Blog Archives

INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Easy Chair

11/25/2018

Sit back and relax in this easy chair. This icons uses Illustrators NEW Freeform Gradient Tool to create more realistic gradients that are easier to create and edit.
This feature is only available in the most current version of Adobe Illustrator (CC 2019). To upgrade go under the Creative Cloud App and click upgrade next to the AI application

Start with a rectangle fill, no stroke.

Add a circle to the top of the rectangle, larger than the width of the rectangle for the top of the arm. Use the Pathfinder Unite Mode to create one shape.

Draw a rectangle to match the height of the lower section below the circle. Fill with a darker color. Draw another rectangle the height of the circle.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the left end of the selected rectangle and pull the corner widgets into the center to their max amount.

Move the shape to line up with the circle and place it behind the circle. Object> Arrange> Send To Back.

Draw another rectangle about twice the height of the existing shapes.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the lower left corner point and move it to the right to taper the back of the chair.

Add a circle to the of the chair back, larger than the with width of the back.

Select the back and the circle and use the Pathfinder Unite Mode to create one shape.

Draw a large rectangle in back of the chair, fill it with a darker color.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the bottom line of the rectangle and move it to the right to skew the back of the chair.

Duplicate the left arm section and flip it using the Flip icon in the Properties Panel.

Duplicate the left upper arm section and move it over behind the right arm section.

Create a rectangle the width and height of the current sections of arm that have been created. Use the Eyedropper Tool to select the color of the arm to match the color and fill the existing shape.

Select the side and the arm curve; use the Pathfinder Unite Mode to create one shape. Add a rectangle for a cushion.

Use the Curvature Tool to select the top edge of the cushion and pull up to slightly round the cushion top.

Create the legs by using a wider rectangle filled with a lighter color and a rectangle half the width of the first rectangle filled with a darker color. Place them next to each tother to give the legs dimension. The legs in the back maker darker; legs in front make lighter.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the lower left of the wide part of the leg and the lower right of the narrow leg and pull the corner widgets to get the legs to be slightly rounded. Repeat this process on the other 3 leg shapes.

Place the legs under the chair.

Ready for the Freeform Gradient? Here we go. Select on the the panels of the chair. Click on the Gradient Tool in the Tool Bar. Open the NEW Properties Panel under the Window Menu.

The Properties Panel will show the gradient types only when the shape is selected and the Gradient Tool is selected.

The Freeform Gradient is the 3rd choice. Select the Points Radio button. Once selected the shape will have dots appear on the shape, those dots can be double-clicked on to change the color of that area.

Once you double-click on the dots on the shape, the swatch panel will open up. Choose from the three color options on the left:
1: Color Picker,
2: Swatch panel (shown)
3: Use the Eyedropper tool to sample a color from the existing artwork.

Spread is the size of the blend area as shown by the Spread slider OR the dotted area around the dot on the artwork.

Add A Dot: Click anywhere on the active shape.
Delete A Dot: Click on the dot, press the delete key.
Move A Dot: Click on the dot and move it around.

Repeat the Freeform gradient on each shape by selecting the shape, choose the Gradient Tool on the Tool Bar, then click the Freeform Gradient icon the Properties Panel. You may get extra dots on the selected shape initially, click on the dot and use the delete key to remove it

Double-click on the dots to change the color. Drag the dog on the selected shape to change the location of the color.
Repeat this process for the panel that you want to a apply a gradient to.

Add gray rectangles to the tops of the legs. Select all 4 gray shapes and click on the Opacity Link in the Control Bar.

Set the Blend Mode to Multiply to give a drop shadow effect to the legs.

This is how the legs look.

To add highlights to the shapes, duplicate a shape (I chose the left arm) on the chair and choose Object> Path> Offset Path.

Set the path to be a negative number to get a smaller path inside the shape and click OK. Delete the shape you used leaving the smaller shape.

Apply a stroke to the new shape, no fill. Use the Direct Selection tool to remove the extra lines not needed from the shape. Move the highlight into position on the arm

Duplicate that shape and flip it in the Properties Panel. Add a line under the arm that is darker for a shadow line.

Duplicate the side of the chair. Repeat the Offset Path steps to get the shadow line on the side of the chair.

Nice job, you now have an easy chair and you have used the NEW Illustrator Freeform Gradient feature.

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INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Slice of Pumpkin Pie

11/18/2018

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If you have ever made a pie chart the easy way in Illustrator, it is just a few steps away from making an entire pie; right down to the ridges in the crust and the whip cream on the slice of pie. Enjoy!

Start with a circle, fill and no stroke.

Click on the handle on the right side of the circle and move it up and around the circle to create a pie section.

In the Transform Panel, the flip pie button will flip the shape from the pie shape to the pie piece. Hold OPTION + CLICK on the flip to copy it as it flips.

This will result in the two parts of the pie being a complete whole

Ungroup the shapes to move them individually.

Select both shapes and use the bottom handle of the transform to squish the shapes vertically.

Duplicate the shape. On the duplicate shape, use the Direct Selection Tool to select and remove the 3 points shown.

This will leave the lower half of the pie shape.

Remove the fill and add a darker stroke.

Draw a vertical line on the right side at the end of the half oval.

Duplicate the line and move it to the other side of the half oval. Duplicate the line yet again and set it aside for a few steps from now.

Select all the line and use COMMAND + J twice to join all the lines together and close the shape.

Swap the fill for the stroke.

Select the Free Transform tool, perspective tool.

Use the perspective tool to pinch the lower section of the oval closer together.

Place the shape behind the pie section.

Move the vertical line that was duplicated next to the slice to use it as a marker. Draw a rectangle the size of the pie size and the height of the line. Delete the line when done.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the lower right of the rectangle and move it to the left to match the angle of the pie base.

Duplicate the rectangle of the pie shape. Remove the fill and add a heavy stroke.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the upper left of the rectangle and delete the lines leaving the "crust" of the pie shape.

Move the crust in position on the pie piece.

Duplicate the pie piece, move it over the section of the pie.

Send the pie piece to the back and line it up with the right edge of the pie.

Duplicate the top shape of the pie. Remove the fill and add a heavy stroke. Use the Direct Selection Tool to remove the center point of the pie shape

Round the ends (hot dog the ends) of the resulting open oval in the Stroke Panel.

Apply a Zig Zag effect from the Effects Menu. Set the points to be smooth, small size, set the radio button to absolute.

This will give he effect of a rippled pie crust. Adjust the size and ridges-per-segment as necessary to get the right look.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the edge of the pie shape. Copy and paste the curved edge. Remove the fill, add the stroke to match the color and weight of the pie.

Apply the same Zig Zag effect, to make it match the pie, reduce the number of ridges-per-segment.

Move the pie crust edge to the pie piece.

To create the whip cream, create an oval, white fill and light colored stroke.

Duplicate the oval half way on itself and reduce the size.

Repeat this process and until you have 4 ovals staked.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to click on the upper point on the oval and move the point up.

Click on the Convert Anchor Point in the Control Bar or the Properties Panel to convert the smooth point to a corner point.

Select all the oval and duplicate the set.

Select one set and use the Pathfinder Unite tool to make it one shape.

On the copied version, use the Direct Selection Tool to select and copy the portions of the ovals shown.

Paste the shapes and hot dog the ends and place them on the other shape. Group the shape and the lines together.

Place the whip cream on the pie piece.

Select the top piece of the pie, use the Object>Path>Offset Path to make a smaller version of the pie top for the highlight.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to remove most of the offset shape and make the remaining arc white, set the opacity to 50%. Add a highlight to the pie piece as well.

To create a plate, make an oval with a light fill, heavy stroke. Make a larger oval on top and move them to overlap.

Place the pie slice on the plate and enjoy! That is one nice piece of pie.

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INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Chainsaw

11/11/2018

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Chainsaw! Why not? Not something you see or use everyday but there are some cool tricks with this one, including text on a path to create the teeth of the chain. Simple, yes and easy to build.

Start with a rectangle, filled with a color, no stroke. Use the corner widgets to round the corners slightly.

Add a rectangle to the right, shorter than the first.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the upper right corner of the second shape and move the point down.

Select the shape with the Selection Tool and choose Object> Path> Offset Path. Set the offset to a negative number to create a smaller shape inside the shape.

Select both of the main shapes. Select the Shape Builder Tool (SHIFT + M), drag the tool across the two selected shapes to merge them together.
You can also use the Pathfinder Unite mode to get the same results.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the two point at the the far right of the combined shape to highlight the the corner widgets and pull them in to the center to round the corners.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the two point at the the far right of the offset shape to highlight the the corner widgets and pull them in to the center to round the corners.

Draw a rectangle over the offset shape. Select both shapes and choose the Pathfinder Minus Front mode.

This is the result. of the Minus Front mode.

Select both shapes and use the Pathfinder Exclude mode to knock out the shape to create the handle.

Draw a rectangle for the bar that the chain goes around.
Send the bar to the back. Object> Arrange> Send To Back.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the two point at the the far left of the shape to highlight the the corner widgets and pull them in to the center to round the corners fully.

Add a circle to the body. Copy the bar, flip it and fill it with a darker color and place it over the bar.

Select the circle and body. Use the Shape Builder Tool and hold OPTION to turn the tool into minus mode, then click on the lower part of the circle to remove the excess part of the shape.

Select the circle, use the Object> Path> Offset Path to make a smaller shape inside. Fill it with a darker color.

Copy and paste the bar. Select the Type on a Path Tool and click on the path of the bar to activate the type on a path.

To get the teeth for the saw, I use a font. To explore the optional character fonts have, choose Type> Glyphs. The Glyphs panel allows selection of a font showing all the options. I chose Wingdings 2 that has half circle bumps.

Double click on the "character" in the Glyphs panel with the type on a path is selected to display the font on the path. Copy and pasted until the line is filled. OPTION + RIGHT ARROW will kern the characters with more spacing. SHIFT + OPTION + DOWN ARROW will baseline shift the characters down to the baseline.

Move the bar with the type and send it to the back behind the bar.

Draw a triangle with the Polygon Tool.

Pull the triangle taller. Round the corners with the Corner Widgets.

Move it behind the handle, rotate it to make it look like a trigger handle.

Select both shapes. Select the Shape Builder Tool, drag the tool across the two selected shapes to merge them together.
You can also use the Pathfinder Unite mode to get the same results.

Using the Direct Selection Tool, select all but the bottom two points and pull the corner widgets in slightly to round the edges.

Move the handle to the case by the handle.

• Add a dark circle at the end of the bar.
• Add two hexagons at the base of the bar where it bolts to the body.
• Add lines on the body for vents, round (hot dog) the ends.
• Add a darker oval under the handle to anchor it to the case.

Draw two line, one at an angle coming off the body, the other vertical at the end point of the angle line. This is the safety bar.

Repeat the process for the main grab handle, making the lines weights heavier.

Add heavy, darker outlines to the body shapes, bar, trigger. On the body, bar and internal circles, set the stroke to be in the INISDE of the shape in the Stroke Panel

To add outlines to the safety bar and handle, select both line and join them using COMMAND + J or Object> Path> Join

Repeat those same steps with the main handle to join them together.

Select both shape and convert the strokes to outlines using Object> Path> Outline Stroke.

Add a darker heavier stroke to the handles and set the stroke to be on the OUTSIDE of the shape )in the Stroke Panel) so the fills don't get choked. You are done! Nice job, you just created a chainsaw icon.

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INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Tasty Tacos

11/4/2018

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Create a Tasty Taco, complete with a crispy shell, lettuce, shredded beef, tomatoes, cheese and even a guacamole on top. Give it some texture and its ready to go.

Create a circle. No fill, heavy stoke (the example uses a 10 pt stroke).

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the top point of the circle and delete it to create a half circle.

Draw a larger circle, delete the lower half.

Place the half circles as shown. Use the Outline Mode (COMMAND + Y) to line up the ends of the lines perfectly.

Duplicate the small half circle and move it over to the right side. Line up the end points.

Use the Direct Selection Tool to select the small circles left most point and delete it.

Draw a line front the right point to the left the half circle.

Duplicate the large half circle and move it over to the left point of the left half circle. Line up the ends exactly.

Select shapes 1, 2 and 3. Join them together under Object>Path>Join (COMMAND + J). Select shapes 4 and 5 and join them together.

Select both joined shapes and use the Pathfinder Divide function to divide the shapes. Ungroup the shapes and deselect. Use the Direct Select Tool to remove the overlapping arc.

Fill the shapes with a color. Darker in back. Lighter in front.

Copy the front shape. Remove the stroke on the shape then choose the Paste In Place Command. Remove the fill on the shape you just pasted.

Repeat the process with the shape in back. This will leave 2 shapes with fills, no strokes and in front, two shapes with stroke, no fills.

Use the Scissor Tool (C) to cut section of the front stroked objects and remove the cut sections. Add circles to the cut sections.

For the internal taco parts, draw a line, add rounded end caps (hot dog the lines). Apply a Zig Zag Effect (Effect> Distort and Transform>Zig Zag) to the line to create the lettuce wiggles.

Create different colors of lettuce.

Duplicate the lines and make them darker for shredded beef wiggles. Make the lines thicker.

Create some tomato bits using squares, round the corners, rotate them at a 45° angle

Copy the wiggles, make them thinner and make them orange for the cheese. Copy the wiggle for guacamole, shorten the line to make the wiggles closer together.

To create a window for the internal taco bits, duplicate the back shape of the taco shell.

Add a rectangle to the side of the copied shape lining up the shape with the bottom of the copied shape.

Select the two shapes, use the Pathfinder Unite Mode to join the shapes together.

Remove the fill and stroke from the shape. Click the Draw Inside button at the bottom of the Tool Bar.

Select all the taco bits, group them and copy them.

Paste them inside the shape and position and scale them so they fit. Click on the Draw Normal Mode at the bottom of the Tool Bar.

Place the shape with the taco internals pasted inside, on the taco. Send the shape backward until it appears behind the front shell. Object>Arrange>Send Backward.

Use the Arc Tool to create 1/4 circles for texture on the taco shell. Place them on the shell using different stroke colors to create the shell texture. Enjoy!

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Design Points n PixelS

INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Easy Chair

INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Slice of Pumpkin Pie

INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Chainsaw

INFOGRAPHIC SERIES - Tasty Tacos

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