Create a postcard in Word
What you need: Microsoft Word Time required: 40 minutes
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could personalise your holiday postcards? Actually, it’s very easy to create and customise your own using Microsoft Word. We’ll show you how to produce a postcard with several images on the front and postal details on the back. We’ll also explain which postcard papers to buy, so you can print and send your holiday memories to your family and friends.
STEP 1
Word opens an A4 document by default, so you need to change Word’s document dimensions. Click the Page Layout tab 1 , then the Size dropdown menu 2 . Select A6 (standard postcard size). If you don’t see this option, select More Paper Sizes at the bottom. Now ensure the ‘Paper size’ dropdown menu is set to ‘Custom size’ 3 . Set the width to 14.8cm, the height to 10.5cm 4 , then click OK. Next, click the Insert tab 5 , then click Blank Page at the top left.
STEP2
This creates two blank sides of your postcard (top and bottom of screen). Click in the top page first. To give your postcard a border, click the Page Layout tab 1 , then click Page Borders 2 . Select one of the options on the left 3 , then click OK. If you want to add colour to the background, click the Page Color dropdown menu 4 and select one. Next, click and drag the top and side ruler marker 5 so they align with your borders.
STEP3
It’s a good idea to save the photos you want to use in your postcard to a folder on your desktop. To insert your first photo, click the Insert tab 1 , Picture, navigate to the first photo you want to add, then click Insert. Click and drag the photo’s corners 2 to resize it. You can also click and drag the green circle 3 to tilt your photo.
STEP4
To reposition your image, click it, click the Format tab 1 , the Wrap Text dropdown menu 2 , then select Tight 3 . Now click and drag your photo to where you want it. The Format tab also has cropping, style 4 and effects options. Once you’re happy with your first photo, click the Insert tab 5 and repeat Steps 3 and 4 to add and customise more photos.
STEP5
To add text to your postcard, click the Text Box dropdown menu 1 in the Insert tab, then choose one of the options. Alternatively, click Draw Text Box in the dropdown menu to create your own by clicking and dragging your mouse. Type your greeting in this box 2 and use the options in the Home tab 3 to format it. Click the Format tab 4 to add text styles, effects, text colour (using the Text Fill dropdown menu) and text-box colour (using the Shape Fill dropdown menu).
STEP6
We’ll now create sections for the recipient’s address and postage stamps. Click the bottom page. Next, click the Insert tab, the Shapes dropdown menu 1 , select the first option in the Lines section 2 , then click and drag your mouse to draw a straight line 3 separating your document into halves. Follow the method in Step 5 to create two separate text boxes 4 , leaving space for the postage stamp in the top-right corner 5 .
STEP7
Now type your message on the left and the recipient’s address on the right. You can colour your text and text boxes using the options in the Format tab (see Step 5). If you don’t have postcard-quality sheets, buy this pack of 30 thick A6 sheets (£2.34 from Amazon, www.snipca.com/ 25856). Insert your A6 sheet into your printer, press Ctrl+p, ensure your printer is set to ‘Manually Print on Both Sides’ 1 , then click Print 2 . ●