pickaxe [zsh][2] theme

July 25, 2026 · View on GitHub

pickaxe zsh theme

🚀 Installation

The theme is a single file — download it straight into the oh-my-zsh custom themes directory.

  1. Download the theme
    curl -fsSL -o ~/.oh-my-zsh/custom/themes/pickaxe.zsh-theme \
      https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mikhaben/pickaxe-zsh-theme/main/pickaxe.zsh-theme
  1. Set the theme in your ~/.zshrc file
    ZSH_THEME="pickaxe"
  1. Reload your terminal
    source ~/.zshrc

To update, run the same curl command again.

Working on the theme

Clone it and symlink the file instead, so your edits and git pull apply straight away:

    git clone https://github.com/mikhaben/pickaxe-zsh-theme.git
    ln -sf "$PWD/pickaxe-zsh-theme/pickaxe.zsh-theme" ~/.oh-my-zsh/custom/themes/pickaxe.zsh-theme

screenshot.zsh opens a throwaway shell with a generic user@host, so screenshots do not publish your account and machine name. Your normal config loads, so the prompt shows real node/conda/git info — only %n and %m are substituted, along with the terminal title, which leaks the same string. Exit with Ctrl-D.

    ./screenshot.zsh                 # dev@macbook
    ./screenshot.zsh alice thinkpad  # alice@thinkpad

⚙️ Customization

Edit pickaxe.zsh-theme to change colors, the error emoji set (ERROR_CHARS), or the icons.

A few behaviours worth knowing:

  • Failures show the exit code — 💀 FAIL 127 — so you can tell a missing command from a real error.
  • Ctrl-C stays quiet. An interrupt (exit code 130) is not a failure, so it does not print the error line.
  • Deep paths collapse in the middle — ~/Projects/…/current-folder. Paths of three or fewer components are shown in full.
  • Nerd Font icons are used by default. Set PICKAXE_MODE=emoji before the theme loads to force the emoji fallback, or PICKAXE_MODE=nerdfont to be explicit.

💡 Recommendations

For the best experience with this theme, we recommend:

Nerd Fonts

Install a Nerd Font to display icons properly. Recommended fonts:

  • FiraCode Nerd Font (modern, clean)
  • MesloLGS NF (popular with Powerlevel10k users)
  • JetBrains Mono Nerd Font

Catppuccin Color Theme

Apply the beautiful Catppuccin color theme to your terminal for a cohesive, aesthetic experience.