How to Customize a Font in Adobe illustrator!

Introduction

Creating custom logos is one of the best ways to earn more money as a designer. With Illustrator having what feels like an endless amount of tools, which ones are actually best for the job? In this article, I'll go through the six essential tools I use when customizing typography so you can learn how to take an original typeface and transform it into a distinct logo that clients will happily pay big money for.

Step 1: Outline the Font

I've got the font I'll be customizing, which is Comic Sans. I'm using this font because it's widely regarded as one of the worst fonts, so when I transform it into something better, you'll see the true power of these tools. But before I start manipulating this font, I need to outline it. Outlining converts it into a vector and makes it editable. Without this step, I wouldn't be able to edit the typeface.

Step 2: Adjust Letter Spacing

With that done, I'm going to ungroup the word "comic" and adjust the spacing of the letters. I feel like they're just a bit too far apart at the moment, making it really uneasy on the eyes.

Step 3: Equip the Eraser Tool

Now it's time to equip our first tool, the Eraser. With this selected, I'm going to slice the rounded edges off of all the letters because nobody needs a font that round. You'll also notice that I'm not using the default round head. Instead, I'm pressing the Option or ALT key, which changes it into a rectangle, allowing me to cut with precision. If you didn't know already, this tool is great for getting rid of unwanted shapes and paths.

Step 4: Use the Ruler

The typeface is looking a little odd, but stay with me here. I'm going to grab the next tool, the Ruler. I'm going to use this as a guide to ensure that the letters sit on a baseline. This will help create structure between the letters. You can also right-click and choose "Show Grid" for even more precision. Customizing a typeface is all about trusting the process. There will be times when it looks odd, but you need to trust the process.

Step 5: Utilize the Pathfinder Tool

With the letters aligned to the baseline, I'm now going to select the next tool, which is the Pathfinder. But before I use it, I'm just going to add some movement into the font by adjusting the two C’s using the Rectangle tool. The font currently looks flat and boring. With that done, I will now use the Pathfinder tool to unite these paths together. This tool is handy when you want to combine several shapes.

Step 6: Customize with the Pencil Tool

Now it's time to customize some letters, so I will equip our next tool, a personal favorite of mine, the Pencil Tool. Before I start customizing, I need to double-click the Pencil Tool icon and make sure that an option is checked; otherwise, I won't be able to adjust any of the letters. With that done, I'll first customize the "M". I've chosen this letter because it already has some movement within it and is located in the center of the word, meaning that if I add some subtle customization, it will be the centerpiece for this word, drawing your eyes in that direction. The rule when using this tool is to click on the original letter, move with the tool to make the adjustment, and then make sure you return it to the original letter, and it will add your customization.

(PS: If you’re looking to improve your Pencil Tool skills and create custom typography and illustrations, make sure to download my free Pencil Tool worksheet from my website. I'll leave a link to it in the description.)

Step 7: Smooth with the Smooth Tool

When using the Pencil Tool, it's often combined with another tool known as its right-hand man; think Batman and Robin. This tool is the Smooth Tool. With this equipped, I'm just smoothing out the customizations I've made to the letter. This ensures that there's no harsh lines and everything flows smoothly. Here's a quick hack: If you double-click the Pencil Tool icon and make sure an option is ticked, pressing Option or ALT when the Pencil Tool is selected will instantly switch to the Smooth Tool, allowing you to easily switch between the two.

Step 8: Use the Direct Selection Tool

The word looks okay but needs tidying up, so I'm going to select the next tool, the Direct Selection Tool, and get to work. First, I'm going to adjust the top of the C’s by just rounding them slightly as they currently feel too harsh. With that done, I need to make a few other tweaks to ensure I'm maintaining consistency between letters. So with the "O" and "M", they need to follow the same angle as the top of the "C", so I'll rotate them slightly. Lastly, I need to tidy up the "I" by removing some anchor points and ensure it follows the same direction.

Step 9: Add a Border

The last thing I'm going to do is add a border to give some depth to the word. To do this, I'll go to Object → Path → Offset Path, and this will add a border around my type.

Step 10: Add Color

For the finishing touch, I'm going to add some color. I always add color last to ensure that it does not affect the legibility of my work when I'm designing it.

The Transformation

Here's the before and after. You've seen me take Comic Sans, a font synonymous with amateur design, and transform it into something usable in a reasonable amount of time. But this is just one example of customization. Here are a few pieces of my work where I've taken the original font and transformed it into a custom logo type for a brand.

If you want to see how I created one of these, then you need to watch this video here where I designed a brand identity from scratch. See you over there.