How to Use the Birds of Paradise Font in Canva

You need two things: 1. The font file. Download Birds of Paradise (the link is on our download page) and unzip it if needed. You want the .ttf file. 2. A Canva plan that allows font uploads. Uploading fonts is not available on Canva Free. One more thing: when you upload, Canva asks you to confirm you have the right to use the font. With the free personal-use version, that's true only for personal designs. If the design is for a business, buy the Herofonts commercial license first.

1. Open Canva in a desktop browser (uploading is easiest on a computer). 2. Go to Brand (or Brand Kit) in the left sidebar. 3. Find the Fonts section and click "Upload a font". 4. Select the Birds of Paradise .ttf file you unzipped. 5. Confirm the license prompt. 6. Open any design, select a text box, open the font menu and search "Birds of Paradise". It will be listed under your uploaded or brand fonts. Canva's menus change from time to time, so the button may be in a slightly different spot. You can also try the font drop-down on any text box, which usually has an "Upload a font" option at the bottom.

Use it big. Below roughly 24pt the thin strokes start to disappear, especially on phone screens. Don't use All Caps. Script capitals are meant to be followed by lowercase, and a row of capitals looks messy. Pair it with a plain font. For dates and details use something simple like Montserrat, Lato or a serif like Playfair Display. Letter spacing: leave it at 0. If you add spacing, the connections between letters break apart.

Refresh the page after uploading. Make sure you uploaded the .ttf file and not the .zip. Check you are in the same team or brand that you uploaded the font to. If Canva rejects the file, download it again from our download page. Renamed or converted copies from random sites sometimes have broken tables.

Canva's own library includes several scripts with a similar feel. Search for Great Vibes, Allura or Alex Brush in the font menu. They are also free for commercial use, so they are a good choice for business designs either way.