In the following tutorial, you will learn how to create a grungy web badge in Adobe Illustrator. For starters you will learn how to setup a simple grid and how to easily center the starting shapes using the Align panel. Next, taking full advantage of the Appearance panel and using some basic masking and vector shape building techniques, you will learn how to create the two main shapes. Moving on, using a built-in art brush and some new masking techniques, you will learn how to add a that grungy effect. Using some Type tools along with several Drop Shadow effects, you will learn how to add the text. Finally, you can learn how to easily recolor your entire web badge.
Tutorial Details
- Program: Adobe Illustrator CS5
- Difficulty: Beginner-Intermediate
- Topics Covered: Basic Tools and Effects, Masking techniques, Type Tools and the Appearance panel
- Estimated Completion Time: 45 minutes
Final Image
As always, this is the final image that we’ll be creating:
Step 1
Hit
Command + N to create a new document. Enter 600 in the width and height boxes then click on the
Advanced button. Select
RGB,
Screen (72ppi) and make sure that the
Align New Objects to Pixel Grid box is unchecked before you click
OK. Enable the Grid (
View > Show Grid) and the Snap to Grid (
View > Snap to Grid). You will need a grid every
5px, so simply go to
Edit > Preferences > Guides > Grid, enter
5 in the
Gridline every box and
1 in the
Subdivisions box. You should also open the
Info panel (
Window > Info) for a live preview with the size and position of your shapes. Do not forget to set the unit of measurement to pixels from
Edit > Preferences > Units > General. All these options will significantly increase your work speed.
Step 2
Pick the
Ellipse Tool (M) and focus on your Toolbar. Remove the color from the stroke then select the fill and set its color at
R=255 G=255 B=255 (white). Move to your Artboard and simply create a
150px circle, the
Snap to Grid should ease your work. Next, you need to center this white shape. Select it and open the
Align panel (
Window > Align). Set the aligning to Artboard then simply click the
Horizontal Align Center and
Vertical Align Center buttons. In the end, your white circle should be centered as shown in the following image.
Step 3
Make sure that your white circle stays selected and focus on the
Appearance panel (
Window > Appearance). Remove the color from the fill and add a 5pt stroke. Align it to inside, set the color at
R=11 G=130 B=30, then add a second stroke using the
Add New Stroke button (pointed by the little, blue arrow in the following image). Select this new stroke, make sure that the color is set at
R=11 G=130 B=30, set the weight at 3pt, align it to inside and go to
Effect > Path > Offset Path. Enter a -7px Offset, click
OK and return to the
Appearance panel. Add a third stroke for this shape and select it. Again, make sure that the color is set at
R=11 G=130 B=30, set the weight at 3pt, align it to inside and go to
Effect > Path > Offset Path. Enter a -31px Offset, click
OK and get back to the
Appearance panel. Add a fourth stroke for this circle and select it. Once again, make sure that the color is set at
R=11 G=130 B=30, set the weight at 5pt, align it to inside and go to
Effect > Path > Offset Path. Enter a -36px Offset, click
OK and focus again on the Appearance panel. Add a fifth stroke and select it. Make it 2pt wide, set the color at
R=0 G=110 B=10 and align it to outside. Keep focusing on the
Appearance panel, add one final stroke for your circle and select it. Make sure that the color is set at
R=0 G=110 B=10, set the weight at 2pt, align it to outside and go to
Effect > Path > Offset Path. Enter a -43px Offset and click
OK. In the end, things should look like in the following image.
Step 4
Make sure that your circle is still selected and make a copy in front (
CTRL + C > CTRL + F). Select this copy and go to
Object > Expand Appearance. Select the resulting group of shapes, open the
Pathfinder panel (
Window > Pathfinder), click the
Unite button then hit
CTRL + 8 (or go to
Object > Compound Path > Make) to turn the resulting shapes into a simple compound path. Select this new compound path, set the fill color at
R=237 G=28 B=36, then move to the
Layers panel (
Window > Layers) and make it invisible by clicking on that little eye icon.
Step 5
Using the
Rectangle Tool (M), create a
190 x 30px shape, fill it with black and and center it using the
Horizontal Align Center and
Vertical Align Center buttons from the
Align panel. Make sure that this black rectangle is selected and go to
Object > Path > Add Anchor Points to add four new anchor points. Grab the
Direct Selection Tool (A), select the left, new anchor point and drag it 15px to the right. Then select the right, new anchor point and drag it 15px to the left. In the end, your black shape should look like the third image.
Step 6
Make sure that your black shape is still selected and make a copy in front (
CTRL + C > CTRL + F). Select this copy and focus on the
Appearance panel. Remove that black from the fill, add a 2pt stroke and select it. Set the color at
R=11 G=130 B=30, align it to inside and go to
Effect > Path > Offset Path. Enter a -4px Offset, click
OK and return to the
Appearance panel. Add a second stroke for this shape and select it. Make sure that the color is set at
R=11 G=130 B=30, set the weight at 3pt and align it to inside. Keep focusing on the
Appearance panel, add a third stroke and select it. Set the color at
R=0 G=110 B=10, make it 2pt wide and align it to outside.
Step 7
Select the remaining black shape along with the circle, open the fly-out menu of the
Transparency panel (
Window > Transparency) and go to
Make Opacity Mask. Keep focusing on the
Transparency panel and uncheck that
Clip box. In the end, your masked circle should look like the second image.
Step 8
Reselect that irregular polygon shape and make a copy in front (
CTRL + C > CTRL + F). Select this copy and go to
Object > Expand Appearance. Make sure that the resulting group of shapes is selected, click the
Unite button from the
Pathfinder panel then hit
CTRL + 8 (or go to
Object > Compound Path > Make). Fill this new compound path with
R=237 G=28 B=36 and move to the
Layers panel (
Window > Layers). Turn on the visibility for the other red compound path, select it and bring it to front (
Shift + CTRL + ] ).
Step 9
Reselect both red compound paths and click the
Unite button from the
Pathfinder panel. You will need a build in art brush for this new compound path. Open the
Brushes panel (
Window > Brushes), open the fly-out menu and go to
Open Brush Library > Artistic > Artistic_ChalkCharcoalPencil. Take a look inside this new panel and find the
Pencil art brush. Reselect your red compound path and focus on the
Appearance panel. Remove the color from the fill then select the stroke, add that
Pencil brush and set its color to black.
Step 10
Reselect the two shapes with the green strokes and
Group them (
CTRL + G). Select this new group along with the compound path made in the previous step, open the fly-out menu of the
Transparency panel and go to
Make Opacity Mask. Don’t forget to uncheck the
Clip box. In the end, your masked group should look like the following image.
Step 11
Using the
Ellipse Tool (M), create a
100px circle, fill it with a random color and center it using the
Horizontal Align Center and
Vertical Align Center buttons from the
Align panel.
Step 12
Pick the
Type on a Path Tool, then simply click on the edge of the circle made in the previous step and add the “
PREMIUM QUALITY” piece of text. Use the Chaparral Pro font, set the style at bold, the size at 13pt and the color at
R=0 G=100 B=0. Grab the
Selection Tool (V) (or the
Direct Selection Tool (A)) and simply drag those perpendicular lines (pointed by the little, blue arrows in the following image) to rotate your text.
Step 13
Duplicate the piece of text added in the previous step (
CTRL + C > CTRL + F). Rotate it as shown in the following image and simply replace the existing text with “
NATURAL PRODUCT“.
Step 14
Using the
Type Tool (T), add the “
100% GREEN” piece of text and place it as shown in the following image. Use the Chaparral Pro font, make it bold, set the size at 15pt and the tracking at 100 then make sure that the color is set at
R=0 G=100 B=0.
Step 15
Disable the Grid (
View > Hide Grid) and the Snap to Grid (
View > Snap to Grid). Select all three pieces of text and go to
Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow. Enter the properties shown in the left window (in the following image), click
OK and go again to
Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow. Enter the properties shown in the middle window (in the following image), click
OK and go once again to
Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow. Enter the properties shown in the right window and click
OK. In the end things, should look like in the following image.
Step 16
Finally, here’s how you can easily recolor the entire web badge. Select all the stuff that you made so far and go to
Edit > Edit Colors > Recolor Artwork. Go to the
Edit section, make sure that the
Recolor Artwork box and the
Link harmony colors button are checked, then simply play with the
Brightness slider and the color handles. There are countless possibilities.
And We’re Done!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this tutorial and can apply these techniques in your future projects.
Andrei Marius is a self taught vector artist who is trying to make a living doing something that he likes. He spends most of his time working in Adobe Illustrator, trying to avoid the Pen Tool. You can find most of his vector experiments at this little website dedicate to Illustrator
VforVectors.
