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In this tutorial I’m going to show you how to create your own custom patterns in Adobe Illustrator.

Lately I’ve been in such a mood for tie-dye gradients and funky looking graphics inspired by Lisa Frank. I think this inspiration came while I was making the hero image for my Wavy Type Tutorial, and I realized how awesome pattern swatches are!

Why do I love to make custom patterns in Illustrator?

There are a few reasons.

1. Patterns are great for adding texture and style to your graphics and illustrations. Here’s a tutorial where I created a hatch mark pattern to make a special drop shadow for my text.
2. You can save patterns as swatches to be used over and over again, which significantly speeds up workflow.
3. Patterns are easy to edit and scale according to your design needs.

So let’s jump right in. Go ahead and fire up Illustrator and get ready to make some truly one-of-a-kind patterns.

Step 1: Object > Pattern > Make

As always, you can make your new Illustrator canvas any size according to your needs. I believe mine is 800x800px, RGB color mode, and 72ppi.

To create a new custom pattern, go to Object > Pattern > Make

A box might pop up with some warning about live elements and editing and blah, blah blah. Just click OK and get on with life.

You have now entered into pattern making mode. Of course, I doubt that’s the official name, but that’s what I call it. You can see in the image above that the Pattern Options Panel has appeared. Also notice the blue bounding box on your canvas and the menu bar near the top of your screen where you can make a copy of your pattern or exit pattern making mode.

Take a moment to explore the Pattern Options Panel. Most of the options are self-explanatory. Go ahead and give your pattern a new name, and feel free to change the Tile Type, Width, and Height. Don’t stress too much over the settings. You can copy mine from the image above.

The important thing to remember when exploring design software like Adobe Illustrator is that (usually) nothing is permanent, mistakes can be fixed, adjustments can be made, and the best way to learn is to screw it all up.

If you’re completely new to Illustrator, be sure to check out my Free Beginner Illustrator Course where you can learn all the basics through easy video tutorials.

Step 2: Start Filling Up the Pattern Bounding Box with Your Custom Design

I decided to make a simple pattern inspired by high fashion. Fouis Fuitton, if you will. I used the Type Tool, The Ellipse & Rectangle Tools, and Effect > Distort & Transform > Pucker & Bloat to achieve these results.

I’m going to be giving away some awesome free patterns in this post, so keep scrolling for those. I think you’ll like them. Although I decided not to include the faux louis pattern – I don’t want to be sued!

Raise your hand if every popular girl at your Middle School had a small Louis Vuitton handbag in that rainbow monogram pattern. 🙋‍♀️ Coulda been legit, mighta come from Canal Street. We couldn’t tell. And no, if you’re wondering: I was not popular.

Obviously, you should make something that inspires you. Whip out the tablet & stylus, the brush tool, anything you want. Let your creativity shine! Cheetah, leopard, and honeycomb patterns come to mind as ones you could get a ton of use out of.

Notice how Illustrator automatically lets me preview my pattern as I create it? This is thanks to the Copies Option in your Pattern Options Panel. Mine is set to 5×5, and you can also increase or lower the opacity of the copies.

Here are 4 fun custom patterns I created:

If you want to grab ALL 4 patterns seen in the above photo COMPLETELY FREE for personal use, head to my Free Resource Library now:

Once you’re happy with the pattern, go ahead and click Done. The new pattern will appear automatically in your Swatches Panel. If you don’t see the Swatches, go to Window > Swatches.

Step 3: Fill Shapes with Your Custom Pattern

As you’ll notice in the image below, I dragged out an ellipse and filled it with my new Faux Louis pattern from the swatches panel.

Nice! And if you decide you want to make changes to your pattern, you can simply double click on the pattern swatch to re-enter Pattern Making Mode. You can also make a copy of your pattern if you want to make changes but keep the original intact.

You might also be wondering… what happens if I want to make the pattern bigger or smaller inside of my shape?

Step 4 : Scale Your Pattern

As you’ll notice in the image below, my pattern doesn’t really “shine” inside of this star, because it’s too big.

Here’s how to scale it:

Select your shape with the pattern fill and right click. Select Transform > Scale.

In the Scale Options box, uncheck all options except for Transform Patterns.

Make sure Uniform is selected under Scale, and type in a new percentage. I went with 30% for my star shape. Select Preview so you can see the changes and make any adjustments before you press OK.

Step 5: Make Your Pattern More Interesting

So far we’ve looked at exactly how to create a custom pattern in Illustrator and how to apply it to your designs, but the examples have been very simple.

So how can we elevate our design skills? Here’s something I personally love to do with patterns (and really all the things in Illustrator): Play with the Blending Mode!

In the image above, I’ve simply created a colorful gradient background and put a rectangle on top that’s filled with my Faux Louis pattern. On the Left, I’ve left the Blending Mode as Default, which is “Normal”. On the right, I’ve opened up my Appearance Panel (Window > Appearance), clicked on Opacity, and then changed the Blending mode from Normal to Color.

And wow! So simple to do, but looks really fancy. At least I think so.

Step 6: Illustrator’s Built In Patterns

I don’t want to end this tutorial before I mention that Illustrator does come with some built-in patterns. Most of them are absolutely hideous (sorry not sorry).

If you want to explore the built-in patterns, Click the Swatch Libraries menu icon at the bottom left of the Swatches Panel and hover over Patterns. You can scroll through the various options.

And truth be told, the Basic Graphics such as Dots and Lines are actually really good. I love to use them to create retro-looking artwork.

Step 7: Save Your New Custom Pattern

The last thing you’re going to want to do is Save your New Pattern Swatch so you can use it again and again forevermore. Click on the Swatch Libraries menu icon at the bottom left of the Swatches Panel and select Save Swatches. Then follow the on-screen prompts to save your Swatch Panel.

Next time you want to use your pattern, you can access your saved swatches through the Swatch Libraries menu > User Defined.

And that’s all there is to it. Now go forth & design some custom patterns!

Don’t forget! All 4 Patterns including the vector leopard print are available to download as an Adobe Illustrator File and are Completely FREE for Personal Use. Head to my Free Resource Library to grab them.

If you enjoyed this tutorial and decide to create your own pattern, be sure to tag me @makerlex on Instagram. I absolutely love to see your creations.

And if you have any questions, be sure to comment below so I can answer them.

You can also pin this image to save the Custom Illustrator Pattern Tutorial for later, or to share it with friends (which I would totally appreciate!).

Hoping you get the Louis Vuitton bag of your dreams,

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through & make a purchase, I earn a commission at no cost to you.

I think there’s an unwritten rule for all graphic designers: you must be a self-proclaimed type fanatic.

It’s the equivalent of having a Myspace profile circa 2005 where your top Interest was something like… “Music is my Lyf3”. And rightly so. You weren’t allowed on Myspace if music wasn’t your religion.

Sometimes I write these things and then wonder if Google’s algorithm can detect sarcasm? And what does that mean for me?

Anyway.

You love type, you study fonts, you pace your breath by the kerning of individual characters. You die upon the altar of a typeface that’s been sacrificed to stretching and warping by some plebeian with a pirated copy of Photoshop CS2.

And that’s why you’re here for today’s Adobe Illustrator type tutorial in which I’m going to show you how to create some trendy, psychedelic, wavy text styles.

Ya know, to make your next design… POP!

So fire up Illustrator and let’s get groovy.

Wavy Text Option 1: Twisted Type

As a reference, I created a new canvas in Illustrator at 800 x 800px and 72dpi (screen resolution) for absolutely no other reason than it being the size I use for thumbnails on this blog. Make your canvas whatever size you like, and use a higher DPI if you intend to use this design in print.

I applied a groovy looking gradient tie-dye background just to make this more visually interesting for you, and I’ve typed out the word GROOVY in the font Oswald, which is my current favorite. It’s a google web font that I downloaded through Adobe Fonts with my Creative Cloud subscription.

If you’re interested in accessing graphic design programs like Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, click the link below and start a Free 7 Day Trial (they alsos offer serious Student Discounts). Trust me- it’s worth it!

Now, here’s the first way to make wavy text in Illustrator.

Once you’ve typed out a word or phrase or your choice of text, head up to Effect > Distort & Transform > Twist.

Use the up and down arrows to adjust the angle for different results. Oh, and this might go without saying, but pro tip: if there is a Preview box, always check it so you can see what’s up before you commit to your settings.

Below are some examples of different angles I’ve tried. Usually less is more, but that’s completely up to you! Lean to the right by using positive angles. Lean to the left with negative. Make your text hard to read by surpassing 100° angles in either direction.

Wavy Text Option 2: Warped Type

So the twisted look is cool, but what if you want each letter of your type to appear wavy versus the whole word/phrase? Enter Warp.

There are tons of options in the Warp Options Panel that will work to create the desired wavy text effect. To access it go to Effect > Warp > Flag, Rise, Wave, or Twist.

Just choose one; you can easily cycle through all the warp styles in the pop-up options by selecting them from the Style drop down menu. I prefer flag, rise, wave, and twist, but I encourage you to try them all on for size.

You can play around with the bend angle as well as the horizontal and vertical distortion for some truly out-there styles.

Here’s some of what I created:

I think flag and rise are my two favorites. What do you think? Comment below with your primo wavy text settings.

Did you find this tutorial helpful? Feel free to leave some feedback and/or constructive criticism (which I can *totally* handle). Otherwise, let me know if there’s something you’re just dying to learn how to do in Illustrator.

In the meantime, check out some of my other graphic design tutorials:

• RGB Split Photo Filter in Photoshop
• Cut up Photos for a Collage in Photoshop
• Watermelon Vector Illustration in Adobe Illustrator
• Chevron in Adobe Illustrator
• Free Adobe Illustrator Course for Beginners

You can also pin this image to save this tutorial for later, or to share it with friends. (Which I would totally appreciate!)

To my fellow type-fanatics: Peace out,

As July ends and the dog days of August approach, nothing feels more appropriate than a slice of ice cold watermelon to break up the summer heat.

However. Truth be told, I don’t really like watermelon much, but I needed a segue into this Adobe Illustrator tutorial. And as we transition to the next paragraph, let me throw a few more words out there: covid-19, quarantine, virtual watermelon.

That’s right, there’s a global pandemic, people. So obviously we are connecting today over virtual watermelon, not over actual fruit shared at our neighborhood backyard bbq. And also because this is a graphic design blog.

By the way- don’t you get so annoyed when you click on a recipe blog to get a recipe and then have to read eighteen paragraphs about the blogger’s kitchen renovation before you can find out how to make the freaking chicken artichoke zoodle recipe? I *swear* that very specific situation didn’t happen to me today. But this blog post is totally turning into that. Wonder why bloggers do that? It’s because Google likes long-from content, my friends. And there’s only so much you can say about chicken artichoke zoodles.

Anyway, I can do better than that. This vector watermelon illustration tutorial might actually come in handy when you want to create fan art for Harry Styles’ new single Watermelon Sugar. That’s something I can totally see myself doing. I should host a contest on behalf of Harry for who can create the best concert poster based on Watermelon Sugar. Sign up for my email list if you’d be interested in that.

And now, let’s get down to business!

Today I’m showing you how to make a vector watermelon illustration in Adobe Illustrator. The significance of vector, you ask? Check out this blog post if you want to learn more about it. Otherwise, no worries. Fire up Illustrator, and let’s get started.

Step 1: Make a Diamond Shape

You can make your new Illustrator canvas any size you’d like. In the spirit of creating images for this blog, and for reference: mine is 800 x 800px and 72dpi.

Grab your rectangle tool from the toolbar and hold down the shift key while you drag out a perfect square. As you can see in my example below, I have a sweet watermelon-esque color gradient going, but you fill yours with whatever color you want. A blue watermelon? Sounds delicious.

Rotate your square 45° to make it a diamond. Again, holding down the shift key while you do this will get you the perfect 45° angle.

Step 2: Direct Select the Bottom Point

The next step in creating our watermelon is to get that nice rounded rind at the bottom of our wedge. To do this, use the direct selection tool. You can also bring it up by pressing A on your keyboard.

Select the bottom point and instantly a little white circle with a blue dot appears in the corner of the point. Hold down on that little point and drag it all the way up to round out the bottom of our diamond shape.

Step 3 Create the rind with the Pathfinder Tool

Now we have the basic shape of the watermelon wedge. This shape is going to be our “meat” of the watermelon, if you will. And we’re going to make an extra piece to be our watermelon rind.

If you still have your direct selection tool selected, make sure you switch back to the regular selection tool by pressing V on the keyboard.

Duplicate the watermelon wedge by pressing Ctrl + C (PC) or Command + C (Mac), and then press Ctrl + V or Cmd + V twice to paste two copies onto the canvas. Drag one of the watermelons off the to the side so it’s out of the way.. we’ll come back to it in a minute.

Now we’re going to break out the Pathfinder Tool. This tool is crucial to creating and manipulating basic shapes in Illustrator. Your pathfinder tool may already be open on the right-hand side of your screen, but if you don’t see it, head up to Window > Pathfinder.

Let’s rubber band select our two watermelon shapes. This simply means drag your mouse over both shapes to select them both at the same time. In the top panel of Illustrator, click the proper icons to align these two shapes both horizontally and vertically center. If you don’t have the align panel, you can open it from Window > Align.

The two shapes are now one on top of the other. Click your mouse off to the side to deselect the shapes. Then click once on the shapes. Now you have just the top shape selected. Hold down shift and drag this shape up to reveal the bottom of the shape underneath. Drag it up until you have a height that you like for the watermelon rind.

I’ve changed the colors in my example to help illustrate this step better.

The next step is to drag over both shapes with your selection tool to select both shapes. Then in your Pathfinder Panel, click on the second option under Shape Modes, which is Minus Front.

The result should be that you have just the rind leftover.

I took this a step further and created another sliver of a rind to add more detail to my watermelon, but this step is optional. This time, I used the third option in my Pathfinder Panel, Intersect to cut out the little lighter-colored part of the rind that’s closer to the “meat”.

Step 4: Assemble Your Melon

The final step is to assemble all the pieces together. Remember that original melon piece we moved off the to the side? Let’s bring him back onto our canvas and position our new rind pieces on top.

Your smart guides should allow you to line everything up pretty easily, but you can also make use of the align panel if necessary.

Finally, choose some new colors for your pieces. You can get fancy with gradients or keep it flat.

At this point, we have a seedless watermelon, which is totally the watermelon we all prefer. But if you want to be extra, add some seeds for additional detail. The difference between good and great is always in the details!

Step 5: Add Detail – Watermelon Seeds!

I’m not going to fully demonstrate how I created these seeds, because I used the same exact technique I used to create my easiest water drop ever. So head to that blog post if you want to know how.

Ironically, you can probably figure it out based on the steps we used in this tutorial to create our watermelon wedge. Hint: use a triangle (3 sides with the polygon tool) instead of a square.

& Voila! I hope you enjoyed this watermelon illustration tutorial. If you did, I have a feeling you might enjoy some of my other Illustrator Tutorials, like:

• Perfect Heart in Illustrator
• Chevron Pattern in Illustrator
• Wavy Lines (Ric Rac) in Illustrator
• Water Drop in Illustrator
• Zig Zag in Illustrator

I also have a completely FREE ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR COURSE that’s perfect for beginners wanting to get started with graphic design.

Don’t forget to pin this image so you can come back to this tutorial later!

If you have any questions about this tutorial, be sure to leave a comment below so I can help you out! Or just let me know what you’d like me to make next.