I had time to make the banner for my store this weekend. It wasn't difficult and I think it turned out pretty well. I enjoyed doing it so much that I actually made two. One for me and one for fun. Both are fairly simple but I think they work.
My first banner is posted above. If you'd like something similar and think you might and need help doing it, this article should talk you through the process of creating your own custom banner. It is a basic article aimed at people who aren't familiar with computer graphics. If you have a background you may get impatient with the detail.
There are only 5 straightforward steps. Creating a banner will take some tweaking. Remember that your banner is, essentially, a sign. And just like a 'real' sign, it's the first thing your customers will notice when they look at your store. You should reflect something about you and your shop.
You'll need a commercial graphics editing program like PhotoShop or a free program like Gimp. If you're not familiar with the tools in the tool box of your graphics editor you can just google any questions as you go along. Making a banner will be a good opportunity to become familiar with your application.
1. The first step is to select an image that you can as a focal point for your banner. View this project as you would a collage, decoupage or scrap booking project. Find something you like. I chose a free vector graphic of a woman and edited it. I added a dress, jewelry, hair, and rose petals. Resize your image to a height of 100 pixels. Save the jpeg to your computer as graphic_1 or whatever name you choose.
2. Create a new image in your graphics editor. Set the dimensions to 100 x 760 pixels and save it as banner_1.
3. Create the background for your banner. Choose a color for your background. I chose white because I wanted something that wouldn't clash with the etsy banner (which will display directly above your banner) but a color can be nice. Use the eyedropper to coordinate with your pic or choose a different color entirely. Keep in mind that the rust and gray (not all that attractive) etsy banner is one of the design elements of your storefront.
4. Pick a font and letter the name of your shop. This part is fun and just as important as selecting your image Use your graphics editing program to find a font that goes with your design and sets the mood of your shop. You will want to experiment with different fonts and different sizes. Use the eyedropper tool to pick a color from your design element that strongly contrasts with your back ground or pick your own color.
5. When you come up with a font that you like decide on a size and position and save it as banner + name of font. When you're done, you'll have at least a couple different versions to choose from.
Post your finished banner on etsy! It may not be the glitziest banner going, or maybe it is. Either way it's a one of kind design, reflecting your own creativity. I hope you are as happy with your banner as I am with mine!
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