Themes

QuickMail’s color scheme is controlled through Settings → Appearance (see Settings) and managed in more detail through the Theme Manager.

Theme Manager

Open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and choose Manage Themes, or choose Manage Themes… from the Tools menu. The Theme Manager is a separate, non-blocking window, so you can leave it open while you try a theme against real messages. From the theme list, press Tab to reach the actions:

• Apply — switch to the selected theme immediately.
• Duplicate — copy a theme as a starting point for your own. A name field appears with a suggested name.
• Rename / Delete — for your own themes (built-ins cannot be changed or deleted).
• Export… — save a theme as a .quickmailtheme file to share or move to another machine.
• Import… — load a .quickmailtheme file. If a theme file has a problem, QuickMail tells you exactly what is wrong (for example, which color value is not a valid hex color).
• Open themes folder — opens the folder where your themes are stored, for hand-editing.

Below the theme list and actions, a read-only Theme description box always shows a plain-language account of the currently selected theme — its overall look, its fonts, and every individual color together with where in the app that color is used. This box is there so you can understand and compare themes by ear or by reading, without needing to see the colors. See Built-in Themes below for the description of each theme that ships with QuickMail.

The Command Palette also offers Next Theme and Previous Theme to cycle through themes, and a Theme: [name] command for each theme. None of these have a default keyboard shortcut — assign one in Settings → Keyboard if you want direct access.

Editing a theme by hand: a theme is a plain, documented JSON text file. Duplicate a built-in theme, choose Open themes folder, and edit the copy in any text editor. Colors are hex values like #3D5A80; any color you leave out is filled in from the built-in Light or Dark theme (whichever the file’s base names). A typical minimal theme:

{
  "formatVersion": 1,
  "id": "my-theme",
  "name": "My Theme",
  "base": "light",
  "colors": {
    "accent": "#8F4531",
    "windowBackground": "#FBF7F2"
  },
  "typography": { "fontFamily": "Segoe UI", "baseFontSize": 13 }
}

The full color token list: windowBackground, surfaceBackground, chromeBackground, inputBackground, border, borderSubtle, inputBorder, textPrimary, textSecondary, textDisabled, textOnAccent, accent, accentSubtle, hyperlink, selectionBackground, selectionText, selectionInactive, focusIndicator, error, errorBackground, warning, warningBackground, success, successBackground, info, infoBackground. Edits take effect the next time the theme is applied (reopen the Theme Manager and choose Apply, or restart).

Built-in Themes

QuickMail ships with six themes. System follows Windows; the other five are always available regardless of your Windows setting. Each description below is a shorter version of what the Theme Manager’s Theme description box reads for that theme — open the Theme Manager and select a theme to hear or read the full breakdown, including every individual color and exactly where it is used (message list, links, selection, focus outline, error/warning/success text, and so on).

System — follows the Windows light or dark setting. Whichever it resolves to today, it currently displays the same colors as Parchment (below): an off-white background, very dark cool-gray text, and a dark muted-blue accent.

In every theme, the selected item in a list or tree is a solid band of the theme’s accent color with white text, so the current message is unmistakable; supporting text (previews, timestamps, unread counts) is a step lighter than body text but kept clearly readable; and a thin divider separates message rows.

Parchment (light, default) — an off-white background (Snow) with very dark cool-gray text and a dark muted-blue accent (Dark Slate Blue) used for buttons, the unread marker, and the selected item. Panels and toolbars use warm off-white tones (White Smoke, Linen); links are medium blue. This is QuickMail’s standard light look.

Parchment Dark — the dark counterpart to Parchment: a very dark gray background with light gray text and a light muted-blue accent. The selected item is a medium-blue band with white text. Panels and toolbars use slightly lighter dark-gray tones for depth; links are light blue. Status colors (error, warning, success, information) are lightened versions of Parchment’s, chosen for contrast against the dark background.

Ember — a warm light theme: a warm off-white background (Floral White) with very dark cool-gray text and a dark red accent (Sienna) in place of Parchment’s blue. The selected item is a terracotta band with white text. Links remain medium blue for consistency across themes.

Fjord — a cool light theme: an off-white background with a faint cool cast (Ghost White) and a dark muted-cyan accent (Dark Slate Gray) in place of Parchment’s blue. The selected item is a dark teal band with white text.

Heather — a muted light theme: an off-white background (Ghost White) with a cool gray accent (Dim Gray) instead of a saturated color. The selected item is a plum-gray band with white text. This is the most subdued of the built-in themes.

The four light themes are close cousins. Ember, Fjord, and Heather each change only four colors from Parchment: the main window background tint, the accent color, the soft accent-fill color, and the selection color (which matches the accent, so selection is where each theme’s personality shows most). Everything else — panels and toolbars, borders, body and secondary text, the medium-blue hyperlink color, the focus outline, and the four status colors (error, warning, success, information) — is inherited unchanged from Parchment. Parchment Dark is the only theme with a fully dark palette.