Setting up a theme using use-package

Question

I'm doing a new setup so that I can have an init.el on my dropbox as a one stop shop for my configuration. So far so good but I'm stuck on the theme.

When I setup the code using load-path it all works like it should, all the colors and the modeline. My question is how can I do the same but using the use-package approach?

(add-to-list 'custom-theme-load-path "~/.emacs.d/themes/")

(setq molokai-theme-kit t)
(load-theme 'molokai t)

Is something like this possible?

(use-package molokai-theme 
  :ensure t
  :init
  (setq molokai-theme-kit t)
  (load-theme 'molokai t)
  )

Answer 1

My user-emacs-directory points to a folder on my Dropbox. Apparently use-package :load-path points to the user-emacs-directory by default, I just had to put "themes" and the necessary files inside it.

It's now working like a charm.

(use-package molokai-theme 
  :ensure t
  :load-path "themes"
  :init
  (setq molokai-theme-kit t)
  :config
  (load-theme 'molokai t)
  )

Answer 2

Try a :defer t in the use-package declaration too.

Answer 3

Yes you can add this to your init.el but I recomend you to create a init.el in your home directory, and make this file to load the one you have in dropbox. So yo create a file wich have the following content:

(load-file "<your-path-to-dropbox>/yourdropboxinit.el")

I think this is the better solution for you.

Answer 4

I would suggest you keep your init.el under version control either publicly in Github or privately in BitBucket.

Also, have you considered using the community-driven Emacs distribution called Spacemacs?

Adjusting themes is particularly easy in Spacemacs, and there is a vast vast number of themes to choose from.