Are You an Illustrator File Messer-Upper?
If you work on a team, you probably know what it’s like to share Illustrator files. And chances are, you fall into one of these two groups of people: The File Fixer-Upper… or the File Messer-Upper.
The File Messer-Upper
You know enough about AI to make edits and modify files.
But most of the time you hack things together.
You can’t figure out how flats are drawn or patterns are assembled, so you fight your way through the artwork the only way you know how (even when you know it’s wrong).
It’d be a lot easier for everyone if you did things the “right” way, but you just can’t find the time to catch up and learn.
So you keep hacking away and somehow things get done.
(If this is you, it’s ok – we’ve all been there!)
The File Fixer-Upper
You do know how to do things the “right” way (congrats!)! So when you inherit other people’s files, it can be a huge pain.
Hundreds of unnecessary anchor points. Ungrouped objects. Gathers or frills drawn as paths…not brushes.
The list goes on…
Sometimes you clean up the artwork so it’s more manageable, but deadlines are tight and you don’t always have time.
So you wind up fighting with sloppy files all season. Argh.
No matter what type of person you are, the point of this isn’t to make you feel bad or pat you on the back.
We all start somewhere and there is always room to grow.
Which is why I wanted to share a few of my favorite AI tutorials from the archives to help you and your team work more efficiently.
I promise that just one of the tricks in these tutorials could save you hours each week. So pick one and learn something new to make your life a little easier.
And if you know someone else on your team or in the industry who’d benefit from these too (I know you do!), please help spread the love and share this post with them.
How to draw a t-shirt (or any fashion flat) the right way
I discovered a flat sketch of a t-shirt in the Adobe Illustrator application folder…and when I opened it, I was pretty unimpressed with how the fashion sketch was drawn and assembled. Simply put, the quality was subpar for Adobe’s high standards. In this step by step video tutorial, I’ll show you how to use some best practices to draw t-shirt fashion flats in Illustrator.
When and why you should use brushes in Illustrator
Pattern brushes are a very powerful feature in Illustrator and offer many benefits. This tutorial will show how to conceptually understand pattern brushes so you know when – and why – to use them.
The most efficient way to create tech sketches
Many designers use inefficient methods to create tech sketches in Illustrator. This tutorial will show you the quickest and most effective way to organize your files so they’re easy to edit, manage and maintain.
