Custom Resource Dictionaries

In a normal app, you might put colors and styles in a resource dictionary and merge it in App.xaml. Plugins don't have their own App.xaml, so the main plugin class can load these dictionaries for you.

Add this property to the main class and import System.Collections.Generic:

protected override IEnumerable<string> ResourceDictionaries =>
    ["ms-plugin://ShadowExample.Plugin.Emoji/Themes/ResourceDictionary1.xaml"];

ShadowExample.Plugin.Emoji is the DLL's assembly name. When the plugin is created, these dictionaries are merged into the app's resources. You can then use StaticResource to reference their colors and styles.

For more dictionaries, add more paths to the list. Write their contents just as you would in a normal WinUI project.

Dictionaries stay in the app's resources when a plugin is disabled. Prefix your resource names with the plugin name to avoid clashes. Built-in resources deployed with the app can use ms-appx:/// paths.

See Plugin Resource Paths for more examples.