Although Canva can be used without creating an account, we recommend creating one. With a Canva account, users can save designs and upload and store media files. Canva offers two types of accounts: Free and Pro. The Free version will suffice for most users as it gives access to the majority of features and tools, including hundreds of templates and stock media. With Pro, users get access to more tools and media. When browsing stock media, be aware that items marked “Premium" are only available to Pro users or can be purchased individually.

Creating an Account

To create a new account:

1. Navigate to Canva.com.
2. Click “Sign up” to the top-right. A new pop-up will appear.
3. Click the Google account option, and select your PLU Google account.
4. Go through the registration process. If prompted to set up a Team, skip this portion.
   
   

Creating a New Design

To create a new design:

1. Navigate to Canva.com and login with your PLU Google account.
2. Click “Create a design” to the top-right. A new pop-up will appear.
   
3. Select the design intent. The editor will open.

• Alternatively, select “Custom size” and enter the desired dimensions.

To reopen a previously created design, navigate to the Canva Home page and select “All your designs” from the column to the left. 

Templates

Templates are designs with present stylizing including text, images, shapes, and color schemes. They can be useful for quickly creating a design, as well as inspiring design ideas. For student projects that are part of an assignment for a course, we don’t recommend using a template. Be aware that applying a template to a design that already has objects and elements added may delete existing content.

To apply a template to a design: 

1. Click the “Templates” tab from the column to the left.
2. Select a template option. It will be applied to the design.

• Use the search bar at the top of the menu to look for types of templates.
• Select individual elements and objects of the design to edit them, and use the options in the Toolbar above the Canvas to change the settings. See the other articles in this guide for more details.

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