A Quick Guide to Mood Themes
Apr. 14th, 2025 11:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
soc_puppet posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
newcomers(Originally posted on Tumblr where I was blatantly showing off and bragging.)
So what exactly is a "mood theme", anyway?
A mood theme is like a sticker you add to the end of your posts to indicate what mood you’re in. If you've seen the cute little cartoon-ish rats at the bottom of my posts, those are part of the mood theme that I use!
In the "Currents" section of the post creation page, there’s a drop-down menu with 132 moods to pick from, as well as a space to enter a custom mood. If you pick a mood from the drop-down menu, it will upload one of the aforementioned stickers on your post. If you enter text as a custom mood instead of using the drop-down menu, there will be no sticker. But, if you do both, you can get a sticker and have it display a custom mood name for you!
For example, if you pick "happy" from the drop-down menu, you can enter "pleased as punch" in the custom mood field, and your post will say that next to the sticker instead of "happy" (demonstrated below). It can be a fun alternative to talking in the tags, since tags are strictly functional/organizational on Dreamwidth.
Got it. Now, how do I pick or change my mood theme on Dreamwidth?
First, make sure you’re logged in. You can’t change anything about your account if you’re not 😉
Second, go to the Customize Journal Style page. You can find it under the drop-down menu of the Organize tab. Once there, click the "Display" option. The ability to pick your mood theme should be at the top of the "Customize your theme" section. Or, for a shortcut, click this link!
Third, pick the mood theme you want from the drop-down menu. If you want to preview all of the mood themes before picking one, you can do so here. (It’s also linked right above the mood theme selection menu.) To view all of the mood images at once, find a mood theme you're interested in, then click the "View All" option on the right-hand side of it. Dreamwidth currently has two pages worth of free mood themes to pick from, so be sure to check them all out to find the one you like best! After you're done looking at the options, return to the journal customization page.
Finally, select the mood theme you want to use from the drop-down menu. A preview of the mood theme will pop up on the right, if you're worried about remembering which mood theme is which. After you’ve selected the mood theme you want to use, click the Save button at the bottom of the box. And you should be good to go!
Enjoy your fun new mood theme 😃
Okay, that’s cool and all, but I’ve seen accounts that have Star Trek or Pokémon mood themes. How do I get one of those?
Well, I’ve got good news and bad news there.
The good news is, anyone can get or make one of their own! In fact, I’ve set up a Dreamwith community for anyone who wants to make their own custom mood theme and wants some structure or friendly encouragement as they go: you can find it atmoodthemeinayear. Some people also have also made custom mood themes that they’re willing to share with the public, be they fandom or original. In fact, that’s what I was originally planning to do with my Fancy Rats and Jellyfish, before I learned how to submit them to be official site-supported themes!
The bad news is twofold: First, you need a paid account to set up a custom mood theme to use. As long as you get your custom mood theme set up and ready to go while you have paid time, you can keep using it after your paid time runs out, but only if your paid time runs out while you have it selected as your mood theme, and you cannot edit it without getting more paid time. This is fine if you can easily afford paid time, even just a month’s worth, or are enough in love with a custom mood theme that you don’t think you’ll be changing it any time soon, but is definitely a barrier! (I daydream about offering paid time to users who complete certain custom mood theme milestones at the community I linked above, but am not in that financial position at this time, alas.)
The second part is that it takes a fair amount of effort to set up a custom mood theme. Even if someone else made all of the images, you still have to upload them somewhere (Dreamwidth has image hosting, though it can be confusing to newcomers; Squidge.org is also an option I've heard) and match the image links in the custom mood theme setup and editing page. You need a minimum of 15 unique images for a "complete" mood theme, unless you want to use the same image for every mood.
That said, it can be done, and it can also be very rewarding! I had a blast making the mood themes shown above. Also, if the custom mood theme you create is entirely original art (no fanart, no screencaps from your favorite shows, basically nothing Dreamwidth can be sued over for copyright infringement), you can submit it to be a site-supported mood theme, which makes it available to all Dreamwidth users of all account types, free accounts definitely included! So depending on what you make, there’s a bit of a loophole to the "needing a paid account" thing 😉
I don't currently have a tutorial for uploading a custom mood theme, but I have added it to my to-do list.
Anyway, that’s the basics of Dreamwidth and mood themes! I hope that answers any questions you might have, but I’ll do my best to help if you have any others 💖
So what exactly is a "mood theme", anyway?
A mood theme is like a sticker you add to the end of your posts to indicate what mood you’re in. If you've seen the cute little cartoon-ish rats at the bottom of my posts, those are part of the mood theme that I use!
In the "Currents" section of the post creation page, there’s a drop-down menu with 132 moods to pick from, as well as a space to enter a custom mood. If you pick a mood from the drop-down menu, it will upload one of the aforementioned stickers on your post. If you enter text as a custom mood instead of using the drop-down menu, there will be no sticker. But, if you do both, you can get a sticker and have it display a custom mood name for you!
For example, if you pick "happy" from the drop-down menu, you can enter "pleased as punch" in the custom mood field, and your post will say that next to the sticker instead of "happy" (demonstrated below). It can be a fun alternative to talking in the tags, since tags are strictly functional/organizational on Dreamwidth.
Got it. Now, how do I pick or change my mood theme on Dreamwidth?
First, make sure you’re logged in. You can’t change anything about your account if you’re not 😉
Second, go to the Customize Journal Style page. You can find it under the drop-down menu of the Organize tab. Once there, click the "Display" option. The ability to pick your mood theme should be at the top of the "Customize your theme" section. Or, for a shortcut, click this link!
Third, pick the mood theme you want from the drop-down menu. If you want to preview all of the mood themes before picking one, you can do so here. (It’s also linked right above the mood theme selection menu.) To view all of the mood images at once, find a mood theme you're interested in, then click the "View All" option on the right-hand side of it. Dreamwidth currently has two pages worth of free mood themes to pick from, so be sure to check them all out to find the one you like best! After you're done looking at the options, return to the journal customization page.
Finally, select the mood theme you want to use from the drop-down menu. A preview of the mood theme will pop up on the right, if you're worried about remembering which mood theme is which. After you’ve selected the mood theme you want to use, click the Save button at the bottom of the box. And you should be good to go!
Enjoy your fun new mood theme 😃
Okay, that’s cool and all, but I’ve seen accounts that have Star Trek or Pokémon mood themes. How do I get one of those?
Well, I’ve got good news and bad news there.
The good news is, anyone can get or make one of their own! In fact, I’ve set up a Dreamwith community for anyone who wants to make their own custom mood theme and wants some structure or friendly encouragement as they go: you can find it at
moodthemeinayear. Some people also have also made custom mood themes that they’re willing to share with the public, be they fandom or original. In fact, that’s what I was originally planning to do with my Fancy Rats and Jellyfish, before I learned how to submit them to be official site-supported themes!The bad news is twofold: First, you need a paid account to set up a custom mood theme to use. As long as you get your custom mood theme set up and ready to go while you have paid time, you can keep using it after your paid time runs out, but only if your paid time runs out while you have it selected as your mood theme, and you cannot edit it without getting more paid time. This is fine if you can easily afford paid time, even just a month’s worth, or are enough in love with a custom mood theme that you don’t think you’ll be changing it any time soon, but is definitely a barrier! (I daydream about offering paid time to users who complete certain custom mood theme milestones at the community I linked above, but am not in that financial position at this time, alas.)
The second part is that it takes a fair amount of effort to set up a custom mood theme. Even if someone else made all of the images, you still have to upload them somewhere (Dreamwidth has image hosting, though it can be confusing to newcomers; Squidge.org is also an option I've heard) and match the image links in the custom mood theme setup and editing page. You need a minimum of 15 unique images for a "complete" mood theme, unless you want to use the same image for every mood.
That said, it can be done, and it can also be very rewarding! I had a blast making the mood themes shown above. Also, if the custom mood theme you create is entirely original art (no fanart, no screencaps from your favorite shows, basically nothing Dreamwidth can be sued over for copyright infringement), you can submit it to be a site-supported mood theme, which makes it available to all Dreamwidth users of all account types, free accounts definitely included! So depending on what you make, there’s a bit of a loophole to the "needing a paid account" thing 😉
I don't currently have a tutorial for uploading a custom mood theme, but I have added it to my to-do list.
Anyway, that’s the basics of Dreamwidth and mood themes! I hope that answers any questions you might have, but I’ll do my best to help if you have any others 💖
Thank you!
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 05:37 am (UTC)That is the best description ever. \o/
>> (I daydream about offering paid time to users who complete certain custom mood theme milestones at the community I linked above, but am not in that financial position at this time, alas.) <<
Bring it up during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth. There's usually a points giveaway then. You might get folks interested in sponsoring point awards (which can be used to buy paid time) for milestone awards.
Another option that would be much cheaper than giving everyone paid time would be giving each qualifying user an entry into a drawing for paid time. Then you'd only have to pay for one month -- which would be enough for them to upload and lock in their custom mood theme.
>> I don't currently have a tutorial for uploading a custom mood theme, but I have added it to my to-do list.<<
I look forward to seeing that. You're quite good at writing tutorials, and it's not a skill I see very often. \o/
Re: Thank you!
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 04:13 pm (UTC)Thanks 😁 It took me a while to come up with, but once I did, I was like, "I am using this to describe mood themes forever now."
👀 I am intrigued by these possibilities! I'm pretty sure I can afford the drawing version, if nothing else.
*bluuuuush* Oh goodness, thank you! I try to include everything I can think of (particularly from experience), and to word things so people using screenreaders can still figure out what's going on, though I haven't personally tested how I'm doing on that second goal 😅 I know I miss things from time to time, but learning from that will only help me get better! (I wonder if there are any freelance opportunities for writing tutorials...)
Re: Thank you!
Date: Apr. 16th, 2025 01:19 am (UTC)Go you!
>> I am intrigued by these possibilities! I'm pretty sure I can afford the drawing version, if nothing else. <<
Other ideas:
You could ask if anyone has points they don't need and would be willing to donate. If you get enough, they add up to be able to buy paid time. Sometimes folks want to buy a certain thing but there are extra points left over.
Also, are you any good at making banners, or do you know someone else who is? Some bingo fest hosts on
>> (I wonder if there are any freelance opportunities for writing tutorials...) <<
There probably are, although I'm not sure how to find them. If you post some and let it be known as something you do, there's always a chance someone will ask you. It really isn't a common skill, people hate doing it, but it often needs to be done.
no subject
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 12:00 pm (UTC)Also, seconding Elizabeth, your tutorials are so clear and well written!
no subject
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 04:17 pm (UTC)Ahhh, thank you 😊 I'll admit to having picked up a more "personable" style from how
no subject
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 03:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Apr. 15th, 2025 04:18 pm (UTC)Thoughts
Date: Apr. 16th, 2025 01:05 am (UTC)There are also mood tracker apps that some people really like.
You can even view the general mood of Dreamwidth.
Re: Thoughts
Date: Apr. 16th, 2025 03:29 am (UTC)Being able to see the general mood of Dreamwidth is amazing! That's such a neat feature.
Re: Thoughts
Date: Apr. 16th, 2025 09:23 am (UTC)That's cool.
If you're into habit tracking, check out
>> Being able to see the general mood of Dreamwidth is amazing! That's such a neat feature.<<
I'm glad you like it. :D