Blog

Block Lab is a WordPress plugin that simplifies the process of creating custom blocks to use in the block editor, AKA Gutenberg, the new content editor in WordPress 5.0. This post explains how to use it, even if you only know basic HTML.

A lengthy write-up diving into what headless means, its advantages and disadvantages, some of the techniques and gotchas involved, and, finally, the new design of this site specifically.

If you know or follow me, you may already know that I deleted my Facebook account several years ago, in late 2014. There were plenty of reasons for that decision, but to summarize: even back then, I couldn’t reconcile my values with my continued participation in the platform. I felt that I could not be […]

Local (formerly known as Local by Flywheel) is the go-to tool for developing WordPress websites—where else?—locally. It’s fast (especially the new “lightning” release), incredibly easy to use, cross-platform, and completely free. Full disclosure: I currently work for Flywheel, the software company behind Local. But I’m being 100% honest when I say there’s no other tool […]

Working with arrays of objects in JavaScript can be difficult. This post covers how to ensure all object keys (IDs) are unique, and how to find non-unique values.

Recently, I’ve been using (and loving) the new Gutenberg editor in WordPress 5.0+. It’s a huge step forward in both what developers can offer, and what users can expect out of their content creation experience. One of the new features of Gutenberg that I particularly enjoy is the ability to set an image as either […]

The usefulness of CSS variables should be fairly apparent if you’ve managed any sizable stylesheet before. If you have, you probably already know how untidy it can be at large scale. In fact, that’s one of the biggest knocks against CSS; it’s very easy for a stylesheet to balloon, making updates difficult as you’re forced […]

It’s been a goal of mine for a very long time to completely redesign my WordPress theme from scratch. Finally, that goal is a reality! The first time I built my own site, back in (I’d guess) 2013, I used Adobe Muse, which was a good fit for my lack of skill at the time, but […]

There’s vast world of design learning and opportunity right in front of us constantly. All we need to do is take the time to notice it and learn from it.

Some of these apps, resources and tools aren’t directly WordPress-related, or even necessarily development-related; some have to do with productivity or just make life a little easier. That’s by design. Part of being a developer is learning to work and use your tools as efficiently and with as little wasted time and mental energy as possible.