Updated: April 10, 2012
Designer is one of the most significant components of the Origin Framework. It allows you to create some very advanced customizations of your theme without editing a single line of CSS.
First thing you need to do is make sure you’ve installed one of our delightful WordPress themes. Install your theme, then go to Appearance > Designer in your WordPress admin. This will take you to the full screen, designer interface.
Here’s what Origin Designer looks like after you load it. All the customizable values are on the left and there’s a menu bar along the top. The most important part of this interface though is the realtime preview of your site. This preview updates in real time as you change values. You can also navigate to different pages using this preview.
If you look down the left you’ll see that all the settings are broken up into sections. A section is usually a single block on your website, such as main menu, slider, top bar, etc. Click on a section to view all the settings for that section.
SiteOrigin themes generally have well over 100 settings. Each setting has a title and a brief description to help you understand what it does. Hovering over the title of a setting will highlight the element that’s effected by that setting in the live preview. Clicking on a setting title will scroll the preview to the element.
You can also do the whole process in reverse. If you hover over an element that’s effected by a setting, Designer will highlight it. Right click on an element and Designer will focus on and highlight the settings that effect that element.
Never let a great looking style go to waste. If you’ve created a style that you’re not going to use, then please share it with the SiteOrigin community. Click the big blue share button, then follow the easy steps. Your style will show up on SiteOrigin. It’s a great way to give back something if you appreciate our free themes. You’ll also gain reputation in the community and be in line for some cool rewards when we add a rewards system.
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