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 both the Width and Height to 850 px, and then click that Advanced Options button. Select RGB for the Color Mode and 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 5 px, so simply go to Edit > Preferences > Guides & Grid, enter 5 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 can learn more about Illustrator’s grid system in this short tutorial from Andrei Stefan: Understanding Adobe Illustrator’s Grid System.
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 start the work on the alien brand logo.
2. How to Create the Head of the Alien Logo
Step 1
Pick the Ellipse Tool (L) from your toolbar and then focus on the color settings. Select the stroke and remove the color, and then double-click the fill color and replace it with R=0 G=160 B=120.
Now, you can either hold down the Shift key as you click and drag to easily create a 250 px circle, or you can simply click on the artboard to open the Ellipse window. Set both the Width and Height to 250 px and click OK to create the new shape.
Step 2
Pick the Anchor Point Tool (Shift-C) and focus on the top edge of your circle.
Click that anchor point and just drag the handles 90 px to the right, as shown in the following image. Keep in mind that you can check the Info panel to see exactly when you get to 90 px.
Step 3
Pick the Direct Selection Tool (A) and focus on the bottom edge of your shape.
Select that bottom anchor point, hold down the Shift key to constrain its movement and simply drag it 90 px down, as shown in the second image. Again, remember that you can have a look at the Info panel to see when you’ve reached 90 px.
Step 4
Pick the Direct Selection Tool (A) and use it to select the left anchor point, hold down the Shift key and click the right anchor point to add it to your selection, and then drag both points 20 px down, as shown in the following image.
Switch to the Anchor Point Tool (Shift-C), click the bottom anchor point, and drag the handles 30 px to the left, as shown below.
Step 5
Reselect the Direct Selection Tool (A) and select the left anchor point. Drag the bottom handle 100 px, as shown in the following image, and then repeat the same move for the right anchor point.
3. How to Create the Eyes of the Alien Logo
Step 1
Reselect the Ellipse Tool (L), use it to create two 150 x 60 px shapes, and fill them with R=8 G=17 B=32.
Switch to the Anchor Point Tool (Shift-C) and simply click the left and right anchor points to turn them into sharp points, as shown in the second image.
Step 2
Use the Selection Tool (V) to select the left dark shape. Hover your cursor over a corner of the bounding box until it turns into a curved double-headed arrow, and then click and drag to rotate your selected shape 45 degrees. Hold down the Shift key as you click and drag to constrain the rotation to 45 degree increments.
Select the other dark shape and rotate it 45 degrees to the right, and then place your two dark shapes as shown in the following image.
Once you’re done, select both shapes and switch to the Direct Selection Tool (A). Focus on the control panel, and all you have to do is set the Corner Radius to 8 px.
4. How to Add Vibrant Highlights
Step 1
Select your green shape and press Control-C > Control-F > Control-F to quickly add two copies in the same place.
Select just the top copy and drag it 15 px down and 15 px to the right, and then select both copies and click the Minus Front button from the Pathfinder panel (Window > Pathfinder). Fill the resulting shape with R=0 G=243 B=20.
Step 2
Disable the Snap to Grid (Shift-Control-“) for a few moments and then go to Edit > Preferences > General to make sure that the Keyboard Increment is set to 5 px.
Select the left eye shape and add two copies in front (Control-C > Control-F > Control-F). Move to the Layers panel (Window > Layers) to select the bottom copy and simply press the left arrow button once and the up arrow button twice. This will move your selected shape 5 px to the left and 10 px up.
Select both copies of your left eye shape and press that same Minus Front button from the Pathfinder panel. Fill the resulting shape with the same neon green. You can use the Eyedropper Tool (U) to easily pick that color from the existing shape.
Step 3
Select both neon green shapes and merge them using the Unite button from the Pathfinder panel.
Step 4
Keep focusing on your neon green shape, use the Direct Selection Tool (A) to select the anchor point highlighted in the first image, and set the Corner Radius to 20 px.
Step 5
Enable the Snap to Grid (Shift-Control-“). Make sure that your neon green shape is still selected and go to Object > Transform > Reflect. Check the Vertical box and then click the Copy button to easily create a horizontally flipped copy. Use the Selection Tool (V) to place it as shown in the second image.
Step 6
Select both neon green shapes and merge them using the Unite button from the Pathfinder panel. Use the Direct Selection Tool (A) to select the anchor point highlighted in the second image and set the Corner Radius to 100 px.
5. How to Create the Nose and Mouth of the Alien Logo
Step 1
Pick the Ellipse Tool (L) and use it to create a 5 x 15 px shape. Fill it with the same dark color that you used for the eyes (R=8 G=17 B=32) and place it as shown in the following image.
Step 2
Focus on the top side of your tiny shape and pick the Anchor Point Tool (Shift-C). Click the top anchor point and drag the handles 5 px to the right, as shown in the first image.
Switch to the Selection Tool (V) and hold down the Alt key as you click and drag to add a copy as shown in the second image. Select these tiny shapes one by one and rotate them 45 degrees as shown in the final images.
Step 3
Reselect the Ellipse Tool (L), use it to create a 30 x 20 px shape and place it as shown in the first image. Use the same dark color (R=8 G=17 B=32) for fill and the stroke and increase the stroke Weight to 4 pt.
Switch to the Anchor Point Tool (Shift-C) and simply click the left and right anchor points to turn them into sharp points.
Step 4
Pick the Rectangle Tool (M) and use it to create a shape that covers the bottom half of the shape that you made in the previous step. Select both of these shapes and click the Minus Front button from the Pathfinder panel.
Step 5
Pick the Ellipse Tool (L) and use it to create two 20 px circles and another two 10 px circles. Fill these shapes with that same neon green (R=0 G=243 B=20) and place them as shown in the following image.
6. How to Create a Glowing Alien Logo Design
Step 1
Reselect that main head shape and go to Object > Path > Offset Path. Set the Offset to 20 px and click OK to create the new shape. Fill it with that same dark color (R=8 G=17 B=32).
Step 2
Keep your dark head shape selected and focus on the Appearance panel (Window > Appearance).
Select the existing fill and go to Effect > Stylize > Outer Glow. Set the settings shown below and then click OK.
Step 3
Make sure that your dark head shape is still selected and click the Add New Fill button from the bottom of the Appearance panel to add a second fill.
Select it and lower its Opacity to 75%, and then go to Effect > Path > Offset Path. Set the Offset to -20 px and click OK, and then go to Effect > Distort & Transform > Transform. Drag the Move-Vertical slider to 30 px which will move your selected fill 30 px down, click OK, and then go to Effect > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Set the Radius to 15 px and click OK.
Step 4
Finally, let’s add a simple background for this alien face logo. Pick the Rectangle Tool (M) and use it to create a shape that covers your entire artboard. Fill it with R=8 G=17 B=32 and press Shift-Control-[ to quickly send it to back. With this final touch, your alien vector logo is complete.
