We have decided to also publish our vector illustrations on verysimpledesigns.com. For this purpose we have created a new section of resources with the name “Vector Illustrations“. For now it offers the result files of the tutorials we wrote, but sometimes with a bit of a twist. For example, I made the delicate pink cherry blossom floral design also available as a sweet baby blue design. All illustrations are available in eps and Inkscape svg format and printables of 12″x12” at 300dpi – and for now – free for personal use.
It has been a quiet NYE. Not much happening around here – just a bbq with friends, some music and the sydney harbour fireworks on TV. We did have some “live” fireworks too, but more of the kiddy stuff – so not too many oooohs and aaaahs.
Free set of Zodiac Brushes for Photoshop
I started 2010 by uploading a nice set of photoshop brushes to verysimpledesigns.com.
It is a free set of hand drawn zodiac sign and zodiac circle brushes for Photoshop, all as vector images.
Brush resolution for the individual zodiac signs is about 400 pixels, the zodiac circle is provided in multiple formats up to 2500 pixels.
Today I messed a bit around in Inkscape. I have created a lot of seamless patterns in the past, mostly for 3D renders. I usually start with a picture and do some typical things like offset 50% vertical and 50% horizontal, blur and mask to make seams invisible. Of course image editors like Photoshop / PSP/ CorelPaint are very suitable for this kind of jobs. Add to that the procedural rendering that MapZone can do and voila… seamless texture.
So what was new today? I messed (once again) with cloned tiles in Inkscape. I drafted a pattern that is used for some custom stationary, and then I thought that I might as well put it up as free for personal use on VerySimpleDesigns.com.
Inkscape is VERY suitable for seamless pattern creation, but the workflow is not so obvious. I followed the procedure as described in Tavmjong’s guide, but I found it not so easy to follow, and in my humble opinion, some steps are not needed if the only thing you need out of Inkscape is an exported bitmap with your seamless texture. So I think I found material for a new tutorial too – now just to find time to actually write it… that may take a few days. So for now have a look at these pretty textures and grab them at high resolution from VSD.
Inkscape tutorial for beginners: Japanese style Kokeshi dolls
I made a cute design, with Japanese style Kokeshi as theme. Kokeshi are Japanese dolls. They are handmade from wood, have a simple trunk and an enlarged head with a few thin, painted lines to define the face. Traditionally the body was painted with a floral design in red, black or yellow and a layer of wax was applied. One characteristic of kokeshi dolls is their lack of arms or legs, but “creative” kokeshi allow the artist complete freedom in terms of shape, design and color. Nowadays we can find kokeshi now in many variations, and digital media allows even more creative freedom.
When I finished the design, I figured it is great material for another Inkscape tutorial. As the last one I made was a bit more advanced, I decided to write it to the beginning Inkscape artist. So the tutorial gives explanations of the tools used, and exact steps how to recreate the design. I am currently considering a “cut to the chase” version of the tutorial too, for the more experienced Inkscape user, but that will take another day to complete (I do have a life without my PC.. even tho I seem to make more hours than anyone else I know.. is that good or bad?).
Geez! It was not so much the tutorial actually, as the problem of getting it published decently. I guess that is my own fault, as I used a “quick fix” by using some else’s template design. Numbers: not visible, pagination: horrible, separation into sections: ugly… So i did some further template tweaking and I made a HUGE mental note to make a proper Joomla template from sketch. I bet it will be material for a tutorial too *grins*. My list of wishes for components is slowly growing too… so a good time to start working on that.
Inkscape tutorial - fashionable woman
Anyways… back to the tutorial. It is again for Inkscape. I decided to do something a bit more advanced (tho due to lack of details I still think it qualifies as a very simple design). My mate Dakka proof read it, and said “I hope you do not consider this a beginner tutorial, because you lost me after the first sentence”. And he is right there, it is not a beginner tutorial, but he is quite an advanced graphics designer, and altho he has zero experience in Inkscape, it should not look scary to him. So there.. I went back to the drawing table and included some more clues, hints and tips. I think that anyone just above beginner level should be able to follow it now, and I also wrote an article which gives some clues how to start for an absolute beginner in Inkscape.
The tutorial is a walkthrough on how to create a fashion design, a fashionable woman blowing away some flowers, in vintage colours so it has a bit of a retro style to it. It is based on a stock photo and done in Inkscape. Check it out at verysimpledesigns.com.
