How to Make a Dia de Muertos Flyer in Photoshop

In this tutorial, I'll show you how to design a Dia de los Muertos festival flyer. I'll take inspiration from Dia de los Muertos altar ideas, as well as traditional elements of the holiday like skulls and marigolds.

I'll also use an awesome font that comes with an extra lined version to create a neon light effect. The Dia de los Muertos color palette will include bright yellow and purple colors. Are you ready to learn how to make a flyer in Photoshop?

If you're short on time, this awesome Dia de los Muertos festival design is quick and easy to edit. It includes an image that is traditional for a Dia de los Muertos altar. The file comes in A4 and A5 sizes and is ready for print. Explore more awesome creative flyer designs and Dia de los Muertos art illustrations from Envato Elements after this tutorial!

What You'll Learn in This Dia de Muertos Flyer Tutorial

In this Dia de los Muertos festival flyer, you'll learn to:

• properly set up a Photoshop flyer file
• organize layers and folders to create a tidy document
• install Photoshop brushes
• master the Character panel to create unusual text details
• export files for web and print

What You'll Need for Your Dia de Muertos Flyer

For this Dia de la Muerte art tutorial, you'll need:

• Luchador and Gunnar Fonts
• Voodoo Glow Skull Brushes
• Set of 13 Old Paper Backgrounds
• Dia de los Muertos Art Assets

Install the fonts, and you're ready to learn how to design a flyer. 

1. How to Set Up a Dia de los Muertos Art Project Flyer

Step 1

Open Photoshop and head over to File > New. Select the Print option from the top menu.

Select the A4 preset. The preset details should be Width: 210 mm and Height: 297 mm. The resolution should be 300.

Click Create.

Step 2

Head over to View > New Guide Layout.

In the New Guide Layout, set the Number of Columns and Rows to 4. Set all the Margins to 10 mm.

Click OK. 

2. How to Design the Background of Your Dia De Muertos Flyer

Step 1

Find the set of 13 old paper backgrounds from Envato Elements. Select the file 5.jpg and drag it over to Photoshop.

Step 2

In the Layers panel, click on Create New Fill or Adjustment Layer > Solid Color. In the Color Picker window, set the swatch code to #16b0d2. Click OK. 

Step 3

In the Layers panel, select the Color Fill Layer Mask thumbnail. Select the Brush Tool (B) from the toolbar.

Right-click on the Dia de los Muertos art project and select Dry Media Brushes > Kyle's Ultimate Pastel Palooza. Set the Size to 250. 

Step 4

Set the color swatch to black and white on your Dia de Muertos flyer.

Using the brush and black as the foreground color, create a border by stamping the brush next to each stamp. Once you have covered all the borders, proceed to fill the inside. 

While selecting the Color Fill Layer Mask, press Command-I to Invert the layer. Set the layer Blending Mode to Multiply and Opacity to 60%. 

Step 5

Head over to Window > Brushes to open the Brushes panel. 

One more time, head over to Window > Brush Settings to open the panel; this will help us control the brushes with more precision. 

In the Brushes panel, head to the dropdown menu and select Import Brushes. Navigate to the Stamp Brushes and select the .abr file. Click on Open. 

In the Layers panel, create a New Layer by going to the dropdown menu. 

Step 6

Select the Brush Tool (B) and head over to the Brushes panel. Select one of the Voodoo Glow Skull brushes. Set the Size to 1800 and the Foreground Color to #63acab.

Using the guides we created at the beginning of this tutorial, add the first stamp right in the center of the document.

Step 7

Select another of the Voodoo Glow Skull brushes. Head over to the Brush Settings panel and set the Angle to 30°. Stamp the brush on the left side of the flyer, making sure it bleeds over the page.

Feel free to select a different skull brush. Repeat the same on the opposite side, this time setting the Angle to -30°.

Step 8

Select a different skull brush. In the Brush Settings panel, set the Size to 2800 px and the Angle to 90°. Stamp the brush at the top of the flyer.

Select a different skull brush. In the Brush Settings panel, set the Size to 1800 px and the Angle to 90°. Stamp the brush at the bottom of the flyer.

Step 9

Select the layer with the Voodoo Glow Skull stamps. Set the Blending Mode to Multiply and the Opacity to 25%. 

Select all three layers by pressing Shift and clicking on each layer: the stamps, the Color Fill, and the background texture. 

In the Layers panel, click on the Create New Group button to group all three layers. Double-click on the layer to rename it Background.

3. How to Create the Main Text of the Dia de los Muertos Flyer

Step 1

Head over to Window > Character. This will help us have more control over the text settings for the event flyer design.

Select the Text Tool (T) from the toolbar. Create a separate text box for each word, and set the color swatch to #45034c and the Font to Luchador Regular. Use the following text settings on the Character panel:

• DAY: Set the Size to 165 pt and the Tracking to -25.
• OF THE: Set the Size to 48 pt.
• DE  D: Instead of adding the capital A, leave a space as we'll add an image there. Set the Size to 165 pt and the Tracking to -25. Additionally, after the space and before the capital D, set the Kerning to 100.
• FESTIVAL: Set the Size to 135.

Place the text in a way that the word "DAY" aligns to the left with "FESTIVAL". Place the word "DEAD" on the second line and align it to the right side of "FESTIVAL". Place "OF THE" just above "DEAD".

Step 2

In the Layers panel, select all of the text layers by pressing Shift and clicking on each layer.

Press Command-T to Transform. On the Options bar, set the Vertical Skew to -8,50°, and change the Width to 85% and the Height to 115%.

Step 3

In the Layers panel, select all the text layers except for "OF THE". Drag them onto the Create New Layer button.

In the Character panel, set the Font to Luchador but this time to the Lines weight.

I'll use some traditional Dia de los Muertos colors: set the "DAY" lines to #e2e50d, the "DEAD" lines to #ca12d1, and the "FESTIVAL" lines to #20fb4e.

Step 4

In the Layers panel, double-click on the DAY layer to open the Layer Style window. Select the Stroke option from the left side menu. Set the Size to 6 px and Position to Center. Set the Color to #e2e50d.

Repeat this step for the words "DEAD" and "FESTIVAL". Set the colors to #ca12d1 and #20fb4e respectively. 

Step 5

Open the Dia de los Muertos Illustration in Illustrator. This illustration contains Dia de los Muertos colors that go well with our flyer.

Click on the illustrations and press Shift-Command-G to Ungroup them. Select the skull at the bottom facing right. Press Command-C to Copy. 

Head over to Photoshop and press Command-V to Paste. In the Paste pop-up window, select Pixels and click OK. The skull will replace the "A" in the word "DEAD". 

On the Menu bar, set the Width and Height to 45%.

Step 6

Go back to Illustrator and choose whichever elements you'd like on your Dia de los Muertos Flyer. I chose a few flowers, marigolds, and bones. I placed the bones over the "I" in "FESTIVAL" and the flowers under the "D" in "DAY" and the "L" in "FESTIVAL". 

Select all of the new layers we created in this section and drag them onto the Create a New Group button. Double-click on the group and rename it Main Text. 

4. How to Add Details to Your Dia de los Muertos Flyer

Step 1

It's time to add some details to the text, and for this Dia de los Muertos color palette, we'll use something bright. 

Select the Text Tool (T) from the toolbar. Click on the document and add "EL MIRADOR PRESENTS:" on two lines. Use the spacebar to add more space to the second line.

In the Character panel, set the Font to Gunnar, the Size to 25 pt, Leading to 20 pt, and Tracking to 50. Set the Color to #500457.

Step 2

Select the Text Tool (T) from the toolbar. 

Click on the document and add "STAGE 1" on one line and band names on the second line. Repeat this for two more stages. Here, you can also use the spacebar to add more space to the other lines. I've left significant space between the bands on "STAGE 1" as I want to add an image there.

In the Character panel, use the following settings:

• Stages: Font to Gunnar, Size to 13pt, Leading to 10 pt, and Tracking to 100. Set the Color to Black.
• Bands: Font to Gunnar, Size to 25pt, Leading to 25 pt, and Tracking to 50. Set the Color to #c014be.

Step 3

Select the Text Tool (T) from the toolbar. Add the text "LIVE PERFORMANCES, FOOD TRUCK, OPEN MIC". Feel free to omit the commas and use the spacebar to create an unusual typesetting on the poster. 

In the Character panel, set the Font to Gunnar, the Size to 25 pt, Leading to 20 pt, and Tracking to 50. Set the Color to #2116ba.

Make this text box overlap the previous one to create a grunge feel on the event flyer design.

Step 4

Select the Text Tool (T) from the toolbar. Add the text date and time details. Feel free to use the spacebar as much as you'd like. 

In the Character panel, set the Font to Gunnar, the Size to 25 pt, Leading to 20 pt, and Tracking to 50. Set the Color to #f7dd6d.

Step 5

Go back to Illustrator and choose whichever elements you'd like on your Dia de los Muertos flyer.

I added maracas for the top, and bones, flowers, and a chili pepper for the event details.

Step 6

Select all of the new layers we created in this section by pressing Shift and clicking on the layers. Click on the Create New Group button and rename the layer Text Details.

Step 7

If you'd like to change color details after designing your Dia de los Muertos flyer, you can do so by adding a New Adjustment Layer in the Layers panel. 

In this case, I added a Brightness/Contrast layer to add more contrast to the whole flyer.

5. How to Save a Print and Web File for Your Dia de Muertos Flyer

Step 1

Part of learning how to make a flyer in Photoshop is learning how to create a print file. Go to File > Save As. Set the Format to Photoshop PDF. Click Save.

Set the Adobe PDF Preset to High-Quality Print. Click Save.

Step 2

For the web version, go to File > Export > Save for Web ...

Under Image Size, you can set the size that you need for the web. Click Save. 

Dia de Los Muertos Art Resources From Envato Elements

If you're in a hurry, Envato Elements offers awesome design assets. For a small monthly fee, you'll have access to high-quality assets and unlimited downloads. Find anything from creative flyer designs to Dia de los Muertos art illustrations. Envato Elements is also great if you want to find flyer design ideas. Let's check these out!

Dia de los Muertos Design With Three Sugar Skulls (AI, EPS, FIG, PDF, PSD)

These Sugar Skull illustrations include the traditional Dia de los Muertos color palette. Use them as elements for an event flyer design or a postcard design. The file is a vector, so you can also edit the color as you wish!

Dia de los Muertos Flat Design Illustration (EPS, JPG)

This flat modern Dia de los Muertos art illustration is beautifully done on a black background. It adds contrast, it has a beautiful dynamic composition, and it's perfect for a postcard. You can also change the colors as it's a vector file.

Day of the Dead Poster and Elements (EPS)

This art illustration includes traditional elements that you'd find on Dia de los Muertos altar ideas. There are different elements that would be considered ofrendas for the altar. This is a great design asset if you need something quick and beautiful.

Mexican Outline Icon Set (AI)

This Mexican icon set includes elements of a Dia de los Muertos altar. The set includes files with light and dark color backgrounds and a beautiful pattern. Use this beautiful icon set to add a unique atmosphere to your Dia de los Muertos art projects.

That's It!

In this tutorial, you learned how to design a flyer for Dia de Muertos. You learned how to properly set up a file, typeset, and skew the text. You also learned how to import brushes and Illustrator elements into Photoshop. The final design is an impactful and colorful flyer. Don't forget to show us your Dia de los Muertos art projects on the forum!

If you're looking for flyer design ideas or flyer design inspiration, be sure to check out Envato Elements. There are tons of assets added every day that can inspire you to create your own designs. If you're running out of time, their high-quality assets are time-savers. For just a small monthly fee, you'll have access to unlimited downloads.

If you're looking for flyer design inspiration, be sure to check out:

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