How to Make a Y2K Logo | Envato Tuts+ (2024)

In the following tutorial, you will learn how to make a Y2K logo in Adobe Illustrator from scratch.

What You'll Learn in This Tutorial

How to make a Y2K logo
How to design the Y2K logo text
How to outline a Y2K logo design

What You Will Need

You will need the following font in order to complete this shooting star Y2K logo:

Astromax font

1. How to Create a New Document and Set Up a Grid

Hit Control-N to create a new document. Select Pixels from the Units drop-down menu, set the Width and Height to 850 px, and then click that Advanced Options button. Select RGB for the Color Mode, set the Raster Effects to Screen (72 ppi), and then click the Create button.

Enable the Grid (View > Show Grid or Control-") and the Snap to Grid (View > Snap to Grid or Shift-Control-"). You will need a grid every 10 px, so simply go to Edit > Preferences > Guides & Grid, enter 10 in the Gridline every box and 1 in the Subdivisions box. Try not to get discouraged by all that grid—it will make your work easier, and keep in mind that you can easily enable or disable it using the Control-" keyboard shortcut.

You should also open the Info panel (Window > Info) for a live preview with the size and position of your shapes. Don't forget to set the unit of measurement to pixels from Edit > Preferences > Units. All these options will significantly increase your work speed. Now that you're set, let's see how you can create your own Y2K star logo.

2. How to Create the Globe

Step 1

Pick the Ellipse Tool (L) from your toolbar and keep the default color settings (white fill and black stroke).

Move to your artboard and simply create a 300 px circle—the grid and Snap to Grid should make it easier.

Keep your shape selected, and go to the Control panel (Window > Control) to increase the stroke Weight to 10 px.

Step 2

Make sure that your circle is still selected and add a copy in front (Control-C > Control-F). Select the copy using the Selection Tool (V), and if you can't see the bounding box around your selection, go to View > Show Bounding Box (Shift-Control-B). Use the bounding box to squeeze your selected shape and make it 160 px wide.

Duplicate your squeezed circle (Control-C > Control-F) and rotate it 90 degrees, as shown in the second image. Don't forget to remove the fill color of this second copy. This can be easily done via the Control panel.

Step 3

Reselect the Ellipse Tool (L) and use it to create a 540 x 130 px shape. Fill it with black, remove the stroke color, and place it as shown in the first image.

Using the same tool, create a 380 x 100 px shape and place it as shown in the second image.

Step 4

Make sure that the shape made in the previous step is still selected, and go to Effect > Distort & Transform > Transform. Just set the Angle to 20 degrees to rotate your selection, and click OK.