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Six Easy Steps to Add Spot Colors to Your Palette
In an earlier article (Fall 2008, archived online), we suggested using spot screens to achieve the look of more color without adding a lot of extra cost to your project’s budget. How do you create those spot colors when you are designing your brochure, newsletter, or other project? Knowing how to define spot colors in your document will help to save you production time and cost. Let us walk you through the process of creating a spot color, using Adobe InDesign as an illustration.
Step One: First, decide whether you want to add any spot color(s) to the swatches palette for all new projects or just this new project. If you add colors to the palette with no project open, the spot colors will be there in the palette for every new project.
Step Two: To open the swatches palette in InDesign, click on “Window” in the top navigation bar and select “Swatches” from the drop-down menu. (As a shortcut, you can also press F5 on a Mac or Control and F5 on a PC to open “Swatches.”)
Step Three: Click the flyout menu icon in the upper-right corner of the Swatches Palette and select the “New Color Swatch” option. A new dialogue box called “New Color Swatch” will open.
Step Four: You will see a field for “Color Type.” Select “Spot Color” from the dropdown menu.
Step Five: You will see a field for “Color Mode,” which will have many options listed in the drop-down menu. We recommend using the Pantone Matching System. If you are printing your job on a coated paper, select the “PANTONE Solid Coated” setting. If you are printing your job on uncoated paper, select the “PANTONE Solid Uncoated” setting.
Step Six: A list box will then appear with the multitude of Pantone color options available. Select the Pantone color of choice and click the “Add” button. The Pantone color will then be added to your swatches palette. Repeat this process as needed to add more spot colors to your palette. Remember, if it is a spot color you will be using frequently, add it to your swatches palette with no projects open so that it will appear for every new project. If you need help or advice, please be sure to contact us.
