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How to make a logo in Illustrator
Ensuring you have a recognisable, well-designed logo for your business is essential, especially if you want to stand out and make an impression. Being able to create something that communicates what you do, and what you stand for as a company, is key, and Adobe Illustrator is one of the best programmes out there for making a logo.
Bring along your creativity and let's get started. We're going to cover all the basics, so there's no need to worry. This guide is designed for beginners!
Getting Started
Before you start designing, there are two key settings to check when you create a new file:
- Set the colour mode to CMYK (this is what your printer will use)
- Set your width and height to the right size for your final print
There's no need to worry about the resolution when creating a file in Illustrator. Unlike Photoshop, everything you make will be vector based. Your logo will work in any size!
Choosing Your Typeface
If you're incorporating text into your logo, you can use free resources such as Font Squirrel to find fonts. Font Squirrel includes fonts that are free for commercial use, but there are loads of other type foundries to explore too, just be sure to check the licence before using.
When choosing your font, it's important to pick one that best reflects your business. You can read more about this in our guide to What makes a good logo.
When you're working with text, it can also be tricky to tell if it'll be eligible once printed. Check your design by printing it off first in a range of sizes. Why not pass it around your workplace too, to see what people think?
If you love a font, but something's not quite right, then don't be afraid to make some minor adjustments. In Illustrator, head to Window > Character and utilise the character panel. Play around with size, weight, kerning and tracking to achieve the perfect look.
Using Layers
If you've read our 'How to make a logo on Photoshop' guide, you'll be aware that layers are vital for editing individual elements of your logo. However, this isn't the case with Adobe Illustrator.
When you add multiple shapes or text to a layer in Illustrator, you can still edit each element individually. They won't group together like they do on Photoshop, so using the Layers panel isn't an essential step here. It's much easier, and one less thing to worry about for beginners.
However, layers are a great way to keep things neat and organised. Feel free to use them if you wish - many designers do!
Adding Some Colour
Working with colour may seem intimidating if you're not a designer, but there are many useful tools out there to help you put together a great colour scheme.
Let's say your business's signature colour is a particular shade of blue, but you want to add even more colour to your new logo. Just use an online colour scheme creator!
For example, head to Coolors.co, start the generator, edit one of the hex codes so it matches your business's colour and then press the lock icon.
Next, just press the space bar to view a colour scheme. Don't like it? Press the space bar again and again to reveal new combinations.
Even More Colour
Adobe Colour CC is another fantastic resource. It works in a similar way to Coolors.co, but you can choose the type of colour scheme you're after, such as a monochromatic, analogous or complementary.
Don't be afraid to experiment with gradients too. From Instagram to Mindbody, some of the biggest brands are adopting this trend to inject colour into their logo.
For more advice and inspiration on how to make a brilliant logo, don't forget to check out our guide.
Adding Shapes
Adding shapes to your logo on Illustrator is easy. Just select the Rectangle Tool, Ellipsis Tool or Custom Shapes tool to get started.
If you're using a drawing tablet, you may even wish to go free hand for more flexibility. You can also import vector illustrations as well, if there's a particular shape you'd like to replicate.
Finishing Up
Once you're happy with your logo, make sure you head to Object > Path > Outline stroke. This step ensures the thickness of your logo will remain the same and to scale if you choose to change its overall size.
If you've included text in your logo, it's also important to transform it into a shape before you save your file. If you don't, and you send a file to someone who doesn't have the font you've used installed on their computer, a replacement font will be used - and it won't look like the logo you've designed. Avoid this error easily, just right click on the text and press 'Create outlines'.
To use your new logo on Banana Moon, the file will need to be saved as a .jpg, .png or .gif. To transform your logo from an .ai file (the default for Illustrator), select File > Export > Export As… and choose your preferred format. Easy peasy.
