Design a Half-Drop Repeat Animal Pattern in Adobe Illustrator

My name is Sara Rain and I welcome you into my studio as I take you through my process of making a half-drop repeating animal pattern. I’m a British surface pattern designer and illustrator currently based in Japan and these are one of my favourite kinds of patterns to make.

In this class we will go over:

• how to research and build your idea by making a moodboard
• sketching your ideas
• refining your ideas
• how to build a motif in Adobe Illustrator
• How to technically make a half-drop repeating pattern.
  
  

In Illustrator I go over my favourite motif making tools which include the:

• Blob brush tool
• Pen tool
• Reflect and Rotate tools
• Shape Builder Tool
• Scissors Tool
• Recolour Artwork Tool

By the end of the class you’ll be able to make your own pattern which you can use as a hero print in a collection, as part of a portfolio, have printed onto fabric and products using print-on-demand sites and so much more.

This class is for people who have some surface pattern design experience and a basic working knowledge of Illustrator. Of course you are welcome to take the class even if you have been making patterns for years! This style might be new for you.

So grab a cup of tea, some paper and a pencil and let’s get the ideas flowing!

• Intro
• Class Project
• Tools
• Making a Moodboard
• Sketching
• Transferring to Illustrator
• Blob Brush and Shape Builder
• Pen and Shape Builder
• Rotate and Reflect
• Complex Shapes: Pen and Shape Builder
• Complex Shapes: Scissors, Pen and Blob Brush
• Cleaning up Elements
• Building the Motif
• Refining the Motif
• Making the Repeat
• Re-colouring
• My Final Patterns
• Thank You