You should always start with the container, or the overall structural shell of a design; Forget the details and individual components for now.
When that is done and you and the client are satisfied with the structure, grab your wireframes and start working on the details. You will be surprised at how many times a design ends up as a neatly colored wireframe when you start from the inside out. I’ve seen several designers working on the header and navigation first, then start laying out the components, and before you know it you have a neatly packed and nicely colored page full of content which may be from a usability perspective well placed and correct, however from a design perspective it would never be creative or stand out.
Think of your design as a chocolate covered peanut, if you start with the peanut, from the inside out, the outer layer which everyone sees (the chocolate layer) will always depend on the peanut shape and you will have little control on the result.
However if you treat your design like a chocolate egg, working on the outer layer first, and shape it as you desire – fitting your inner content to match the shell, then it really doesn’t matter what you fill it with, the design will always be the egg-shape that you intended.
