Here’s a basic Illustrator tutorial on how to crop an area from a group of multiple shapes or just hide unwanted parts by using opacity masks or clipping masks. I used these numerous times on things like Vector Rulers or Vector Guitars.

First set up a group of shapes on your artboard. Grab various shape tools and fill an area with different kinds; give them a fill color and no stroke.

Select all by dragging over with the Selection Tool (V) and press Ctrl + G to group them.

To make it more interesting, grab some of the liquify tools (Wrinkle, Crystallize, Wrap etc.) and play around until you get something that you like.

Now let’s say that you needed to hide or crop the group according to a circular shape. Grab the Ellipse Tool (L) and while holding Shift drag a circle over the group. Keep in mind that this will be the starting point for all 3 examples that follow – opacity masks, clipping masks and cropping.

Before using the cropping method, it’s best to use opacity masks or clipping masks while your vector art is a work in progress. This way you can still go back and adjust something if you need to.

Opacity Masks – Set the circle fill color to white and then select both the group and the circle with the Move Tool (V). In the Transparency Window (if it’s not open, go to top menu Window > Transparency ) click on that little arrow on the upper right corner and from the drop down options select Make Opacity Mask.

Now deselect by clicking on an empty area and you should have something like this:

Working with opacity masks allows you to do cool things like gradient fades. For instance go back (undo Ctrl+Z) to the previous step of having the circle over the group. This time instead of a solid white fill color, give it a black and white gradient and set the Type to Radial.

Select all and in the Transparency window go again and click on Make Opacity Mask just as before. You will get something like below.

If you look closely at the above image you will notice that the outer edge is still slightly visible. To fix this, first select your artwork and then in the Transparency Window click on the Opacity Mask to edit it.

Now go to the Gradient Tab and double click the black color on the gradient slider. In the pop up window, click on the upper right corner arrow and select CMYK.

In the CMYK options drag all sliders to 100%.

Go back to the Transparency window and click to stop editing the opacity mask. Now the outer edge is completely transparent.

Clipping Masks – Go back to the starting point artboard (press Ctrl+Z to undo).

Select both the group and the circle with the Move Tool (V) and from the top menu Object > Clipping Mask > Make.

Cropping – When you have a complex group of shapes and you want to get a cleaner artboard for your final work you can also use cropping.

So once again go back to the starting point – a circle over the group.

Select them both and then in the Pathfinder Window (if it’s not open, go to top menu Window > Pathfinder) click on the Crop icon.

Visually you will get the same result as applying the opacity mask or clipping mask but this time the areas extending outside the circle are cropped out instead of just being hidden.

One thing to note is that the empty areas also become shapes. You can see that if for instance you decide to change the fill color. It fills the empty spaces as well and you get a full circle.

So to get rid of those extra shapes and also be able to easily change the fill colors deselect the group and with the Eyedropper Tool (I) click on a filled area to pick out the fill color. (Note: if you have a lot of other elements on your artboard make sure you don’t have the same fill color anywhere else – if you do, then go back before the cropping and change the fill color to something unique).

Form the top menu Select > Same > Fill Color to select only the green shapes.

Now that you have only the green areas selected, go to top menu Edit > Cut (Ctrl+X) and before you paste click somewhere in the area to select the remaining colorless shapes. Usually just delete them, but for now drag them to the side.

Go to top menu Edit > Paste in Front (Ctrl+F) and while they are still selected press Ctrl+G to group them. Now you can easily change their fill color from green to something else.

Go back to the “invisible” group that you moved out of the way and if you give it a fill color it would be a sort of negative image of your original art.

Working with Text – To crop the shapes according to some text, similar to my main post image above, start the same way as before by making some sort of shapes pattern group and then with the Type Tool (T) enter your text.

With the text selected, go to the top menu Object > Expand and click OK and then go to Object > Compound Path > Make. Select both the text and group, and click on crop icon in the Pathfinder window.

Then give it a black stroke and a shadow (top menu Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow).

And it should look something like this:

Hope you enjoyed the tutorial! If you have questions or comments drop me a line below. Thanks!

Time for another tutorial – how to make a 3d pencil using the Revolve tool in Illustrator. So just like any other project make a new document and save it. So the idea is to make a group of paths that resemble a dissected pencil and then give it a 3d volume by using the Revolve tool.

1. You will need 6 diferent shapes for the pencil parts, just as in the image below.

To start grab the Rectangle Tool (M) and drag out a thin rectangle.

2. With the new path still selected go to top menu Object > Path >Split Into Grid. In the options window under Rows choose Number: 6 and Gutter: 0px and click OK to divide the rectangle into 6 parts.

Give each rectangle a corresponding pencil part color. (I used #666666, #f0bd84, #fdf1df, #fdb044, #e6e6e6 and #ca5e5c)

Now with the Direct Selection Tool (A) drag over intersecting points of adjacent paths to select them and then while holding Shift move the points up and down to get the right proportions.

3. Now part 1,2 and 3 need to form a triangle that will be the pencil tip. Turn on the Smart Guides top menu View > Smart Guides (Ctrl+U). Now drag a rectangle exactly over those shapes. Make sure that all margins intersect.

Now delete the upper right anchor point with the Delete Anchor Point Tool (-) and you can turn off the Smart Guides (Ctrl+U).

With the Selection Tool (V) select paths 1,2,3 and the overlaying triangular path and click Crop in the Pathfinder Window (top menu Window > Pathfinder)

4. Now on to the metallic part (path 5) Scale the width of this rectangle by dragging the right margin just a touch. Now add two anchor points like in the image below. Select them both with the Direct Selection Tool(A) and while holding down Shift move them a touch to the left.

Grab the Rounded Rectangle Tool and drag a small path. Hold down the Alt key and drag it with the Selection Tool (V) to duplicate it and make six paths just like in the image below.

Now select the metal part and the six newly created paths and click unite in the Path Window.

5.Now for the eraser grab the Convert Anchor Point Tool and drag on the lower right anchor point to give it a rounded edge. Move the point a bit in so it looks like in the image below.

6.Now it’s time for the revolve stuff. First select all paths and group them (right-click > Group or Ctrl+G) and then go to top menu Effect > 3D > Revolve. In the options window you can choose any position you want, but for now choose Front so you can easily adjust the look of the pencil. The Surface should have Diffuse Shading since the Plastic Shading is too glossy; and check that the revolve is set from: Left Edge.

After clicking OK you should have your pencil. Now if you feel it’s a bit too thick you can easily scale it down and it will automatically reapply the 3D effect.

7. You can leave the pencil the way it is or you can go further and add some grooves to the metal part of the pencil using Map Art. First step is to create a Symbol. Grab the Rounded Rectangle Tool and drag a small thin rectangle and give it a slightly darker fill color than the metal part; then hold down the Alt key and drag it with the Selection Tool (V) to duplicate it once. Now press Ctrl+D many times to duplicate the last action a couple of times. (make sure the second rectangle is still selected when you press Ctrl+D or it won’t work).

Now select all small rectangles with the Selection Tool (V) and drag them to the Symbols window (if it’s not visible – top menu Window > Symbols)

In the Symbol Options window choose Graphic and also give it a name like Pencil 01. Select the pencil and go into the 3D Revolve Options Window by clicking on 3D Revolve in the Appearance Window (top menu Window > Appearance).

Here make sure the preview is checked and click on Map Art. In the new window click on Next Surface until you get to the one you want to overlay the symbol to. Keep an eye at the pencil to see which one is the right one. Now choose Pencil 01 symbol from the drop down list and you should see it in the preview. Drag it to the right so it covers the visible area. (Light gray area is visible). Also check shade artwork to give the symbol the same lighting effect as the pencil.

You can also wrap some text on the pencil using the Map Art feature. So type your text and drag it to the Symbols window. Go back into the 3D Revolve Options Window > Map Art, select the surface and place your new symbol. Rotate and align the text to get your desired result.

8. Another thing to point out is that if you export it as a higher resolution image and the surface doesn’t look smooth enough then go to the 3D Revolve Options Window and click More Options. There increase the Blend Steps until the surface looks smooth.

Here’s a new tutorial on how to make a vector torn paper in Illustrator. If you need some already made vector notebook pages you can grab them from my previous post here.

1. So just as with everything else make a new illustrator file and save it. Grab the rectangle tool and drag out a shape to your desired paper size.

Give it a white fill color and to make it stand out a little add a thin gray (#CCCCCC) stroke aligned to the outside.

2. To add the horizontal lines and align them exactly to the edge of the paper you have to turn on the Smart Guides. Go to top menu View > Smart Guides or use the shortcut Ctrl+U. Now with the Rectangle Tool drag a thin shape somewhere close to the left edge as in the image. Give it a blue (#689FC4) fill color and no stroke.

With the Selection Tool (V) scale the blue rectangle by dragging the left edge until it snaps together with the side of the paper and says “intersect”; do the same for the right side.

If you are zoomed in, zoom out and check if the blue line has the width you want it to have in proportions with the paper; then hold down the Alt key and drag the blue rectangle with the Selection Tool (V) to duplicate it. Release the buttons when you get the desired spacing between the lines.

Now press Ctrl+D many times to duplicate the last action and fill your page with evenly spaced blue lines. (make sure the second line is still selected when you press Ctrl+D or it won’t work). So now you should have a ruled paper just as in the image below.

After this you can go ahead and turn off the Smart Guides (Ctrl+U).

3. Decide where you want to break the page and using the Pencil Tool (N) draw a ragged line that would resemble a tear. Give it a 2pt color stroke that stands out (red). With the red line selected go to top menu Object > Path > Outline Stroke.

4. Now to create some fibers for the tear select the Wrinkle Tool and then double click on it to bring out the Wrinkle Tool Options Window. Now you can choose different setting to get various fiber tears. I will use Width and Height at 8px and increase Detail to 4.

Make sure you only have the red line selected and run the WrinkleTool along it.

5. Now we’re going to duplicate the red line – copy (Ctrl+C) and paste in front (Ctrl+F) – and subtract it from both the paper and the overlapping blue line. While holding Shift select both the paper and one of the red lines by clicking with the Selection Tool (V). Now in the Pathfinder Window click Minus Front. It will bring the paper shape in front of the blue lines so to send it behind again right click on it and choose Arrange > Send to Back.

Now select the remaining red line and the blue line it overlaps and click again on Minus Front in the Pathfinder Window. And now you have a torn piece of paper.

6. They are still grouped together as one so right click on the paper and choose Ungroup. Do the same for the blue line. To group them correctly select all the paths that make up one half of the paper (hold Shift and click on them with Selection Tool) and then right click > Group. Make sure you select all the segments of the blue line that correspond to the paper. You might want to zoom in to see all the smaller parts.

7. If you want to add a drop shadow select only the paper with the Direct Selection Tool (A) and go to top menu Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow… To apply the same to the other half select only the paper with the Direct Selection Tool (A) and go to top menu Effect and Apply Drop Shadow.

If the shadow is too pixelated for your liking then go to top menu > Effect > Document Raster Effects Settings and change Resolution to High 300ppi.

Here is a close up of what the final ripped paper should look like:

While working on the previous post with the Vector Rulers I played with the making of a triangle in Illustrator. The easiest way to do one is with the Polygon Tool and that works fine if you do not get too mathematical and need a triangle with specific angle degrees. Since creating triangles in Illustrator is not so straight forward, here are some ways to draw them.

1. Equilateral Triangle – To make a simple triangle in Illustrator just grab the Polygon Tool.

Click on the artboard and in the polygon option window choose 3 sides. The radius doesn’t really matter since you can scale the triangle afterwards to whatever you need.

So by doing that you now have an equilateral triangle. Now you can use the Direct Selection Tool (A) to select anchor points and drag them around to adjust the triangle to your needs. If you want to keep the triangle isosceles, then select two anchor points and using the Scale Tool (S) and holding Shift drag the selected points to change the triangle.

Just as a note, when using the Polygon Tool you can also change the number of sides of the polygon by holding left click and dragging and while still holding down the left click use the up and down directional arrows on your keyboard to increase or decrease the number of sides.

2. Right Angle Triangle – To make a right angle triangle grab the Rectangle Tool (M) and drag a rectangular shape. If you want to do a right angle isosceles triangle then hold the Shift key to drag a square. Now all you have to do is delete an anchor point with the Delete Anchor Point Tool (-) and you have a right angle triangle.

3. Specific Angle Triangle -This is what I was trying to do for the Vector Rules where I needed a triangle with 90, 60 and 30 degree angles. I wanted it to be accurate instead of just approximate. This is still an easy triangle to sort of approximate, but what if you needed even more specific angle degrees, let’s say a 76, 63, 41 angle triangle – Here’s a way to do that; grab the Rectangle Tool (M) and drag a long and thin rectangle.

Now with it selected Copy (Ctrl+C) and Paste in Front (Ctrl+F). With the new rectangle still selected go to top menu Object > Transform > Rotate (or right click Transform > Rotate).

In the rotate window put 41 degrees and click OK.

Move the newly rotated rectangle a bit up and to the left. Now the overlapping rectangles make a 41 degree angle.

With the new rectangle still selected Copy and Paste in Front again and go to Object > Transform > Rotate and in the window put 76 degrees and click OK. Move the new rotated rectangle a bit to the right and up so it looks something like the image below.

Now the rectangles make a triangle with 76, 63, 41 degree angles. So to extract the triangle select all three rectangular shapes with the Direct Selection Tool (V) and in the Pathfinder window (if you do not have it open go to top menu Window > Pathfinder) click on Unite.

Now with the Direct Selection Tool (A) and holding Shift select the three points as in the image below and Copy and Paste.

and now you have the triangular shape with the accurate angles that you wanted. If you need to scale it to fit a project hold the Shift while you scale so it maintains its proportions.

So that’s pretty much it; Happy designing and I hope you’ll find this tutorial usefull for your projects.

Here’s a simple illustrator tutorial on how to make a shinny 3d push pin using the Revolve Tool. If you only want to download some vector pushpins and adhesive notes check out my post here. Using the Revolving Tool can be a lot of fun in creating complex 3d objects out of a simple 2d path.

1. To begin make a new illustrator file and save it as ”PushPin3D”. Don’t forget to save your work often.

2. The idea here is to make a path as if you would dissect a pushpin right in the center. Select the Rectangle Tool (shortcut key M) and click and drag a rectangle like in the image below; in the color window (if it’s not open go on the top menu bar to Window > Color or just press F6) give it the fill color that you like, in my case green, and no stroke.

3. Time to add some anchor points to the rectangle that you just created so you need to grab the Add Anchor Point Tool (press +). Add three anchor points on the right edge of the rectangle. Get the Direct Selection Tool (A) and move the anchor points inward so it looks more or less as in the image below.

4. Select the Convert Anchor Point Tool (Shift+C) and click and drag on the upper anchor point to get the handles. You only need one handle so to remove the upper one click with the Convert Anchor Point Tool on its end to delete it. Click and drag handles for the rest of the points and in the end it should look as the right side in the image below.

5. Select the Rectangle Tool (M) and drag a narrow rectangle as in the image below. Give it a gray fill and no stroke. This new path will be the metal part of the pushpin. Now grab the Direct Selection Tool (A) and select the bottom left anchor point of the rectangle by clicking on it. Make sure you have only this point selected. Move it up a little to create the sharp end of the pin (while moving the point you can hold the shift key so you can drag it straight up perfectly). To make the needle a bit more realistic grab the Convert Anchor Point Tool (Shift+C) and give it a very light curve

6. Now it’s time for some revolving. With the Selection Tool (V) select the green path; go to the top menu Effect > 3D > Revolve. In the pop up window check the Preview box and you will see a cylinder, but no worries, after choosing “right edge” and you will have your 3d pushpin. You can play with the 3d box to get the desired orientation. I used “-28,0,-21″ as you can see in the image. When you’re finished press ok to close the 3d Revolve Options window.

Now select the gray path and go again to top menu Effect > 3D > Revolve. Make sure you have preview checked and select as before “right edge”. Fill in the numbers that you used for the green path, in my case “-28,0,-21″. Now it looks like a sharp pin, but it’s a bit dull in color so press More Options to play with the lighting and shading. Here move the light to the bottom and change Highlight Intensity and Highlight Size to 100%. Click ok to close the revolve window.

You should have something like this:

With the Selection Tool (V) move the gray pin section so it’s aligned in the center of the green plastic. Then right click on it and Arrange > Send to Back. And you have finished the Pushpin.

Note: Later on if you want to change the Pushpin’s perspective select the green path and then in the Appearance Window (if you don’t have it open then either go to top menu Window >Appearance or press Shift+F6) you have the 3drevolve effect. Replicate the settings for the gray path as well.

7. With the Selection Tool select both paths and group them by either right click > Group or Ctrl+G. Now click and drag on the group while holding the Alt key to make a copy. With the new group copy selected go to top menu Object > Expand Appearance

In the Pathfinder Window (if it’s not open Window > Pathfinder or Shift+Ctrl+F9) click on the unite to join the paths.

Now the new path has way too many anchor points so to take care of that go to top menu Object > Path >Simplify. In the simplify window put 100% in the curve precision.

8. With the Selection Tool (V) move and rotate the path so it aligns more or less as below. Give it a black color fill.

9. Now we are going to make an opacity mask; with the Rectangle Tool (M) drag a rectangle to cover the black path. Give it a grayscale gradient fill with black on the left. With the Selection Tool (V) drag to select the black pin and the gradient rectangle.

In the Transparency Window (if it’s not open Window > Transparency or Shift+Ctrl+F10) click the little box in the upper right corner and choose Make Opacity Mask.

In the Transparency Window click to select the opacity mask and then rotate it a little to match the angle of the pin. Drop the opacity to 20% or to whatever you like. To exit the edit opacity mode click on the pin in the transparency window.

10. To smoothen the shadow edge go to top menu Effect > Stylize > Feather… and in the option window put 4px or however much you want to blur the edge.

The final pushpin should look like this: