How to Create a Custom Brushes Library for Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator's paintbrush tool allows you to paint with a variety of custom shapes and patterns. You can paint with a calligraphy pen shape, an ink splatter, even elephants and butterflies. With experience you can create and maintain your own custom brush library to use with any project.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Start your library with an empty brushes palette. Open any document, it can be empty or one that contains artwork you want to convert to a brush. Make sure it doesn't contain any paths using Illustrator's brushes.

2. Open the brushes palette. Choose "Select All Unused" from the flyout options menu in the palette's top right corner. All of Illustrator's default brushes will become selected.

3. Drag the selected symbols to the palette trash icon (you can also choose "Delete Brushes" from the options menu). If a dialog box tells you the brushes are in use, click on "Remove Stokes." Your brushes palette will clear.

4. Click on "New Brush" in the options menu and then "New Calligraphic Brush" to add a custom calligraphy brush. Set the angle, roundness and diameter settings and click "OK." The brush will appear in your brushes palette.

5. Draw any artwork you want to use as a scatter or art brush. Select the paths in the object and choose "Scatter Brush" or "Art Brush" from the "New Brush" choices. Your element will appear in the new brush window for you to apply the custom brush stroke settings.

6. Create a pattern brush by selecting your art element and choosing "Define Pattern" from the Edit menu. Your pattern will be saved as a swatch. Unselect your object before you make a new brush. To create a new pattern brush, choose your custom swatch from the available patterns.

7. Choose "Save Brush Library" from the brushes palette options menu. The dialog will prompt you to save the file in Photoshop's default brushes folder.