Stage 2 · Lesson 6 of 7
Reference themes: Dawn, Horizon and Skeleton
Shopify publishes the source code of its own . Reading them is the fastest way to learn how themes are built today. was the first reference theme and is still maintained.
Horizon is the newer family, built on theme blocks. The 's theme init command now starts from a small Skeleton theme, made for learning. Browse their folders, pick one section and trace how its settings, Liquid code and CSS fit together.
Good speed habits are built in, such as images that resize for each screen and very little . That matters in the performance stage.
Common trapcopying patterns from an old paid theme or a forum answer written before Online Store 2.0, which teaches habits Shopify has moved away from.
A question to check yourself, an AI practice session and 1 cheat sheet entry come with the full roadmap. Unlock
Resources for this stage
Start with
- CourseFreeShopify Academy
Shopify · Beginner
Shopify's own free courses on the admin, store setup and theme development
Practise
Keep handy
Also worth your time
- Dawn: Shopify's Reference ThemeGo deeper
Read the source of Shopify's reference theme to see how sections and settings fit together