How to Make a Background in Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word, the word processing component of the Microsoft Office Suite, may be your choice for typing proposals, cover sheets, papers and other documents, but Word offers more than just black type on a white background. When you want to dress up your forms or require a specialty background, rely on Word's menus and toolbars to add a design. With a couple of clicks, you'll find multiple ways to stand out from the black and white pack.

Instructions

Single Color Background

1. Open Word, which automatically defaults a blank white 8.5 inch by 11 inch page on the workspace. To add a background to an existing Word document, click the "File" tab and click "Open," then browse to the document. Double-click it and it opens in a new Word window.

2. Click the "Page Layout" tab on the top of the screen. Click the "Page Color" button in the middle of the toolbar/ribbon at the top of the screen.

3. Click one of the small colored boxes to instantly change the background color from white to the selected color.

Photo Background

1. Click the "Page Layout" tab, click the "Page Color" button and select "Fill Effects" at the bottom of the menu.

2. Click the "Picture" tab, then click the "Select Picture" button. Browse to an image to use for the background and double-click it.

3. Click "OK" and your picture becomes the page's background.

Textured Background

1. Make a textured background by clicking the "Page Layout" tab, clicking the "Page Color" button below it and selecting "Fill Effects."

2. Click the "Texture" tab and scroll through the texture designs, such as grass, burlap, canvas and steel.

3. Click a texture and click "OK" to add the texture as the document's background.

Gradient Background

1. Create a gradient background, which is a design made of shaded colors that blend into each other, by clicking the "Page Layout" tab, clicking the "Page Color" button and selecting "Fill Effects," which opens the "Gradient" tab by default.

2. Click the "Two Colors" button and select two colors, with two different colors such as red and blue making the most vibrant gradient or two of the same colors, such as light blue and dark blue, making a more subtle gradient.

3. Choose one of the "Shading styles" and click "OK" to give your page the gradient background.

References

• Creating documents -- Word -- Microsoft Office