Redesign your site in a draft child theme
Try new colours, fonts, a header and a footer in a draft theme next to the live one, check it through a preview link, and publish only with your password.
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time
- about 30 min
I want to refresh the look of my WordPress site without visitors seeing anything until it is ready. Start a draft theme next to the live one and change [what to change, e.g. the colours to dark green and cream, a larger heading font and a simpler header with the logo on the left]. Keep my content and menus as they are. Send me a preview link and check how fast the home page loads with the draft. Wait for my approval before you publish it.
Already connected?
If SAR is already in your AI app, this is enough:
Redesign the site in a draft theme with [new look] and send me the preview.
What happens
- The AI app starts a draft theme: a child of your live theme, with your Site Editor templates and styles carried over.
- It reads the files that hold the parts you want changed, such as theme.json or the header.
- It edits only the draft; the live site stays exactly as it is.
- It gives you a preview link that works for an hour and checks the page speed with the draft.
- Publishing is approved in SAR with your password; SAR checks the site straight after and switches back if anything breaks.
Approvals involved
Worked out from the tools this recipe uses.
wordpress_create_draft_themeStart a draft themeNonewordpress_read_theme_fileRead a theme fileNonewordpress_edit_theme_fileEdit a theme fileNonewordpress_get_theme_previewPreview the draft themeNonesar_check_page_speedCheck page speedNonewordpress_publish_draft_themePublish the draft themeApproval and password
What you get
A new look you saw before anyone else did, put live in one step. It can be undone, and the draft theme never touched your live theme's code.
Related recipes
- Design & builders · about 40 minChange a classic theme's PHP templates in a draft child themeMake a change that needs PHP, such as a note under the Add to cart button, in a draft child theme that is checked and previewed before it goes live.
- Design & builders · about 15 minA mobile design review of your busiest pagesSee your most visited pages the way phone visitors do: what spills off the screen, broken images, errors and layout shifts, in one list. Nothing changes.
- Design & builders · about 10 minChange the words on an Elementor, Bricks or Divi pageRewrite headings, paragraphs and buttons on a page-builder page without opening the builder. The layout stays as it is, and a live page waits for your approval.
Try it on your own site
Install the plugin, add SAR to your AI app and paste the prompt. Free to start.