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Choosing a wordpress theme

by bh3175
10 replies
  • WEB DESIGN
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Hi, I am completely new to all of this and I'm looking for some advice on choosing a wordpress theme. I am not a website designer, but I am artistic and have an idea of what I want the site to look like. I have a basic understanding of html but not css or anything else. I just jumped in and tried thesis under the impression that it would be easy for someone with no experience and was completely lost. I couldn't make sense of much of it and found it very frustrating trying to make the site look the way I wanted it to. I have read good things about the Headway Theme but don't want to waste my money again. What are the best themes for someone with no ability to edit css/php/etc.. that still wants to control the look of the site? For example, I want to be able to use a background image, my own designed navigation bar, header, add a favicon, have a few of the buttons in the navigation link outside of the wordpress site.
Thank you very much for any help!
#choosing #theme #wordpress
  • Profile picture of the author RatRaceWatch
    You should download a bunch of themes and just experiment with which one looks the best for you. It probably is just going to come down to personal preference, I know I changed mine quite a few times!
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    • Profile picture of the author bh3175
      Do you mean free themes? Because right now I don't have the extra income to just download a bunch of the paid ones and experiment with them. Especially at the prices of themes such as Thesis and Headway.
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  • Profile picture of the author swiminsoda
    Originally Posted by bh3175 View Post

    Hi, I am completely new to all of this and I'm looking for some advice on choosing a wordpress theme. I am not a website designer, but I am artistic and have an idea of what I want the site to look like. I have a basic understanding of html but not css or anything else. I just jumped in and tried thesis under the impression that it would be easy for someone with no experience and was completely lost. I couldn't make sense of much of it and found it very frustrating trying to make the site look the way I wanted it to. I have read good things about the Headway Theme but don't want to waste my money again. What are the best themes for someone with no ability to edit css/php/etc.. that still wants to control the look of the site? For example, I want to be able to use a background image, my own designed navigation bar, header, add a favicon, have a few of the buttons in the navigation link outside of the wordpress site.
    Thank you very much for any help!
    Socrates's money making themes for newbies. They also have a very responsive forum to help you out. It's important having backend support with your purchase.

    El
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    • Profile picture of the author bh3175
      Originally Posted by swiminsoda View Post

      Socrates's money making themes for newbies. They also have a very responsive forum to help you out. It's important having backend support with your purchase.

      El
      I'll look into it, thank you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Abledragon
    Having spent the money on Thesis it would be worth getting to know how to use it, because once you do you'll be able to create all sorts of different looks and layouts.

    Yes - Thesis does involve a learning curve, but the User Guide on the DIYThemes site is excellent (and being added to all the time), plus the support in the forums is superb.

    It would be worth setting aside some time to get to understand Thesis - especially as you've already paid for it.

    One thought (which I've done for ages) is to create a test site, set up Thesis and play around with the Site Options and Design Options just to see the effects of different settings. With those alone you can get a perfectly good site design - no need to mess with the custom stylesheet or custom functions file until you're ready to really branch out.

    There are some Thesis tips here:

    http://www.wealthydragon.com/category/thesis-tips/

    ... but the User Guide and support forums on the DIYThemes site are the real sources of information.

    Cheers,

    Martin.
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  • Profile picture of the author Forcefactor
    I personally like the affiliate theme. Affiliate Theme
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  • Profile picture of the author SkylineLogo
    Css is not that hard. If you know html you can experience with CSS and you can make your site in 1-2 week, but that's just the starting ... you need to experience a lot.

    Also I almost everytime face problems with Wordpress. Customizing a theme is not that simple that Matt Mullenweg and the Wordpress theme suggest with the famous "5 minute installation" process.

    Why not use a WYSIWYG (wordpress) editor?
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  • Profile picture of the author animesh
    Originally Posted by bh3175 View Post

    Hi, I am completely new to all of this and I'm looking for some advice on choosing a wordpress theme. I am not a website designer, but I am artistic and have an idea of what I want the site to look like. I have a basic understanding of html but not css or anything else. I just jumped in and tried thesis under the impression that it would be easy for someone with no experience and was completely lost. I couldn't make sense of much of it and found it very frustrating trying to make the site look the way I wanted it to. I have read good things about the Headway Theme but don't want to waste my money again. What are the best themes for someone with no ability to edit css/php/etc.. that still wants to control the look of the site? For example, I want to be able to use a background image, my own designed navigation bar, header, add a favicon, have a few of the buttons in the navigation link outside of the wordpress site.
    Thank you very much for any help!
    Hi, try Weaver 2.2 theme for wordpress. I am using it and it has all the option to make a beautiful site of your choice.
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  • Profile picture of the author mr141wp
    Hi,
    You can try to download some free WordPress themes available and try them on a test site.

    If this is your business site, you may not find the free themes too good in terms of design but it is a good idea to start with a free theme and understand the functionality. Once you are comfortable with the platform, you can get some premium theme for wordpress and get your site live finally.

    Good Luck
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  • Profile picture of the author Istvan Horvath
    For example, I want to be able to use a background image, my own designed navigation bar, header, add a favicon, have a few of the buttons in the navigation link outside of the wordpress site.
    I don't know what the your own navigation bar is... but everything else is possible (and a lot more) with the default twentyeleven theme that comes with WP.

    Also, few paid themes come close to the free Hybrid and its children themes, if we talk about quality. Warning: The themes themselves are free but if you need support (hand holding) you'll need to pay a nominal yearly fee for detailed tutorials and support.
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