Recreate the Smartwool “CHASE WOAH” Postcard — Illustrator Composition Tutorial [EP07]

Recreate the Smartwool “CHASE WOAH” postcard with me — Illustrator essentials for print and composition: grid tools, placing/embedding images, bleed & margins, clipping masks, turning text into shapes, Pathfinder cuts, extracting SVG logos, and exporting a print-ready PDF. Perfect for designers who love learning by copying great work. Welcome — I’m Kelly Barkhurst from Designer to Fullstack. In this copycat tutorial we break down a Smartwool postcard and rebuild the headline effect and layout in Adobe Illustrator. I walk through everything from using the rectangular grid tool to making bleed and margin guides, embedding images, creating clipping masks, converting type to outlines, using Pathfinder (Divide/Unite), extracting SVG logos, and saving a print-ready PDF. What you’ll learn -- How to use the Rectangular Grid Tool to set up your composition and rule-of-thirds-like guides. -- Best practices for placing images: linked vs embedded and why embedding matters for sharing. -- Setting bleed and internal margins for print. -- Creating clipping masks and using isolation mode so images stay editable. -- Converting type to outlines, ungrouping letters, and preparing shapes for Pathfinder operations. -- Using Pathfinder Divide/Unite and the Scissors/Pen tools to create the “cut” text effect. -- How to extract an SVG logo from a website and open it in Illustrator. -- Exporting a high-quality PDF with printer marks and bleeds. *Resources & assets* Blog post with assets & step-by-step screenshots: https://designertofullstack.com/smartwool-postcard-design-composition-in-illustrator/ ► *Adobe Illustrator Practice Projects* Free image downloads used in the tutorial: https://www.pexels.com/photo/women-s-black-leather-jacket-1816225 https://www.pexels.com/photo/people-standing-near-a-river-8967782 Font used: DM Sans (available on Adobe Fonts — search “DM Sans”) SVG downloader Chrome extension mentioned: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/svg-downloader/ehoomjebcggkfbkeddldagdjgdpepamh?hl=en-US *TIMESTAMPS* 0:00 Intro + postcard overview 0:40 Using the Rectangular Grid Tool 2:30 Place & embed images, link vs embed explained 4:20 Setting bleed & inside margin guides 6:00 Clipping masks + isolation mode 8:30 Typographic choices (DM Sans, glyph alternates) 10:00 Convert text to outlines & prepare for Pathfinder 12:30 Using Pathfinder, scissors & pen for the cut effect 15:30 Extracting SVG logos and importing into Illustrator 17:30 Final layout, color, trim view, and exporting PDF for print 19:00 Outro + call to action Like, subscribe & share If this helped, please ❤️ the video and subscribe for more Copycat Design tutorials. Want more step-by-step rebuilds of iconic pieces? Tell me which poster, logo, or ad I should copy next. Join the conversation Drop a comment — tell me what you liked, what I can improve, or topics you want next. Or reflect for a moment and answer one simple question: What brought you joy today? Suggested tags / hashtags Tags: Illustrator tutorial, Adobe Illustrator, Pathfinder tutorial, text to shape, print design, bleed and trim, Smartwool, copycat design Hashtags to include in the description: #Illustrator #DesignTutorial #Pathfinder #PrintDesign _____________________________________________________________ *JOIN MY EMAIL LIST* Love quick, helpful tutorials? You’ll love the emails too. 💌 https://designertofullstack.com/join-the-list/ *ABOUT ME* Hello, world. I’m *Kelly Barkhurst* —an experienced Mac-based full-stack designer, educator, and entrepreneur passionately blending artistic vision and creativity with deep technical expertise. With a BFA and MFA in Graphic Design and a certificate in Full-Stack Web Development, I’m uniquely positioned to work at this intersection of design and tech. My driving force is creating meaningful solutions and helping clients and students do the same. *What’s Kelly’s superpower?* It’s using design thinking to strategically plan the BIG picture, then diving deep into the technical “weeds” to bring that vision to life—through beautiful visual design, compelling writing, or well-crafted, functional code. *What brought you JOY today? * 👇 Share in the comments below *SOCIALS* https://twitter.com/@designer2fstack https://www.facebook.com/designertofullstack https://www.youtube.com/@UCWk0aZ-yFzCQX5bMLaISrog