How to Reduce Unwanted White Space and Margins in Twenty Eleven Theme

Many users of the classic Twenty Eleven theme encounter a common layout issue: excessive white space or margins around their content. This often appears as a large gap between the header and the main content area, or as wide margins on the left and right sides of the page. This guide will explain why this happens and provide the most common solutions.

Why Does This Happen?

The Twenty Eleven theme was designed in 2011, during a time when fixed-width layouts with specific padding and margins were the standard design trend. Unlike modern themes, it offers very few built-in customization options in the Appearance > Customize menu. Therefore, adjusting these spaces requires modifying the theme's code directly.

Common Solutions

1. Remove or Hide the Page Title

If a duplicate page title is creating unwanted space at the top of your content, you can hide it with custom CSS. This is a common request as the title can be redundant if it also appears in your site's header.

Solution: Add the following code to your site using the Additional CSS section in the WordPress Customizer (Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS).

.page .entry-header { display: none; }

2. Reduce Padding and Margins Around Content

The main content area (<div id="main">) has predefined padding. To reduce the space between your header and content, or to adjust the side margins, you need to override these styles.

Solution: Add CSS rules to target the specific elements. The example below reduces top padding and adjusts side margins. You may need to adjust the pixel values to achieve your desired look.

#main {
    padding-top: 20px; /* Adjust this value */
    clear: none; /* Can help with layout flow in some cases */
}
#page {
    margin: 0 5%; /* Adjust the percentage to reduce side margins */
}

3. Align Content to the Left

Some users find the default text alignment creates too much space on the left. To shift your page title and text further left, you can adjust the alignment.

Solution: Use the following CSS to left-align your content more aggressively.

.page .entry-title,
.page .entry-content {
    text-align: left;
    margin-left: 0;
}

Important Notes

• Use a Child Theme: If you modify the theme's files directly, your changes will be lost when the theme is updated. It is highly recommended to use a child theme for any changes beyond adding CSS.
• Add CSS Correctly: Always add custom CSS through the Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS panel or your child theme's style.css file. Avoid editing the parent theme's files directly.
• Theme Limitations: As an older theme, Twenty Eleven has inherent design limitations. For more complex or modern layout changes, considering a more recent theme might be a more efficient long-term solution.

By following these steps, you should be able to significantly reduce the unwanted white space and achieve a tighter, more customized layout for your site.