161 - Blend Patterns in Illustrator ~
Pucker and Bloat
Stroke and Fill
Blend Modes
• This tutorial provides elegant patterns that look beautiful.
• It is part of the Free Trade Project and/or the CD Cover Design Project.
Other People's Work:
Here are examples of work inspired by this tutorial.
Step #1: Open your Project in Illustrator ~
Make a New Layer in Illustrator
Step #2: Stroke and Fill ~
Set the Fill Color to 
Leave the stroke color or change it to match your color scheme.
Step #3: Ellipse Tool ~
Select the Ellipse Tool which is behind the Rectangle Tool
Draw a circle.
Holding 
while you drag keeps the circle perfectly round …
Step #4: Add Anchor Points ~
Go to: Object > Path > Add Anchor Points
Repeat the Add Anchor Points step until you have the desired number of points, about three times.
Step #5: Pucker & Bloat ~
Next, with the shape still selected, go to: Effect > Distort & Transform > Pucker & Bloat.
A dialogue box will appear.
Hit the Preview check box and raise the slider to approximately 10 or until you get the shape like this …
Step #6: Copy the Shape ~
Click the shape and copy it …
… then hit Cmd+F, which pastes the shape ON TOP of the other …
Hold Alt/Option+Shift and squeeze the shape down to the center …
keeps the shape centered when you squeeze it
keeps it proportional - squeezing it on all sides at once …
Step #7: Select Both Shapes ~
Select both stars by dragging a box around them with the the Selection Tool 
Step #8: Blend Options ~
Go to: Object > Blend > Blend Options ...
Select Specified Steps and set the number of specified steps to approximately 25 or whatever you want …
Step #9: Blend ~
Then go to: Options > Blend > Make or hit Alt/Option+Cmd/Ctrl+B
Step #10: Colors ~
Now get the Direct Selection Tool 
Click on the inner line …
Change the color of the stroke.
Do the outer ring too! Try different stuff! Make something interesting!
Step #11: Colors ~
Go to: Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow and try the other effects also …
Step #12: Transparency and Opacity ~
Locate the Transparency button …
Experiment with lowering the transparency to your liking …
Last Step: Save Your Project & Attach ~
Go to: File > Save as … and save your .ai file …
Attach it and keep working …
Other Resources: http://www.vectorguru.com/tutorials/009_certificate_and_diploma_pattern.html
