Collection pages use custom sub-nav tabs to group related products, accessories and description pages together.

This store uses a combination of Custom and Smart Collections to manage a huge inventory of pens, inks and accessories. Eagle-eyed visitors will notice that it blends seamlessly with the Copic Marker WordPress site, too. (Hint: that’s not an accident.)

Using collections and tags for a two-tiered sorting process gave us a tremendous amount of flexibility, which we definitely needed to get this site working the way it should! Shopify has made it really easy to access collections and tags via link lists (in the Navigation tab of the Shopify admin). Navigation: not just for links anymore. They’ve also made some changes to the way tags are handled, which essentially allows users to create collections on the fly using tags.

Bulk order forms let customers quickly add lots of products.

This theme had a lot of custom elements:

• tab-based sub-navigation on the collection pages (which pull in the correct products based on tags)
• overview pages that detail each product family with a graphic and some links
• sidebar graphics that change depending on which collection is being viewed
• related products (again, based on collections and tags – are you sensing a theme?)
• a cool bulk order option, which uses Custom Collections as well as a custom collection template (and a bit of javascript) to add a little sumpin’ sumpin’ to the ‘add to cart’ function

We love the bold colors and fun graphics on the Bloom Essentials redesign.

First up, we worked with the Bloom crew to come up with a bold new color scheme that really makes the site pop. We added some fun, frilly elements (after all, it’s a day spa!) and a subtle floral background to add a little texture. We had a moment of silence for the Bloom Girl (don’t worry, she’s almost certainly gone off to become an actress or something) and fell in love with the pretty new site design.

After all, what’s not to love? The front page has a slideshow (with the ability to swap out images in the admin area using theme settings) as well as displaying featured products, testimonials from happy customers, and the latest news from the blog. We’ve also got sharing buttons to make it easy to connect with Bloom Essentials elsewhere on the web.

The Bloom Essentials blog is fully integrated with the theme.

Oh, and did we mention the blog? Shopify’s got blogging baked right in, so all we had to do is create a template file and the blog was ready to rock!

Check out the newly redesigned Bloom Essentials site to see it in action.

We created a simple, usable theme to complement the cover design of the new edition of our WordPress book.

Designing for WordPress is one of our favorite things – and writing about it is a close second. We were lucky enough to do both for this project, creating a companion theme to the book as part of the process of walking users through the creation of a simple theme from scratch.

Simple is the key word here; we’ve got a few bells and whistles, but for the most part this theme is a simple showcase of the power of WordPress.

Here are some of the features of this custom theme:

As part of a tutorial on integrating custom fonts, we changed the titles on our theme to use Google Fonts.

Author pages help visitors get a better idea of who writes the articles as well as providing an overview of that author's published work.

• Text-based header, which pulls in both the site title and the tagline from the WordPress admin
• Author pages, which display each author’s profile information as well as a Gravatar and links to their published articles on the site
• An author overview section at the bottom of each post
• A simple portfolio section, which uses custom post types to display a thumbnail image, URL, description and relevant tags for each portfolio item
• Google Ads integration in the sidebar

And maybe the coolest part? You can download the whole theme. For free.

Buy the book at Peachpit Press, and download the sample theme on our companion site. And don’t forget to let us know what you think!

We kept a lot of the site’s basic structure, but widening the main content area allowed us to use larger product photos which really showcase Lisa’s fabulous wares. The big picture on the front page now links to a featured category, which Lisa can switch out every month.

And she was VERY excited to make use of Shopify‘s built-in blogging feature! Previously she’d just linked to an external blog in her footer, but now that Shopify can handle comments and whatnot there was no reason to keep things separate. We were able to transfer all her old posts so she only needs to update in one place. Handy!

The new site features custom drop-down menus, special overview pages to display grouped collections, and a background that changes color depending on the section. We also used Typekit for the headers to give it a bit of whimsy.

The front page features a slideshow & interior pages each have a custom header image to give them an extra personal touch.

We used TypeKit for the cursive font (Bickham) and enabled the custom background feature inside WordPress so that Elizabeth can give her site a little facelift any time she wants to.

Choosing Health Now

My sister Rebecca needed a website to go along with her book, Choosing Health. We created a custom Wordpress theme as well as illustrations for the site and the book itself. She's easily able to update with content and videos to keep visitors coming back.

molly meow- the cat bed duvet company

We worked with Molly on the molly mutt site, so when she needed a companion site for cat duvets we were delighted to help! The shop integrates smoothly with her existing dog bed duvet shop, sharing a cart so cat and dog owners can finally coexist in harmony.

Baktuli

Henry needed a clean, modern site to showcase his fabulous luxury yoga towels. We created this custom Shopify theme to make it as easy as possible for him to keep the content fresh while providing a great experience for his customers.

Savvima

Using Avi and Naomi's existing graphics we created a lovely custom WordPress theme to complement their fast-moving magazine-style site.

Moody Eyes Online

The Moody Eyes Online folks needed a custom site to go with their fabulous selection of fashion frames. We created this design to give the feel of a high-end eyewear shop while enabling easy navigation and fun social features.

WeVillage

WeVillage Urban Playcare is a modern, minimalist space for kids - so we created a modern, minimalist identity that perfectly complements their facilities. The custom photos really drive home the fact that this isn't your average drop-in daycare.

The Clink Room

Using the gorgeous mock-ups provided by the Clink Room guys, we created both a custom WordPress theme and a matching Shopify shop. The extraordinary cap and shirt designs can be presented to the public with minimal back-end hassle.

Selective Premiums

Stace had an existing logo and identity scheme that she liked, but her site was woefully outdated. We moved her to a new e-commerce platform and created a site that's clean, modern and easy to navigate - a must when you have 3000+ products!

Prewired Controls

Stu liked the layout and design of his existing site but wanted to be able to update and edit things himself. We duplicated his site on WordPress (replacing a lot of outdated code as we went - no more table-based layout!) and Stu and his team finally have full control over their content!

amy mcmullen photography

Amy started out just wanting a blog but ended up having us redesign her entire site! This simple WordPress template puts Amy's gorgeous photographs in the spotlight and enables her to easily update the look and feel every time she does a new shoot.

Trends Under $10

The Trends Under $10 site started its life as a custom Shopify theme for a business venture that never quite saw the light of day - which made us sad, because it was a really great site! So when the owner asked us if we'd update the theme to reflect the new business, we were only too hapy to oblige!

Choosing Health Now | Molly Meow | Baktuli | WeVillage | The Clink Room | Savvima | Moody Eyes Online | PreWired Controls | Selective Premiums | Amy Mcmullen Photography | Trends Under $10

2011 is already off to a great start. We’ve got some seriously exciting new projects in the works & have been in talks with some other fabulous small businesses about creating or converting their online presences. We can’t wait to tell you about what’s coming next!

We stuck with Amy’s existing color palette of light blue and white, and Amy chose a fabulous font for her text (Typekit makes that part a breeze). Using WordPress’ new Custom Header feature, we were able to it up so Amy can switch out her blog’s header whenever the mood strikes – and with all these beautiful photos to choose from, the mood will strike often!

The slideshow on the home page and the portfolio pages uses jQuery rather than Flash, so it can be viewed on devices like the iPhone and the iPad. But we didn’t stop there: using WPTouch Pro, we created a mobile-specific version of Amy’s site that gives smartphone users a customized landing page and a special reduced-size image gallery.

We jumped at the chance to take on this project, since at least half of couldbe studios is blind as a bat (though the other half got his first pair of glasses recently – which counts, even if he only needs them when he spends too long on the computer) and most other online glasses retailers…well, let’s just say we had lots of ideas! The Moody Eyes guys let us take the design lead, and the result is a site that makes us really want another pair of glasses.

The collections are hand-picked and showcase the frames, and each collection features a piece of pop art by the fabulously talented Hillary White. The whole thing has a retro feel without being too kitschy, which really complements the product lines.

One of the coolest (and most developmentally challenging) features is the prescription form – not only did we integrate it with the product pages, but we tied it to customer accounts so that if you enter your information once, it will automatically populate the next time you order glasses. Cool, right?

We’re really excited to announce the launch of the new blog for The Clink Room – and not just because we had a hand in making it! The Clink Room guys do fantastic design work – they’re the people who do the official logos for Major League and Minor League Baseball teams – & we’ve had a blast doing this project. We got to flex our layout muscles getting the site to look just right, and we even got to create our first mobile site! Seriously, it’s very cool and all of you with iPhones or Android handsets should check it out, stat.

We’ll be launching the revamped Shopify store for these guys very soon, too – keep your eye out for the announcement.