WordArt for Interesting Titles and Headlines

WordArt has been rewritten in Excel 2007. As in previous versions, WordArt is best used sparingly-possibly for a headline or title at the top of a page. It is best used for impressive display fonts to add interest to a report. You would probably not want to create an entire 20-page document in WordArt.

To use WordArt, you follow these steps:

1. Select a blank section of the worksheet.
2. From the Insert ribbon, choose the WordArt drop-down.
3. Choose from the 30 WordArt presets in the drop-down.
   These presets seem less exciting than the WordArt in prior versions of Excel.
4. Excel adds the generic text Your Text Here in the preset WordArt you chose. Select this default text and then type your own text.
5. Select the text. Choose a new font style by using either the mini toolbar that appears or the Home ribbon.
6. Use the WordArt Styles group on the Drawing Tools Format ribbon to color the WordArt. To the right of the Styles drop-down are icons for text color and line color and a drop-down for effects. The Effects drop-down includes the fly-out menus Shadow, Reflection, Glow, Soft Edges, Bevel, and 3D Rotation.
7. To achieve the old-style WordArt effects, from the Format ribbon, select Drawing Tools, WordArt Styles, Text Effects, Transform and then select a shape for the text.

To change the style of any or all of the WordArt, highlight the portion you want to change and choose Drawing Tools Format> Quick Styles to make a selection.

The controls in the Drawing Tools> Format> Shape Styles group operate on the shape that contains the text, not the text. If you want to apply text formatting, use the control in the Drawing Tools> Format> WordArt Styles group. You can also use some of the standard formatting controls on the Home tab or the Mini toolbar. In addition, right-click the WordArt and select Format Text Effects for more formatting options.