How to Warp Text in Illustrator

November 12, 2021
Updated:
May 1, 2023

How to Warp Text in Illustrator

Red Shark Digital

This text warp effect will add dimension to your text and gives you a lot of variety in the outcome. Learning how to warp text in Illustrator is simple. All you need is text, a shape, and the knife tool in Adobe Illustrator! Check out our step-by-step guide on how to warp text in Illustrator made by our creative Greenville NC team!

Step One:

Open Adobe Illustrator and type out your desired text. Next, draw a shape. You can do this effect with any shape, but our creative Greenville NC expert uses a circle for this tutorial on how to warp text in Illustrator. A circle shape will help the final text to appear as if it is coming from one central point, even with the words spaced out.

Step Two:

Grab the knife tool and make cuts through the circle. You should cut the circle into sections for however many words you’re working with. In this creative Greenville NC tutorial, we use three words. With that being the case, we’ll make two cuts across the circle to result in three sections.

Step 3:

Select your text and create outlines. Arrange the text behind the circle, each word behind its respective section of the shape.

Step 4:

Select both the word and its corresponding section. Press “Command + Option + C” to place the word into the shape. Repeat this with the rest of the sections.

Step 5:

Expand the text again and ungroup if all the words are grouped. This allows you to move the individual words. Space the words out vertically so there's room to see the final effect. Spacing the words vertically will result in a different effect.

Step 6:

Re-group the text, then copy and paste it in place. Next, our creative Greenville NC team recommends scaling that new text group down to 20 percent. It doesn’t have to be 20 percent, but make sure it is significantly smaller than the original text. Arrange the smaller text group to the back.

Step 7:

Select all the text and go to blend options, which are found under the “Object” dropdown in the “Blend” tab. Select the “Specified Steps” option and choose the number of steps. More steps will give you a smoother blend, and fewer steps will produce a jagged effect on your blend. Our creative Greenville NC professional used 100 steps for this tutorial on how to warp text in Illustrator.

Step 8:

Make the blend! Go to “Object” - “Blend” - “Make.” Change your colors, specified steps in the blend, and positioning of the text for different effects!

Red Shark Digital | Creative Greenville NC

Now you know how to warp text in Illustrator! When practicing in any Adobe program, our creative Greenville NC team recommends saving your work as a testament to your creative progress. With time, practice, and patience, you'll master these Adobe skills in no time. Need additional help from the leader in creative services near me to create polished graphics for your business campaigns and projects? Visit Red Shark Digital's website to learn more about how our creative Greenville NC team can transform your brand identity and take your marketing assets to the next level.

Related Articles