Graphic Design: Make Hand-drawn Patterns

Let’s explore handmade design in Adobe Illustrator by creating a gorgeous hand-drawn pattern design. We’ll explore four different techniques for creating traditional-styled artwork in vector!

Prepare your document

Step 1

We’re going to start with a scanned-in sketch that’s been imported into Adobe Photoshop. This is an optional step that will help with some of the techniques we’ll explore below.

Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels and adjust the image so the whites of the sketch are whiter and the blacks are blacker. You can see my own adjustments below.

Step 2

Next create a New Document in Adobe Illustrator that’s similar to mine below:

• Color Mode: RBG
  
• Raster Effects: 300 ppi
  
• Size: 10 inches
  

Really, these settings are up to you, but I find this to be a generally good start to my document sizes and features. Import your sketch file (either scanned in or the one adjusted in Photoshop earlier).

The Pen Tool

Step 1

Our first technique involves tracing the design manually with the Pen Tool. Lock the sketch object in the Layers panel. Create a New Layer above the sketch layer.

Use the Pen Tool to trace your hand-drawn design. Manipulate the anchor point handles around your design’s curves. This technique works best for mouse-users.

Step 2

Continue tracing the design. Set the fill color to null and the stroke to the color of your choice and weight to 1 pt.

Using the Width Tool, you can vary the width of the paths on the outer edge of the design to mimic pressure within your design. If you’re using a pressure-sensitive tablet, this likely an uncessary technique for you. Let’s move on to another one.

The Pencil Tool

Step 1

Similar to the Pen Tool, the Pencil Tool gives you more freedom to draw organically, especially when using a graphics tablet.

Below are my Pencil Tool Options. I’ve set the Fidelity to mostly smooth and have kept the other options at their default (though you can change them to whatever you want if you prefer).

Step 2

Use the Pencil Tool, this time, to trace over your design. Set the fill color to null and the stroke color to that of your choice with the weight set to 1 pt. You can use the Smooth Tool to reduce the amount of anchor points within your paths as well as change any akward curves or angles within your design.

Step3

When you’ve traced your design, Group together your components and select some of the outer paths with the Direct Selection Tool. Set their stroke weights to 2-3 pt and vary inner strokes at 0.5-1 pt in the Strokes panel.

You can also use the Width Tool to vary the pressure of the stroke in addition to using this technique.

The Blob Brush Tool

Step 1

Our next technique is best with a pressure-sensitive tablet. Set the Fidelity of the Blob Brush Tool to nearly Smooth and the Size to 3 pt with Pressure enabled and variation set to 3 pt.

Step 2

Like the techniques before this one, you’ll be tracing your hand-drawn design. This time, however, you can vary the pressure of your work while drawing the initial design. I find this to be one of the best ways to create vector art with a traditionally drawn feel to it.

Unlike the other techniques, you’re creating completed objects instead of stroked paths, and cannot vary the width of your design with the Width Tool or Strokes panel.

Using the Image Trace Panel

Step 1

Let’s put aside our other designs and work again with the initial sketch created for this tutorial. This technique works best if you adjusted the Levels of your scanned drawing in Photoshop.

Unlock the sketch object in the Layers panel. Select the object and open the Image Trace panel. Set the Mode to Black and White, select the Preview option, and adjust the Threshold as you see fit so the panel tracecs your design without losing line quality.

Step 2

Select your newly traced object and go to Object > Expand in order to expand the design to complete objects. Use the Magic Wand Tool to select the white portions of your design and Delete them.

Ungroup your objects until each sketch component is in its own group. From here you can move, repurpose, and adjust your objects as you see fit. This technique is another excellent option if you’re a mouse-user.

Create a Pattern

Step 1

Copy, Paste, and Reflect components from your traced design. I’ve aligned two of them, selected both, and opened the Pattern Options panel in order to Create a New Pattern. This panel will create the pattern for you.

You can paste in other pattern components are arrange, scale, or rotate them as you see fit to fill in the pattern design. When satisfied with your design, hit Done. You can also go back into edit mode by double-clicking the pattern swatch in the Swatches panel.

Step 2

To add in additional elements, paste in other pattern components and arrange, scale, or rotate them as you see fit to fill in the pattern design. Overlap the elements with the swatch boundary, and the pattern will automatically tile for you. When satisfied with your design, hit Done. You can also go back into edit mode by double-clicking the pattern swatch in the Swatches panel.

Step 3

You can also draw in new components to your pattern design while in edit mode. Basically, any of your tools are available to you while editing a pattern. The other non-pattern related components of your document will not be available to you, however. You can go back and forth until you’re satisfied with your design or simple draw a new pattern while using the Pattern Options panel itself.

Conclusion

When you’re satisfied with your hand-drawn pattern design, you can apply the pattern swatch to a rectangle drawn overlapping your Artboard and save your design to be used as you see fit.

Go further with your design and create hand-drawn artwork in a variety of colors or techniques. How about mimicking watercolor, ink, or even guache techniques with the use of textures and a variety of colors? Share your results in the comment section below!