How to: Create Textures for design projects

I like creating textures that I can use in my design and illustration work. I like to create them with traditional methods and scan them. For me, this method is easier than using digital brushes in Photoshop and results in more organic textures.

Once you get the hang of this, the sky is the limit as to the materials you can use and textures you can create. And, when you have them scanned, you can combine textures to get even more variety.

I think that adding these textures to design projects can make any piece stand out.

Tools: acrylic paint, watercolor paints, colored pencils, charcoal, paper, cardboard, etc.

(top left: paint splatters/drips and loop texture created with pencil)

For this texture, I decided to see what I could get out of cardboard. It has a kind of built in texture because of the layered nature of the product. I set to cut it up to expose the inside thinking I could get an industrial, decayed, worn type of texture. I cut up the surface with a utililty knife(careful, that blade is sharp) and peeled off random sections to reveal the cardboard structure below. I then painted the surface white kind of skimming the surface to reveal more of the texture. This method is called "scumbling" in painting lingo. I used white because I wanted the lines cut into the cardboard to be black in the final version of the texture.

After the paint dried, I scanned the cardboard. Now that I had the texture in Photoshop, I can do just about anything to it. I usually convert the image to black & white and up the contrast with the levels adjustment to bring out the texture. I then lay the texture over a flat colored backgroud. The sky is the limit as to what you can do. Have fun.

Textures used in my illustration work.

From a series of textures that I call, "Acid Wash"

iPhone Mobile Portfolio

Many creative types know about this but I thought I'd post this just in case. You can use your iPhone as a mobile portfolio. I haven't had a printed portfolio in years. With my web site and pdf's, there hasn't been a need for one. Now I have a portfolio on my iPhone which I use to show my work when I meet the old school way, "face-to-face".
Sure you could dial up your web site on your iPhone but what if you are not in reach of a wi-fi zone and don't want to wait for the Edge Network to load your site. Having a portfolio on your iPhone is fast.

Here is how to put one together: first, get all your images together, rasterize them (72dpi and I made mine at 400px wide) using your favorite image editing software. Next, open iPhoto and make a new album and title it whatever you like. Next, drag all the images that you prepped for your porfolio into this album. You can rearrange the images to your hearts content. Plug your phone into your computer, click to select your phone in iTunes, go to the photos tab and make sure that your new album is selected to sync. Now sync. Your new portfolio will be an album under the photos section. You can even play it as a slideshow. Impressive.