Join 20k+ people who love good design. Get my best tips, resources, and strategies to elevate your design skills and grow your business.
Share
Introducing Rockbase 🚀
Published 7 months ago • 3 min read
Hey there!
I know it's been a while since my last email, but I've been super busy finishing up our latest project.
Ever been so close to the finish line with a project, feeling like you’re 90% there, but that last 10% seems to stretch on indefinitely? That’s exactly where we’ve been. Adding a tweak here, refining a detail there - striving for that elusive perfection.
But good news – the wait is over. I’m thrilled to introduce Rockbase to you!
Let me take you on a tour of what we've packed into this theme, and why I think you're going to love it as much as we do.
Who is Rockbase For?
Our focus is on digital creators. Whether you're writing a blog, hosting podcasts, running courses, sending out newsletters, or selling a single product, Rockbase is designed with you in mind.
​Rockbase is also perfect for all the service providers out there – designers, copywriters, coaches, and freelancers of all stripes. Our goal is to empower your creative process and help you showcase your services in the best light.
Plus, we haven’t forgotten about studios and agencies. Rockbase comes packed with tools like Figma files and templates for quick prototyping, testing different styles, and design tweaks. Everything you need in your client project workflow.
Why Rockbase and Why WordPress?
We're big fans of where WordPress is headed with its full-site editing and block-based system. It's the future of modern website building – modular, straightforward, and flexible.
With Rockbase, you start with our pre-designed patterns and then tweak them to fit your style. It's easy to use, maintain, and fully customizable to make your site truly your own.
What’s included
1. WordPress Theme
​Rockbase is all about simplicity and speed. It's a fast, lightweight theme that comes ready with pre-designed patterns for key sections like CTAs, social proof, pricing tables, heroes, features, and content.
We offer a variety of styles, each with its own color scheme and typography. Pick the one you like and customize it to make it uniquely yours.
Our aim is to utilize core WordPress blocks and functionality, making it super easy for you to switch from Rockbase to any other theme if needed.
2. Design files
The Figma design kit (see preview) includes all the patterns you'll find in Rockbase, set up as components for easy use. With text and color styles, plus variables, you're all set for advanced customizations and creating unique designs.
Also in Figma, templates that are perfect for crafting your own blog post images, product covers, and more, ensuring everything fits perfectly with your site's look.
We’re also planning of expanding our collection of design assets, which you'll be able to use freely on your website. Among these, a hand-drawn icon pack is already available.
3. Playbooks
Think of playbooks as mini-sites ready to go out of the box. They come complete with all pages and placeholder content, so you don't have to start from scratch.
Just import a playbook content into WordPress and tweak it to suit your style. It's a real time-saver, cutting down hours of work you'd spend doing it all yourself.
4. Community
We've set up everything on Circle, creating a small community space for you. Here, you'll have direct access to ask questions, engage in discussions, see other people's projects, and share your own. It's a great way to get inspired, find support, and connect with fellow creators.
We’re just getting started
We're just kicking things off! Our main goal was to get Rockbase into your hands as soon as possible, so you can start exploring and creating with it, but we're far from done. We're already working on new patterns, design assets, email templates, and more exciting updates to keep enhancing Rockbase.
Your early feedback is incredibly valuable to us. It helps us understand what you need, which directions to take Rockbase in, and what playbooks and features to develop next.
Want to give it a try?
We are offering a launch promotion now through March 31, 2024. You can save 34% if you join now.
You're part of this community likely because you've subscribed to my newsletter, downloaded one of my free resources, or purchased a product from RafalTomal.com. My aim is to bring you tips, insights, and resources that can help you grow as a designer or design business owner. If you ever feel the content isn't serving you, you're free to unsubscribe (or change your preferences) at any time.
​
Rafal Tomal
Simple Design Always Wins
Join 20k+ people who love good design. Get my best tips, resources, and strategies to elevate your design skills and grow your business.
Design Through Fast Iterations We often dive deep into design theory and spend hours on tutorials learning new skills. But I don’t think we focus enough on practical techniques that actually help us achieve the best results. You can have all that design knowledge, but you still need a process that helps you stay creative, make those little decisions at every step, and find the best solution. When I first started designing, I’d often stare at a blank page, unsure of where to begin. My usual...
Auto Layout in Figma: to use or not to use? Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the debate around auto layout in Figma. On one side, you’ve got designers who say skipping auto layout makes their work faster—they don’t have to get bogged down in the details, and it speeds up their process. On the other hand, some argue that auto layout is essential for efficiency, helping to maintain consistent spacing, reposition elements easily, and ensure everything is pixel-perfect. Personally, I’ve...
It’s Typespiration Time! Lately, I've been feeling a bit nostalgic for the days when design was just pure fun—no business plans, no client deadlines, no specific goals, just the joy of creating. So, I decided to revisit one of my older side projects, Typespiration. It reminded me of a time when I could simply create, share, and not worry too much about anything else. For those of you who haven't heard of it before, Typespiration is a collection of simple designs that play with different sets...