What Wordpress Theme Do You Guys Love To Customize & Work With?

63 replies
What the title says really!

So,

What do you guys use when it comes to WP and customization? I have been working alot with WP and the offline world recently and have started to sway most of my potential clients towards it. But as a whole in IM which WP themes are you guys customizing and using mostly?

GoGetta
#customize #guys #love #wordpress #work
  • Profile picture of the author kayelex
    I've been customizing the Revolution themes alot and the WooThemes. Those aren't free to begin with so I am not sure if you were only looking for free ones
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  • Profile picture of the author LFL
    Woo Themes, but far. Well worth spending some bucks on their premium templates.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mande
    I LOOOOOVE the Atahaulpa theme. It is the BOMB. Makes squeeze pages and landing pages and blogs and websites. Totally easy for a novice to use like me! LOVE IT! When i make my millions online I'm giving the designer of that template a nice check! It'll all be because of him.
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    • Profile picture of the author Bennette
      Originally Posted by Mande View Post

      I LOOOOOVE the Atahaulpa theme. It is the BOMB. Makes squeeze pages and landing pages and blogs and websites. Totally easy for a novice to use like me! LOVE IT! When i make my millions online I'm giving the designer of that template a nice check! It'll all be because of him.
      I downloaded that theme but am having problems customizing the header. I will play with it a little longer since you are having good results with it.
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  • computer lock up... aaack. find a theme you like that does what you want... no money to be made customizing your themes unless you are a reseller/designer.
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  • Profile picture of the author ladyshadowrider
    My favorites are the Mandigo theme and Freshy 2 with the Customize plugin.

    I like the Mandigo theme for quickly putting up a WP blog, because you can easily swap out the header graphic and select from the standard color schemes.

    For a more full-featured WP install, I like the Freshy 2 theme because of all the "pretty" customization choices it offers thru the Customize plugin.

    Tamara
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  • Profile picture of the author morgansmom
    I second the Copyblogger theme. I've customized it for quite a few clients and it's also easy to throw up on a niche blog and make it look unique without wasting countless hours on it. My own blog is a customized version of it.
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  • Profile picture of the author hangtimenino
    I too, have been tweaking around with WP, and this thread is just in time. Thank you for posting this. Im working on a free theme only.
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  • Profile picture of the author 11Levels
    Best theme EVER - Thesis Theme by DIY Themes (diythemes.com)!
    Go check it out. It allows so much flexibility AND it has a great support forum!!
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    • Profile picture of the author melanied
      I like Super Adsense by Gobala Krishnan. Really easy to customize, although you have to do it in the code.

      I even have installations where I've taken out the header and the sidebars to do squeeze pages - it's very flexible!
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  • Profile picture of the author Cheryl Hines
    I like Flexibility2, too. It is plain but you can jazz it up with a little tweaking and it's FREE.

    Thesis is my next favorite for a paid product. The Revolution - another paid theme.

    It really depends on what you want your site to look like. A really good magazine style (free) theme is the Branford magazine and they have a good support forum too.
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  • Profile picture of the author AdInventive
    Lots of people swear by Thesis.

    Personally, I prefer much more to find a relatively obscure theme on themeforest to work with. Not many people have seen them, they're pretty inexpensive, and they have some really slick looking ones listed.
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    • Profile picture of the author 11Levels
      Originally Posted by AdInventive View Post

      Lots of people swear by Thesis.
      It's true, a lot of bloggers praise the Thesis theme but for a reason.

      You can make it look totally and completely different from its initial look. As I mentioned, there is an active support forum to give you a kick start. You can get rid of the sidebar widgets and make it look like a salespage.

      It's really, very flexible.

      I have tried a lot of free themes, but I found that they're not very flexible, the only one that is decent and gives the users some kind of visual user interface is the Flexibility theme, but still not enough to satisfy my "flexibility needs" :p (it's just my personal experience...).

      --
      Marianna
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  • Profile picture of the author metco
    Thanks for the Atahaulpa tip, it looks awesome, not to mention awesomely complex. Will take a while to get my head around it, but should be a great match for some of my blogs.

    Garry Boyd
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    • Profile picture of the author sarafina
      I had thesis for a week before I returned it. It was too confusing for me. I use cutline by chris pearson. Nothing spectacular about it but it gets the job done.

      I didn`t know flexibility was free. I like the look and will scoop it up!
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    • Profile picture of the author mr2020
      Originally Posted by metco View Post

      Thanks for the Atahaulpa tip, it looks awesome, not to mention awesomely complex. Will take a while to get my head around it, but should be a great match for some of my blogs.

      Garry Boyd
      Hey mate,

      I was intimidated at first with this theme, but i just tossed it on an obscure site of mine and hacked for a few hours over the course of a week. Now I am using it on three of my sites and LOVING it.

      Twenty Twenty
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  • Profile picture of the author NakMuay
    WP Remix is absolutely amazing. In the process of getting a completely customized version of it (backend management and all) specifically for IM-related sites.

    Carrington blog theme is also wonderful too. Can be made ridiculously beautiful and functional with just the right tweaks.

    Hate to think where I'd be without WordPress...
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    • Profile picture of the author dmderoeck
      Thesis and more recently, Studiopress are my choice themes.

      Thesis is very strong out of the box. But to make it unique there is a learning curve. But for overall functionality potential, Thesis is my pick. Having a programming background, I love the way Thesis "externalizes" code through the use of "hooks". This keeps the core code clean and introduces functionality probably not seen in too many themes.

      Studiopress is also very good from what I've seen. I like to use this theme when I need more of a "website" feel.

      That said, there are many very good free themes as well. I have used PrimePress with some very good results.

      Wordpress is such a great platform, with its extended functionality through plugins. I personally don't find many reasons not to use it over anything else out there.
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  • Profile picture of the author terryd
    I like using artiseer to get any look that i want, not exactly a theme but I can make any theme I want.
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  • Profile picture of the author greff
    I am always amazed by what my son can do with WordPress. The Mighty Mo! Design Co.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kevin Riley
      I like Silent Deep, from the WP site. It's clean and simple, and I can easily change the header graphic. Here, I even changed the backgrouind colour by editing one line in the stylesheet (that was scary):

      Success Manifesto 2011

      I usually use the stock deep red background though, as I like the deep colour.
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      Kevin Riley, long-time Warrior living in Osaka, Japan

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  • Profile picture of the author FasTrack-Eddie
    Banned
    What really matters - Are you selling your products or adsense ads within the context of your article, besides just posting and PLR positioning ?

    >wink<
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    • Profile picture of the author rosetrees
      Another vote for Atuahalpa here. I use it on all of my WP sites.

      @Bennette - changing the header isn't difficult. PM me if you need instructions
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  • Profile picture of the author Quentin
    I like Artisteer as I can make any theme I want.

    Quentin
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  • Profile picture of the author Harry Behrens
    I have to say iNove! WordPress › iNove Free WordPress Themes I love that theme. It's amazing and has everything you could possibly ask for in terms of WP functionality and is simple and easy to manipulate.

    I've never really paid much attention to the supposed SEO-special themes that are out there, since in my experience (web designer is my day job) every theme is easy to get up to SEO... there's just so much you can do. So for me the simple, clear, yet good-looking themes that feature my content and don't get in the way are the tops.
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    - Harry Behrens

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    • Profile picture of the author sridhar
      Originally Posted by Harry Behrens View Post

      I have to say iNove! WordPress › iNove Free WordPress Themes I love that theme. It's amazing and has everything you could possibly ask for in terms of WP functionality and is simple and easy to manipulate.

      I've never really paid much attention to the supposed SEO-special themes that are out there, since in my experience (web designer is my day job) every theme is easy to get up to SEO... there's just so much you can do. So for me the simple, clear, yet good-looking themes that feature my content and don't get in the way are the tops.
      I use it for my business blog.

      Originally Posted by morgansmom View Post

      You need to dive into the CSS and start playing with it. Open the style.css file and start editing. Each little change you make, save the file and refresh the page to see what it did. That's how I learned CSS.
      A better way in my opinion is using Firebug.
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  • Profile picture of the author tim254
    I've been using Artisteer lately, but when I really like StudioPress and WooThemes. They make modifying the themes very easy. Thesis is nice, but it doesn't seem very easy to heavily modify it since it's so different than a standard Wordpress theme.
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  • Profile picture of the author Melody
    I am looking for someone to either convert an html template to a WP theme or does anyone know how to make Flexibility2 a full width theme?

    I love Flexibility2 - and use it for most projects but I have a friend with minimal budget that really wants a particular look for his site - I can get close with Flexibility2 but he wants it full width.....and I don't know how to do that!

    A programmer I am not......I've posted in the "For Hire" section - but no responses from the programmers there!

    Any and all help appreciated - happy to pay if you can help!

    Melody
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    • Profile picture of the author Palo Coyote
      Hi Melody,
      (If I would have been born a girl my mother was going to name me Melody, truth).
      I don't know anything about Flexibility2. I recently downloaded a theme called Atahualpa 3.3.3 from BytesForAll WordPress WP Themes Atahualpa 3.3.3 released When you UN-CHECK all of the Sidebar marks in 'Sidebar' you get a Full Page. You can change the header graphic and they have a very good Forum for support. There is no affiliate program, I'm just someone who downloaded the theme because I wanted a Static Front Page, Blog Page, Customer Headers with my photos and graphics and 1 column or 2 column or 3 column.

      It's a little cludgey I've got to tell you. You have to understand a little about WordPress and how to FTP a new header graphic and stuff like that.

      I've heard that Thesis is better. Atahualpa is Free, Thesis is $97 to $167.
      Leanne King (WF), "The Blog Queen" has a theme called WP Flex. You can add Adsense and lots of other cool stuff. She's going to do a WSO, currently $97 but she has a coupon for the WSO (PM me). I did not buy it YET. I'm really tempted, it looks REALLY GREAT! I've bought some of her other WSO's and they are excellent.

      The only thing about "Converting an HTML Template" is where do you put the Opt-In code from Aweber (or whatever autoresponder you're using) Seree has a Free Opt-In moduel (I bought the paid version and am one happy guy). I used to love HTML, now I am really a WordPress guy. I love putting all my articles as posts on my site.)

      I will help you with your customer if you want, glad to help you. I'm very sure you can convert what ever HTML the customer has to either Atahualpa or WP Flex. I'm not a programmer either but I've been known to mess with PHP and CSS and finally make it work. Let me know, glad to help you.

      Tony
      Palo Coyote (my pen name)
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      No sig today.

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      • Profile picture of the author michellegreen
        Studiopress is my favourite and their support forum is great for when I get stuck too!
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        • Profile picture of the author TeddyP
          Originally Posted by michellegreen View Post

          Studiopress is my favourite and their support forum is great for when I get stuck too!
          They have a GREAT forum. Most questions answered within hours - lots of time with complete code suggested. I do wish they introduced new themes more often though.

          It got a bit stale for me, so I also got a WooThemes account - they have some great themes and great support as well.

          EDIT: Just remembered all three sites in my sig are customized Studiopress themes.
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  • Profile picture of the author CashTactics
    If I'm creating a corporate site for someone or if I just want a theme with a lot of functionality then I use this: WPRemix Premium Wordpress CMS Theme

    One of the best/most functionable wp themes I have used. The only problem is there is quite a bit of learning to do before you can master it. But it comes with instructions and once you learn the basics... Your good to go!
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  • Profile picture of the author JL Melvin
    For local businesses my favorite is the Countryside theme - I change out the header and the colors in the CSS and customize for the client - Free WordPress Themes : WordPress Themes : Business WordPress Themes, WordPress CMS Themes

    Jeff


    Free WordPress Tutorials section
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  • Profile picture of the author ijohnson
    BINGO! My goal today is to choose a WordPress theme for my new blog and this post has given me my starting point. I'm new to all of this, blogging and internet marketing, and I find it quite overwhelming to wade my way through this vast field of knowledge and pick out the nuggets that will be fit my needs.

    Thanks to all of you who have taken the time to reply to this post. Those of us needing some guidance really do appreciate your willingness to share.

    My upcoming blog will focus on health, fitness and wellness for baby boomers. Please let me know what WordPress theme you would suggest I use for maximum impact, appeal, and ease of use.
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    Make every day count!
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  • Profile picture of the author Sands
    How does one go about learning to theme and tweak WP Themes?

    I have loaded WAMP and am looking at Themes locally but I have no idea where to begin.
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    • Profile picture of the author Marian
      I need to customize pretty all themes - from Woo, Thesis, Revolution, Flexibility, UBD - it just happens some things are not working good, some things I just have to change - like the search - when doing for AdSense... they are very few themes that work perfectly under any circumstance :-)

      Marian
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    • Profile picture of the author morgansmom
      Originally Posted by Sands View Post

      How does one go about learning to theme and tweak WP Themes?

      I have loaded WAMP and am looking at Themes locally but I have no idea where to begin.
      You need to dive into the CSS and start playing with it. Open the style.css file and start editing. Each little change you make, save the file and refresh the page to see what it did. That's how I learned CSS.
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      • Profile picture of the author Sands
        Ok!

        I am taking Lynda CSS dream weaver and then Lynda CSS classes!

        So I will then have the ability to theme WP!

        Thank you.
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        • Profile picture of the author michelle0804
          I like themes anything about environment.fresh flowers,trees or plants.Themes which makes me feel good and great while working on it.
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  • Profile picture of the author nossie
    I biuld my last website with WPremix. Nice theme with ALOT of customization options.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andy Crofford
    OverEasy for business sites and FreshNews for blogs from WooThemes are my favorite.

    I also created my own theme for my blog and made it so it is easy to update and change colors.
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  • Profile picture of the author Creative Thinker
    I like flexibility theme...
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    • Profile picture of the author warfore
      I second the WP Remix theme. It is very customizable but there is a significant learning curve (not difficult but takes time). It is a great theme.
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      Regards,

      Tony

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  • Profile picture of the author JonathanBoettcher
    I like Semiologic Pro for its amazing configurability. Makes wordpress into pretty much anything you want it, in terms of a CMS. However, I find it very limited from a design / pretty-ness point of view.

    I've also tried WP-Remix for some of my sites; however I find it a bit too much work to customize quickly for little niche sites. You can get a nice result from it though.

    Lately I've been playing with Flexibility. I can customize things pretty quick, and there's good control over the theme without having to get into too much design.

    None of those are free, but really, it's hard to find good things that are.
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  • Profile picture of the author kindsvater
    Mandigo - love it. Easy to customize headers, widgets, and numerous theme options.
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  • They've all been said, but I'll reitterate them because I love them so much:

    1) Thesis
    2) Flexibility
    3) Semiologic

    They're just awesomely well-designed, solid themes chock full of functionality and brawn while maintaining pleasant, clean looks.

    -DareDevil
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    DareDevil Marketing
    Fearless Marketing Strategies
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  • Profile picture of the author Rien
    I am totally digging the Black-Glass theme. I actually had a question some of you WP experts may be able to answer. I am building a site for an offline client and they would like to be able to do some simple updates. I installed an event calendar on one of their pages and they asked if it was possible to tweak.

    They want it to look one way publically (i.e. "7/14/09 5:00 to 6:00 Event"), then have the actual event details visible when one of their employees logs in with a lower user level log in (i.e. "7/14/09 5:00 to 6:00 Bob's Retirement Party - 123 Main Street").

    I am using Kieran Oshea's Calendar plug-in.
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  • Profile picture of the author Eric Transue
    I started using Thesis about 3 months ago and am very impressed. I really like the fact that it is highly customizable. If you have it installed, be sure to get the "open hook" plugin which makes it even easier to work with.
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  • Profile picture of the author David McKee
    No question about it, for my marketing sites I use Beach House 1.22 by Dan Masters, because it is very clean, has a wide column and a narrow column, and it gets you into just that "on the beach mood" - and here I come along with an ice cold drink, and you are ready to buy. It is simple so the Php code is easy to customize, yet sophisticated enough that I can run plugins like "Simple Forum" and cforms II and it looks great all the way.

    For my political blog I use Aspire by Info Creek modified to have three narrow columns. It looks like parchment and really fits with that type of blog.

    David T. McKee
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    • Anyone use iThemes? They look interesting but I'm a little worried that no one in here has recommended them.

      I've been using Rapid Niche Websites to create my sites but the themes it creates are getting old and tired. It's time to upgrade so this thread is perfect.

      Travis
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      TVS Internet Marketing: Helping small businesses get more visibility & sales online.
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      • Profile picture of the author JV3STUDIO
        I've got a few new ones (see my sig)

        Best,

        Johan
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  • Profile picture of the author Christian Fox
    I like affiliate theme more than anything I have tried. As My sig suggests.
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  • Profile picture of the author SoundsGood
    I just wanted to bump this thread in case there are any hot new themes anyone can recommend.
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  • Profile picture of the author leebo1010
    It really depends on what the project is. Atahualpa and Affiliate Themes are some good ones when I don't want to build from scratch, but I'm going to give another vote for Artisteer. I find that by the time I'm done hacking up some other theme, I could've created a theme from scratch exactly the way I want it down to the smallest details with Artisteer. So I have customized themes on 90%+ of my sites.
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  • Profile picture of the author Tom Dean
    - I'll give Artisteer a vote. Great for niche sites. Easy to duplicate static site designs like an xsite pro site when adding a blog
    - Revolution 1 & 2 (the original ones)
    - Frugal Theme Pro - not as many options as Thesis but quick to deploy, easy to use, good seo, home page feature (can use hooks).
    - WP Premium
    - Thesis

    Tom
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    Rush PBN - PRO PBN SETUP - 10 PAGE SITE !!! Premium Theme
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  • Profile picture of the author dsmpublishing
    Hi guys

    i like the one that i have on my make money online blog:

    The ultimate Internet Marketing Blog with free advice and assistance for all!

    it works well and gives me the look that i want.

    kind regards


    sam
    X
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  • Profile picture of the author nuwav
    studiopress themes simple to use and customizable and plus they have a support forum.
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