Custom Theme Studio

Custom Theme Studio

A complete theme design studio for Obsidian. Create, customize, and export professional themes with visual tools, live CSS editing, and instant feedback—all without leaving your workspace.

Features at a Glance

Detailed Features

CSS Variables

• Edit built-in CSS variables for colors, fonts, and UI components
• Organized into categories: components, editor, foundations, plugins, window, dark/light themes
• Search and filter to quickly find variables with real-time result counter
• Add custom variables with live counter updates
• Color picker for HEX values with reactive updates
• Category badges show item counts that update automatically
• Tag-based filtering for quick navigation

CSS Rules

• Smart Element Selector with configurable selector generation:
  • Three selector styles: Minimal (short), Balanced (moderate), Specific (detailed)
  • Toggle preference for classes vs. data attributes
  • Configure tag name inclusion
  • Exclude unwanted attributes with wildcard patterns
  • Handles special characters and aria-labels properly
• Advanced CSS editor with syntax highlighting and auto-formatting
• In-editor Prettier formatting with preserved undo/redo history
• Smart cursor positioning when editing (auto-places cursor before closing brace)
• Visual focus indicators for active editor
• Live preview while editing with configurable debounce delay
• Search and filter rules with result counter
• Save and manage multiple custom rules with auto-scroll to newly created items
• Apply imported fonts to any element

CSS Editor

• Built-in Ace editor with syntax highlighting and auto-complete
• One-click Prettier formatting with undo support
• Customize editor settings: theme, font size, tab width (2 or 4 spaces)
• Optional line numbers and word wrap
• Embedded color picker for Ace editor
• Visual focus state with accent-colored border
• Smart cursor positioning respects tab width settings
• Keyboard shortcuts for faster editing
• Auto-completion includes all Obsidian variables
• Configurable debounce delay for auto-apply changes

Theme Export

• Export your theme as a CSS file
• Generate a manifest file for distribution
• Copy CSS or manifest to clipboard
• Configure metadata: name, author, URL

Settings Management

• Import/export settings for backup or sharing
• Reset theme customizations
• Toggle theme on/off globally

Installation

Available on Obsidian.md/plugins

From Obsidian

1. Open Obsidian Settings
2. Go to Community Plugins and disable Safe Mode
3. Click Browse and search for "Custom Theme Studio"
4. Install the plugin and enable it

Manual Installation

1. Download main.js, manifest.json & styles.css from the latest release
2. Create a new folder /path/to/vault/.obsidian/plugins/custom-theme-studio
3. Move all 3 files to /path/to/vault/.obsidian/plugins/custom-theme-studio
4. Settings > Community plugins > Reload plugins
5. Enable the "Custom Theme Studio" plugin in the community plugin list

Via BRAT (Beta Reviewer's Auto-update Tool):

1. Ensure the BRAT plugin is installed
2. Trigger the command Obsidian42 - BRAT: Add a beta plugin for testing
3. Enter this repository, gapmiss/custom-theme-studio
4. Enable the "Custom Theme Studio" plugin in the community plugin list

Usage

Opening the Theme Studio

After installation, you can access Custom Theme Studio in several ways:

• Ribbon Icon: Click the paintbrush icon in the left ribbon
• Command Palette: Use Ctrl/Cmd + P and search for "Custom Theme Studio: Open view"
• Hotkey: Assign a custom hotkey in Settings > Hotkeys for "Custom Theme Studio: Open view"

Getting Started

1. Open the plugin view using one of the methods above
2. Enable your custom theme by toggling the switch at the top of the view
3. Start customizing using the three main sections:

CSS Variables

Edit Obsidian's built-in CSS variables to customize colors, fonts, and UI elements:

• Browse categories: Variables are organized by components, editor, foundations, plugins, etc.
• Search variables: Use the search box to quickly find specific variables
• Color picker: Click the color square next to HEX values for visual color selection
• Real-time preview: Changes apply immediately when "Auto-apply changes" is enabled

CSS Rules

Create custom CSS rules to style specific elements:

• Element selector: Use Ctrl/Cmd + P → "Custom Theme Studio: Select an element for new CSS rule" to visually pick elements
  • Configure selector generation in settings: choose between Minimal, Balanced, or Specific styles
  • Prefer classes over attributes or vice versa
  • Exclude specific attributes using wildcard patterns (e.g., data-tooltip-*)
• CSS editor: Write custom CSS with syntax highlighting and auto-completion
  • Click the sparkles icon (✨) to format CSS with Prettier (undoable with Ctrl/Cmd+Z)
  • Cursor automatically positions for optimal editing
  • Visual focus indicator shows when editor is active
• Live preview: See changes in real-time as you type (configurable debounce delay)
• Font import: Import custom fonts and generate @font-face rules

Theme Export

Export your customizations as a complete Obsidian theme:

• Theme metadata: Set name, author, and URL information
• Export options: Choose to include/exclude disabled rules and enable Prettier formatting
• Download files: Get both CSS and manifest.json files for theme distribution

Keyboard Shortcuts & Commands

• Toggle custom theme: Quickly enable/disable your theme
• Select element: Pick UI elements for styling
• Freeze Obsidian: Freeze the interface for 5 seconds to inspect hover states
• Import CSS snippet: Import existing CSS snippets from your vault

Pro Tips

• Backup your work: Use Settings > Export settings before major changes
• Element inspection: Use the "Freeze Obsidian" command to inspect elements that disappear on hover
• Search efficiently: Use the search boxes in CSS Variables and CSS Rules sections - counters show results in real-time
• Test responsively: Toggle your theme on/off to compare changes
• Format while editing: Use the sparkles icon (✨) in the CSS editor to format your code with Prettier - it's undoable!
• Customize selectors: Configure element selector behavior in settings for your preferred selector style
• Exclude noisy attributes: Add patterns like data-tooltip-* to excluded attributes for cleaner selectors
• Smart cursor: When editing CSS rules, the cursor automatically positions for adding new properties
• Adjust debounce: Fine-tune the auto-apply delay slider in settings for optimal performance
• Share themes: Export your theme and share the CSS/manifest files with others

Credits

Some code inspired by and derived from:

• RavenHogWarts/obsidian-ace-code-editor
• chrisgrieser/obsidian-theme-design-utilities
• Yuichi-Aragi/Version-Control
• easylogic/ace-colorpicker
• Zachatoo/obsidian-css-editor

Thank you!