a course project, but I decided not to leave it in its default state.
I completely redesigned the UI and gave it a fresh new look.
The main purpose of this app is to deeply understand two core concepts:
- Routing – how navigation works inside an application
- CSS Modules – how to manage styling in a scalable and clean way
Instead of just finishing the course tasks, I pushed myself to improve the design and functionality so the learning would be practical, not just theoretical.
What’s Next
Now that the resizable sidebar is complete, the next steps are:
- Upgrading text and UI elements
- Adding more interactive features
- Improving usability and polish
This project started as a learning exercise,
but it’s slowly turning into something I’m genuinely proud of.
Reflection
A few months ago, this kind of UI felt advanced.
Today, it’s part of my skill set.
It’s not the size of the feature that matters —
it’s the confidence you gain after building it.
Small wins like these quietly change your mindset from
“Can I do this?”
to
“I know how to do this.”
TikTok Demo 🎥
I also uploaded a short TikTok video showing how the resizable sidebar looks in action.
If anyone wants to see the visual result, you can watch it here:
Top comments (1)
Love this kind of win. Features like a resizable sidebar look small from the outside, but building it yourself is a huge confidence boost. You can really feel the shift from “learning concepts” to actually using them in a real UI. Great progress 👏