Operation Manual
157
USING ILLUSTRATOR
Painting
Last updated 11/8/2011
Place the updated Arrowheads.ai file at: <Illustrator home>\Plug-ins\ and avoid replacing the existing
Arrowheads.ai file.
Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool
Use the Blob Brush tool to paint filled shapes that you can intersect and merge with other shapes of the same color.
The Blob Brush tool uses the same default brush options as calligraphic brushes. (See “Calligraphic brush options” on
page 175.)
Path created with a Calligraphy brush (left); path created with the Blob Brush tool (right)
To see a video on using the Blob Brush tool, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4018_ai. To see an example of using the Blob
Brush to create a complex drawing, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_blob_brush_en.
More Help topics
“Paintbrush tool options” on page 173
Blob Brush tool guidelines
When using the Blob Brush tool, keep the following guidelines in mind:
• To merge paths, they must be adjacent in stacking order.
• The Blob Brush tool creates paths with a fill and no stroke. If you want your Blob Brush paths to merge with existing
artwork, make sure that the artwork has the same fill color and no stroke.
• When drawing paths with the Blob Brush tool, new paths merge with the topmost matching path encountered. If
the new path touches more than one matching path within the same group or layer, all of the intersecting paths are
merged together.
• To apply paint attributes (such as effects or transparency) to the Blob Brush tool, select the brush and set the
attributes in the Appearances panel before you start drawing.
• You can use the Blob Brush tool to merge paths created by other tools. To do this make sure that the existing
artwork does not have a stroke; then set up the Blob Brush tool to have the same fill color, and draw a new path that
intersects all of the paths that you want to merge together.
Create merged paths
Remember that paths with strokes cannot be merged.
1 Select the path into which you want to merge a new path.
2 In the Appearances panel, deselect New Art Has Basic Appearance. When this option is deselected, the Blob Brush
tool uses the attributes of the selected artwork.
3 Select the Blob Brush tool , and make sure it uses the same appearances as the selected artwork.