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Riverbank - Settings Reference ​

Riverbank is a highly customizable WordPress Full-Site Editing block theme with an editorial, warm aesthetic, suited for blogs, small businesses, online shops, and personal portfolios. All settings are managed through the WordPress Site Editor (Appearance > Editor), where you can customize Global Styles, swap templates, insert block patterns, and configure navigation.

Site Editor — Global Styles ​

Global Styles control the overall look and feel of the site. Open them by clicking the half-filled circle icon in the top-right of the Site Editor. Changes made here apply site-wide unless overridden at the block level.

Colors ​

The theme provides a six-color palette with a distinctly warm, muted default scheme. The accent color matches the foreground, creating a tonal, understated design.

  • Background — The main background color of the site. The default is a warm sand (#ECE6DC), giving the site an organic, paper-like quality rather than a bright white.
  • Foreground — The primary text color used for body copy, headings, and links. The default is a dark charcoal (#1F2127).
  • Background Alt — An alternate background used to visually separate sections, such as post cards on the blog index. The default is a semi-transparent off-white (rgba(245, 245, 242, 0.7)), which layers subtly over the sand background.
  • Background Dark — An inverted background color used in sections such as the footer copyright bar and dark call-to-action areas. The default is a very dark charcoal (#1F2125).
  • Foreground Alt — A light text color for use on dark backgrounds. The default is white (#FFFFFF).
  • Accent — The primary brand color used for buttons, pagination borders, and interactive elements. The default is near-black (#1D1F25), matching the foreground to create a monochromatic, editorial look. Changing this to a brighter color will immediately introduce more visual contrast across the site.

You can change any of these colors individually. Custom gradients are not provided by the theme but you can create your own through the editor. Link colors default to the Foreground color and can be overridden in the Colors panel.

Typography ​

Fonts ​

The theme bundles five font families, all served locally. The default font for both body text and headings is Fraunces, a soft old-style serif that gives the theme its distinctive literary character. The available font families are:

  • Fraunces — A soft serif with optical sizing and a warm, old-style character. The theme default. Supports normal and italic styles with variable weight from 160 to 600. Its lower maximum weight compared to most variable fonts gives headings a refined rather than heavy appearance.
  • Source Serif Pro — A classic transitional serif from Adobe with a wide weight range (200–900). Supports normal and italic styles. A more neutral serif alternative to Fraunces.
  • Figtree — A friendly, geometric sans-serif with a contemporary feel. Supports normal and italic styles with variable weight from 300 to 900.
  • Outfit — A geometric sans-serif with uniform strokes. Variable weight from 100 to 900. Provides a clean, modern contrast to the serif defaults.
  • Lora — A well-balanced serif with calligraphic roots. Supports normal and italic styles with variable weight from 400 to 700. A good middle ground between the editorial feel of Fraunces and the neutrality of Source Serif Pro.

You can assign different fonts to body text and headings through the Typography section of Global Styles.

Font Sizes ​

The theme defines six fixed font sizes. These do not scale fluidly with viewport width — they remain constant across screen sizes:

  • Small — 16 px. Used for metadata, captions, and footer text.
  • Normal — 20 px. The default body text size. Notably larger than most themes, contributing to the editorial, magazine-like feel.
  • Medium — 28 px. Used for subheadings and H4 elements by default.
  • Large — 32 px. Used for H3 elements by default.
  • Extra Large — 40 px. Used for H2 elements by default.
  • Huge — 64 px. Used for H1 elements, hero headings, and the blog title.

You can also enter a custom font size for any block.

Line Height ​

Line height controls are enabled. The theme defaults are:

  • Body text: 1.7
  • H1: 1.25, H2: 1.35, H3: 1.35, H4: 1.4, H5: 1.55, H6: 1.6

You can adjust line height on any text block through the Typography panel.

Heading Defaults ​

All heading levels (H1 through H6) default to weight 600 (semi-bold) and inherit the Fraunces serif font. You can change these per heading level in Global Styles under Elements > Headings, or override them on individual blocks.

Layout ​

  • Content Width — The maximum width for standard content blocks. The default is 740 px.
  • Wide Width — The maximum width for blocks using the "wide" alignment. The default is 1140 px. Full-width blocks ignore this and stretch to the viewport edge.

These values affect every template. You can override them on individual blocks using the alignment and dimensions controls.

Spacing ​

Block gap, margin, and padding controls are all enabled. You can use px, em, rem, vh, vw, and % units. The theme defines a spacing scale based on a 16 px baseline, but you can enter any custom value.

Borders ​

Full border controls are enabled, including color, radius, style, and width. The theme makes heavy use of 2 px solid borders as visual dividers — in headers, footers, post cards, and section separators — giving it a structured, editorial grid aesthetic.

Appearance Tools ​

The theme enables all WordPress appearance tools, including dimensions (min-height, aspect ratio), position (sticky, fixed), overflow, and other advanced layout properties on supported blocks.

Per-Block Style Overrides ​

Global Styles lets you set default styles for individual block types. The theme ships with custom defaults for the following blocks:

Button ​

Buttons use the Accent color as their background, Foreground Alt (white) as text, and a sharp 0 px border radius (square corners). Padding is 16 px top/bottom and 32 px left/right. Font size is Normal (20 px) and weight is 600. The square-cornered button is a key design element of the theme; you can add border radius in Global Styles for a softer look.

Site Title ​

Displays at the Medium font size (28 px). The link has no underline decoration.

Navigation links have no underline decoration by default.

Post Title ​

Post title links have no underline decoration.

Post Excerpt ​

Excerpt links have no underline decoration.

Quote ​

Block quotes use the Large font size (32 px) by default.

The search input has a 0 px border radius (square corners), matching the button style.

Query Pagination ​

Pagination links are styled with a 2 px solid Accent-colored border and padding (8 px top/bottom, 16 px left/right), creating distinct bordered page-number buttons. Links have no underline decoration.

Comment Content ​

Comment bodies have a 0 px border radius (square corners), the Background Alt color, and 24 px padding on all sides.

Comment Author Name ​

Displays at the Normal font size. The author link has no underline.

Comment Date ​

Displays in uppercase at 14 px. The date link has no underline.

Displays in uppercase at 14 px with no underline.

Displays in uppercase with no underline. The link uses the Accent color and the Small font size.

Site Editor — Style Variations ​

Style variations let you change the entire look of the site with a single click. Open Global Styles and click "Browse styles" to see all available variations. The theme includes five variations in addition to the default style:

Blue River ​

Switches to a clean white background with a vivid blue accent (#214CCF) and the Figtree sans-serif font. The Background Dark is a deep navy. This variation transforms the theme from warm and editorial to bright and modern, well-suited for corporate sites, tech blogs, or professional portfolios.

Dark Orange ​

A dark-mode variation with a dark gray background (#292C33), white text, and a warm terracotta-orange accent (#D8654C). The font switches to Outfit, a geometric sans-serif. Semi-transparent Background Alt and Background Dark colors create subtle layering. Well-suited for creative agencies, photography sites, or nightlife-oriented businesses.

Deep Emerald ​

A dark-mode variation with a deep teal background (#2C585E), white text, and a bright emerald-green accent (#14A48A). Keeps the default Fraunces serif, preserving the editorial character in a dramatically different color scheme. The moody, jewel-toned palette is ideal for luxury brands, spas, boutique hotels, or nature-focused editorial sites.

Eco-friendly ​

A light variation with a warm cream background (#FBF8F2), dark text, and a natural sage-green accent (#578E67). Keeps the default Fraunces serif. The Background Dark is a muted forest green. The overall mood is organic, earthy, and calm — well-suited for sustainability brands, organic shops, wellness blogs, or environmental organizations.

Light Orange ​

A light variation with a neutral gray background (#F1F1F1) and the same terracotta-orange accent (#D8654C) as Dark Orange. The font switches to Outfit. The Background Dark uses a high-opacity semi-transparent black, creating strong contrast in inverted sections. A versatile, contemporary look suited for design studios, food blogs, or lifestyle brands.

Site Editor — Templates ​

Templates control the overall layout of different page types. You can view, edit, duplicate, and create new templates in the Site Editor under Templates. Edits are saved as customizations; you can reset any template to the theme default at any time.

Index ​

The blog listing template. Displays a large "Blog Posts" heading in the Huge font size, followed by a two-column grid of post cards. Each card has a Background Alt fill, a 2 px border, and shows the featured image, date (centered), title (centered), and excerpt with a "Read more" link. Shows three posts per page with pagination.

Front Page ​

The homepage template, built from three theme patterns: a hero section with feature columns, an inline inverted call-to-action, a content area for the page's own blocks, and a columns section with images, titles, and text. You can freely replace, reorder, or remove any of these sections.

Single ​

The single post template. Opens with a dramatic full-width cover section that uses the post's featured image as a dimmed background (50% opacity, 600 px minimum height), with the post title and date centered in white text on top. The post content follows on a Foreground Alt (white) background, and a comments section with a 2 px top border appears below.

Page ​

The standard page template. Displays the page title centered with a 2 px bottom border, followed by the content area. Clean and minimal.

Archive ​

Used for category, tag, author, and date archive pages. Displays the archive title, then a single-column list of posts with featured images, dates (centered), titles, and excerpts with "Read more" links. Each post is separated by a 2 px border. Includes pagination.

Search ​

Displays a "Search results" heading with a search box (450 px wide, centered), followed by a list of posts showing featured images, titles, categories, and dates. Each result has a Background Alt fill and a 2 px border. Includes pagination and a no-results fallback.

404 ​

Shows a large "404" in 180 px text, an error message, and a centered search block (450 px wide) to help visitors find what they were looking for.

Blank ​

A minimal template with no header, footer, or surrounding structure. Contains only the content area.

Site Editor — Template Parts ​

Template parts are reusable sections shared across templates. The theme provides one header and one footer. You can edit these directly or create additional variations.

A full-width horizontal bar with a 2 px bottom border and 24 px vertical padding. The site title appears on the left in uppercase, and a navigation menu with Home, Blog, and Patterns links is right-aligned. Clean and structured, without a logo or social links by default.

A two-section footer. The upper section has the sand Background color, 64 px padding, a 2 px top border, and three columns with headings and descriptive text. The lower section uses the Background Dark color with light text, containing a copyright line and a navigation link to a Privacy Policy page.

Site Editor — Patterns ​

Patterns are pre-designed block layouts you can insert into any page or template. In the editor, click the block inserter (+) and switch to the Patterns tab to find them. All patterns are registered under the "Riverbank Patterns" category.

Hero Sections ​

  • Hero with Feature Columns — A large hero heading followed by three feature columns, each with a title and description. Used as the opening section of the homepage. Sets the tone with bold typography and a structured grid.
  • Hero with Image Columns — A hero section with three image-based feature columns. Use this when you want imagery rather than text to introduce the site's key offerings.

Content and Feature Sections ​

  • Columns with Image, Title, and Text — A multi-column layout where each column pairs an image with a heading and descriptive text. Good for showcasing services, team members, or product categories.
  • Columns with Images and Buttons — Similar to the above but each column includes a call-to-action button. Use this when each item needs its own link or action.
  • Feature Grid — A three-column grid of feature items. Suitable for highlighting capabilities, benefits, or key differentiators.
  • Section with Covers and Text — A section combining cover blocks (images with overlay) alongside text content. Creates visual interest with layered imagery.
  • Full-Width Columns with Text and Cover — A full-width layout pairing text columns with a cover image block. Good for storytelling sections or about pages.

Boxed Layouts ​

  • Boxed Columns with Text, Image, and Buttons — A structured boxed layout with text, images, and call-to-action buttons in columns. The boxed framing adds formality, suited for service descriptions or product highlights.
  • Boxed Image Features with Buttons — Image-focused feature boxes with call-to-action buttons. Use this for portfolio items, product cards, or featured content.

Call to Action ​

  • Call to Action (Inverted) — A full-width section with the Accent color as the background and contrasting text, with a call-to-action button. Designed to draw attention at key points on the page.
  • Call to Action (Inverted Inline) — A more compact inline variant of the inverted call-to-action. Used on the homepage between content sections for a less imposing but still prominent prompt.

Pricing ​

  • Pricing Plans (Columns) — A three-column pricing table with plan names, prices, feature lists, and call-to-action buttons. The column layout lets visitors compare plans side by side.
  • Pricing Plans (Row) — A row-based pricing layout where each plan is presented in a horizontal stack. An alternative to the column layout, better suited for fewer plans or when you want more detail per plan.

Social Proof ​

  • Quote Section — A styled quotation block for testimonials, pull quotes, or endorsements. Use this to add credibility with customer or client quotes.

Posts ​

  • Posts Grid — A two-column grid of posts with featured images, titles, dates, and excerpts, showing four posts per page with pagination. Drop this into any page to surface recent content outside the blog.

Site Editor — Navigation ​

Menus in Riverbank are managed as Navigation blocks within the Site Editor, not through the classic Appearance > Menus screen. The header template part contains a Navigation block pre-populated with links to Home, Blog, and Patterns.

To edit the navigation, open the Site Editor, click on the header area, and select the Navigation block. From there you can add, remove, reorder, or nest menu items. You can also create multiple Navigation blocks if you add new header variations.

When the theme is first activated with starter content enabled, it creates a primary navigation menu with Home and Blog links and sets up a static homepage and a blog page.

Otter Blocks Integration ​

This section applies only when the Otter Blocks plugin is installed and active.

When the theme is first activated, it displays a dashboard notice recommending Otter Blocks for additional block patterns and page-building capabilities. Once Otter Blocks is installed and activated, the notice disappears automatically.

A separate notice promotes the FSE Design Pack plugin, which adds over 40 additional layout patterns to the block inserter. This notice can be dismissed and does not appear again once closed.