With spring just around the corner, this flyer has a fresh, pretty design that feels spot on for the season ahead. Easily adaptable to suit country fairs, farmers’ markets or community events, it’s also quick and easy to put together using InDesign and Photoshop.

Looking for more flower images? You can find lovely botanical vectors to use in your designs on GraphicRiver and Envato Elements.

Spring has sprung! Let’s dive in...

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  Flowers
  
  
  How to Create a Set of 10 Folk Flowers in Adobe Illustrator
  
  
  Olga Davydova


• 
  Text Effects
  
  
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  Rose


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  Text Effects
  
  
  How to Create a Layered Floral Typography Text Effect in Adobe Photoshop
  
  
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  Text Effects
  
  
  How to Create a Romantic Rose Text Effect in Adobe Photoshop
  
  
  Rose

What You’ll Need to Design Your Flyer

Make sure you have access to both Adobe InDesign and Adobe Photoshop. We’ll create the main layout in InDesign and edit the main flower image in Photoshop.

You’ll also need the following images and font files to create your design:

• Vintage flowers illustration


• 
  Antique paper background also available on Envato Elements
  


• 
  Pier Sans font in Bold
  


• Adobe Caslon Pro in Semibold Italic (this will be pre-installed on your Adobe font list)

Once you’ve downloaded the images and installed the font files, you’re ready to get started!

1. Set Up the Flyer Layout in InDesign

Step 1

Open InDesign and go to File > New > Document. 

With the Intent set to Print, make sure Facing Pages is not checked, and then set the Width of the page to 8.5 in and Height to 11 in, to create a standard flyer size. 

Add a Bleed of 0.25 in on all sides of the page, and click OK to create your document. 

Step 2

Expand the Layers panel (Window > Layers) and double-click on Layer 1 to open the Layer Options window. Rename the layer Paper and click OK.

Select New Layer from the panel’s top-right drop-down menu, and name this second layer Background Color, before clicking OK. 

Create a further four new layers in this order: Flowers Behind, Typography Behind, Flowers in Front, and finally Typography in Front.

Lock all of the layers except the bottom layer, Paper, which we’ll start working on first. 

Step 3

Select the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) from the Tools panel (docked to the left side of the workspace), and drag onto the page, creating an image frame that extends up to the edge of the bleed on all sides. 

Go to File > Place, choose the paper background image you downloaded earlier, and click Open. 

Allow the paper texture to fill up the whole of the frame, with none of the edges of the paper visible. 

Step 4

Expand the Swatches panel (Window > Color > Swatches) and choose New Color Swatch from the panel’s drop-down menu. 

Name the swatch Strong Blue and set the Type to Process and Mode to CMYK. Adjust the percentage levels below to C=85 M=70 Y=0 K=0. Then click Add and OK. 

Repeat the process to create three more CMYK swatches:

• Wheat: C=9 M=19 Y=41 K=18


• Peach: C=2 M=25 Y=37 K=5


• Pale Grey: C=6 M=8 Y=4 K=0

Step 5

Return to the Layers panel and lock the Paper layer. Unlock the layer above, Background Color. 

Take the Rectangle Tool (M) and create a rectangle that extends across the whole page and bleed, as before. From the Swatches panel, set the Fill Color to Peach.

With the rectangle selected, go to Object > Effects > Transparency. Bring the Opacity down to 60%, to bring through some of the papery texture below, and click OK. 

2. How to Add Vintage Graphics and Type to Your Flyer

Step 1

Lock the Background Color layer and unlock the Flowers Behind layer above. 

Switch to the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) and drag onto the page, creating a large image frame in the middle of the layout. Go to File > Place, choose the vintage flowers illustration, and click Open. 

With the image frame selected, go to Object > Effects > Drop Shadow. 

Click on the colored square next to the Mode menu to open the Effect Color window. Choose Swatches, and click on your Peach swatch, before hitting OK. 

Back in the window, pull the Opacity down to 60%, and add about 25% Noise to the shadow. Click OK to exit the window. 

Step 2

Lock the Flowers Behind layer and unlock the next layer up, Typography Behind. 

Take the Type Tool (T) and zoom into the top-left area of the flower illustration. Create a small, square text frame and type in the first letter of your main title*.

From either the Controls panel running along the top of the workspace or the Character panel (Window > Type & Tables > Character), set the Font to Pier Sans Bold and Font Size to around 85 pt. 

From the Swatches panel, set the Font Color to Pale Grey.

*Here I’m using ‘SPRING FLING’ for the event header, but you can easily adapt this to any name you prefer.

Step 3

Select the text frame and head up to Object > Effects > Drop Shadow. 

Choose Wheat for the Effect Color, set the Opacity to around 85%, and from the bottom of the panel set the Spread to 20% and add about 25% Noise. Then click OK to exit. 

Step 4

Edit > Copy, and Edit > Paste the text frame, positioning it to the top right of the original, creating a jaunty effect, as shown below. Adjust the text to the next letter of your event title. 

Continue to copy and paste text frames along the width of the flower illustration, shifting them up and down to create a jumpy effect. 

Continue the same process for the next word of the title, arranging this below. 

Step 5

If you have extra words to add to the title, such as ‘THE’, paste another of the text frames and position it above the title, centrally on the page. Reduce the Font Size to about 35 pt. 

Do the same with any text below, here ‘COUNTRY FAIR’, setting the Font Size to about 40 pt. 

Step 6

You can add extra text above the main title, at the top of the flyer, as well. 

Set the Font to Pier Sans Bold, around Size 16 pt, and the Font Color to Strong Blue. You can check the Superscript option in the top Controls panel (to the right of the Font Size box), to set small words like ‘THE’ or ‘AN’ at a smaller scale.

Setting certain words, like ‘presents’ here, in Adobe Caslon Pro Semibold Italic will help to break up large chunks of text and create a sense of hierarchy. 

Make sure to set the date of the event in a large Font Size (here 30 pt) below the main title and pull it out in Strong Blue. Add any extra details, such as the location of the event, below this. 

3. How to Build Up a 3D Effect on Your Flyer

Step 1

Take a look at the way you have arranged the letters of the main title over the flower illustration. Can you spot any elements of the flowers you could easily cut out and bring forward, creating a 3D effect? For example, the butterfly at the top right of the illustration could be brought on top of either the ‘N’ or ‘G’.

Once you’ve spotted a few possible opportunities for bringing elements forward, open up the flower illustration in Photoshop, minimizing the InDesign window for a moment. 

Use the Lasso Tool (L) to loop off any elements of the illustration you feel you could cut out and move forward. Here, I’ve looped round the butterfly roughly. 

Step 2

Click on the Refine Edge button in the Controls panel at the top of the workspace. 

Check the Smart Radius button and adjust the sliders below to make the selection more accurate. When you’re happy with the result, click OK. 

Then Edit > Copy, Edit > Paste Special > Paste in Place the selection onto a layer above. 

Repeat the same process for other elements on the design, pulling them all onto other layers above the original background layer. 

When you’re finished, switch off the visibility of the background layer and head up to File > Save As. Save it as a Photoshop (.psd) file, which will preserve the transparency in the image. 

Step 3

Head back to your InDesign document. Lock the Typography Behind layer and unlock the layer above, Flowers in Front. 

Create an image frame using the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) over the top of the flower illustration, and File > Place, choosing your edited flowers Photoshop image. Scale and position so it sits perfectly over the complete flowers image on the Flowers Behind layer below. 

Step 4

Now it’s time to move some of the letters in front of the cut-out flowers, to create your 3D design. 

In the Layers panel, make sure both the Typography Behind and Typography in Front layers are unlocked. 

Then expand the Typography Behind layer, and select the letters you want to bring forward. 

Drag them and drop them onto the Typography in Front layer above. 

4. How to Export Your Flyer for Printing

Step 1

When you’re happy with the design of your flyer and have checked it for any spelling errors (go to Edit > Spelling > Check Spelling if you have a lot of text), you’re ready to export your design for printing. 

Go to File > Export, and choose Adobe PDF (Print) from the Format menu in the window that opens. Give the file a suitable name, and then hit Save. 

In the Export Adobe PDF window that opens, choose Press Quality from the Preset menu at the top.

Step 2

Then click on Marks and Bleeds in the window’s left-hand menu. Check All Printer’s Marks and Use Document Bleed Settings, before clicking Export at the bottom right of the window. 

InDesign will generate a PDF file that’s ready for sending off for professional printing. 

Conclusion: Your Finished Flyer

Awesome job—your flyer is finished, and it's ready for sending off to print! We've covered a range of handy print design skills in this tutorial, including setting up flyer layouts in InDesign, formatting typography to a high standard, and editing photos to give your designs a cool, 3D design. 

Want even more flowers? You can find more beautiful botanical illustrations for your designs on GraphicRiver and Envato Elements. 

Or why not try your hand at another flower-themed tutorial, to really get you in a springtime mood?

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