<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <style type="text/css"> .separator, #child { height: 20px; background-color: blue; } #multi-column { background-color: yellow; } .margin { height: 20px; } </style> </head> <body> <div class="separator"></div> <div id="multi-column"> <div class="margin"></div> <div id="child"></div> <div class="margin"></div> </div> <div class="separator"></div> </body> </html>