Pattern Making in Adobe Illustrator CC - A masterclass

Using a pattern I have given you in the Resources area, learn how to fill a shape with a pattern and how to alter the pattern within that shape. You will learn to size, rotate and move the pattern. You will also learn to save the finished file as a new file without overwriting the original file.

In this lecture you will learn how to find patterns online to use in Illustrator. You will see how to download a file and how to extract its contents. We'll look at the type of files which might be delivered in the zip file and how to determine the best one to use. You will see how to open the file in Illustrator, use the patterns and how to save them in a location which will make it easier for you to find and use them in future. 

In this lecture we'll explore the patterns that are installed with Illustrator. This small range of patterns includes lines, dots and some animal prints and floral designs. You will learn how to locate them and to use them to fill a shape in Illustrator.

This lecture explores the handy (and dare I say it) fun, Recolor Artwork tool in Illustrator. You will learn a few ways to use it to recolor a pattern.  You will learn how Illustrator makes a second pattern for you when you recolor a pattern and you will learn how to protect some colors from being altered when using this tool. 

In this lecture we'll take one of the patterns installed with Illustrator and recolor it. The reason for this is that some of these patterns are black and white and black is treated differently to other colors in the Recolor Artwork dialog. We'll explore how this works and how to make black able to be recolored. 

In this lecture you will learn to make a pattern from scratch and without using any special tools. We will spend some time learning about a special shape which is added to all patterns and how it impacts how your pattern looks. This is an essential lesson as it contains vital information for understanding patterns that you make using the Pattern Make tool in the future.

In this lecture you will learn to make a pattern using the Pattern Make tool. We will be using this tool extensively throughout this course so we will start by making a simple polka dot pattern. As we make the pattern you will be introduced to some of the options in the Pattern Make Tool which you will need to know as you continue to work through this course.

In this Lecture you will see how to make a more complex pattern using the Pattern Make tool. You will see how to make a backup copy of a pattern, and then how to make changes to the original to make a second pattern. We will make a polka dot pattern with different color dots and a pattern with dots and stars.

In this lecture we'll look at the problem of hair lines or fracture lines running through your patterns. These lines are often called white hair lines but as you'll see they aren't always white! I'll show you two possible methods of removing these lines from your patterns in Illustrator and also how to determine if the problem which is causing the lines to appear is an issue with the pattern itself (generally not) or with Illustrator being unable to display it correctly (typically the issue).

In this lecture you will learn to make a range of patterns based on lines in Illustrator. You will create vertical and horizontal line patterns and patterns of diagonal lines.

In this lecture you will learn to make a gingham check pattern. In making this pattern we'll explore the Color Guide dialog to sample a color and a tint of that color. We'll also see an alternative method of moving, scaling and rotating a pattern using the Transform Effect dialog. Finally you will see how to recolor a pattern that includes a color and a tint and how changing the main color changes the tint at the same time. 

In this lecture you will learn to make a quatrefoil pattern. We will build the pattern by hand from a simple shape we will create from a series of circles joined together using the Unite command in the Pathfinder panel. Once the pattern is created you will see how you can edit the pattern using the Pattern Make dialog options even though the pattern was not created using this dialog in the first place.

In this lecture you will learn how to add a background to a pattern in Illustrator. This option works well for simple patterns but may not work for more complex ones. You will see how to determine the size of the pattern, how to make a rectangle that size and how to place it behind the pattern elements so it becomes part of the pattern. Once the background is complete you will see how the Recolor Artwork dialog lets you change the color of the pattern and its background with ease.

In this Lecture you will learn to make a more complex Quatrefoil pattern. We will make a more complex shape and use the Appearance Panel to add a second stroke to the shape to create an interesting edge effect. We will make a pattern from this shape, edit it using the Pattern Options dialog and add a background to it. You will also learn how to sample the colors from a design as global swatches in the Swatches palette and how to use these swatches to edit the colors in the pattern. 

Learn to make the very beautiful Moroccan Trellis pattern. In making the pattern you will learn how to precisely place an element on the screen using the Transform panel. You will also learn to make half circle and a filled arc shape. We'll do some duplication and rotation before joining up the shapes to make the base object. Once that's done, we'll make and adjust the pattern, add a background to it, and then recolor it.   

In this lecture we will start making a wonderful spiral pattern. You will learn a setting to use to make sure you can easily scale your shapes and you will learn to use the Spiral tool. We will start out making the shapes and arranging them to make the pattern. You will learn a technique for opening up the inside of the spiral if you need to do so and for reflecting and rotating shapes to get more variety.

This lecture continues the process of creating the Spiral pattern including showing how to cut the tail off a spiral if it overlaps another shape too much. You will learn to use the Scissors tool to do this (as the Knife and Eraser tools won't work here). We'll finish up the spiral and test the resulting pattern. You will also learn to recolor the basic pattern. 

In this lecture you will learn a second method for adding a background to a pattern. In this case we are using this new and alternative  process because the method we learned in a previous lecture won't work for patterns that have content which overlaps both sides (or both the top and bottom) of the pattern tile. This new method requires you to edit the actual pattern swatch which you will learn to do in order to add a colored background to your pattern tile.

In this lecture you will learn to make a 3D cube shape and to use this as the basis for a seamless repeating 3D cube pattern. You will learn some handy techniques for dividing up a shape and how to use the pieces you have made to create your 3D shape. You will also learn how to duplicate a shape that you use for a pattern and to use it as an additional element to make your pattern even more interesting. 

In this lecture you will learn to make Chevron patterns in Illustrator. You will learn to make the basic shape and, from this, the basic pattern. Then we'll make a more complex multicolored version of the pattern and adjust the basic shape as we do so that the pattern works for multiple colored chevrons. 

In this lecture you will create a whimsical pattern of dots which are all created from one hand drawn shape. You will learn how to turn one shape into multiple shapes using a transform effect and then how to randomly move, rotate, and scale the shapes to create a large random arrangement of dots. From there you will see how to turn this design into a seamless repeating pattern of dots.

In this lecture you will learn to make a pattern of organic lines. You'll learn to draw lines which aren't regular and straight and how to make them into a pattern by joining them up so the result is seamless. You will also learn how to add multiple strokes to your line to make even more detailed patterns from the original set of lines.

In this lecture you will learn how to make a Faux Leopard Skin pattern. You will learn to use the Blob Brush tool to draw the shapes and then how to use the shapes to make a large half drop seamless repeating pattern. You will also use one of the methods discussed earlier to add a background color to the finished pattern.

In this lecture you will see how to take multiple related objects and to create a basic grid pattern from those objects.

You can download and use the objects used in this video from the Resources for this lecture.   

In this lecture you will learn to make two half drop repeat patterns using multiple elements. You will see how the initial arrangement of objects can effect the final design and how to change around the starting arrangement to get a different final pattern result. Half drop repeat patterns are a little more complex to make but the end product is a much larger pattern swatch so they are worth the time they take to master making them. 

In this lecture you will learn how to double your elements by making a duplicate of them and then recolor the second set in the same colors but arranged in a different order. You will then see how these elements can be arranged into a larger half drop repeat pattern. This process can be used to make much larger repeats without having to create more elements.

In this lecture you will learn how to add some dashed lines to a half drop repeat pattern. You will learn how the pattern repeat works so you can loop the lines through your design and how to place the lines behind the other pattern objects. You will also learn how to format the lines so the dashes are the length and width you want them to be and that the end caps match the look of the overall design.

In this lecture you will learn how to assemble a group of patterns created and saved in individual files into a single document for sharing or your own use. You will learn how to copy pattern swatches from one document to another and how to show an example of each pattern in the document. You will see how to clear up the swatches palette so you are only giving someone the actual pattern swatches and the color swatches for the colors in use in the document. 

In this lecture you will learn the steps for creating a collection of patterns for sale online. You will see how to research the site you are interested in selling on to determine what marketing materials and files you will need to put together to be ready to sell on that site. You will see how to look at existing products for sale to analyse how to best package and showcase your own work.

We'll be looking at Etsy as the example but the process we will step through will be similar for any site you choose to use and whatever type of product you will be selling.

You will also learn how to prepare a pattern swatch for sale on a site like Spoonflower which requires the swatch itself and not a completed document filled with the swatch. In this situation you will need to extract the swatch and save it in a format and at an appropriate size ready for use.

In this lecture you will learn how to assemble a color palette to use for a design using the Color Themes panel and then how to apply it to your design to create a color way. We'll create three different color ways for our design each of them very different but aesthetically consistent.

In this lecture you will learn how to create the marketing materials for your product ready for upload to a site such as Etsy. You will learn how to create a file which will save as the correct size for use as marketing materials and how to showcase the patterns in your illustration. You will also learn some of the basics of branding your products so they will be recognizable to potential purchasers. 

In this lecture you will learn how to create products to sell using your patterns. We will use the example of creating scrapbook papers for sale but you can adapt this process to any online site that sells similar finished products. If you are selling different products you will need to research how to create those products for the site you are selling on. You will need to determine the typical document size, resolution, and file format that is sold so you can create your products to suit what the buyer on that site is expecting to buy. Every site and every product is potentially different, so you need to do your own research before creating your product in a format that suits that site's requirements. In this lecture, we'll create scrapbook paper that is 12 x 12 inches in size at 300 dpi (3600 x 3600px) and distributed as high resolution JPEG images - this is the typical way that scrapbook paper is sold on Etsy and similar sites.   

In this lecture you will learn how to package your files ready for upload to a website for sale or for distribution to a buyer. You will also learn a little about how user licenses work and what you can do if the site you're selling on doesn't manage the licensing situation for you. This information is provided simply as a basic and very simple introduction to the topic and should not be considered to be legal advice. For more detailed information and advice about licensing options for your artwork you should contact a lawyer that specializes in this area of law.   

In this lecture you will learn how to prepare a pattern swatch for upload to a site like Spoonflower which requires you to upload the actual swatch rather than a document filled with a pattern. You will learn how to extract the swatch and how to reliably save it ready for upload. You will also learn how to scale the pattern so you can make it larger prior to upload as it cannot be enlarged later on and must be made bigger before being saved. You will also learn what pattern format option to use online so that your swatch will work as expected.

In this lecture you will learn how to upload a design to a POD site such as Redbubble. You will learn where to look on a POD site for information as to what type of file and what file size to upload. You will learn to prepare a file of the correct size and type and learn how to upload it and prepare it for sale.  

In this short lecture we will wrap up this course and I will show you what other courses I have here at Udemy that might be of interest to you.

In late 2021 the Color Themes panel was discontinued in Adobe Illustrator. This video brings you up to speed with these changes and explains how to find color themes that you can use in both Illustrator and Photoshop. I'll also explain the process of getting these color themes into both Illustrator and Photoshop as these applications work very differently in this respect.