Welcome to episode 117 of the Gutenberg Changelog podcast! In this jam-packed episode, host Birgit Pauli-Haack is joined by Ellen Bauer, product lead at WooCommerce for an insightful conversation covering all the latest developments in the WordPress ecosystem.
Together, they dive into the progress on the new WooCommerce Starter Theme, its underlying “workhorse” philosophy, and the ongoing efforts to improve block theme adoption for e-commerce. Ellen shares behind-the-scenes challenges and a sneak peek into the team’s priorities—plus, learn how you can get involved and provide feedback as WooCommerce gears up for a first release in early June.
The episode also offers a preview of what to expect at WordCamp Europe, from Ellen’s session (spoiler: it’s all about WooCommerce and block themes) to hands-on workshops like Birgit’s upcoming walkthrough of using WordPress Playground for product demos. They tackle a listener question on overriding block styles, highlight recent updates to WP-CLI, WordPress 6.8, and the Create Block Theme plugin, and break down the newest features in Gutenberg 20.7 and the upcoming 20.8 release.
Whether you’re a theme builder, plugin developer, or a curious WordPress enthusiast, this episode is packed with actionable insights, pro tips, and friendly encouragement to explore the full potential of the block editor—especially for e-commerce sites. Tune in, and stay up-to-date with the fast-moving world of WordPress!
- Music: Homer Gaines
- Editor: Sandy Reed
- Logo: Mark Uraine
- Production: Birgit Pauli-Haack
Show Notes
Ellen Bauer
- On X (former Twitter) @ellenbauer
- ElmaStudio
- Gutenberg Changelog #105 – Gutenberg 18.9, Block Themes and WooCommerce
WooCommerce
- Woo Starter Theme on GitHub (MVP not for production)
- Woo Developer Blog
- Woo Dev Slack
- Woo Commerce Documentation
Listener Question on block styles and block themes
- How to overwrite or remove core block styles
- Mastering Custom Block Styles in WordPress: 6 Methods for Theme and Plugin Developers
- Seven Tasks to a Custom Block Theme: Anders Norén’s Weekend Workflow
What’s released:
Gutenberg Plugin releases
Stay in Touch
- Did you like this episode? Please write us a review
- Ping us on X (formerly known as Twitter) or send DMs with questions. @gutenbergtimes and @bph.
- If you have questions or suggestions, or news you want us to include, send them to changelog@gutenbergtimes.com.
- Please write us a review on iTunes! (Click here to learn how)
Transcript
The transcript is in the works.
The post Gutenberg Times: Gutenberg Changelog 117 – WooCommerce Starter Theme and Blocks, WordCamp Europe, and Gutenberg 20.7 and 20.8 appeared first on MCNM Digital Media Marketing.
