Tabs, with this new theme, will seem to fade into the background a ‘bit more.  You get a much more glass-like interface – especially if you are a Windows Vista or Windows 7 user. This theme is the fourth most popular theme on the Firefox Add-ons website, so it must have something going for it.  However, there are a few too many odd graphical bugs that might keep me from using it all the time.  For example, the new tab button seems to overlay on top of the last tab.  Little things like that might not bug some – but they do bug me.

Want to give it a shot? You can download the Shine Bright Skin for Firefox from the Firefox Add-ons website.

Here are some quick links to the customizations you can make:

Change the Firefox Button Icon
http://userstyles.org/styles/51118/fxchrome-firox-button-icons?r=1311430549

Change the App Button Back to Normal
http://userstyles.org/styles/54955/change-the-app-button-back-to-normal?r=1318606186

New Tab Button with a Plus
http://userstyles.org/styles/55686/new-tab-button-with?r=1320316319

Change FXChrome Minimize/Maximize/Close(Windows XP)
http://userstyles.org/styles/55689/change-fxchrome-minimize-mazimize-close-winxp?r=1320317556

When you are done, your theme could look something like these –

Like it? Go grab FXChrome from the Firefox Add-ons website.  It is a really nice theme that allows you to keep it simple or snaz-it-up the way you see fit to do so.

Here is a quick screen grab of my own Firefox installation using the old Firefox 3 icons:

I do have to say, I don’t mind the change.  All of the design aspects from Firefox 3 that they decided to keep feel like they fit right in with Firefox 4.  I think I might actually use this theme for a while.

You can pick up the Firefox 3 theme for Firefox 4+ over at the Firefox Add-ons website.

FXChrome is a nice mix of both Firefox 4′s theme and Google Chrome’s theme mashed together.  While many people would argue that the themes are pretty similar already – and I might have to agree there – I do like the flat buttons from Chrome that FXChrome brings to the table.

Want to download it and give it a shot? You can grab it on the Firefox Add-ons website.

The world of Firefox 3.6 themes is really slim pickings these days.  Well, there still are a lot of great themes, however most of them I have already covered here more than a few times.  However,  I am happy to say I was surprised to find this suggestion in my inbox this morning.  Bloomind FT Graphite really transforms the way Firefox looks for Windows users.

This has to be one of the best looking themes for Firefox, hands down.  The interface is very sleek and Apple-like, however it still has a unique feeling about it that makes you say, "Hey, maybe I’m not using Safari!". 

The only complaints I have seen are a few issues with some buttons not looking just right, but other than that I would give Bloomind FT Graphite two thumbs up and five stars all around.  With Firefox 4 right around the corner, why not decorate Firefox 3.6 one more time with this exceptionally awesome theme.

You can pick up Bloomind FT Graphite at the Firefox Add-ons website.

Even though Firefox 4 might not yet be ready for the public, it does not hurt to take a look at some of the nice themes that have been developed for the browser of the future.  One theme that caught my eye for Firefox 4 is AvantGarde. It brings a unique new look to the Firefox 4 browser interface.

Once Firefox 4 gets released, one of the first things people will want to do is change the way it looks.  That is the reason we have themes for Firefox in the first place, right? AvantGarde brings a colorful and fun browsing experience to the Mozilla browser.

Here is a little more about the theme from the developer.

"Avant-garde" is a French term, with no real English translation, that essentially means "out of the cultural or accepted norm". Avant-garde artists and designers push the boundaries of what is known, and considered normal – and that’s what this theme is all about. It pushes the boundaries of colour, visual association, and user experience.

If you think the default look and feel of Firefox 4 is going to be a little too vanilla for you – the AvantGarde theme is a great way to spice it up.  Have any other Firefox 4 themes impressed you? Let me know in the comments.  You can pick up the AvantGarde theme from the Firefox Add-ons website.

Like the default Firefox theme, but find it to be a little too colorful for its own good?  Then you might want to check out the Firefox theme – MonoChrome.  It brings Firefox back to basics with everything turned black and white and grey all over.

MonoChrome, simply put – is a monochrome version of the default Windows theme for Firefox 3.6, otherwise known as the "Strata" theme. To the theme creator’s credit, he has done a fantastic job at re-themeing this creative take on the default Firefox theme – and it shows. 

The goal here is to create a lightweight, aesthetically pleasing theme – and MonoChrome does it.

You can pick up MonoChrome from the Firefox Add-ons website.

With all the buzz surrounding the Firefox 4 redesign making us excited for the next best thing, I have to remind you that there are still some great themes for our current navigation and toolbar layout too.  Strata Reloaded gives the basic Windows Firefox theme a fresh overhaul, and makes it look even nicer than before.

Once you have the theme installed, you will notice that you have new icons, new effects when you hover over those icons and an overall better polish to the basic Firefox theme we all know and use a lot. The theme is fully compatible with Linux, Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP too. You can also install the theme on Firefox 3.0, 3.5, 3.6 and 4.0!  I have to give that virtual pat on the back for any theme or add-on author that has their stuff already updated for the next great version of Firefox.

The above picture is for the Firefox 3.6 version of the theme – and bellow, we have the Firefox 4 version:

So as you can see, this is a theme you can plan on using for a long time.

Want to download Strata Reloaded and see how you like it?  You can pick up this fantastic theme from the Firefox Add-ons website or lean more about it from the official Strata Reloaded website too.

What are some of the best Personas you can pick up for Firefox from the Film and TV category?  I recently took a trip through some of the user created backgrounds for Firefox, and found ten of the best examples.  These are all Personas I find both usable and fun to look at, and might help lighten the day the next time you launch your favorite browser.

Here are my top 10 favorite Film and TV Personas for Firefox:

Cookie Monster

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Star Wars Death Star

Sponge Bob Square Pants

Pulp Fiction

Spiderman

Alice in Wonderland

South Park

True Blood

Star Trek – Red Shirt

There you have it.  Let me know which one is your favorite in the comments or if you have another Persona background to share, be sure to post those too. 

Time to dig through the newest Firefox themes to see what treasures we can find.  Today’s selection comes in three different flavors, green, purple and black and is known simply as LavaFox.

Now I have mentioned before that is is really hard to make a usable dark Firefox theme, but I think LavaFox does a great job at getting the job done.  It doesn’t seem too dark – and is still really usable and great to look at.  The sleek black interface will look great on any Windows 7 or Windows Vista desktop too.

Just about every aspect of the skin is themed too – which is nice to see that they paid that much attention to the details.  Want to give them a shot?

• LavaFox V1 Purple
• LavaFox V1 Green
• BlackFox V1

All three themes can be downloaded from the Firefox Add-ons website.