Over the past couple nights, instead of revising like a psycho for my A-level examinations next week, I’ve been slaving away at my new WordPress theme. After listening to an atrocious amount of electronica and the odd dose of Sophie Ellis Bextor, I’ve discovered a few simple things about creating WordPress themes that I feel would be useful if shared.

1. Keep it simple.
   As with anything, and web design is certainly no exception, keeping things simple is absolutely key. As web designers and coders, we all must remember that getting layouts to display perfectly in every browser is a laborious task. Due to this, making a design that requires highly complex and experimental CSS is more likely to fall at the first hurdle. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t challenge yourself with a more complex design but bare in mind how you’re going to code and how you’ll make sure it looks ace in all the major browsers (including IE6, just because IE7 is out doesn’t mean you can forget about your best friend.)
2. Code your design in plain XHTML before you begin
   A really bad thing to try and do is code directly on top of WordPress. Perhaps this is more a preference but by coding your site in plain XHTML (as in without WordPress tags etc.) you can focus on getting the layout perfect before you start worrying about WordPress and its workings. Furthermore, it’s far quicker to code into plain XHTML so if you’re doing client work or need an opinion, you can use the basic XHTML version to demonstrate basic features such as roll overs etc.
3. Use Kubrick
   There is a reason WordPress have Kubrick as the default theme; it’s well coded and features possibly every eventuality for your design. Don’t be afraid to take some code from the Kubrick design to help you in structuring your site and get it working. I personally used Kubrick to help construct the WordPress loop on my pages because I wasn’t 100% sure if I was doing it right. Of course, if you use large chunks of Kubrick be sure to leave a comment in your code as courtesy.
4. Use the WordPress Codex
   The WordPress codex is a shrine of WordPress resources. The Template_Tags page is invaluable when getting your content into your design and they have an extremely useful page on designing themes.

I could have sworn I’d come up with a million other ideas while designing the site, but I just can’t seem to think of them. I’ll add them on if they come to me in a flash of brilliance (most likely happen in the middle of revision to give me a nice distraction.)

Do you have any useful tips to designing WordPress themes?