How to add and create stationery in Outlook?
Sending plain email messages can sometimes lead to recipients overlooking or skimming your content, especially in busy inboxes. Utilizing stationery allows you to personalize both the look and feel of your messages, making them stand out and increasing the likelihood that your emails will attract attention and be read in detail. Whether you need a professional template for everyday correspondence or a festive design for a special occasion, Outlook provides several flexible methods for creating and applying stationery. Below you will find practical step-by-step instructions for custom stationery creation, and guidance on how to use stationery for all email messages, or just for a single one, depending on your communication needs.
Create new stationery for email messages
Add and apply stationery for all email messages
Add and apply stationery for one email message
Create new stationery for email messages
Outlook includes a built-in stationery library, but occasionally you may find that none of the available options match the style or branding you want for your email. Creating custom stationery enables you to fully control the design—such as fonts, background colors or images, and other formatting—to suit personal preferences or organizational requirements. The following steps show you how to create and save your own stationery in Microsoft Outlook.
1. Start by creating a new email message in Outlook. Here, you can design your layout by adjusting fonts, colors, inserting images or logos, and setting other formatting attributes. This message will serve as the template for your stationery, so set all desired properties before moving forward.
2. When your email design is complete, click the "File" menu at the top left corner, then choose "Save As".
3. In the Save As dialog box that appears, you'll need to specify the correct folder for stationery storage. To do so, click on the address bar, copy and paste "%appdata%\microsoft\stationery" into the box, and press "Enter" on your keyboard. This navigates you directly to the Outlook stationery folder, as shown below:
4. Next, enter a unique and recognizable name for your new stationery in the "File name:" field. It's helpful to use a descriptive name so you can easily identify and select it later.
5. In the "Save as type:" dropdown, select HTML (*.htm; *.html). Choosing HTML format ensures your added styling and images will display correctly whenever the stationery is used.
6. Finally, click the "Save" button. You can now close your original message window. The stationery template you just created is now saved in the Outlook library and will be available for future use.
Additional tips and reminders:
- When designing custom stationery, avoid using excessively large images or complex formatting, as these could impact email performance or rendering for recipients.
- If you want your custom stationery to be available on other devices or for other Outlook profiles, ensure you copy the .htm file to the appropriate stationery folder or share it with intended users.
- Be aware that stationery works best for HTML emails; plain text format will not display background colors or images.
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Add and apply stationery for all email messages
Applying stationery to every outgoing message can help maintain a consistent appearance, reinforce company branding, or simply add a personal touch. Outlook allows you to set a default stationery so that all new emails, replies, and forwards automatically include your chosen design.
1. To get started, you will need to adjust your Outlook settings by accessing the Options dialog box. The method varies by Outlook version:
- For Outlook 2010 or2013, click "File" in the toolbar, then select "Options" from the left sidebar.
- If you use Outlook 2007, go to "Tools" in the menu bar, then select "Options".
2. Now, in the Outlook Options window, look for and click the "Stationery and Fonts" button:
- Outlook 2010 /2013: Click "Mail" on the left-hand menu, then find "Stationery and Fonts" in the "Compose messages" section.
- Outlook 2007: Under the "Mail Format" tab, locate "Stationery and Fonts" in its designated section.
3. Within the "Signatures and Stationery" dialog box, browse available stationery themes by clicking "Theme", and personalize font choices by using the "Font" buttons. This enables you to specify a style for new messages as well as replies and forwards.
Note: If you select a theme for your new HTML email in the "Theme or stationery for new HTML e-mail message" area and choose "Use theme's font", the "Font" buttons for both new messages and reply/forward sections will become grayed out and cannot be customized. In this case, only the font settings provided by the selected theme will apply.
4. Click "OK" to confirm your selections and close the dialog boxes. All newly composed emails, replies, and forwarded messages will now automatically use the stationery you selected, providing instant design consistency without manual formatting each time.
Useful tips and reminders:
- If you change your mind or wish to switch stationery later, simply repeat these steps; you can select another theme or revert to “No Theme” at any time.
- Stationery is applied only to emails composed in HTML format. If you use plain text or rich text, some visual features will not appear.
- If certain aspects of the stationery (such as images or colors) are not displaying for recipients, check their email settings—some email clients block external images by default.
Add and apply stationery for one email message
There may be occasions when only a specific message requires special formatting—such as holiday greetings, event invitations, or other one-off correspondence. Outlook makes it possible to select and use stationery for just a single email, allowing you to tailor the presentation without affecting your default messages.
1. Before starting, ensure your main Outlook interface is set to Mail view. Switch to Mail view by clicking the "Mail" icon at the bottom of the Navigation Pane for quick access to mail folders and composing options.
For Outlook 2010 /2013, go to the "Home" tab, click "New Items", select "E-mail Message Using", and then choose "More Stationery". This will open the stationery selection dialog.
If you use Outlook 2007, select "Actions" in the top menu, choose "New Mail Message Using", followed by "More Stationery".
2. In the "Theme or Stationery" dialog box, browse available options in the "Choose a Theme:" list, and click "OK" after selecting your desired stationery. You can preview designs to pick one that best fits the message context.
3. A new email window opens with your selected stationery already applied. Compose your message as usual, then send it to your recipient.
If you wish to use one of your custom-created stationery templates from the library here, simply select it from the list in this dialog box.
Additional reminders:
- You can use different stationery for different messages, ensuring each communication is appropriately themed.
- If a stationery choice does not look as intended, verify you selected the right format and preview before composing.
- The option to use stationery for individual messages is not available when replying or forwarding; it only applies to new emails.
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