Learning how to make a WordPress theme can be easy or difficult depending on how familiar you are with WordPress and web development and programming. If you are new to any of those elements, don’t worry because learning how to make a WordPress theme is still pretty easy if you have the right tools.
To get started learning how to make a WordPress theme, it is first important to establish your level of expertise when it comes to building and web development. If you are completely new to any sort of website design, then don’t worry because there are still tools out there that make building your own WordPress theme a pretty easy process. There are lots of reasons one might consider wanting to learn how to make a WordPress theme:
- You can create your WordPress theme exactly how you want it to look.
- You get to have a WordPress theme style that is all your own and doesn’t look like every other WordPress theme on the web.
- You can also save money on not having to purchase a WordPress theme from another developer, which means you can continually make your website more and more themes if you like to spice up the look of your blog without breaking the bank.
To get started, it is important to have some programming skills especially if you plan to start learning how to make a WordPress theme from scratch. Using a tutorial like the one from ThemeShaper is a great way you can make a WordPress theme in 11 easy lessons. However, if you are new to programming, web design language and building your own website in general, it might be a good idea to consider an alternative to learning how to make a WordPress theme for your WordPress blog.
Other options you might want to consider for building your own WordPress theme include using a tool like the WordPress Thesis Theme. While this is already a theme and does not allow you the luxury of building your WordPress theme from the ground up, you can still have full creative control over your WordPress theme, which is an amazingly useful way to build your website theme if you are new to any kind of web development. The WordPress thesis theme works by allowing users to build a theme system that allows for the creative control to design your website exactly how you want it to look. It includes tons of different tools instead of already giving you an overall look with color scheme, fonts, etc. Instead, you get all of that to choose from instead of having it come with a package already designed for your blog.
The best part about using a tool like the WordPress Thesis theme is that it gives you creative control, but you don’t have to be a professional programmer, or even a programmer at all to get started. You get the control to choose your own color scheme, fonts, layout structure, posting style, etc. While this is a tool you have to purchase, it might save you both time and money in the long run of having to learn the ins and outs of a programming language like PHP to even build one solid theme. Plus, many WordPress users consider the WordPress Thesis Theme to be an investment because you can use it to spice up your theme as you wish to change fonts, colors, sizes, etc.
Regardless of the way you attempt to learn how to make a WordPress theme, there are couple of things you need to keep in mind before you begin. There are certain development standards for building a WordPress theme that must be adhered to when you build your theme. First, the WordPress theme must be coded to fulfill these standards:
- Keep your theme well-structured with error-proof PHP and valid HTML.
- Use clean and valid CSS.
- Make sure you follow the design guidelines in the Site Design and Layout rules in the WordPress codex.