letterhead design illustrator to word doc

Howto & Style

Introduction

Hi everyone, it’s Lori from Ardent Designs (ardentdesigns.ca). Today, I will be showing you how to insert a letterhead design into a Word document. Many customers frequently use Word documents and may request that you include the letterhead design for them. The process is quite simple, so let's get started!

Step-by-Step Guide

Preparation in Illustrator

  1. Create Your Document: Start by designing your letterhead in Illustrator. Ensure that all your elements are within the safe and trim areas.
  2. Turn Off Guides: Once your design is complete, turn off the guide layer.

Exporting from Illustrator

  1. Export Design: Go to File > Export > Export As.
  2. Export Settings: Choose to use the artboard and name your file appropriately, e.g., saving it to your desktop.
  3. Resolution: Ensure that the export settings are set to 300 DPI for high resolution.

Setting Up in Word

  1. Open Word Document: Open a new Word document.
  2. Page Layout:
    • Go to Page Layout > Margins > Custom Margins.
    • Set all margins to 0.
    • Go to the Paper tab, set the width to 8.63” and height to 11.33”.

Inserting the Letterhead Image

  1. Ignore Warnings: If Word throws a warning about margins, ignore it.
  2. Insert Image in Header:
    • Go to Insert > Header and select Edit Header.
    • Then go to Insert > Picture and select your exported letterhead file.

Positioning the Letterhead

  1. Text Wrapping:
    • Right-click the image, select Text Wrapping > Behind Text.
    • Adjust the position to Absolute values for both horizontal and vertical positions, set to `0”.

Finishing Up

  1. Adjust Margins for Text: Go back to Page Layout > Margins and set your desired margins.
  2. Saving: Save the Word document and send it to your customer.
  3. PDF Advice: Inform your customer to convert the Word document to PDF for better print results.

Keep in mind that the inserted graphic might look faded in Word but will appear correctly when printed. Also, due to the nature of Word documents, there might be a small white space at the bottom of the graphic.

Keywords

  • Letterhead Design
  • Illustrator Export
  • Word Document
  • High Resolution (300 DPI)
  • Custom Margins
  • Text Wrapping

FAQ

Q: Why does my letterhead image look faded in the Word document?

A: The image looks faded in the Word document's editing view, but it will print at full opacity.

Q: What resolution should the letterhead graphic be for the best quality?

A: The exported image should be set to 300 DPI to ensure high resolution.

Q: How can I make sure the letterhead design sits behind the text in Word?

A: Use the Text Wrapping option and set it to Behind Text.

Q: Why is there a small white space below the letterhead image in the Word document?

A: This white space is a limitation of Word documents and cannot be altered by the designer.

Q: How should I save the final document for the customer?

A: Save the document in Word format and advise the customer to convert it to PDF for better print quality.