As I debugged issues with the new block gap feature added in Gutenberg 11.4 last week, I found the ticket introducing it. And, there was already a new ticket for one problem I had hit. However, there was some discussion over whether themes should be allowed to opt-out, rolling their own solution. There was no […]
Continue readingTag Archives: Theme
Major Push Towards Full-Site Editing, Plus a New Default Theme – WP Tavern
WordPress 5.9 is starting to take shape as Josepha Haden Chomphosy published a planning roundup at the end of last week with a tentative schedule and scope. This will be the last major release of the year, which Haden Chomphosy said will require “a slightly larger release squad,” considering the proposed scope. The squad leads […]
Continue readingAstra Theme Review: Is It the Best WordPress Theme in 2021?
Considering using the Astra theme for your website? In our hands-on Astra theme review, we’ll help you decide whether it’s the right theme for your needs. Astra has the impressive distinction of being the most popular non-default WordPress theme ever. It was the first and only non-default theme to pass the one million active install […]
Continue readingA Second Look at ElmaStudio’s Aino Theme and Companion Block Plugin – WP Tavern
I am about a month away from my second anniversary writing for WP Tavern. There has been one project that I have followed since the beginning of this journey. In some ways, we are learning the ropes and growing in this block-based WordPress era together. In 2019, just before taking on this role, one of […]
Continue readingAutomattic Releases Quadrat, a Block-Based Podcasting WordPress Theme – WP Tavern
A few weeks ago, Automattic released Quadrat on the WordPress.org theme directory. It is now the company’s fourth block theme. Like its predecessors, it is a child of Blockbase, a project that serves as a foundation for the work of Automattic’s Theme Team. After spending a couple of months diving deep into the world of […]
Continue readingFull Page Patterns Are Still the Missing Piece of Block WordPress Theme Development – WP Tavern
It was the early days of the Gutenberg project. Many on the Theme Review Team and those in design circles were trying to wrap their heads around this new concept called blocks. In particular, we wanted to know how it could be applied to theme development. There were many discussions on the pros and cons […]
Continue readingOpen Survey for WordPress Theme Authors on JSON Files and Block Themes – WP Tavern
WordPress 5.8 introduced an opt-in system for themes to configure block settings, styles, templates, and more. It is done through a new theme.json file that authors can put at the root of their theme folders. Anne McCarthy, the lead of the FSE Outreach Program, announced a survey earlier today to get feedback from developers on […]
Continue readingTheme Creation Will Be Easier, But We Are Not There Yet – WP Tavern
“The way that themes have evolved within WordPress has made creating them easier,” wrote Tammie Lister in the opening line of her article titled Theme creation is now easier. “That feels like a bold statement, but it’s true.” It is not a stretch to say that many would be asking for this secret-sauce recipe of […]
Continue readingEverse Theme Review: Multipurpose Elementor Theme
Elementor is a powerful page builder, but it requires a compatible and customizable theme. While there are dozens of ‘highly compatible’ themes for Elementor out there, you need to do a thorough check before you can say for sure that the theme is a good fit for you. In this article, I’ll be reviewing the […]
Continue readingA Developer-Centric Call for Testing Theme JSON Configuration – WP Tavern
Round #8 of the Full Site Editing (FSE) Outreach Program began yesterday. Instead of the user-centric call for testing features from the UI, program lead Anne McCarthy asks that volunteers dive into code. The new adventure is all about testing theme.json files. The twist is likely to limit the pool of usual volunteers. However, it […]
Continue reading


