HTML Global Signature Formatting

Hopefully this is an easy question and I'm just being overly cautious by not just trying things...

I've been asked to update my Global Signature on outgoing email and I am having some formatting issues with the HTML version of the signature. I want a couple of carriage returns to make spaces in the signature but they are not getting recognized. I've looked at the documentation and it just says to use the tools given. In the interface the signature has the following format:

[ASCII Characters to indicate a break from the message]
2 lines for first signature message
[Empty line]
2 lines for 2nd signature message
[ASCII Characters indicating end of signature]

When it is received it comes across in the following format
[ASCII Characters like intended]
[Empty line, not intended]
First signature message
Second signature message (no empty line between this and the previous one)
[ASCII Characters again as expected]

I can make plain text format how I want to see it, any ideas why I can't get HTML to follow the formatting that I want?

Thanks!