Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

A plain font for your title is no longer enough if you want to get noticed these days whether you’re designing for a website, an ad in the magazine, catalog prints nor flyers, in logos and especially when printing business cards. That is why you need to always be inventive with how you design and format your titles and headlines.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to apply the blueprint effect using Adobe Illustrator. So just follow the steps below and see how you can turn your text titles into blueprint like text.

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Final Product

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 1

First open up a new document in Adobe Illustrator. Set the dimensions as you need for your design, but first leave the white background as is. Then, just type in your text using the type tool. If you do not know where it is, it is the one with the T icon in your tools panel. Make sure to choose a good thick font so that you can see the effect of the blueprint style better. Make it a large size as well. The colour does not matter at this point, but use a black for now if you want.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 2

Next, with the text selected change its colour to white, and its stroke to a blue hue. Use a 2pt thickness for the stroke, BUT adjust this depending on how large you want your text. Just make sure you have large thick lines that do not look funky. You can change this on the top portion of Illustrator in the control panel to make the choices quickly. Of course, try to use a blue hue that matches the theme that you are making.

Step 3

Now, press CTRL+C and CTRL+V while the text is selected. This will duplicate the text. Using the control panel again, use a blue fill for this copy and then DO NOT put in any strokes. Place this precisely over your original text afterwards.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 4

Next, we will apply the scribble effect to the text on the top. In the menu bar, simply go to Effects ->Stylize -> Scribble and you will see the scribble options. First tick on the preview checkbox so that you can easily see the changes you are making. For our example, we will be using these settings.

a. Angle: 30 degrees
b. Variation: 1px
c. Stroke Width: 0.6px
d. Curviness: 0, Variation: 0
e. Spacing: 0.8, Variation 0.6

Step 5

Once done, you should already have some text fit for a blueprint type design.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 6

To make this more convincing, use the line tool and draw lines on the top and at the bottom of your text. You can find the line tool in your tools panel. Use the same stroke width as the original text. In our example’s case, the line has a stroke of 2pt. Note that the shortcut for the line tool is the backslash ( \ ) key.

Step 7

Also add lines that go vertical, intersecting some of the text as well. Just use the line tool in the right vertical angles.

Step 8

If you have letters like M’s W’s and V’s, you can also take advantage of ther diagonal lines and add some intersecting diagonal lines to them.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 9

Take note that you can also experiment with lines that are “dotted”. Just create a normal line and use the dotted arrow brush to get the dotted line.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 10

Try to also add some small arrows to accent some of the lines and turn them to rays.

Step 11

Use the ARC tool as well to add angle effects.

Step 12

Add smaller text that represent degrees and numbers that symbolize certain metrics.

Step 13

Great! Now you have a good initial blueprint style text.

Step 14

If you want to take the design even further, you can add some more interesting backgrounds. To do this, create a large rectangle that encompasses the art board. Right click on it and send it to the back by clicking on the send to back options.

Step 15

Colour it a light blue or light grey colour. (or a colour that matches your theme). For our project we will use a very light blue to white gradient.

Step 16

Now go to the Appearances panel. Click on the button to add a new fill.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 17

With that new fill selected, go to the swatches panel and look for the Patterns -> Basic Graphic Lines. Apply the appropriate grid pattern that applies to your style.

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

Step 18

Then reduce this fill’s opacity to around 50 percent. Add another new fill. This time, select a light grey color. Then go to Effects -> Texture -> Texturizer. Choose sandstone as the texture. Add a 100% scaling, a 3 value relief and the light should come from the top right. Click on ok once done.

Step 19

Reduce this fill’s opacity by 30%. Just click on the Opacity selection in the appearance panel where the fill lies. You should now get a nice Blueprint looking text title. Congratulations!

Final Product

Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

  • Tags: Adobe Illustrator, Tutorial
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Author: Irene Thompson

Irene Thompson is a professional writer and a graphic designer for 5 years. She works at PrintPlace.com, a trusted online printing company that offers business card printing, catalog printing, and other powerful printed marketing materials.

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4 Comments to “ Converting Text Titles to Blueprint-Like Styles

  1. adumpaul says:

    Nice tutorial.Really nice to see.Great stuff.

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