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 PATTERN
MAKING |
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There's
a sort of zen to the art of patterns. I find making patterns a good way
to clear the mind, and an easy way to create something when I get frustrated
with the rigors of dolling.
1)
If you can, set up your graphics program so you have two windows of the
same document. I work with a 200X200 pixel-sized box, but really, 100X100
is pretty much the standard. One window should be at 100%
view, the other at a 600% view or more. Fill the background with white and
create a new layer for your pattern. You can use whatever colours you want
but black on white is the easiest to see.
Click here to view picture.
2)
Create a small shape. It doesn't have to be intricate (actually, the simpler,
the better). Just experiment with circles, squares and dots. Try to keep
the shape as "clean" as possible (i.e. no two pixel-width lines).
Here is my pattern:
3)
You'll notice that I named my pattern layer "original pattern".
This is because I'm going to make a copy of this layer. I'm keeping the
original single shape so if I mess up later, I have a clean, unmerged shape
to come back to. So make a copy of that single pattern. Hide the original
and work with the copy.
4)
Now make a copy of your shape (Ctrl+J in PhotoShop) and reposition. You don't
have to place it directly beside the first shape. In this example, the shape
is a bit flowery, so the "flowers" might look okay spaced 8 - 10 pixels
apart. You can also move the second shape down to create a diagonal pattern.
Basically, I just nudge the shape every which way until I find something that
looks good.
5)
To save yourself the grief of copying one shape over and over and over and over
again, you can engage in "exponential tiling". Take the two shapes
you have now and link the layers. (In PhotoShop, click on the box next to the
eye.)
Now
merge those two layers. (In PhotoShop, click on the blue arrow in the upper
right hand corner and select "Merge Linked")
6)
Now make a copy of your newly merged layer and reposition it. You've now gone
from two shapes to four.
7)
Now start repeating the process: link and merge down the two layers, then copy
the new merged layer. Your four shapes will become 8, then 16, then 32 and so
on. I know this may seem obvious to a lot of people, but you have no idea how
long I was copying single shapes (hundreds of layers!) until I clued in.
8)
Once you have a full row, make sure you merge it down so the entire row is one
layer. (Click here for the pic.)
Make a copy of the row and reposition it. Once again, you don't have to follow
the exact same spacing. Experiment and see what looks good. You may find moving
the second row a pixel or two creates something that looks kinda cool. For example:
The nature of my "flowery" shape doesn't really make an exciting pattern
when the row positioning is exactly the same.
Instead
of keeping the rows separate, I merged them together a bit. I think I like this
look more.
9)
Now do for your rows exactly what you've done with your shapes. Link, merge
& copy, so your two rows become four, then eight, etc.
10)
Continue to link, merge & copy until you've filled your entire box. Note
how I made sure the pattern tiles all the way to the top, bottom and sides of
the document. Make sure you hide your white background before you save your
pattern as a .gif! :)
11)
So you're done, right? Well, if you want to be, sure! However, you can make
several new patterns out of the one you just created. Make sure your pattern
is merged into one whole layer. Now copy that layer and start nudging it around.
You'll be surprised at how many cool new variations you can get. For example,
the pattern below is the tutorial pattern copied and moved down a few pixels.
I think I like it more than the original!
So
if you're wondering why the patterns on my pattern
page look a bit repetitive, well, now you know my terrible secret!
:D
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