Yes you read that title correctly! In this tutorial we are going to take the brand we created in Part 1 and make a letterhead for Microsoft Word to accompany the business cards we put together and printed in Part 2. While traditional letterheads are made by getting them printed at a printers and then running the letterhead paper through the printer, in my experience there are a great many clients who are either too cheap or too lazy to take that option. For all those types of clients (including me!) this is a really easy way of providing a letterhead at very little expense that still looks professional.
Step 1
So we begin in Illustrator where we create a new document sized to A4 (210mm x 297mm).
Step 2
Now just lay down your various details in a nicely presentable format. It's important not to run any design that goes into the margins of the page however. The reason being that this needs to be printed on a normal office printer and those things are pretty awful and leave all sorts of weird spacing from the edges.
Additionally you may decide like I have here that this letterhead is going to be printed on a black and white printer in which case we can desaturate any colour and make it all black and white.
Step 3
Now just add a white rectangle behind the text which is exactly as wide as the canvas. We're going to use this block to place everything in the following steps.
If you need to arrange items to go behind or in front, remember you just right click on the item and choose Arrange > Send to Back.
So select the white block and all the text together and go to Edit > Copy to copy it to the clipboard.
Step 4
Now switch over to Photoshop, and create a new document. Set the width to 21 cm (A4 width) and a height of about 7cm. The height is short because the letterhead I've used is only short, if you had a design that went over the whole page (like a faded out watermark) then you'd make it a full A4 size - I'm just taking a shortcut.
Don't forget to make sure the resolution is 300dpi.
Step 5
Now hit CTRL-V to paste in the letterhead design. You'll see the utility of having that white box now because you can really quickly align the edges to the edges of the canvas to get it exactly the same size as you had it in Illustrator.
Step 6
Now go to File > Save for Web & Devices and choose PNG-24 and create a .PNG file of your letterhead. We're going to then import this into MS Word.
Step 7
Did you ever think you'd see the day where MS Word appeared on Psdtuts? Neither did I!
So go on, fire up that bad boy and let's make awesome Microsoft letterheads!
Step 8
So once you have a document ready, go to View > Header and Footer.
Step 9
The header and footer in Word are a sort of template that once set isn't editable from the main document (unless you go to View > Header and Footer of course!)
So once you're in here, go to Insert > Picture > From File and find that PNG file we saved earlier.
Step 10
So there's our letterhead. If you try to resize it though you'll discover it won't go to the edges. So you need to right click on the image and choose Format Picture.
Step 11
Then click on Layout and choose Behind Text and hit OK.
Step 12
Now you can resize it correctly so it sits nicely on the page. Then hit Close.
Step 13
And there you have your letterhead! You can now just adjust the margins on the document so any writing appears correctly lined up, so give it a test print then hit save and hand it over to your client!
Graphic Design Week
To celebrate the launch of GraphicRiver's new Print Design Templates category we're putting on a whole week of graphic design tutorials on both Psdtuts+ and Vectortuts+. The new category means you can now sell your design work to make extra cash On the flip side if you're coming up short on inspiration, you can get a kickstart by grabbing a Photoshop, Illustrator or InDesign template via GraphicRiver. So to give the new category the launch it deserves, all this week we'll be bringing you articles and tutorials just like this one, on graphic design as part of our Tuts+ Graphic Design Week.
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User Comments
( ADD YOURS )Luis Quiñones May 21st
Really nice tutorial! Thanks Collis. I’m gonna try this later
( )ev4n May 21st
is it me or does that body font look like times new roman?
( )shamrock593 May 21st
It’s just you. It’s Cambria.
( )John Thomas May 21st
Any particular reason to use ’save for web’ to create the PNG? This tends to output at 72dpi, correct? Would it not be better to keep the 300dpi that was chosen as part of the document setup in step IV, by instead doing a Save As… to .png, to ensure crisper print?
( )John Thomas May 21st
Please disregard previous comment. Just caught my own error. ;p
( )alok May 21st
excellent tutorial
( )TC May 21st
Very cool that you did a Word tutorial. I can’t be the only one out there who knows every obscure Adobe app, but can barely get around in MS Office… can I?
( )Jarod Taylor May 21st
Haha, seriously!
I was working on a business plan for a project I’m working on in Word — and couldn’t for the life of me get nested bullet lists to work properly. I finally said, eff this, I’m doing it the way I know — CSS/HTML.
( )Amanda June 2nd
Oh Man! So True eh!
Now I no longer have to look like an idiot when the office secretary can whip together a letterhead, but the professional graphic designer can’t! This will save me a lot of dignity!
Much thanks!
( )d2m.ca May 21st
I just need this tutorial to do my letter heads for my business.
Thank you!
( )imsraaia May 21st
nice…
( )Hoang May 21st
I think it’s a bit overkill there, converting that vector letterhead to a raster one using Photoshop. We can just export an vector image out of Illustrator and import it into to Word again — reducing some steps and preserving image quality at the same time.
After finishing your letterhead, just go to menu File > Document Setup… > Edit Artboards and re-size your artboard to the size of the letterhead. Then go to File > Export… and export the image as a Window Metafile (.WMF) or an Enhanced Metafile (.EMF). Then import it into Word like in Step 9. I tested and it works.
( )Kid May 21st
Noice.
( )Tiago Rio May 21st
I usually save to EPS files. Word accepts it, as long as you have installed the EPS import filter, that comes with MS Word (although i think it’s not activated to install as default, so you’d have to select it upon install).
But using .WMF or . EMF, like sugested by Hoang seems like a good idea. Have to try it one of these days…
Carlo May 21st
Being I vector connaisseur I must say this is the way to go.
One can have the artwork scaled super-dooper small in Illustrator, throw a crop area immediately around it and go to file>export and select format .EMF [p.s. read up on this format newbies, two words awe some] and the you continue with Collis’ step7- selecting the file you created [yourfile.emf] and forget about Photoshop/Bitmap Graphics… for this occasion.
Selecting the perfect format can sometime be overlooked and in this case such is .EMF
Great tutorial Collis
( )jeprie May 21st
Very basic tuts. Anyway, nice.
( )Dullface May 21st
OH NO NOT WORD
( )246 May 21st
i don’t and wont have microsoft!
( )Jason Wilson May 21st
Same sort of steps should apply to Open Office if that’s your flavour. Or anywhere else for that matter.
But, the sad truth of the matter is any clients you have most likely WILL have Microsoft. They’re not going to buy a new software app because the designer doesn’t like their standard.
( )Phenotype May 21st
Why is that the “sad truth of the matter”? I’m a Mac user but I prefer MS Office over Open Office, iWork, or Google Docs. MS Office is a really powerful set of apps and they run great on OS X.
wpheroes May 21st
Quite useful thanks
( )RVS May 21st
Nice tutorial, I made one for my dad’s company.
( )Jelmer May 21st
You should close the “Graphic Design Week” title in the end properly… the text below looks kinda HUGE in Chrome now.
Graphic Design Week
( )Adi N. May 21st
Really nice… thanks!
( )Just wanted to post an question :P May 21st
i would do that in InDesign. Is that wrong or why it’s better to use Word?^^
( )Jason Wilson May 21st
If your client uses InDesign, then there is no problem. But I’d guess at least 9 out of 10 clients most starting designers could get will be using Word, especially for managers and executives who may or may not have any idea what an InDesign is.
( )Frederico May 21st
You cheated! I thought you were going to make the whole thing in Word
( )But it’s a cool post nonetheless. Thanks
sanjeeb May 21st
i wanna best tutorial from this web site of all adobe company
( )martin Leblanc May 21st
Great. I’m going to do this the first thing tomorrow
( )Thunderclap May 21st
I do alot of work for a local College and due to the recession they are unwilling to get letterheads etc printed professionally so techniques like this are becoming a MUST. Companies are no longer willing to spend unlimited amounts of money on Design and Print.
Just wanted to post an question
You should still use InDesign for making letterheads etc as long as they are going to be printed CMYK and a professional printers, but if you client does not want that expense and wants to print them out “inHouse” then use this Word technique.
Great tutorial Collis, its a good look to think of the Clients needs before your own design needs and accept that word is the best option for them…..(did I just say that?)
( )Prescott Perez-Fox May 21st
In my experience, it’s better to create the images using 600 dpi, saved as PNG. For some reason, MS Word prints slightly jaggy, even at 300 dpi. Better safe than sorry, I suppose.
( )Carlo May 21st
Please see me my thoughts above RE: file size…
( )John Deszell May 21st
Nice tutorial. I’ll keep this in my bag of tricks.
Stumbled!
( )Nathan May 21st
I find that PNG exports are pretty blurry on text in word. If you go to WMF ( Windows Meta File) right from Illustrator it keeps it in vector format and looks great. You do have to outline fonts of course but the result is much much better than PNG
( )Jesper Andreassen May 21st
Nice tut – but…
It’s not nescessary to open up Photoshop. Microsoft Word (2007 on pc & 2008 on mac) can work with EPS files from Illustrator (or other vector apps).
I’ve just did some templates for a catering company this way, and in keeping the vector information in the logo and letterhead, makes the print look crispier.
( )Diego SA May 21st
Quick… dirty… and awesome! Really simple and even so it looks pretty good! Excellent!
( )Symon May 21st
Nice. Thx
( )Jonathan May 21st
Unfortunately there are times when a client asks for something in word, or worse, Powerpoint!
( )lawrence77 May 21st
I like word thanks….
( )Briana May 21st
This is great, we need more real world solutions like this because the fact is that clients are always going to want templates for Word and other Office applications. What else would the average office worker create their documents in these days? InDesign? Asking for that is just opening a bag of worms.
Creating nice templates for Word is a good way to get the average office secretary to start creating better looking documents.
( )Gaz May 21st
Interesting, simple and useful tutorial thanks.
( )Shibi kannan May 21st
This is more like a tip than a real tut. Anyways for those who hate microsoft office I would like to say some nice things. Office is like bread and butter for academicians like me, we do a lot of paper, grant writing stuff. You can achieve the same thing with other software too but just like windows office is ubiquitous and everyone needs word files or powerpoint files. It would be nice someone wrote a tut on how to convert powerpoint files to flash format with animations
( )donna May 21st
Why would you take it into PS when Illy has a File>SaveforMicrosoftOffice option which creates PNGs?
( )Aaron Riddle May 21st
Nice tutorial. I have had to do a few of these myself for some clients (whom always seem to be non-Mac users). Glad to see someone else out there is doing it as well.
( )RUGRLN May 21st
Huuhh lol? Word….
( )BTW, how comes Word’s splash screen and logo is so much more wicked on Mac? I mean wtf, I though they’d make the worst possible software for Mac, being their enemies and all…Or atleast have the Windows version look cooler.
Eloi May 27th
Check out the latest MS Office for Mac, you’ll be surprised (like I was). Really powerful software, 100% made for Mac.
( )Mehdi May 21st
nice one collis!!!! i think ima get my MS office copy out for a ride
( )CJK May 21st
I hate that question, “can you make this in word?” It makes me cringe every time. I mean its thing to know that once I’m finished with the design there’s no chance for repeat business, but creating it in word…come on!!
But if you have to, bringing in vectors is definitely the way to go.
( )Linda May 21st
I am so grateful for this, it’s taken a huge headache away! I HATE Word, but inevitably clients want their letterheads in Word, and I’ve always felt so STUPID. Great, now I know how and have just fired off 3 to my clients who have been waiting patiently. Great timing! Thanks.
( )Mikah Sargent May 21st
I had no idea that it was even possible to do anything in MS Word except write and make bad word-art; I generally try to avoid it at all costs. Ha!
( )lawrence77 May 21st
Collis MS Word is a bad boy to you?
( )Why?
underdog May 22nd
OHHHH..this MS word vesion is 2008.i just have 2003…this tutorial is good…i will try it in MY Word 2003.i think it’s work
( )lawrence77 May 22nd
Yeah it will work…..
( )jaycee May 22nd
nice
( )NEC May 22nd
Simple but nice. Thanks.
( )josh May 24th
How to import stuff to word?
um.
( )huwaw69 May 25th
wow this is possible? hahaha i didn’t know this, this is really cool
( )Steven Schafer May 26th
Im doing this right away! awesome tutorial I really appreciate it.
( )Omar the Radwan May 26th
Meh. How about doing it without Illustrator.
But there DOES need to be more tuts on MS Office and how to make decent looking powerpoint presentations. I realize it might be out of the scope of the site, but I see TOO many nasty presentations around my office here and would love to share a tut on this subject with some of my workers.
( )Frota May 27th
That’s realy nice!
I would love to see something like this.
( )Julie May 27th
Thank You sooo much. I was trying to figure this out for a client and was pulling my hair out!!! The PNG format works!! I was trying eveything else but it looked like crap! I also couldn’t figure out how to import…Thanks!!!
Julie Collinge
( )Prosimian Design
http://www.prosimiandesign.blogspot.com
Adrian May 27th
The save for web version will be 72dpi and be fuzzy on printout i’m pretty sure..
Also, if you export the .png straight from illustrator you get res options so you can choose 300dpi and the png will be amazingly smaller in filesize – i think it might utilise pngs ability to handle some sort of vector info, i’m not sure exactly, but it works.
I’ve had some good reults, but many garbled bodgy results using Window Metafile (.WMF) in Word. I steer clear now and e
( )Marko Randjelovic May 30th
Very useful! Thank you.
( )Tobi Laniyan June 1st
Thanks for the post I just did this now always wondered how you would go about making a letterhead in MS word and it actually works!
( )prazetyo June 9th
what the font for the title ??? can I know… it’s look like very nice. thx
( )Jason Wilson June 16th
Well I’ll be damned… this came in handy today.
( )koen buysse June 17th
wait a minute…there is microsoft word for mac?
next, someone’s gonna tell me there’s coda for windows….
( )Joe June 21st
I think it looks a bit plain personally…
( )Ap July 27th
My client wants to forward the word doc electronically, not print it. Why does the header and footer look like a watermark?
( )Kiran September 16th
It’s the way microsoft word present headers and footers but i’m sure your client can convert it to a pdf and then send it… this will make it show in its true colours or just add the letter head stuff out of the header section and reduce the header height/width in options.
I hope that helps!
( )Sydney Architectural photographer August 9th
I like! Gonna use these techniques to spruce up my emails. thanks!
( )Bain August 10th
Might be an idea to save the file as a MS Word Template file .dot or .dotx instead of just a plain Word file (.doc)
( )Kiran September 16th
I agree totally that way you still preserve the actual design, just in case!
( )