The search box can be one of the most frequently used elements of a site and an element many users will be looking for. Therefore it has to be easy to spot and easy to use. Search boxes seem to be the “red-headed step child” of the web design world… typically it is placed in a corner, only there because it has to be and with little or no time and energy spent on its appearance. This is surprising given the importance of the search boxes role in the website visitor experience.

Why does that little box have to be so boring and non styled on so many sites? Could a search box be beautiful while still keeping its utility intact? Can it seamlessly integrate into a site design without losing the attention of people that are looking for it? I say no! Here are some examples of search boxes that push the envelope. All are beautiful, some function better than others, but they all have one underlying principle:  they have all been given care and attention. It is little details like this that make the difference between a good design and a great one. Most websites today are created using pre-designed  website templates for systems such as WordPress and Joomla. In most cases you can find themes where de web designer have put the required effort into designing all aspects of the site, including a perfect search box. Using a WordPress  theme is a perfect choice for most for e.g. a portfolio, business or news website certainly speed up the process.

[exec]$filestr = file_get_contents(‘http://www.tripwiremagazine.com/googleadsensebelowmoretag.inc’);echo $filestr;[/exec]

1. Cellar heat

cellar-heat

2. Register.com

register

3. Think Vitamin

thinkvitamin

4. Spokeo

spokeo

5. Basmati Tree

basmattiree

6. I Love Code

ilovecode

7. Gamers With Jobs

gamerswithjobs

8. Disassociated

disassociated

9. MenuPages

menupages

10. Visual Thesaurus

visualthesaurus

11. Trondel

tirindel

12. The Jazz Mann

thejazzmann

13. Deborah Cavenugh

deborahcavenugh

14. Lifepod

lifepod

15. I Love Typography

i-love-typography

16. Spoongraphics Blog.

spoongraphics

17. Shopzilla

shopzilla

18. Zadby

zadby

19. Carbonica

carbonica

20. Dont Trust This Guy

donttrustthisguy

21. Family

family

22. The Black Harbor

theblackharbor

23. Lulu

lulu

24. The Designed Tree

thedesignedtree

25. Money Crashers

moneycrashers

26. Exteel

exteel

27. MothersClick

mothersclick

28. Game Daily

gamedaily

29. Creative Curio

creativecurio

30. Martha Stewart

marthastewart

31. Knoxville Tourism & Sports Corporation

knoxville

32. Barnes & Noble

bn

33. icontact

icontact

34. Jobster

jobster

35. Molehill

themolehill

36. Justin Shattuck

justinshattuck

37. Cybers Music

cybersmusic

38. CSS Vault

cssvault

39. Wufoo

wufoo

40. Massively

massively

What is a good looking search box in your taste? Please leave a comment and let us know what you think and if you know a great design we all should check out!

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Author : Dustin Betonio

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