diff --git a/frontend/src/components/Constructor/CanvasElement.tsx b/frontend/src/components/Constructor/CanvasElement.tsx
index 41a9ffe..1b50c94 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/Constructor/CanvasElement.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/Constructor/CanvasElement.tsx
@@ -10,9 +10,9 @@
 import React from 'react';
 import UiElementRenderer from '../UiElements/UiElementRenderer';
 import { useElementEffects } from '../../hooks/useElementEffects';
+import { useAppearAnimation } from '../../hooks/useAppearAnimation';
 import {
   buildTransitionStyle,
-  buildAppearAnimationStyle,
   hasAnyEffects,
   type ElementEffectProperties,
 } from '../../lib/elementEffects';
@@ -82,6 +82,12 @@ const CanvasElement: React.FC<CanvasElementProps> = ({
     isEditMode ? {} : effectProperties,
   );
 
+  // Use appear animation hook (removes animation after completion to unlock properties)
+  const { animationStyle, onAnimationEnd } = useAppearAnimation(
+    effectProperties,
+    element.id, // Reset animation when element changes
+  );
+
   // Clamp position to canvas bounds (0-100%)
   const clamp = (value: number, min: number, max: number) =>
     Math.min(Math.max(value, min), max);
@@ -114,14 +120,6 @@ const CanvasElement: React.FC<CanvasElementProps> = ({
     };
   }
 
-  // Add appear animation (ALWAYS - for WYSIWYG)
-  if (effectProperties.appearAnimation) {
-    positionStyle = {
-      ...positionStyle,
-      ...buildAppearAnimationStyle(effectProperties),
-    };
-  }
-
   // Handle keyboard interaction for accessibility
   const handleKeyDown = (event: React.KeyboardEvent) => {
     if (event.key === 'Enter' || event.key === ' ') {
@@ -130,29 +128,66 @@ const CanvasElement: React.FC<CanvasElementProps> = ({
     }
   };
 
+  // Check if appear animation uses transform (slide/scale need separate wrapper)
+  const needsAnimationWrapper =
+    effectProperties.appearAnimation &&
+    effectProperties.appearAnimation !== 'fade';
+
+  // Render content
+  const content = (
+    <UiElementRenderer
+      element={element}
+      resolveUrl={resolveUrl}
+      isSelected={isSelected}
+      isEditMode={isEditMode}
+      onGalleryCardClick={onGalleryCardClick}
+      onCarouselButtonPositionChange={onCarouselButtonPositionChange}
+      letterboxStyles={letterboxStyles}
+      pageTransitionSettings={pageTransitionSettings}
+      preloadCache={preloadCache}
+    />
+  );
+
+  // For slide/scale (uses transform), use separate wrapper to avoid conflict with positioning
+  if (needsAnimationWrapper) {
+    return (
+      <div
+        role='button'
+        tabIndex={0}
+        data-constructor-element-id={element.id}
+        className='absolute cursor-pointer'
+        style={positionStyle}
+        onMouseDown={isEditMode ? onMouseDown : undefined}
+        onClick={onClick}
+        onKeyDown={handleKeyDown}
+        {...(!isEditMode ? eventHandlers : {})}
+      >
+        <div style={animationStyle} onAnimationEnd={onAnimationEnd}>
+          {content}
+        </div>
+      </div>
+    );
+  }
+
+  // Fade or no animation: apply animation to positioning div
+  const combinedStyle = effectProperties.appearAnimation
+    ? { ...positionStyle, ...animationStyle }
+    : positionStyle;
+
   return (
     <div
       role='button'
       tabIndex={0}
       data-constructor-element-id={element.id}
       className='absolute cursor-pointer'
-      style={positionStyle}
+      style={combinedStyle}
       onMouseDown={isEditMode ? onMouseDown : undefined}
       onClick={onClick}
       onKeyDown={handleKeyDown}
+      onAnimationEnd={effectProperties.appearAnimation ? onAnimationEnd : undefined}
       {...(!isEditMode ? eventHandlers : {})}
     >
-      <UiElementRenderer
-        element={element}
-        resolveUrl={resolveUrl}
-        isSelected={isSelected}
-        isEditMode={isEditMode}
-        onGalleryCardClick={onGalleryCardClick}
-        onCarouselButtonPositionChange={onCarouselButtonPositionChange}
-        letterboxStyles={letterboxStyles}
-        pageTransitionSettings={pageTransitionSettings}
-        preloadCache={preloadCache}
-      />
+      {content}
     </div>
   );
 };
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/RuntimeElement.tsx b/frontend/src/components/RuntimeElement.tsx
index 06aa9ca..ededabe 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/RuntimeElement.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/RuntimeElement.tsx
@@ -9,9 +9,9 @@
 import React from 'react';
 import UiElementRenderer from './UiElements/UiElementRenderer';
 import { useElementEffects } from '../hooks/useElementEffects';
+import { useAppearAnimation } from '../hooks/useAppearAnimation';
 import {
   buildTransitionStyle,
-  buildAppearAnimationStyle,
   hasAnyEffects,
   type ElementEffectProperties,
 } from '../lib/elementEffects';
@@ -75,6 +75,12 @@ const RuntimeElement: React.FC<RuntimeElementProps> = ({
   // Use effects hook for interactive states
   const { effectStyle, eventHandlers } = useElementEffects(effectProperties);
 
+  // Use appear animation hook (removes animation after completion to unlock properties)
+  const { animationStyle, onAnimationEnd } = useAppearAnimation(
+    effectProperties,
+    element.id, // Reset animation when element changes
+  );
+
   // Build base position style
   let positionStyle: React.CSSProperties = {
     left: `${xPercent}%`,
@@ -99,28 +105,56 @@ const RuntimeElement: React.FC<RuntimeElementProps> = ({
     positionStyle = { ...positionStyle, ...transitionStyle };
   }
 
-  // Add appear animation if configured
-  if (effectProperties.appearAnimation) {
-    const animationStyle = buildAppearAnimationStyle(effectProperties);
-    positionStyle = { ...positionStyle, ...animationStyle };
+  // Check if appear animation uses transform (slide/scale need separate wrapper)
+  const needsAnimationWrapper =
+    effectProperties.appearAnimation &&
+    effectProperties.appearAnimation !== 'fade';
+
+  // Render content (with or without animation wrapper)
+  const content = (
+    <UiElementRenderer
+      element={element}
+      resolveUrl={resolveUrl}
+      onGalleryCardClick={onGalleryCardClick}
+      letterboxStyles={letterboxStyles}
+      pageTransitionSettings={pageTransitionSettings}
+      preloadCache={preloadCache}
+    />
+  );
+
+  // For fade animation (opacity only), apply to positioning div
+  // For slide/scale (uses transform), use separate wrapper to avoid conflict
+  if (needsAnimationWrapper) {
+    return (
+      <div
+        className='absolute cursor-pointer'
+        style={positionStyle}
+        onClick={onClick}
+        tabIndex={0}
+        {...eventHandlers}
+      >
+        <div style={animationStyle} onAnimationEnd={onAnimationEnd}>
+          {content}
+        </div>
+      </div>
+    );
   }
 
+  // Fade or no animation: apply animation to positioning div
+  const combinedStyle = effectProperties.appearAnimation
+    ? { ...positionStyle, ...animationStyle }
+    : positionStyle;
+
   return (
     <div
       className='absolute cursor-pointer'
-      style={positionStyle}
+      style={combinedStyle}
       onClick={onClick}
       tabIndex={0}
+      onAnimationEnd={effectProperties.appearAnimation ? onAnimationEnd : undefined}
       {...eventHandlers}
     >
-      <UiElementRenderer
-        element={element}
-        resolveUrl={resolveUrl}
-        onGalleryCardClick={onGalleryCardClick}
-        letterboxStyles={letterboxStyles}
-        pageTransitionSettings={pageTransitionSettings}
-        preloadCache={preloadCache}
-      />
+      {content}
     </div>
   );
 };
diff --git a/frontend/src/css/main.css b/frontend/src/css/main.css
index 0df2ecb..2f6302a 100644
--- a/frontend/src/css/main.css
+++ b/frontend/src/css/main.css
@@ -290,11 +290,9 @@
 @keyframes element-fade-in {
   from {
     opacity: 0;
-    transform: translate3d(0, 0, 0);
   }
   to {
     opacity: 1;
-    transform: translate3d(0, 0, 0);
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/frontend/src/hooks/useAppearAnimation.ts b/frontend/src/hooks/useAppearAnimation.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e1ad744
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/hooks/useAppearAnimation.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+/**
+ * useAppearAnimation Hook
+ *
+ * Manages appear animation lifecycle to prevent conflicts with interactive effects.
+ *
+ * Problem: CSS animations with `animation-fill-mode: forwards` lock animated
+ * properties (opacity, transform), preventing CSS transitions from working
+ * on hover/focus/active states.
+ *
+ * Solution: Track animation completion via `animationend` event and remove
+ * the animation style after it completes, unlocking properties for transitions.
+ *
+ * Cross-browser: Uses standard `animationend` event supported by all modern
+ * browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, iOS Safari, Android Chrome).
+ */
+
+import { useState, useCallback, useRef, useEffect } from 'react';
+import type { CSSProperties, AnimationEventHandler } from 'react';
+import {
+  buildAppearAnimationStyle,
+  type ElementEffectProperties,
+} from '../lib/elementEffects';
+
+interface UseAppearAnimationResult {
+  /** Animation style to apply (empty after animation completes) */
+  animationStyle: CSSProperties;
+  /** Handler to attach to element's onAnimationEnd */
+  onAnimationEnd: AnimationEventHandler<HTMLElement>;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Hook for managing appear animation with proper cleanup.
+ *
+ * @param effects - Element effect properties containing appear animation config
+ * @param key - Optional key to reset animation (e.g., page slug for re-triggering on navigation)
+ * @returns Object with animationStyle and onAnimationEnd handler
+ *
+ * @example
+ * const { animationStyle, onAnimationEnd } = useAppearAnimation(effectProperties);
+ * return (
+ *   <div
+ *     style={{ ...baseStyle, ...animationStyle }}
+ *     onAnimationEnd={onAnimationEnd}
+ *   >
+ *     {content}
+ *   </div>
+ * );
+ */
+export function useAppearAnimation(
+  effects: Partial<ElementEffectProperties>,
+  key?: string | number,
+): UseAppearAnimationResult {
+  // Track whether animation has completed
+  const [hasAnimationEnded, setHasAnimationEnded] = useState(false);
+
+  // Track the animation name to identify our animation in the event
+  const animationNameRef = useRef<string | null>(null);
+
+  // Reset animation state when key changes (e.g., navigating to new page)
+  useEffect(() => {
+    setHasAnimationEnded(false);
+  }, [key]);
+
+  // Build animation style and capture animation name
+  const animationStyle = (() => {
+    // If no appear animation or animation already ended, return empty
+    if (!effects.appearAnimation || hasAnimationEnded) {
+      animationNameRef.current = null;
+      return {};
+    }
+
+    const style = buildAppearAnimationStyle(effects);
+
+    // Extract animation name from the style for event matching
+    if (style.animation) {
+      const match = String(style.animation).match(/^([\w-]+)/);
+      animationNameRef.current = match ? match[1] : null;
+    }
+
+    return style;
+  })();
+
+  // Handler for animationend event
+  const onAnimationEnd: AnimationEventHandler<HTMLElement> = useCallback(
+    (event) => {
+      // Only handle our animation (ignore child animations)
+      // Check if the animation name matches our appear animation
+      const targetAnimationName = animationNameRef.current;
+
+      if (
+        targetAnimationName &&
+        event.animationName === targetAnimationName &&
+        event.target === event.currentTarget
+      ) {
+        setHasAnimationEnded(true);
+      }
+    },
+    [],
+  );
+
+  return {
+    animationStyle,
+    onAnimationEnd,
+  };
+}