Layouts & Presets

One platform. Infinite voices.

Inkwell separates structure from surface. A Layout decides how a blog reads. A Preset decides how it feels. Pick one of each, mix them freely, and swap without a rebuild.

Four layouts

Choose your structure.

Each Layout controls the markup, navigation, and reading flow of a blog. One tenant, one Layout.

Vol. XIV · No. 03
The Magazine

An editor’s letter, a leader column, and three departments — laid out with the rhythm of a printed monthly. Generous margins, drop caps, and footnotes that resolve where you expect them.

FeatureEssay
The MagazineCream
Wednesday · 11.04
The Journal
A reverse-chronological river. One column, one voice, dated entries. Built for the writer who returns daily and the reader who follows along.
DailySolo
The JournalInk
Notebook · 042
The Notebook
Short notes, fragments, marginalia. A place to think out loud — indexed, tagged, but never tidied beyond use.
FragmentsIndex
The NotebookLinen
Studio · Selected works
The Studio
A portfolio-shaped blog. Visual posts first, with case studies in long form behind them.
VisualLong-form
The StudioPaper
Four presets

Choose your surface.

Each Preset is a set of CSS variables — color palette, type scale, spacing, and dark-mode adaptation. Swap at any time without touching your content.

Cream

Warm off-white background with dark charcoal typography. Evokes aged book pages. Best paired with Magazine or Journal.

Ink

Near-black background, soft cream text. Dark by default, no toggle needed. Best paired with Journal or Notebook.

Linen

Warm linen canvas with muted earth-toned elements. Tactile without being heavy. Best paired with Notebook or Magazine.

Paper

Pure white, high contrast, minimal decoration. Let the writing breathe. Best paired with Studio or Journal.

Need something bespoke?

Commission a Studio theme.

Maruti Software Solutions designs custom Layouts and Presets from scratch — typography, palette, templates, and all source files in your ownership. From $2,400, one-time.

See Studio service Build your own
  • Brand & typography consultation
  • Custom Layout (Razor partials & templates)
  • Custom Preset (palette, type, spacing)
  • Responsive across every breakpoint
  • Full source files — yours to keep
  • Dark mode included
Frequently asked

Questions about themes.

What is the difference between a Layout and a Preset in Inkwell?
A Layout defines the structure of a blog — how content is arranged, how navigation works, and how posts flow across the page. A Preset defines the surface — the color palette, typography scale, and spacing. The two are independent: you choose one Layout and one Preset per tenant, and you can swap either without rebuilding or migrating the database.
What Layouts does Inkwell include?
Inkwell ships four editorial Layouts: The Magazine, designed for multi-author publications with drop caps, bylines, and departments; The Journal, a clean single-column reverse-chronological stream for solo writers; The Notebook, built for short-form fragments and public notes indexed by date; and The Studio, a portfolio-shaped layout that surfaces visual posts first with long-form content behind them.
What Presets does Inkwell include?
Inkwell ships four Presets: Cream, a warm off-white palette with dark charcoal typography that evokes aged book pages; Ink, a near-black dark mode with soft cream text; Linen, a warm linen canvas with muted earth-toned elements; and Paper, a high-contrast pure white background with deep black minimal typography. Each Preset includes both light and dark mode adaptations.
Can I mix any Layout with any Preset?
Yes. Every Layout is fully compatible with every Preset. With four Layouts and four Presets you have sixteen out-of-the-box combinations, and you can assign a different combination to each tenant hosted on the same Inkwell instance. Switching is a single configuration change — no rebuild, no migration, no downtime.
Can I build a custom theme for Inkwell?
Yes. A custom Layout is a set of Razor partial views placed in /Views/Layouts/{Name}/ and a custom Preset is a CSS variable override block in /wwwroot/css/presets/{name}.css. Both are hot-reloaded in development. If you need a professionally designed bespoke theme, Maruti Software Solutions offers the Studio theme service from $2,400 — a custom Layout and Preset designed to match your masthead.
Ready?

Deploy Inkwell and pick your theme.

Free, MIT-licensed, and running on your own infrastructure in three commands.

Deploy your blog Read the docs