Recreate the iconic 1962 Moderna Museet poster in Adobe Illustrator. Learn clipping masks, grids, and kerning in this hands-on typography tutorial inspired by modernist design.
Recreating the typographic grid posters for Moderna Museet
R
Mastering Envelope Distort in Illustrator: From Pringles to Harley-Davidson
M
Copycat Design Series Have you ever wondered how designers bend and warp text perfectly into custom shapes—like the Pringles logo’s bowtie? In Illustrator, it feels like magic when you see it happen with just one click. But here’s the catch: not every logo plays so nicely. Take the Harley-Davidson badge, for example. The word MOTOR across the top isn’t something Illustrator can nail with a single...
Recreating the Interlocking L and A for Dodgers Logo
R
In this installment of the CopyCat Design Series, we’re diving into the iconic LA Dodgers interlocking monogram logo. By studying and rebuilding this design in Adobe Illustrator, we’ll practice typography basics, anchor point editing, and interlocking letterforms—skills you can apply to your own monograms and logotypes. A Brief History of the LA Dodgers Logo The Dodgers’ “LA” monogram is one of...
Recreating the Olympic Rings in Adobe Illustrator: A Step-by-Step Guide
R
In this post from our Copycat Design Series, we’ll walk through how to recreate one of the most iconic logos of all time: the Olympic rings. Along the way, we’ll dig into the history, explore the official brand guidelines, and learn some Illustrator techniques that you can apply to any design project. Table of ContentsA Brief History of the Olympic SymbolSetting Up Your WorkspaceBuilding the...
Scaling in Illustrator?
S
When you scale your Artboard or object in Adobe Illustrator, don't forget that you can scale by different reference points, nine to be exact! Here's how.
Illustrator created SVGs: view the code and more
I
I recently created a video about including SVGs on your Squarespace website. A YouTube viewer commented and asked, "By chance, do you know how to find the code of a personal design created in Adobe Illustrator?"
The answer, is "Yes. Yes, I do, and here's how." Thank you for asking, Morgan.
So here, we go. Watch or read how below.
How do I copy styles / appearance in Illustrator?
H
Here are 6 ways to do it. As frequent users of Adobe products know first-hand, each Adobe program has similarities AND lots of differences AND there's many ways to accomplish each task. The copying of styles (fx) is one such difference.
Show or Hide the Perspective Grid in Illustrator
S
If you're viewing a gridded "vortex" of green, blue and orange that overlays your Illustrator design, then you likely have your Show Perspective Grid active. Here's how to hide it.
How to create a Color Wheel
H
This post includes How-To videos that I use when I'm teaching beginner undergraduate Graphic Design students about Color. The Illustrator Color Wheel uses the HSB color mode and Live Paint Bucket tool. The Photoshop Color Wheel uses an RGB additive technique the brush tool. Enjoy! Happy Designing!
Illustrator Pen tool basics
I
Learning the nuances of the Illustrator pen tool takes time and practice. Many years ago, I found an exercise created by Belgian-based web/graphic designer, Veerle. I've often used her exercise as an in-class project for my beginner design students. This post shares tips and provides videos of completing this beginner pen tool exercise.