Grids

Grids
Grids
The word grid might sound scary. Like
cage its a word that does not imply
creativity. In editorial design, however,
a grid is not about restricting creativity,
but about creating orderly relationships
between the elements on your page.

In this segment of Workshop you will

learn how to use grids to create more
pleasing and effective layouts.
Contents
1.0 Margins
1.1 Top and bottom margins
1.2 Inner and outer margins
1.3 Accommodating headers and footers

2.0 Columns
2.1 How many columns should you use?

3.0 Rows
3.1 Rows and baselines
3.2 How many rows should you use?
3.3 Flowlines
3.4 Some examples

4.0 Want more?

Here is a list of extra resources if you want
to learn even more about grids.
1.0
Margins
The outer edge of your content area is
where your grid starts. There is an art
of proportion and balance to the
composition of margins, but simply
understanding that margins should
have a proportional relationship to each
other will take you a long way.
1.1 Top and bottom margins
To keep things neat and tidy the
vertical height of your content area
should be a multiple of the leading of
your text (see Typography lesson 1.2 to
learn more about leading).

This will help determined the amount of

space in your top and bottom margins.

Allow more space at the bottom of the

page than at the top, otherwise text
can appear to be falling off the page.
 48pts

If your type has 12pts of leading, the height of your content area should
be a multiple of 12. On this page, 468pts exactly fits 39 lines of type.
The top and bottom margins are also multiples of the 12pt leading.
This helps to maintain a relationship between the contents and the page.

468pts
=39 lines with 12pts of leading.

60pts
1.2 Inner and outer margins
Traditionally, the horizontal space of a printed page is measured in a
unit of measurement called a pica.
1 pica = 12pts, or 1/6 of an inch.

Balance the inner and outer margins

with the type size (see Typography
lesson 1.1), and columns (see Grids
lesson 2.0) to determine the measure
of your text (see Typography lesson 1.3).

Top margins and side margins are often

the same, while the bottom margin is
slightly larger. This is not necessary, but
inner and outer margins should still have
a proportional relationship to the top
and the bottom.
 36p9
Measurements in picas are notated
like this. The first number is picas,
and the second number is points.
There are twelve points in a pica, so
36p9 indicates a measurement of
picas points 36 picas, and 9 points.

On this page the inner and outer margins are smaller than the top and The 2 leftover
bottom, but they maintain a relationship by being exactly three fifths columns are also
useful for captions in
of the bottom margin, and three quarters of the top margin. 7/9 PT Serif.
They also accommodate an ideal measure for this 9/12 PT Serif
type when a text block is set 7 columns wide.

23p1 5p11

3p0 3p0

30p0
1.3 Accommodate
headers and footers
If you have numbers at the bottom of
your page, or running headers at the
top, be sure that your margins can
accommodate them with adequate
spacing so that they are not confused
as belonging to the main text.
 Grids 1.3 Accommodate headers and footers
12pts
This header is separated from the top margin by 12pts, which provides
adequate space for it to be clearly distinguished from text inside the
margins. It is also distinguished by a different typeface, weight, and size.

24pts
11
2.0
Columns
Columns allow you to easily integrate
your text with other elements, like
photography, illustration, diagrams,
pullquotes, or captions.

They also allow you to fit more text on

the page with appropriate measures,
by dividing content into columns.
2.1 How many columns
should you use?
Text blocks are often set in 1, 2, 3, or 4
columns, but the structure of a page
may be more complex.

Pages are commonly made with as

many as 12 columns. 12 can be easily
divided into 14 even columns of text,
and allow a diversity of options for
integrating titles, images, pullquotes
and other types of page element.
This page has 9 columns, which allows for one 7-column wide text
block at an ideal measure, and a smaller 2-column block for captions.
It also allows for imagery to be incorporated in a variety of ways.

The space between columns is called a gutter, and it must be at least

equal to the leading of the text. Any smaller, and the reader may not
easily distinguish between the edges of different columns.

1p0=12pts
3.0
Rows
Rows divide your page horizontally. They
are generally treated with much more
malleability than columns, but they help
to compose the page, and to direct the
readers eye flow (see more on eye flow
in the Design lesson 3.0)
3.1 Rows and baselines
The rows on your page, and their
gutters, should line up with baselines
of your text.

The easiest way to divide your page

into evenly fitting rows, and to
accommodate gutters, is to visually
divide the page by drawing in blocks.
Use the blocks to determine row height,
then set your guides to match.

You may have to adjust the top and

bottom margins of your page to find a
number of baselines that can be
divided evenly.
These blocks indicate different ways in
which the 39 lines of this page could
be divided into rows and gutters.
3.2 How many rows
should you use?
As with columns, you can use as many
or as few rows as you want.

If your pages need to accommodate

more complex layouts, with more
images, pullquotes, captions, or
hierarchical elements, then more rows
will help you fit those parts together in
an orderly manner.
These pages uses 8 rows, this allows for the pages to be effectively
composed with multiple, vertically aligned, sections and headings.
3.3 Flowlines
When new content begins, it should not
be set directly at the top of the page,
but on a flowline that matches one of
the horizontal rows.

Allowing vertical space at the top of a

page clearly shows the reader that
they are beginning a new section.

When composing pages that are made

up only of single blocks of text, like a
novel, set flowlines for chapter headings
in the same way that you would set
rows; by dividing the vertical space of
the page into even proportions.
In all of the Workshop books the flowline is at the bottom of the
second row from the top.
3.4 Some examples
Here are some
examples of how you
can creatively use
columns and rows.

There may only be 2

columns of text on
this page, but
constructing it with 12
columns allows for the
easy integration of
well balanced space
for an image.
This 5-column grid
creates an asymmetrical
layout that adds some
dynamism to the page,
and helps to direct the
readers eye.
When working with
large images, a grid
will help keep a
proportionally
balanced relationship
between the image,
text, and other page
elements.
Even this simple
3-column grid helps
to organize separate
content on the page
4.0
Want more?
Grids have been creatively applied to
editorial design for generations, so
there is far more to learn than can fit
in a few pages.

If you want to learn more about grids

check out these great resources.
Best Practices for Graphic Designers:
by Amy Graver and Ben Jura
An excellent source for ideas and inspiration when working with grids.

Graver, Amy, and Ben Jura. Best Practices for Graphic Designers: Grids
and Page Layouts: An Essential Guide for Understanding & Applying Page
Design Principles. Beverly, Ma: Rockport, 2012. Print.

Grid Systems
by Kimberly Elam
This book is a thorough and in-depth analysis of different types of grids,
and how complex structures are used to design simple and elegant layouts.

Elam, Kimberly. Grid Systems: Principles of Organizing Type. New York:

Princeton Architectural, 2004. Print.
The Elements of Typographic Style
by Robert Bringhurst
This book is not just limited to information on typefaces, but it is an
all purpose guide to laying out a beautiful page.

Bringhurst, Robert. The Elements of Typographic Style. Point Roberts,

WA: Hartley and Marks, 2004. Print

The Vignelli Canon

by Massimo Vignelli
Grids were an essential part of modernist design and so this modernist
text includes sophisticated, but easy to understand information on
how to create and apply a grid to your page layouts. It can be down-
loaded as a .PDF from www.vignelli.com/canon.pdf

Vignelli, Massimo. The Vignelli Canon. Milano: Postmedia, 2012. Vignel-

li.com. Web. 02 Apr. 2016. <http://www.vignelli.com/canon.pdf>