Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

In this Illustrator Tutorial, learn how to create a Wood Pattern Text Effect with wood planks and a custom pattern, using the Pen Tool and a few effects.

Step 1 – Custom Wood Pattern

Let’s start by creating a custom wood lines pattern. I started by drawing some lines on paper to create two different wood lines patterns like below:

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

When you like the result, scan those lines and save them as a .jpg or .png file ( if you don’t have a scanner you can directly create some lines using the Pen Tool (P) in Illustrator ).

Open Illustrator, create a new document and drag your lines file into this document. Select the Pen Tool (P) with a 1px black Stroke and a transparent Fill, trace some paths using those lines. You can now delete or hide the scanned lines.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Now we have some vectorized lines, select the paths, change the strokes to transparent, then change the Fill colors of those paths. Start adding a Fill color on the bigger outside path, then add an other Fill color on the less bigger path. Repeat the same process on the rest of the paths like below:

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Use the Selection Tool (V) to select the two bigger shapes on the first wood lines pattern, then use the Minus Front option in the Pathfinder Panel, Window – Pathfinder .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Repeat the same process with the other shapes.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

I used a brown color for those wood lines patterns, #C17027 . when you’re done hide those wood lines patterns, we’ll use them later.

Step 2 – Wood Planks Type 1

Select the Pen Tool (P) and create a plank shape like below with an other brown color, #CF953C .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Unhide one of the wood lines patterns we created in Step 1 , duplicate it and place it on top of the plank shape.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Duplicate the wood lines pattern again, change the color of this duplicated wood lines pattern to #BE681E , move it 1px down and place it behind the original pattern.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Duplicate the wood plank shape, place the duplicated shape in front of the others.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Select the two wood lines pattern shapes and the duplicated wood plank shape, right click on them and select Make Clipping Mask .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Select the Pen Tool (P) and create a bottom shape on the wood plank with a darker brown color, #9E541C .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Duplicate one of the wood lines pattern from the clip group we created before, change its color to #954518 . Next duplicate the bottom shape we created before, place it on top of the other shapes. Select the two duplicated shapes ( bottom shape and wood lines pattern ), right click on them and select Make Clipping Mask .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Duplicate the bottom shape again, place this duplicated shape on top of the other and apply a gradient with a 50% opacity black to 0% black with a 90° angle . Select all the shapes we created and group them, Object – Group .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Repeat the same process to create other wood planks.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Step 3 – Wood Planks Type 2

In this step we’ll create an other style of wood plank with an hole, Select the Pen Tool (P) and create an other plank shape like below.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Select the Ellipse Tool (L) and create an oval shape on top of the plank shape. Select the plank shape and ellipse shape and use the Minus Front option in the Pathfinder Panel .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Now repeat the same process like in Step 2 , to add the wood lines pattern and bottom part.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Add a shadow in the hole behind the plank using the Pen Tool (P) .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator
Create other styles of planks without or with bottom parts.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Step 4 – Wood Pattern Typo

Now we have some cool planks, let’s use them to create a wood pattern typo, I used those planks to write “TYPO” . To create the “T”, I used two planks.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

To add a little details I added two styles of shadows, for the first style of shadow, apply a Drop Shadow on each planks. Effect – Stylize – Drop Shadow .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

For the second style of shadow, duplicate the two planks, change the color of the duplicated planks to black, place those duplicated planks behind the original planks, move them 5px right and 10px down . to finish change the Opacity to 15% .

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Select the Pen Tool (P) and create a small oval shape on the intersection of the planks. Add a #813B1C to #73321A gradient of the small shape.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

I repeated the same process on other letters to create the “Y” “P” and “O”.

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

Create a Wood Planks Typo in illustrator

That’s it for this Tutorial , now you have a cool Wood Pattern Typo, you can create a lot of different typos using those techniques. Feel free to leave a comment if you need help.

 

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