@Paying thePriceTwice - Most of the great unwashed should start their first theme-hunts in WordPress' own Free Themes Directory.

As of this evening, 1,475 theme-titles are listed there, and have been downloaded more than 43 million times. Obviously, the word is already out.

'Frameworks' offer advanced capability & features, at the price of added code-layers. They are not the right place for most of us to start learning.

The key idea of themes, is that one can change themes and all the website stuff is still there, still the same. There is no penalty for starting with a 'basic' theme, and then 'refining' our choice of theme as we go. (Just steer clear of unusual customizations.) It is easy to have several or several dozen themes installed, switching among them, learning the ropes. They're free; take one - take 10 or 63!

Most of us are better-served to look through the free themes at WordPress, choosing from those that seem to 'speak' to our own 'style', and hunting for those that are made by 'learners' or 'hobbyists', themselves. Most of us will learn better from another student a little ahead of ourselves, than from a Professor speaking mainly to fellow professors.

Beware of extremely simplified themes, such as Sandbox. These projects often assume a level of insight into theme-principles & code-mechanics that beginners and the soap-averse do not have.

That the Great Unwashed are once again a driving force in society, does not mean that they are a homogenous mass. They assuredly are not, and the longer their tenure, the more differentiated they will become. Among the masses are those with aptitude, motivation and other resources, which in some cases will lead to significant abilities in persons & social scenes that are quite separate from the official WordPress community.

The prospects appear promising, for WordPress & the Great Unwashed. :)