Newsletter #8: building for Shopify’s Theme Store, immersive agency websites and a beautiful bedroom renovation

Hi there,

I hope you're feeling good.

This week, I’m in Paris, spending time with my family and friends.

In today's edition, we're discussing building for Shopify’s Theme Store, immersive agency websites and a beautiful bedroom renovation.

Let's dive in.

Work

I started as a freelance Shopify developer in 2019.

I was building Shopify stores for international clients such as LVMH, Universal Music and Balzac Paris.

The biggest part of my work was customizing Shopify themes to suit my clients’ needs. It involved creating pages, sections and advanced features such as product customization modules.

In January 2023, I joined Clean Canvas as a Shopify Theme Developer.

Developing themes for the Shopify Theme Store is both very similar and very different from what I was previously doing for my clients.

I still build themes but it’s now within the standards set by Shopify.

These standards include mandatory features to implement, as well as various requirements in areas such as browser compatibility, SEO, accessibility, UX, terminology, documentation and support. Read more about Shopify’s Theme Store requirements in their documentation here.

The theme doesn’t only need to be perfect for one merchant. It needs to be perfect for every merchant.

And if there is a problem with it, it’s not just one client who’ll reach out to you, it’s thousands of clients.

As the stakes rise, so does the impact of your code.

To give you an idea of my day-to-day tasks as a Theme Developer, here is a recap of everything I've been working on last month:

• Showcase's version 7.0.0: it includes two features I was super happy to work on:

  • Gift Card Recipient, which allows customers to send a gift card to their loved one.

  • Custom Product Options, which allows merchants to add fields (text, checkbox, dropdown) on their product page. It’s particularly useful for product customization.

• Mode's version 4.0.0 and Masonry's version 6.0.0: two exciting releases that include cool stuff such as Section Groups and Search Suggestions.

• Our brand new support site: we migrated from Helpjuice to Zendesk and completely revamped it. I learnt so many things along the way! Did you know Zendesk had a theme store? We chose a theme and customized it. Our goals with this new support site is to provide merchants with answers and resources to help them make the most of our 9 themes. Discover the new support site here.

I’m already looking forward to showing you the next projects I just started working on.

Inspire

On Twitter, I obviously follow Shopify developers but I also follow many designers.

I love discovering the design projects they share, especially the ones manipulating 3D using tools like Three.js.

I’m always amazed at what creative developers can do. They are free to let their imagination run wild and create unique immersive experiences on the web.

Brands are in demand of this expertise because having a memorable website allows them to stand out from their competitors.

One of the designers I follow is Jordan Jenkins. He is the Principal Brand Designer at Off Menu.

Last week, Jordan shared 3 creative agency websites. I loved every one of them.

I invite you to take a minute to discover them on your desktop (not all animations are present on mobile):

• Wonderland: this Amsterdam based creative agency walks us through a dark hallway where we can stop to discover each of their projects. I especially enjoyed the menu’s loading animation, the homepage and the moving particles on the About page showing their expertise and practice areas.

• Unseen: this Bristol based creative agency takes us through an architect house on water. I especially enjoyed the homepage, the pages’ transitions and the text hovering effects.

• Silencio: this Spain based creative agency takes us through a shopping experience where each of their areas of expertise is added to our shopping receipt in the bottom right corner of the page.

Which one is your favorite?

Explore

One of my favorite YouTube channels is Paulygones (293K subscribers).

Paul Guillotel is a French guy passionate about building things with his hands.

He does wood work, paints, sews and has a good eye for decoration. He's a real swiss army knife.

He also does a great job at video editing. By using slow motion, fast motion, compositing, time-lapses, drone shots, visual effects and breaking the fourth wall to talk directly to us, Paul creates a very recognizable and unique atmosphere.

My favorite video is this one, where he renovates a bedroom in the most amazing way.

Enjoy.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for reading this edition until the end.

I'll talk to you soon.

Take good care of yourself.

Coralie