diff --git a/Gemfile.lock b/Gemfile.lock
index acc0bc9c..c6c9c375 100644
--- a/Gemfile.lock
+++ b/Gemfile.lock
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 GIT
   remote: git://github.com/johnbintz/fakefs.git
-  revision: 005ddaaeb2b2881391c31ac9846a55ce5a42c206
+  revision: 7363b6f13bfcd9f583bbf7cd1e0d65c2dc656db7
   specs:
     fakefs (0.3.1)
 
 PATH
   remote: .
   specs:
-    compass (0.11.3.rails.0.642d0b2)
+    compass (0.11.3.rails.0.9da1d44)
       chunky_png (~> 1.2)
       fssm (>= 0.2.7)
       sass (~> 3.1)
@@ -17,12 +17,12 @@ GEM
   specs:
     ZenTest (4.5.0)
     abstract (1.0.0)
-    actionmailer (3.0.7)
-      actionpack (= 3.0.7)
-      mail (~> 2.2.15)
-    actionpack (3.0.7)
-      activemodel (= 3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
+    actionmailer (3.0.9.rc3)
+      actionpack (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      mail (~> 2.2.19)
+    actionpack (3.0.9.rc3)
+      activemodel (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
       builder (~> 2.1.2)
       erubis (~> 2.6.6)
       i18n (~> 0.5.0)
@@ -30,21 +30,21 @@ GEM
       rack-mount (~> 0.6.14)
       rack-test (~> 0.5.7)
       tzinfo (~> 0.3.23)
-    activemodel (3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
+    activemodel (3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
       builder (~> 2.1.2)
       i18n (~> 0.5.0)
-    activerecord (3.0.7)
-      activemodel (= 3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
-      arel (~> 2.0.2)
+    activerecord (3.0.9.rc3)
+      activemodel (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      arel (~> 2.0.10)
       tzinfo (~> 0.3.23)
-    activeresource (3.0.7)
-      activemodel (= 3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
-    activesupport (3.0.7)
-    addressable (2.2.5)
-    arel (2.0.9)
+    activeresource (3.0.9.rc3)
+      activemodel (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+    activesupport (3.0.9.rc3)
+    addressable (2.2.6)
+    arel (2.0.10)
     autotest (4.4.6)
       ZenTest (>= 4.4.1)
     autotest-fsevent (0.2.5)
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ GEM
       term-ansicolor (~> 1.0.5)
     diff-lcs (1.1.2)
     em-dir-watcher (0.9.4)
-    em-websocket (0.2.1)
+    em-websocket (0.3.0)
       addressable (>= 2.1.1)
       eventmachine (>= 0.12.9)
     erubis (2.6.6)
@@ -71,14 +71,14 @@ GEM
     gherkin (2.2.9)
       json (~> 1.4.6)
       term-ansicolor (~> 1.0.5)
-    haml (3.1.1)
+    haml (3.1.2)
     i18n (0.5.0)
     json (1.4.6)
     livereload (1.6)
       em-dir-watcher (>= 0.1)
       em-websocket (>= 0.1.2)
       ruby-json (>= 1.1.2)
-    mail (2.2.17)
+    mail (2.2.19)
       activesupport (>= 2.3.6)
       i18n (>= 0.4.0)
       mime-types (~> 1.16)
@@ -86,27 +86,29 @@ GEM
     mime-types (1.16)
     mocha (0.9.12)
     polyglot (0.3.1)
-    rack (1.2.2)
+    rack (1.2.3)
     rack-mount (0.6.14)
       rack (>= 1.0.0)
     rack-test (0.5.7)
       rack (>= 1.0)
-    rails (3.0.7)
-      actionmailer (= 3.0.7)
-      actionpack (= 3.0.7)
-      activerecord (= 3.0.7)
-      activeresource (= 3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
+    rails (3.0.9.rc3)
+      actionmailer (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      actionpack (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activerecord (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activeresource (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
       bundler (~> 1.0)
-      railties (= 3.0.7)
-    railties (3.0.7)
-      actionpack (= 3.0.7)
-      activesupport (= 3.0.7)
+      railties (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+    railties (3.0.9.rc3)
+      actionpack (= 3.0.9.rc3)
+      activesupport (= 3.0.9.rc3)
       rake (>= 0.8.7)
+      rdoc (~> 3.4)
       thor (~> 0.14.4)
-    rake (0.8.7)
+    rake (0.9.2)
     rb-fsevent (0.4.0)
     rcov (0.9.9)
+    rdoc (3.6.1)
     rspec (2.0.1)
       rspec-core (~> 2.0.1)
       rspec-expectations (~> 2.0.1)
@@ -118,16 +120,16 @@ GEM
       rspec-core (~> 2.0.1)
       rspec-expectations (~> 2.0.1)
     ruby-json (1.1.2)
-    ruby-prof (0.10.5)
+    ruby-prof (0.10.7)
     rubyzip (0.9.4)
-    sass (3.1.1)
+    sass (3.1.2)
     sys-uname (0.8.5)
     term-ansicolor (1.0.5)
     thor (0.14.6)
     timecop (0.3.5)
     treetop (1.4.9)
       polyglot (>= 0.3.1)
-    tzinfo (0.3.26)
+    tzinfo (0.3.27)
 
 PLATFORMS
   ruby
diff --git a/Rakefile b/Rakefile
index e077d6f8..40e25323 100644
--- a/Rakefile
+++ b/Rakefile
@@ -29,6 +29,16 @@ To run with an alternate version of Rails, make test/rails a symlink to that ver
 To run with an alternate version of Haml & Sass, make test/haml a symlink to that version.
 END
 
+Rake::TestTask.new :units do |t|
+  t.libs << 'lib'
+  t.libs << 'test'
+  test_files = FileList['test/units/**/*_test.rb']
+  test_files.exclude('test/rails/*', 'test/haml/*')
+  t.test_files = test_files
+  t.verbose = true
+end
+
+
 desc "Compile Examples into HTML and CSS"
 task :examples do
   linked_haml = "tests/haml"
diff --git a/doc-src/content/help/index.haml b/doc-src/content/help/index.haml
index 0c5bfe36..22e70a52 100644
--- a/doc-src/content/help/index.haml
+++ b/doc-src/content/help/index.haml
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ layout: site
 
     ## Manual setup using the Blueprint Framework
 
-    When starting a project from scrath:
+    When starting a project from scratch:
 
         compass create /path/to/project --using blueprint
 
diff --git a/lib/compass/app_integration/rails.rb b/lib/compass/app_integration/rails.rb
index b734d1af..a850d8d7 100644
--- a/lib/compass/app_integration/rails.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/app_integration/rails.rb
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ module Compass
 
       def check_for_double_boot!
         if booted?
-          Compass::Util.compass_warn("Warning: Compass was booted twice. If you're using Rails 3, Compass has a Railtie now; please remove your compass intializer.")
+          Compass::Util.compass_warn("Warning: Compass was booted twice. Compass has a Railtie now; please remove your initializer.")
         else
           booted!
         end
diff --git a/lib/compass/commands/sprite.rb b/lib/compass/commands/sprite.rb
index b93705ed..08b4afda 100644
--- a/lib/compass/commands/sprite.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/commands/sprite.rb
@@ -39,10 +39,11 @@ module Compass
 
       def perform
         relative_uri = options[:uri].gsub(/^#{Compass.configuration.images_dir}\//, '')
-        sprites = Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => relative_uri, :options => Compass.sass_engine_options)
-        options[:output_file] ||= File.join(Compass.configuration.sass_path, "sprites", "_#{sprites.name}.#{Compass.configuration.preferred_syntax}")
+        name = Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_name(relative_uri)
+        sprites = Compass::SpriteImporter.new
+        options[:output_file] ||= File.join(Compass.configuration.sass_path, "sprites", "_#{name}.#{Compass.configuration.preferred_syntax}")
         options[:skip_overrides] ||= false
-        contents = sprites.content_for_images(options[:skip_overrides])
+        contents = Compass::SpriteImporter.content_for_images(relative_uri, name, options[:skip_overrides])
         if options[:output_file][-4..-1] != "scss"
           contents = Sass::Engine.new(contents, Compass.sass_engine_options.merge(:syntax => :scss)).to_tree.to_sass
         end
diff --git a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/functions/sprites.rb b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/functions/sprites.rb
index d746ed28..7639f4da 100644
--- a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/functions/sprites.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/functions/sprites.rb
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ module Compass::SassExtensions::Functions::Sprites
   def sprite_map(glob, kwargs = {})
     kwargs.extend VariableReader
     Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::SpriteMap.from_uri(glob, self, kwargs)
-  end 
+  end
   Sass::Script::Functions.declare :sprite_map, [:glob], :var_kwargs => true
 
   # Returns the image and background position for use in a single shorthand property:
diff --git a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites.rb b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites.rb
index ab35d84e..246836a7 100644
--- a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites.rb
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ module Compass
 end
 
 require 'compass/sass_extensions/sprites/image'
+require 'compass/sass_extensions/sprites/layout_methods'
 require 'compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_methods'
 require 'compass/sass_extensions/sprites/image_methods'
 require 'compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_map'
diff --git a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/layout_methods.rb b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/layout_methods.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d8787671
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/layout_methods.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+module Compass
+  module SassExtensions
+    module Sprites
+      module LayoutMethods
+        HORIZONTAL = 'horizontal'
+        
+        def horizontal?
+          @kwargs.get_var('layout').value == HORIZONTAL
+        end
+        
+        # Calculates the overal image dimensions
+        # collects image sizes and input parameters for each sprite
+        def compute_image_positions!
+          if horizontal?
+            calculate_height
+            calculate_horizontal_positions
+            calculate_width
+          else
+            calculate_width
+            calulate_vertical_postions
+            calculate_height
+          end
+        end
+        
+        def calculate_horizontal_positions
+          @images.each_with_index do |image, index|
+            image.top = image.position.unit_str == '%' ? (@height - image.height) * (image.position.value / 100.0) : image.position.value
+            next if index == 0
+            last_image = @images[index-1]
+            image.left = last_image.left + last_image.width + [image.offset, last_image.offset].max
+          end
+        end
+        
+        def calulate_vertical_postions
+          @images.each_with_index do |image, index|
+            image.left = image.position.unit_str == "%" ? (@width - image.width) * (image.position.value / 100.0) : image.position.value
+            next if index == 0
+            last_image = @images[index-1]
+            image.top = last_image.top + last_image.height + [image.spacing,  last_image.spacing].max
+          end
+        end
+        
+        
+        def calculate_dimensions!
+          calculate_width
+          calculate_height
+        end
+        
+        def calculate_height
+          @height = if horizontal?
+            height_for_horizontal_layout
+          else
+            height_for_vertical_layout
+          end
+        end
+        
+        def height_for_vertical_layout
+          last = @images.last
+          last.top + last.height
+        end
+        
+        def height_for_horizontal_layout
+          @height = @images.map {|image| image.height + image.spacing}.max
+        end
+        
+        def calculate_width
+          @width = if horizontal?
+            width_for_horizontal_layout
+          else
+            width_for_vertical_layout
+          end
+        end
+        
+        def width_for_horizontal_layout
+          @images.inject(0) { |sum, image| sum += (image.width + image.offset) }
+        end
+        
+        def width_for_vertical_layout
+          @images.map { |image| image.width + image.offset }.max
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
+  
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_map.rb b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_map.rb
index 546dd1d1..aa9179a1 100644
--- a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_map.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_map.rb
@@ -7,16 +7,19 @@ module Compass
 
         include SpriteMethods
         include ImageMethods
+        include LayoutMethods
 
 
         # Initialize a new sprite object from a relative file path
         # the path is relative to the <tt>images_path</tt> confguration option
         def self.from_uri(uri, context, kwargs)
-          importer = ::Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => uri.value, :options => {})
-          sprites = importer.files.map do |sprite|
-            sprite.gsub(Compass.configuration.images_path+"/", "")
+          uri = uri.value
+          name, path = Compass::SpriteImporter.path_and_name(uri)
+          files = Compass::SpriteImporter.files(uri)
+          sprites = files.map do |sprite|
+            sprite.gsub("#{Compass.configuration.images_path}/", "")
           end
-          new(sprites, importer.path, importer.name, context, kwargs)
+          new(sprites, path, name, context, kwargs)
         end
 
         def initialize(sprites, path, name, context, kwargs)
@@ -25,6 +28,7 @@ module Compass
           @name = name
           @kwargs = kwargs
           @kwargs['cleanup'] ||= Sass::Script::Bool.new(true)
+          @kwargs['layout'] ||= Sass::Script::String.new('vertical')
           @images = nil
           @width = nil
           @height = nil
diff --git a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_methods.rb b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_methods.rb
index c620e95a..7fdec149 100644
--- a/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_methods.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/sass_extensions/sprites/sprite_methods.rb
@@ -14,7 +14,6 @@ module Compass
           @width = 0
           init_images
           compute_image_positions!
-          @height = @images.last.top + @images.last.height
           init_engine
         end
         
@@ -29,22 +28,10 @@ module Compass
         def init_images
           @images = image_names.collect do |relative_file|
             image = Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::Image.new(self, relative_file, kwargs)
-            @width = [ @width, image.width + image.offset ].max
             image
           end
         end
         
-        # Calculates the overal image dimensions
-        # collects image sizes and input parameters for each sprite
-        def compute_image_positions!
-          @images.each_with_index do |image, index|
-            image.left = image.position.unit_str == "%" ? (@width - image.width) * (image.position.value / 100) : image.position.value
-            next if index == 0
-            last_image = @images[index-1]
-            image.top = last_image.top + last_image.height + [image.spacing,  last_image.spacing].max
-          end
-        end
-        
         # Validates that the sprite_names are valid sass
         def validate!
           for sprite_name in sprite_names
diff --git a/lib/compass/sprite_importer.rb b/lib/compass/sprite_importer.rb
index 3dd1bd3e..d46403d9 100644
--- a/lib/compass/sprite_importer.rb
+++ b/lib/compass/sprite_importer.rb
@@ -1,6 +1,5 @@
 module Compass
   class SpriteImporter < Sass::Importers::Base
-    attr_accessor :uri, :options
     VAILD_FILE_NAME = /\A#{Sass::SCSS::RX::IDENT}\Z/
     SPRITE_IMPORTER_REGEX = %r{((.+/)?([^\*.]+))/(.+?)\.png}
     VALID_EXTENSIONS = ['.png']
@@ -11,29 +10,15 @@ module Compass
       glob = "*-{,s}#{hex*10}{#{VALID_EXTENSIONS.join(",")}}"
       Dir.glob(File.join(path, "**", glob))
     end
-
-    def self.load(uri, options)
-      klass = Compass::SpriteImporter.new
-      klass.uri, klass.options = uri, options
-      klass
-    end
-    
-    def initialize(options ={})
-      @uri, @options = '', {}
-      options.each do |key, value|
-        send("#{key}=", value)
-      end
-    end
     
     def find(uri, options)
-      @uri, @options = uri, options
       if uri =~ SPRITE_IMPORTER_REGEX
-        return sass_engine
+        return self.class.sass_engine(uri, self.class.sprite_name(uri), self, options)
       end
+      nil
     end
     
     def find_relative(uri, base, options)
-      @uri, @options = uri, options
       find(File.join(base, uri), options)
     end
     
@@ -50,45 +35,43 @@ module Compass
     end
     
     def mtime(uri, options)
-      @uri, @options = uri, options
-      files.sort.inject(Time.at(0)) do |max_time, file|
+      self.class.files(uri).sort.inject(Time.at(0)) do |max_time, file|
         (t = File.mtime(file)) > max_time ? t : max_time
       end
     end
     
     def key(uri, options={})
-      @uri, @options = uri, options
-      [self.class.name + ":" + File.dirname(File.expand_path(uri)), File.basename(uri)]
+      [self.class.name + ":sprite:" + File.dirname(File.expand_path(uri)), File.basename(uri)]
     end
     
     def self.path_and_name(uri)
       if uri =~ SPRITE_IMPORTER_REGEX
         [$1, $3]
       else
-        raise Compass::Error "invalid sprite path"
+        raise Compass::Error, "invalid sprite path"
       end
     end
 
     # Name of this spite
-    def name
-      ensure_path_and_name!
-      @name
+    def self.sprite_name(uri)
+      _, name = path_and_name(uri)
+      name
     end
 
     # The on-disk location of this sprite
-    def path
-      ensure_path_and_name!
-      @path
+    def self.path(uri)
+      path, _ = path_and_name(uri)
+      path
     end
     
-    # Returns the Glob of image files for this sprite
-    def files
+    # Returns the Glob of image files for the uri
+    def self.files(uri)
       Dir[File.join(Compass.configuration.images_path, uri)].sort
     end
 
     # Returns an Array of image names without the file extension
-    def sprite_names
-      files.collect do |file|
+    def self.sprite_names(uri)
+      files(uri).collect do |file|
         filename = File.basename(file, '.png')
         unless VAILD_FILE_NAME =~ filename
           raise Compass::Error, "Sprite file names must be legal css identifiers. Please rename #{File.basename(file)}"
@@ -97,31 +80,18 @@ module Compass
       end
     end
     
-    def validate_sprites!
-      files.each do |file|
-        unless VALID_EXTENSIONS.include? File.extname(file)
-          raise Compass::Error, "Invalid sprite extension only: #{VALID_EXTENSIONS.join(',')} images are allowed"
-        end
-      end
-    end
-    
-    # Returns the sass options for this sprite
-    def sass_options
-      options.merge(:filename => name, :syntax => :scss, :importer => self)
+    # Returns the sass _options for this sprite
+    def self.sass_options(name, importer, options)
+      options.merge!(:filename => name, :syntax => :scss, :importer => importer)
     end
     
     # Returns a Sass::Engine for this sprite object
-    def sass_engine
-      validate_sprites!
-      Sass::Engine.new(content_for_images, sass_options)
+    def self.sass_engine(uri, name, importer, options)
+      Sass::Engine.new(content_for_images(uri, name, options[:skip_overrides]), sass_options(name, importer, options))
     end
-    
-    def ensure_path_and_name!
-      @path, @name = self.class.path_and_name(uri)
-    end 
 
     # Generates the Sass for this sprite file
-    def content_for_images(skip_overrides = false)
+    def self.content_for_images(uri, name, skip_overrides = false)
       <<-SCSS
 @import "compass/utilities/sprites/base";
 
@@ -134,8 +104,9 @@ $#{name}-spacing: 0 !default;
 $#{name}-repeat: no-repeat !default;
 $#{name}-prefix: '' !default;
 $#{name}-clean-up: true !default;
+$#{name}-layout:vertical !default;
 
-#{skip_overrides ? "$#{name}-sprites: sprite-map(\"#{uri}\", $cleanup: $#{name}-clean-up);" : generate_overrides }
+#{skip_overrides ? "$#{name}-sprites: sprite-map(\"#{uri}\", $layout: $#{name}-layout, $cleanup: $#{name}-clean-up);" : generate_overrides(uri, name) }
 
 // All sprites should extend this class
 // The #{name}-sprite mixin will do so for you.
@@ -167,7 +138,7 @@ $#{name}-clean-up: true !default;
 
 // Generates a class for each sprited image.
 @mixin all-#{name}-sprites($dimensions: $#{name}-sprite-dimensions, $prefix: sprite-map-name($#{name}-sprites)) {
-  @include #{name}-sprites(#{sprite_names.join(" ")}, $dimensions, $prefix);
+  @include #{name}-sprites(#{sprite_names(uri).join(" ")}, $dimensions, $prefix);
 }
 SCSS
     end
@@ -176,12 +147,13 @@ SCSS
     # <tt>$#{name}-#{sprite_name}-position </tt>
     # <tt> $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-spacing </tt>
     # <tt> #{name}-#{sprite_name}-repeat: </tt>
-    def generate_overrides
+    def self.generate_overrides(uri, name)
+      sprites = sprite_names(uri)
       content = <<-TXT
 // These variables control the generated sprite output
 // You can override them selectively before you import this file.
       TXT
-      sprite_names.map do |sprite_name| 
+      sprites.map do |sprite_name| 
         content += <<-SCSS
 $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-position: $#{name}-position !default;
 $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-spacing: $#{name}-spacing !default;
@@ -189,8 +161,8 @@ $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-repeat: $#{name}-repeat !default;
         SCSS
       end.join
 
-      content += "\n$#{name}-sprites: sprite-map(\"#{uri}\", \n$cleanup: $#{name}-clean-up,\n"
-      content += sprite_names.map do |sprite_name| 
+      content += "\n$#{name}-sprites: sprite-map(\"#{uri}\", \n$layout: $#{name}-layout, \n$cleanup: $#{name}-clean-up,\n"
+      content += sprites.map do |sprite_name| 
 %Q{  $#{sprite_name}-position: $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-position,
   $#{sprite_name}-spacing: $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-spacing,
   $#{sprite_name}-repeat: $#{name}-#{sprite_name}-repeat}
diff --git a/test/integrations/sprites_test.rb b/test/integrations/sprites_test.rb
index 723dac7d..456b0063 100644
--- a/test/integrations/sprites_test.rb
+++ b/test/integrations/sprites_test.rb
@@ -603,5 +603,33 @@ class SpritesTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
       }
     CSS
   end
+    
+  it "should calculate corret sprite demsions when givin spacing via issue#253" do
+    css = render <<-SCSS
+      $squares-layout:horizontal;
+      @import "squares/*.png";
+      .foo {
+        @include sprite-background-position($squares-sprites, "twenty-by-twenty");
+      }
+      .bar {
+        @include sprite-background-position($squares-sprites, "ten-by-ten");
+      }
+    SCSS
+    assert_equal [30, 20], image_size('squares-s*.png')
+    other_css = <<-CSS
+      .squares-sprite {
+        background: url('/squares-s161c60ad78.png') no-repeat;
+      }
 
-end
\ No newline at end of file
+      .foo {
+        background-position: -10px 0;
+      }
+
+      .bar {
+        background-position: 0 0;
+      }
+    CSS
+    assert_correct css.gsub("\n", '').gsub(' ', ''), other_css.gsub("\n", '').gsub(' ', '')
+  end
+
+end
diff --git a/test/test_helper.rb b/test/test_helper.rb
index 33dbe6ec..a4146cc6 100644
--- a/test/test_helper.rb
+++ b/test/test_helper.rb
@@ -34,4 +34,17 @@ class Test::Unit::TestCase
   include Compass::IoHelper
   extend Compass::TestCaseHelper::ClassMethods
   
-end 
\ No newline at end of file
+end 
+
+module SpriteHelper
+  URI = "selectors/*.png"
+  
+  def sprite_map_test(options)
+    importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new
+    path, name = Compass::SpriteImporter.path_and_name(URI)
+    sprite_names = Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_names(URI)
+    sass_engine = Compass::SpriteImporter.sass_engine(URI, name, importer, options)
+    Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::SpriteMap.new(sprite_names.map{|n| "selectors/#{n}.png"}, path, name, sass_engine, options)
+  end
+  
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/units/sprites/image_test.rb b/test/units/sprites/image_test.rb
index aa8dff32..afcc0c7c 100644
--- a/test/units/sprites/image_test.rb
+++ b/test/units/sprites/image_test.rb
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 require 'test_helper'
 require 'mocha'
 require 'ostruct'
+
 class SpritesImageTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
-
-
+  include SpriteHelper
   def setup
     @images_src_path = File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', '..', 'fixtures', 'sprites', 'public', 'images')
     file = StringIO.new("images_path = #{@images_src_path.inspect}\n")
@@ -18,18 +18,15 @@ class SpritesImageTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
   let(:sprite_path) { File.join(@images_src_path, sprite_filename) }
   let(:sprite_name) { File.basename(sprite_filename, '.png') }
   
-  def parent
-    importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => "selectors/*.png", :options => options)
-    @parent ||= Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::SpriteMap.new(importer.sprite_names.map{|n| "selectors/#{n}.png"}, importer.path, importer.name, importer.sass_engine, importer.options)
-  end
   
-  let(:options) do
+  def options
     options = {:offset => @offset}
     options.stubs(:get_var).with(anything).returns(nil)
     ::OpenStruct.any_instance.stubs(:unitless?).returns(true)
     options.stubs(:get_var).with("#{sprite_name}-repeat").returns(::OpenStruct.new(:value => @repeat))
     options.stubs(:get_var).with("#{sprite_name}-spacing").returns(::OpenStruct.new(:value => @spacing))
     options.stubs(:get_var).with("#{sprite_name}-position").returns(::OpenStruct.new(:value => @position))
+    options.stubs(:get_var).with("layout").returns(::OpenStruct.new(:value => 'vertical'))
     options
   end
   
@@ -38,7 +35,7 @@ class SpritesImageTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
   let(:digest) { Digest::MD5.file(sprite_path).hexdigest }
 
 
-  let(:image) { Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::Image.new(parent, File.join(sprite_filename), options)}
+  let(:image) { Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::Image.new(sprite_map_test(options), File.join(sprite_filename), options)}
 
   test 'initialize' do
     assert_equal sprite_name, image.name
diff --git a/test/units/sprites/importer_test.rb b/test/units/sprites/importer_test.rb
index 79fdc800..f9b0d79d 100644
--- a/test/units/sprites/importer_test.rb
+++ b/test/units/sprites/importer_test.rb
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ class ImporterTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
     @images_src_path = File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', '..', 'fixtures', 'sprites', 'public', 'images')
     file = StringIO.new("images_path = #{@images_src_path.inspect}\n")
     Compass.add_configuration(file, "sprite_config")
-    @importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => URI, :options => options)
+    @importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new
   end
 
   def teardown
@@ -18,20 +18,16 @@ class ImporterTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
     {:foo => 'bar'}
   end
   
-  test "load should return an instance of SpriteImporter" do
-    assert Compass::SpriteImporter.load(URI, options).is_a?(Compass::SpriteImporter)
-  end
-  
   test "name should return the sprite name" do
-    assert_equal 'selectors', @importer.name
+    assert_equal 'selectors', Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_name(URI)
   end
   
   test "path should return the sprite path" do
-    assert_equal 'selectors', @importer.path
+    assert_equal 'selectors',  Compass::SpriteImporter.path(URI)
   end
   
   test "should return all the sprite names" do
-    assert_equal ["ten-by-ten", "ten-by-ten_active", "ten-by-ten_hover", "ten-by-ten_target"], @importer.sprite_names
+    assert_equal ["ten-by-ten", "ten-by-ten_active", "ten-by-ten_hover", "ten-by-ten_target"], Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_names(URI)
   end
   
   test "should have correct mtime" do
@@ -47,19 +43,21 @@ class ImporterTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
   end
   
   test "sass options should contain options" do
-    assert_equal 'bar', @importer.sass_options[:foo]
+    opts = Compass::SpriteImporter.sass_options('foo', @importer, options)
+    assert_equal 'bar', opts[:foo]
   end
   
   test "should fail given bad sprite extensions" do
     @images_src_path = File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', '..', 'fixtures', 'sprites', 'public', 'images')
     file = StringIO.new("images_path = #{@images_src_path.inspect}\n")
     Compass.add_configuration(file, "sprite_config")
-    importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => 'bad_extensions/*.jpg', :options => options)
+    importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new
+    uri = "bad_extensions/*.jpg"
     begin
-      importer.sass_engine
+      Compass::SpriteImporter.sass_engine(uri, Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_name(uri), importer, {})
       assert false, "An invalid sprite file made it past validation."
     rescue Compass::Error => e
-      assert e.message.include?('.png')
+      assert e.message.include?("invalid sprite path")
     end
   end
   
diff --git a/test/units/sprites/sprite_map_test.rb b/test/units/sprites/sprite_map_test.rb
index 56f10885..9afa868a 100644
--- a/test/units/sprites/sprite_map_test.rb
+++ b/test/units/sprites/sprite_map_test.rb
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 require 'test_helper'
 
 class SpriteMapTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
+  include SpriteHelper
   
   def setup
     Hash.send(:include, Compass::SassExtensions::Functions::Sprites::VariableReader)
@@ -11,17 +12,13 @@ class SpriteMapTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
     config.images_path = @images_tmp_path
     Compass.add_configuration(config)
     Compass.configure_sass_plugin!
-    @options = {'cleanup' => Sass::Script::Bool.new(true)}
-    setup_map
-  end
-  
-  def setup_map
-    @importer = Compass::SpriteImporter.new(:uri => "selectors/*.png", :options => @options)
-    @base = Compass::SassExtensions::Sprites::SpriteMap.new(@importer.sprite_names.map{|n| "selectors/#{n}.png"}, @importer.path, @importer.name, @importer.sass_engine, @importer.options)
+    @options = {'cleanup' => Sass::Script::Bool.new(true), 'layout' => Sass::Script::String.new('vertical')}
+    @base = sprite_map_test(@options)
   end
 
   def teardown
     FileUtils.rm_r @images_tmp_path
+    @base = nil
   end
   
   it "should have the correct size" do
@@ -29,7 +26,7 @@ class SpriteMapTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
   end
   
   it "should have the sprite names" do
-    assert_equal @importer.sprite_names, @base.sprite_names
+    assert_equal Compass::SpriteImporter.sprite_names(URI), @base.sprite_names
   end
   
   it 'should have image filenames' do
@@ -82,9 +79,41 @@ class SpriteMapTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
     file_to_remove = File.join(@images_tmp_path, 'selectors', 'ten-by-ten.png')
     FileUtils.rm file_to_remove
     assert !File.exists?(file_to_remove), "Failed to remove sprite file"
-    setup_map
+    @base = sprite_map_test(@options)
     @base.generate
     assert !File.exists?(file), "Sprite file did not get removed"
   end
+
+  it "should have a vertical layout" do
+    assert_equal [0, 10, 20, 30], @base.images.map(&:top)
+    assert_equal [0, 0, 0, 0], @base.images.map(&:left)
+  end
+
+
+  # Horizontal tests
+  def horizontal
+    opts = @options.merge("layout" => Sass::Script::String.new('horizontal'))
+    sprite_map_test(opts)
+  end
+  
+  it "should have a horizontal layout" do
+    base = horizontal
+    assert_equal 10, base.height
+    assert_equal 40, base.width
+  end
+  
+  it "should layout images horizontaly" do
+    base = horizontal
+    assert_equal [0, 10, 20, 30], base.images.map(&:left)
+    assert_equal [0, 0, 0, 0], base.images.map(&:top)
+  end
+  
+  it "should generate a horrizontal sprite" do
+    base = horizontal
+    base.generate
+    assert File.exists?(base.filename)
+    FileUtils.rm base.filename
+  end
+  
   
 end
\ No newline at end of file