Introduction
Welcome to Adobe Illustrator and vector design for making with Cricut. To start off we will be exploring the user interface of Adobe Illustrator as well as getting you started with understanding how to use the basics and understanding pathfinder, image live trace, and other tools. Then we will export your design and get them into Cricut Space for physical creation!
Let's Begin!
First thing that you will want to do is to download Adobe Illustrator and Cricut Maker.
Once you have navigated to Adobe.psu.edu, click on the "Sign up for free" button. This will take you to a window to select Penn State. Sign in with your Web Access and find free software and select Adobe Creative Cloud and order.
Once you have navigated to the Design Space website, go ahead and download and install the software. This software does require an account so you will want a email ready.
Lets talk about Tools
These tools are only scratching the surface of what Illustrator can do. However when creating for Cricut, we should be able to use these tools to create just about everything that you can think of!
Designing With Shapes
When you are trying to design something you want to have cut out, or you are looking to design something from scratch a great practice is to break that specific "thing" into basic shapes.
Take this objects for example:
Now there are obviously many different ways to get from our original image to our final vector.
Use what you feel is the easiest. We could have traced this whole object with just the pen tool, or we could of used individual shapes for everything and adjusted them with the direct selection tool. There is no wrong way to get to the end goal. Once we have our final we can use the Pathfinder to combine all our shapes into one.
Stroke Window
Mentioned in the basics video, this window is only necessary when working with shapes that have a "stroke" or outline around them. By clicking the weight up and down, the line thickness will increase and decrease. The caps are the ends of the lines we create. Feel free to play with these settings for different results.
Alignment Tools
The alignment tools are great when you want two shapes to be perfectly centered with each other or evenly spaced. When you are using the Select tool, hold down the shift key and click a second shape. You should see the top bar of the software change slightly to show you alignment tools. If these do not appear, we can find our Align window under the Window tab.
Pathfinder
The pathfinder is our one stop shop to ensure all of our shapes are combined. When combines the Cricut machine will read the vector and be able to cut it out. If you followed along with setting up your Illustrator window at the button above, you should already have the pathfinder open!
Shape Modes
Pathfinder
With the pathfinder there is a lot different ways to combine and subtract shapes to get the outcome you are looking for. Try combine and subtracting shapes to mimic the images above.
Image Trace
Image trace is a feature in illustrator that will take any high contrast image and create a vector using artificial intelligence! Let's take the example on the right. This image is a drawing I did on pencil and paper and I took a picture with my phone.
Try making an illustration and using the image live trace feature!
Disclaimer: Image Trace is good for high contrast images both illustrated and photographs. The results of your trace are dependent on whether or not your image meets certain criteria.
Let's Create something.
Credits:
Created with images by Дарья Колпакова - "Paper craft Flower Decoration Concept." • REDPIXEL - "Graphic designer drawing sketches logo design." • exopixel - "Steel metal table fork isolated"