Maybe you have seen those beautifully cohesive Instagram puzzle grid feeds popping up on Instagram where one photo leads into the next row after row. How do they do that?
Today I am going to show you how you can create your own puzzle template using two apps- Canva and Grid Post. I have chosen these two resources because you can use both for free and they are both available on IOS and Android devices for tablets and smartphones.
So let’s get started.
First you will need Canva and Grid Post.
Grid Post can be found in the Apple App Store Here or in the Google Play Store Here.
Canva can be found online here or the app for various Mobile Devices Here.
There are so many options when it comes to creating your Instagram puzzle grid. I will show you some more examples later but first, I will show you how to make a grid similar to this one but with different images and elements to demonstrate how you can use the same grid template more than once but switch it up.
Instagram Puzzle Grid
I made this grid to share a previous post here at Immensely Social on Our Couple’s Morning Routine. I used stock images but added the Immensely Social Brand colors and combined them with words and graphics. Each square was a different upload on Instagram.
Here is how it looks on Instagram:
Create This Instagram Puzzle Grid
First, let’s head over to Canva and start with a white background that is 3240 by 3240 pixels. 1080 is the width of a single Instagram post so we are doing 3 times that to be 3 down and 3 across. You can change the ratio for more pictures but for now, let’s keep it a square for simplicity.
We want it pretty large because it is going to cover your whole screen. We will be breaking it up into the individual squares a little later. For the first step, we will create the grid as a complete picture.
You can change the background color but I left mine white.
Note: I find it easier to work on Canva via the desktop and then transfer the picture to my phone. But you can work on the desktop version or the app. Whichever is easier for you. I was able to create this grid both ways. I’m currently using the desktop version here to demonstrate.
With this white square, we can add our elements. You could add lines and evenly space them to divide and then delete them later but I chose to just visualize the 9 squares and adjust as needed. Later I will show you some template ideas using frames but for this image, I just added my photos straight and resized them to fit where I wanted for my Instagram Puzzle Grid.
I searched for morning images under the Photos tab. Chose a pour-over coffee image this time. Then grabbed a square under the Elements tab.
We will then move the square, adjust the size, and change the position behind to create a frame with a pop of color.
Animated Elements
Just FYI Canva now has these cool animated elements that are great for Instagram. Type in Animated under elements and you can find cool moving texts and icons. The “Slay” I used in the original image moves.
You can use animated elements but for the grid app we will be using today the complete image needs to be saved as a picture, not video so they will not move. But animated elements are great for your other posts.
To make the next block a bit different I used text over a background. This time I choose a picture of clouds I found by typing Backgrounds into the Photos search box. Then added text on top.
To the left another stock photo with what looks like a paint brush stroke.
Remember that you can rotate many elements and change the colors. Adding these elements is what will give your grid that puzzle feel instead of just being a group of images and also allows you to customize the grid to your brand colors. You can see that we now have our three bottom images for Instagram. You may need to adjust the size and spacing. You have to play around with this a little so everything fits where it needs to.
Bottoms Up
You can now work your way up the grid and add some elements that will appear over more than one square spilt between images like I did in the gird above with the couple’s silhouette. The bottom of the couple was one image and the top another posted later. You can do this side by side also.
Here we will try a heart for our Instagram Puzzle grid.
Now I can add more images and elements over top. Play around adding all the elements you want until you are happy. You can bring elements and pictures forward or send them behind to adjust the look.
A tip for adding repeated elements is to copy them and then you can flip them horizontally or vertical and arrange them all around the page.
You can see that this one looks quite different from the grid I showed you at the beginning but uses the same brand colors, also has a morning theme, and is a mixture of stock images and graphics just like the other. This shows you how easy it is to adjust and customize yours.
Now To Grid Post to finish our Instagram Puzzle Grid
When finished I will download this and send to my iPad since I used the desktop version of Canva. I use Google Photos to easily get my grids from the computer to my mobile devices, which sync automatically.
Head over to the Grid Posts app and we will click Photo Grids in the bottom right. Then choose our image.
In the Grid Post app, lines will come up showing us if everything is fitting the way we want it to. I did pretty good by eye but I saw that the middle left image was up too high. The top of her head would have been in the top image which I didn’t want so I went back to Canva and adjusted that one down.
Click next and Grid Post cuts the pictures up into the 9 squares. This shows you your Instagram Puzzle grid!
You can then choose to post the images immediately one by one to Instagram from the app. You can see that Grid Post reverses the images for you so you can post bottom up in order.
Or, you can choose to save the images to your camera roll to post one by one yourself as you are ready. If you save your images to the camera roll, you could use Tailwind for Instagram to schedule your images. Learn more about that here Tailwind for Instagram Create A Beautiful Feed in Less Time
Using Frames
I promised to show you other options so here is what it would look like if you created a puzzle template in Canva using frames. You can find these under Elements and then Frames.
This could be a great option for you because you can keep the grid the same every time and just swap your pictures and change the colors.
The concept is the same. Arrange your frames and add your elements. You would then just drag your pictures into the frames instead of sizing them to fit where you want.
I created this one as a template. You can use it yourself to play around with Canva and your Instagram feed.
Click here and then select the Use As Template button to get your Instagram puzzle grid template. This will make a copy for you and then you can edit it however you like.
Ready to create your Instagram puzzle grid for your Feed?!!!
If you found this tutorial helpful, please share it with a friend. And tag me on Instagram @immenselysocial with your creations. Happy creating!
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