Bright colors, curved lines, and a well-chosen font can let your customers know you’ve got a fun product. Combine these elements to create a playful logo in Adobe Photoshop.

Before You Start

Here is my Photoshop document with the starting design so you can practice these exact steps.

Step 1: Guide Your Work

I used a grid to help with the layout and alignment of objects in my design. To use a grid, set your preferences for how you want to display it (Preferences appears in the Edit menu on Windows), and then select to show it from the View menu. Show and hide the grid as needed while you work.

Step 2: Shape Your Brand

The Rounded Rectangle tool creates the perfect shape for the ice cream. To use it, drag it to the size you want using the gridlines as a guide. Next, adjust specific properties such as the border and fill color and the size of each corner radius.

Step 3: Communicate through Color

A colorful gradient makes me think of a blend of sherbet flavors. With the rounded rectangle selected, click the color fill (in the Properties Panel) and then the gradient icon. Specify the type of gradient you want, such as Linear or Radial, and the angle of rotation. Click the gradient color strip to change and add colors. Double-click the first color stop, specify a color value, and click OK. Use the same steps to change the last color. Add two more color stops by clicking just below the gradient bar, and then change the color.

Step 4: Draw Some Detail

To draw the chocolate coating, click the + (plus sign) on the Layers panel to add a new layer. Select the Pen tool, set it to Shape in the options bar at the top, and then choose a Fill color. To create the three corners of the chocolate layer, click just outside and to the left of the ice cream, click again below the original point, and again to the right. To draw curves, click and drag with the Pen tool. Finally, click the original point to close the shape.

The Pen tool can take some getting used to, but after a bit of practice you’ll find it’s a great way to add custom shapes and paths. To modify the shape after you’ve drawn it, choose the Direct Selection tool and click and drag any of the points on the shape.

Step 5: Make It Fit

To keep the chocolate from melting off the sides, you can contain it within the shape of the ice cream. Right-click the chocolate layer and choose Create Clipping Mask.

Step 6: Add Some Character

The right typeface distinguishes your brand. Choose the Type tool and then select Browse Adobe Fonts from the font listing to search through the thousands of available options. I thought the modern, clean Atrament font complemented the design well. To adjust the letter spacing, keep the Type tool selected, place your cursor between two letters, and adjust the Kerning in the Properties panel. Change the Tracking to customize the spacing across a word.

Pro Tip: Iterate with Artboards

I designed the original logo on an artboard because it makes it easier to create different versions of the design. To do this, right-click the artboard in the Layers panel and choose Duplicate Artboard.

Step 7: Modify for Versatility

Create variations of your design by changing stroke and fill colors so your logo will look great wherever you place it. I made black and white versions for instances where the colors might clash with different colored backgrounds. Use Shift-click to select your design layers and choose Convert to Smart Object from the flyout menu so the graphic will be fully editable when you add it to a library in the next step.

Step 8: Create and Share Anywhere

Add your logo and colors to a library so you can access them from other Adobe Creative Cloud apps when you are ready to design more assets—or share them with others.

Step 9: Get Ready

To use your logo on your website, mobile app, or marketing material, you’ll need to prepare and export the file. First, merge the layers: Shift-click to select all the layers and choose Merge Layers from the flyout menu. Before you merge, however, make sure you duplicate the artboard or save your file as a new Photoshop document so you can go back and edit the individual layers if needed.

Finally, export your design to an appropriate file format. PNG is commonly used for logos because you can save them with transparency so they’ll appear well on different colored backgrounds.

Make Your Mark

Combine shapes and colors to create a logo for your product or brand, and then see how it looks on different backgrounds and layouts. Share your design with @AdobeCreate to help inspire others with their fun brand identities.

Note: Project files included with this tutorial are for practice purposes only.