195 - Mesh Flower in Illustrator ~

Learn These Tools & Concepts:

Feathering

Mesh Tool

Transparency

Swatches

 

• This Tutorial is Still Under Construction!

This tutorial is part of the Shadow Life and/or the Make a Scene Projects.

Other People's Work:

Here are examples of work inspired by this tutorial.

Step #1: Open Illustrator ~

Select the Polygon Tool.

Click once on the artboard to activate Polygon options …

Set a Radius of approximately 50 pt with 6 Sides and fill the polygon with a color of your choice.

Step #2: Mesh Tool ~

Select the Mesh Tool or hit the shortcut key - (U)

Click once with the Mesh Tool in the center of the shape to start your mesh.

Start adding mesh points on either side, and top & bottom.

Step #3: Direct Selection Tool ~

Now get the Direct Selection Tool

Click the center Mesh point with the Direct Selection Tool

Step #4: Change the Color ~

With the the mesh point selected, click the Swatches panel …

… and change the color.

Step #5: The Corners ~

Next, select each corner mesh point and fill it with a color of your choice.

Step 7: Drag the Corners ~

Start dragging each corner point of the polygon out to create a star shape.

Adjust each individual mesh point if necessary.

Step #8: Flower Petals ~

Now for the flower petals. Select the Pen Tool (P) …

… and draw a petal shape as shown.

Adjust the shape with the Direct Selection Tool

Step #9: Color the Flower Petal ~

Hit F6 and open the color palette, and turn off the stroke …

Set the Fill Color to whatever you want … .

Step #10: Color the Flower Petal ~

Now try the Pencil Tool …

… and add another shape toward the bottom part of the flower pedal. Fill it with a pink or any other color of your choice.

Step #11: Feathering ~

Then go to: Effect > Stylize > Feather, then set the Feather Radius of the inner shape to whaterver looks good.

Step #12: Mesh Tool ~

Select the Mesh Tool (U)

Click somewhere on the petal …

… then select a different color.

Keep doing this with random mesh points and different colors.

Step #13: Duplicate the Inner Shape ~

Select the inner-shape with the Selection Tool , and, holding down Alt/Option key make a copy.

Shrink it down to about 75% of the original one, fill it with a darker color and a Feather effect, too.

Step #14: Duplicate the Shapes ~

Select all the shapes and group them by hitting Cmd+G.

Then copy the petal by holding down Alt/Option while clicking and dragging it slightly.

Then rotate the new petals using the Selection Tool …

Step #15: The Middle of the Flower ~

Select the shape from the earlier Steps 1-4 and place it on top of the pedals. Set the layer mode to 88% Opacity and apply a Feather effect of 5pt.

Step 16: Background ~

If you need a background, create another rectangle, fill it with a color, and select random points and fill them with a darker or lighter green using the Mesh Tool again.

Last Step: Save Your Project & Attach ~

Go to: File > Save as … and save your work as an .ai file.

Attach it and continue working …

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Resources: http://www.creativepro.com/article/tug-and-twirl-text-illustrator