Recur Sites tools: widgets, media, themes

Last updated August 5, 2026

Objective

The Tools section within Recur Sites houses core utility features—including the Widget Gallery, Media Library, Theme Builder, and Contact Form Submissions. These tools ensure your association's web pages load quickly, remain visually cohesive, and process inbound member inquiries efficiently.

1. Widgets Gallery

  • Purpose: Provides embeddable code snippets for websites hosted externally or built outside Recur's primary editor.

  • Note: If Recur built your website directly or if you are using the integrated Recur Sites page editor, you do not need to configure these manual embeds; the system handles widget integration automatically.

2. Media Library Management

Centralize all images, graphics, audio, and documents used across your site.

  • Uploading & Filtering: Click Upload Files to add content. Filter your assets by file type (Images, Videos, Audios, PDFs), file size, date added, or file name.

  • Layout Views: Toggle between Card View (for visual thumbnails) and List View (to view detailed file data in bulk).

  • Regenerating Variants: Click the Regenerate Variants button to force Recur to generate new, web-optimized resolution copies (large, medium, small) for every uploaded image.

    Why use this? Ensures your graphics render sharply on high-resolution displays while maintaining fast page load speeds on mobile devices.

3. Theme Builder & Branding Consistency

Themes dictate your site's global typography, button styles, content width, and color palettes to maintain a polished, uniform brand image.

Creating a Standard Theme

  1. Go to Tools > Themes and click Create Theme > Create Standard Theme.

  2. Color Palette & Harmony: Select custom colors or use auto-generated harmonies (e.g., Monochromatic, Complementary, Triadic). Toggle light/dark contrast modes as needed.

  3. Typography: Select standard heading and body fonts, or upload custom web fonts via a URL.

  4. Content Width: Set content display limits. While legacy platforms (like Wild Apricot) default to narrow centered layouts, Full Width is recommended for modern web displays.

  5. Advanced Controls: Fine-tune hex codes directly, set specific font sizes per heading level ($\text{H1}$ through $\text{H6}$), configure color gradients, or adjust background styling.

Generating Themes with AI

Recur offers multiple AI-assisted ways to build a matching theme instantly:

  • URL Extraction: Enter your existing organization's web URL (e.g., yourassociation.com). The AI analyzes the site, extracts primary color schemes and fonts, and builds a matching theme. Refine the results with prompts like "Make it brighter" before saving.

  • Image Inspiration: Upload an image (such as your association logo or a promotional graphic) for the AI to extract a matching color palette.

  • Text Description: Type a descriptive prompt (e.g., "Bright, professional, marine biology theme") to auto-generate a new aesthetic.

Importing & Exporting Themes

  • Exporting: Export your active theme as a JSON file to backup your design rules.

  • Importing: Paste JSON theme data from another site to apply identical global styling instantly.

4. Contact Form Submissions

  • Managing Messages: Whenever a site visitor submits a message through a Contact Us widget on your website, the inquiry routes to Tools > Contact Submissions.

  • Inbox States: Manage incoming leads using the built-in status tabs: Unread, Read, Follow-up, and Closed.

Tips for Efficiency

  • Image Optimization: Run Regenerate Variants whenever you notice image blurriness on mobile screens or after uploading high-resolution photography.

  • Rebranding Shortcut: Use the AI Theme Generator via URL when migrating off older platforms to retain your existing brand colors without manually looking up hex codes.