diff --git a/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/content/variants/index.md b/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/content/variants/index.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9e02533
--- /dev/null
+++ b/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/content/variants/index.md
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+---
+title: "Layout variants"
+type: variants
+---
diff --git a/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/hugo.toml b/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/hugo.toml
index 76aacef..55f25cb 100644
--- a/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/hugo.toml
+++ b/themes/bonsai/exampleSite/hugo.toml
@@ -13,9 +13,11 @@ disableKinds = ["taxonomy", "term", "RSS", "sitemap", "404"]
   # avatar omitted intentionally so the demo showcases the initials fallback
   # (the SVG circle uses the active palette's accent color)
   colorTheme = "sakura"      # try "bonsai" (default), "sakura", "sumi", "koi"
+  layout = "grid"            # try "stack" (default), "grid", "inline"
   themeToggle = true
   jobTitle = "Software Engineer"
   footerText = "© 2026 · made with bonsai"
+  # ogImageUrl = "/og.png"   # optional 1200×630 image for social previews
 
   [[params.links]]
     title = "GitHub"
diff --git a/themes/bonsai/layouts/partials/bio-card.html b/themes/bonsai/layouts/partials/bio-card.html
index 7e7304f..732afa2 100644
--- a/themes/bonsai/layouts/partials/bio-card.html
+++ b/themes/bonsai/layouts/partials/bio-card.html
@@ -2,6 +2,12 @@
 {{- $tagline := site.Params.tagline -}}
 {{- $bio := site.Params.bio -}}
 {{- $links := site.Params.links -}}
+{{- $layout := site.Params.layout | default "stack" -}}
+{{- $validLayouts := slice "stack" "grid" "inline" -}}
+{{- if not (in $validLayouts $layout) -}}
+  {{- warnf "bonsai: unknown params.layout %q (expected stack|grid|inline), falling back to 'stack'" $layout -}}
+  {{- $layout = "stack" -}}
+{{- end -}}
 
 <article class="bio">
   {{ partial "avatar.html" . }}
@@ -17,7 +23,7 @@
   {{- end }}
 
   {{- if $links }}
-  <nav class="bio__links" aria-label="Links">
+  <nav class="bio__links bio__links--{{ $layout }}" aria-label="{{ i18n "nav_links_label" | default "Links" }}">
     {{- range $links }}
       {{- partial "link-button.html" . -}}
     {{- end }}
diff --git a/themes/bonsai/layouts/variants/single.html b/themes/bonsai/layouts/variants/single.html
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..35843f3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/themes/bonsai/layouts/variants/single.html
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+{{ define "main" }}
+  <article style="text-align:center;">
+    <h1 style="font-family:var(--bonsai-font-display);">Layout variants</h1>
+    <p style="color:var(--bonsai-muted);max-width:32rem;margin:0 auto 2rem;">
+      Set <code>layout = "stack"</code> (default), <code>"grid"</code>, or <code>"inline"</code> in your <code>hugo.toml</code> <code>[params]</code> block.
+    </p>
+  </article>
+
+  {{- $sample := slice
+    (dict "title" "GitHub"   "url" "#" "icon" "github")
+    (dict "title" "LinkedIn" "url" "#" "icon" "linkedin")
+    (dict "title" "Email"    "url" "#" "icon" "mail")
+    (dict "title" "Mastodon" "url" "#" "icon" "mastodon")
+  -}}
+
+  {{- $variants := slice
+    (dict "name" "stack"  "label" "Stack (default)" "desc" "Full-width vertical buttons. Best for ≤ 6 links.")
+    (dict "name" "grid"   "label" "Grid"            "desc" "Two-column responsive grid; collapses to one column under 480 px.")
+    (dict "name" "inline" "label" "Inline"          "desc" "Icon-only horizontal row. Titles stay in DOM for screen readers.")
+  -}}
+
+  <div class="variants-gallery">
+    {{- range $variants }}
+    <section class="variants-gallery__card">
+      <h3 class="variants-gallery__name">{{ .label }}</h3>
+      <p class="variants-gallery__desc">{{ .desc }}</p>
+      <code class="variants-gallery__code">layout = "{{ .name }}"</code>
+      <nav class="bio__links bio__links--{{ .name }}" aria-label="{{ .label }} sample">
+        {{- range $sample }}
+          {{- partial "link-button.html" . -}}
+        {{- end }}
+      </nav>
+    </section>
+    {{- end }}
+  </div>
+{{ end }}
diff --git a/themes/bonsai/static/css/bonsai.css b/themes/bonsai/static/css/bonsai.css
index de21be8..047c90d 100644
--- a/themes/bonsai/static/css/bonsai.css
+++ b/themes/bonsai/static/css/bonsai.css
@@ -221,6 +221,40 @@ body {
   margin-top: 1.5rem;
 }
 
+/* === layout variants ===
+ * All variant rules scope under .bio__links--{name} to avoid CSS specificity
+ * collisions with the default .link rules (see v0.2 journal for the lesson).
+ */
+.bio__links--grid {
+  display: grid;
+  grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr;
+}
+@media (max-width: 480px) {
+  .bio__links--grid { grid-template-columns: 1fr; }
+}
+
+.bio__links--inline {
+  flex-direction: row;
+  flex-wrap: wrap;
+  justify-content: center;
+}
+.bio__links--inline .link {
+  padding: .75rem;
+  gap: 0;
+}
+/* Visually hide the title in inline mode but keep it for screen readers. */
+.bio__links--inline .link__title {
+  position: absolute;
+  width: 1px;
+  height: 1px;
+  padding: 0;
+  margin: -1px;
+  overflow: hidden;
+  clip: rect(0, 0, 0, 0);
+  white-space: nowrap;
+  border: 0;
+}
+
 .link {
   display: flex;
   align-items: center;
@@ -376,6 +410,46 @@ body {
   border-color: var(--bonsai-accent);
 }
 
+/* ============================================================
+   Variants gallery (exampleSite/variants/) — 3 sample bio cards
+   ============================================================ */
+
+.variants-gallery {
+  display: grid;
+  grid-template-columns: 1fr;
+  gap: 2rem;
+  max-width: 36rem;
+  margin: 2rem auto;
+}
+
+.variants-gallery__card {
+  background: var(--bonsai-surface);
+  border: 1px solid var(--bonsai-border);
+  border-radius: var(--bonsai-radius);
+  padding: 1.5rem;
+}
+
+.variants-gallery__name {
+  font-family: var(--bonsai-font-display);
+  font-size: 1.1rem;
+  margin: 0 0 .25rem;
+  color: var(--bonsai-text);
+}
+
+.variants-gallery__desc {
+  color: var(--bonsai-muted);
+  font-size: .85rem;
+  margin: 0 0 .5rem;
+}
+
+.variants-gallery__code {
+  display: inline-block;
+  margin-bottom: 1rem;
+  font-family: ui-monospace, monospace;
+  font-size: .75rem;
+  color: var(--bonsai-muted);
+}
+
 @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
   .link, .link:hover { transition: none; transform: none; }
 }