Hexo Theme Purely

Hexo Theme Purely is a minimalist, open-source theme for the Hexo static site generator, designed to produce a clean, content-first personal blog with a simple configuration.

What is Hexo Theme Purely?

Hexo Theme Purely is a minimalist blogging theme that runs on the Hexo static site generator, taking a standard Hexo site as input and rendering it as a clean, readable blog layout. It is the current continuation of a previous theme called Simple, now renamed and rebuilt under the Purely name. The theme is maintained by geekrainy on GitHub and is still in active development, with the Hexo version described as unfinished while a Typecho version exists separately.

Key Features

• Minimalist layout — A simple, uncluttered design that focuses the reader's attention on the content itself.
• Configurable menu — Define navigation links such as home and archives directly in the theme's _config.yml through the menu setting.
• Color theming — Set a primary color via the color option; the example configuration uses blue, and new color schemes are planned.
• Comment integrations — Includes built-in support for Disqus (via disqus_shortname) and Gitment (with enable, github_user, github_repo, client_id, and client_secret fields).
• Analytics connectors — Wire up Google Analytics, CNZZ Analytics, or Tencent Analytics by adding your tracking ID to the corresponding config field.
• Code highlighting — A code highlighting theme is already implemented per the project's TODO list.
• Multi-language ready — The TODO list marks multi-language support as complete, meaning the theme can be adapted for different languages.
• Lightbox support — Enable Fancybox to show images in a lightbox overlay by setting fancybox: true.

Who is it for?

• Hexo bloggers — Anyone running a personal blog on Hexo who wants a quiet, minimal design that loads quickly and doesn't distract from the writing.
• Developers — Coders who like to customize their blog theme and appreciate a small codebase with straightforward configuration options.
• Writers and content creators — People who want an uncluttered page where articles take center stage, with optional comment and analytics features to engage readers.

What can you do with it?

• Personal blogging — Publish articles using Hexo's Markdown workflow, and have them rendered in a clean, minimalist layout with configurable navigation.
• Adding reader interaction — Turn on Disqus or Gitment to let site visitors leave comments without building a custom comment system.
• Measuring site traffic — Connect a Google Analytics, CNZZ, or Tencent Analytics account to track visits and readership.

How does it work?

1. Clone the repository into your Hexo site's themes folder with git clone https://github.com/geekrainy/hexo-theme-purely.git themes/purely.
2. Open your site's _config.yml and set the theme field to purely.
3. Adjust the theme's own _config.yml to set your menu items, color, comment service details, and analytics IDs.

FAQ

Is Hexo Theme Purely free to use?

Yes. The theme is hosted on GitHub as an open-source project, so you can download, use, and modify it for your Hexo site without charge.

Does it support search?

Not yet. The project's TODO list includes search support but does not show it as complete, so there is currently no built-in search functionality.

Is the theme mobile-responsive?

Mobile adaptation is still listed as an incomplete TODO item. While the theme may render on phones, full responsive design has not been finished yet.

Which comment systems are supported?

The theme comes with built-in integration for two comment systems: Disqus (configure via disqus_shortname) and Gitment (configure the GitHub-related fields such as github_user, github_repo, client_id, and client_secret).

Is there a Typecho version?

Yes. The developer also maintains a Typecho version of the theme under the name typecho-theme-simple, though it is older and may still contain bugs that can be reported on GitHub.