Making WP Templates

Question

I have a wordpress blog and I would like to make a custom design myself...

I dont want to pay a bunch of money for a company to make it for me

Why are the templates broken into a bunch of different files?

What are some tutorials you know of on how to make wp themes/templates?

Thanks

-Techy

Answer 1

If you're experienced in PHP, HTML and CSS it's quite easy to create your own WP Templates

To get you started

So you want to create WordPress themes huh?

Build a Basic Newspaper style layout with Wordpress and jQuery

I found both tutorials to be the best resources to build your own customized template.

Answer 2

1 minute of googling: So you want to create WordPress themes huh?

Also: Word press templates are probably split into multiple files because parts of the theme are re-used on multiple pages. For example, if you want to change how the side bar looks you only have to change it in once place instead of on the main page, archive, and detail pages.

A lot of websites do this, it is a theme in computer software all together, it's called Don't Repeat Yourself (look it up on wiki).

Answer 3

another option is to use a theme framework. it becomes your main theme, and you create a CHILD THEME, with your desired style. I'd say that, if you are going to learn how to create a theme from scratch, learn how to work with a theme framework instead. They are a high quality base you can use as a starting point, are easier to work with, and are here to stay. Not to mention that once you get the hang of building child themes, building a second completely different theme will be much faster than starting another theme from scratch.

i prefer HYBRID, but there are comparisons of the main theme frameworks here: http://www.wptavern.com/comparisons-between-most-popular-theme-frameworks, http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/05/27/wordpress-theme-development-frameworks/

if you are going to build it from scratch, here is a PSD starting point: http://www.area381.com/2007/07/10/wordpress-psd-framework/

and here is a very complete guide on building WP themes: http://tr.im/sFsT

Answer 4

I would like to point 5 videos from CSS Tricks that helped me creating my 1st WP theme. And then 2 more about the subject.

• Video 25: Designing for Wordpress: Part I
• Video 26: Designing for Wordpress: Part II
• Video 27: Designing for Wordpress: Part III
• Video 41: WordPress as a CMS
• Video 65: Advanced Uses for Custom Fields in WordPress