Tips to Use & Customize WordPress Block Patterns

Back in the day, WordPress websites usually just have a typical page layout for the blog post and static pages. It’s always possible to make customization for those types of page layouts, but it would require a little coding skill to do so, or else using page builder plugins that may risk the website’s loading speed.

But recently, styling your page layout gets easier with several new WordPress features and functionalities. One of those layout customization features is the WordPress Block Patterns. It allows you to uniquely style your static WordPress page as well as your blog post.

An Introduction to WordPress Block Patterns

WordPress block patterns consist of various types of premade block layouts that allow you to insert them in the block editor to speed up the page layout styling and customization. The ready-made blocks are beautifully designed and ready to use in any WordPress site page layout with ease.

How to access the WordPress Block Patterns Library?

1. Block Editor Page

The WordPress Block Editor by default provides you access to Block Patterns by clicking the plus toggle button at the left top of your editor.

2. WordPress Block Patterns Directory

This patterns library is also hosted in the WordPress directory where you can search by category. Hover on the patterns item’s thumbnail and just click the copy button then paste it anywhere on your Block Editor page.

3. Block Patterns Plugins

To an extent, you can also install one of these recommended WordPress Block Patterns plugins that will provide you with more pattern alternatives:

• Gutenberg Template and Pattern Library & Redux Framework

• Gutenberg Blocks – ACF Blocks Suite

• Editor Plus

What web elements you can style with Block Patterns?

The predesigned WordPress basic block patterns are categorized as the followings:

• Buttons
  It’s useful to quick style the CTA button and is often listed as a group block section that also includes a button, text description, and headings in a composition.

• Columns
  The list for the columns category features pricing table comparison, client testimonials, team members, services section, and many more. Usually designed in 3-4 columns in a row. However, you can always extend the use of this pattern type to other web elements.

• Featured
  This block pattern category is specially pre-designed for layout sections that feature a product or service or any content in general, which is usually a composition of one or two photos, a group of headings, text descriptions, and a CTA button.

• Gallery
  The gallery block patterns will make it easier for you to choose many selections of photo grids or masonry layouts with captions and stylized photo or picture borders style.

• Header
  This block pattern can have a copy-able header area focus with various stylings, such as header background pattern, main heading for page title, and sometimes includes the navigation menu and search form.

• Images
  This pattern type gives you ready-made image blocks for any image background where you can customize the opacity, effect, border width, and position, or just a simple composition layout of several images to create unique styling.

• Text
  The text pattern comes in handy as you can just select many alternatives of headings and paragraph styling with nice typography composition, to apply for quotes, hero section, testimonial, timeline description, or author’s bio.

• Query
  This block pattern is dynamic and you’ll be able to choose several premade query loop layouts based on category or tags and edit the query loop settings afterward.

Why You Should Use WordPress Block Patterns?

1. Speed up the page customization

Fast layout customization is the main reason why you should consider starting to use the WordPress block pattern. The block might not be in the same styling as your current website, yet it is reusable and will be a great time saver rather than styling web elements from scratch.

2. Optimize the creative use of the block pattern library

The available alternatives of the block pattern library give you the freedom to be creative to style the individual page layout. Each block pattern is consisting of group blocks which you can modify each block with your maximum creativity and make it totally unique.

3. Stay up to date with the current web design trend

The Block Patterns library is open source, moderated, and maintained by the WordPress community so it will grow by number and give you more chances to find inspiration and keep up with the current web design trends.

4. Faster loading page compared to page builder plugins

WordPress Block Editor was specially designed for WordPress full site editing purposes after the release of Gutenberg Editor in the late year 2018. It replaced the classic editor that has limitations in site layout editing.

This is why using the block patterns in WordPress block editor will give you the advantage in page speed loading to compare using page builder plugins that often have rich functionalities and slows down the page load as a consequence.

How to Customize the WordPress Block Patterns?

1. Using the Block Editor

To work, Block Patterns need a Gutenberg Editor activated. You can download and install the Gutenberg plugin if you still use Classic Editor. Check your WordPress site dashboard settings if your Block Editor not working properly and causing issues on your WordPress website.

Simply hover your cursor over the specific block you wish to edit inside the block pattern in the block editor and click it. You'll notice a list of some basic settings. You can access even more settings by clicking the three dots on the right side of the panel.

2. Create Custom Block Pattern Using Plugins

There are WordPress plugins that make possible the full creation of block patterns. This will be the best option when you have a very unique website and the existing default pattern library will not much help to fit your design need. Also, it’s practical to reuse your block patterns on different pages or po sts.

Here are the suggested plugins for you to start building your block patterns:

• Custom Block Patterns

• BlockMeister – Block Pattern Builder

Tips to Use WordPress Block Patterns

1. Customize block patterns to be consistent with your brand

It’s always important to stay consistent with your brand whenever you use the available block patterns. You can customize the block’s design appearance, such as the text or typography style, change the color of the block’s background, and other elements that will represent your company brand.

2. Combine several types of block patterns in one layout

Using several types of block patterns in a layout is always possible and would save time when you customize these different patterns to create nice and well-balanced web page layout composition later on.

3. Use spacer block between group patterns

The spacer block is useful to separate the stack of layout sections as it’s often that each block pattern doesn’t set proper top and bottom pixel gap by default. It will also give visual breathing space between the page layout sections.

4. Good block patterns organization

There are some ways to organize your grouped block patterns, and here’s what you can do:

• Grouping the block pattern
  Each block patterns consist of several blocks but sometimes will not come as a group when you paste the block patterns code or when you insert them in your block editor. In this case, you can just click the three dots to open the block pattern’s option and select “group” to make the block patterns as a group.

• Renaming a grouped block pattern

Unfortunately, there is no option to rename your block pattern unless you add it to the Reusable blocks. Go to option and select “Add to Reusable blocks”, input a name to specify the block patterns type, then save it.
It will need a few seconds to get your block pattern renamed and listed as a reusable block. You can find the list of reusable blocks in the reusable tab or access this page path URL: yourdomain.com/wp-admin/edit.php?post_type=wp_block

5. Use List View to navigate block patterns

When you have many blocks or block patterns, it’s better to find them using the List View (Shift+Alt+O) rather than scrolling up-down your page layout to edit. It makes it easy to navigate the block patterns and allows you to drag or move each block or block pattern to the position that you want in the page layout.

6. Limit the number of Block Patterns plugins on a website

In some cases, you need more block pattern choices than what’s available by default. You can try some Block Patterns plugins suggested earlier, to get a more great selection of block patterns then.

However, some WordPress blocks would probably stop working or would not be displayed properly when you use more than one Block Patterns plugin, therefore it’s a good idea to limit the number of those plugin types to avoid plugin conflict or other technical issues.

Conclusion

The WordPress Block Patterns is a very good alternative option to the page builder plugins as it’s easy to access directly on the block editor page. If you have tried some WordPress page builder plugins, you would see the plugin editing page instead of the default WordPress block editor page, which is quite a hassle.

Good organization of WordPress Block Patterns is also important when you have complex layout composition so you’ll be able to navigate each block pattern whenever you need to make additional customization in a list view.

Although it’s a relatively new feature in WordPress, the Block Pattern will be enhanced time after time, as the WordPress community will give feedback and feature requests to make it better as a powerful full-site editing tool.

Frequently Asked Questions