Early Theme Adopters: Illustratr
In our Early Theme Adopters series, we focus on bloggers creating great-looking sites with the most recent additions to our Theme Showcase. Today, let’s visit some of the sites that are already using Illustratr, a stunning, modern theme perfect for portfolio sites and blogs alike.
If you’re looking for a theme to showcase your creative work — be it your words, images, or multimedia projects — Illustratr, launched last month, might be just what you’re looking for. It has a distinct, effortlessly cool look, but is also easy to customize to create a tailor-made design.
The theme (designed by Automattic’s own Thomas Guillot) lets you take full advantage of the Portfolio feature, so you can create beautiful showcases for your best content. Even if you opt for a classic blog layout, splashy featured images and other custom touches (like social icons in your custom menu) will draw your readers in.
Looking for some inspiration? Here are just a few of the thousands of striking sites already using Illustratr.
Derek Roczen
With a name like Illustratr, it comes as no surprise that visual artists of all stripes flock to this theme. Illustrator and animator Derek Roczen, based in Cologne, Germany, is one such artist. The theme’s readability and generous white space give an extra pop to his creations (including a cute squirrel in the custom header image), while the menu provides visitors with one-click access to Derek’s work across media.
Le Mehograph
With the option to display full-width images and sleek tiled galleries, Illustratr is a natural choice for photographers and photobloggers. The site of Quebec-based photographer Meho shows what happens when great shots are presented with care. His minimalist approach keeps the focus on his work, but makes it easy for visitors to find all the information they need about his gear and copyright policy.
Nolan O’Malley
On his personal, poetry-heavy blog, Nolan O’Malley shows how a theme geared toward visuals can be just as effective for writing. His blog’s crisp design keeps the reader’s eyes zoomed in on his words, while his custom header image (featuring an orange) adds a dash of color and playfully interacts with his site’s tagline, “Made from Concentration.”
If you’d like to explore other directions in which artists and bloggers have taken Illustratr, take a look at these:
- Elijah Wade Artefacts, the portfolio site of a Scotland-based multimedia artist.
- The online home of Australian fashion and lifestyle store The Dressing Room.
- The art blog of print- and papermaker May Babcock.
Stay tuned for more examples of sites using recently-added themes — and if there are any particular themes you’d like to see featured, feel free to leave us a comment.
- May 28, 2014
- Customization, Themes
WordPress.com News 
Hm, every time I read these posts, I drool for a beautiful minimalist theme! But I chose my themes partly because navigation and interaction for visitors was transparent. I haven’t chosen many swoon-worthy themes because I feel that in the balance, visitors, especially from outside WP, won’t be able to navigate the site on account of the ‘hidden’ menus, though I realise they’re hidden to showcase the work. Am I completely wrong about this?
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With Illustratr, your primary menu can actually still be visible near the header if you want it that way (that’s how the featured bloggers here use it). As for ‘tucked’ / hidden menus on other themes, it’s really a personal call — some visitors might find those less intuitive to find and use, though it’s also true they’ve become quite common of late.
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Illustratr keeps popping up everywhere I look lately. Love the different looks you can get.
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Would love to see a theme specifically geared for flip books.
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I have illustratr and like it very much.
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Ben, I’m very much in love with Illustratr. Keep up the great work!
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I choose Illustratr for the bold yet minimalist look and I’m quite happy with it. However I do wish there was a toggle for the secondary menu to allow it to stay showing. I agree with Chaos Girl that visitors outside of WP may have difficulty navigating through the setup. Thanks!
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