Basic Text Effects with Gradients, Patterns and Brush Strokes in Illustrator

1st Word

Filling Text with a Gradient

Step 1:

Create your text in Illustrator. Use a thick, chunky text so you can see the fill.

Make sure you have a fill color, stroke color and weight set for your text before you do anything else.

Step 2:

Expand the text. (Object > Expand, click OK.) This turns it into an object.

Now you can fill it with a gradient by clicking on a gradient swatch in the swatches palette. If you want, you can change the angle of the gradient by using the gradient tool in the tool box (Click and drag the tool the direction you want the gradient to flow) or by typing in an angle in the gradient palette. Of course, you can adjust the colors in the gradient just like any filled object by moving the distribution diamonds on the top of the gradient ramp preview window, or by adjusting the gradient stops at the bottom of the gradient ramp preview window.

Alternate Method:

If you prefer, you can also use the Create Outlines method: After typing your text, click the selection tool to get a bounding box on the text, then go to Type > Create Outlines, and fill the text with a gradient as above.

If you want to use different fills in the letters, you will need to ungroup the text first (Object > Ungroup) or select each letter separately with the direct selection tool

2nd Word

Adding a Gradient Stroke to Text

If you try to add a gradient stroke to text, you will find that even if the stroke button is active, the gradient applies to the fill -- not the stroke. You can add a gradient to a stroke, but there's a trick to it.

Type your text and set the fill color as you like. You can use any stroke color since this will change when you add the gradient.

Again, use a thick, chunky font for this exercise.

The stroke is 3 pt magenta. Decide the text fill color before proceeding, because once you proceed, you won't be able to change it.

Convert the Stroke to an Object

Type a word and select fill and stroke colors. Increase the stroke size to at least 10 (you should be able to see enough of the fill color to read the word; if you can't see all of the letter form, reduce the stroke size until it is visible).

Convert the stroke to an object using one of these two methods:

Method 1

Object > Expand. Click OK. Then go to Object > Path > Outline Stroke. The stroke is no longer a stroke: it's an object, and can be filled like any object.

…OR…

Method 2

Go to Type > Create Outlines, then Object > Path > Outline Stroke. (Note: If Create Outlines is grayed out, click the selection arrow in the tool box and try again.)

Then:

Using the Direct Selection tool, select the expanded stroke of one letter at a time. Then click a gradient swatch in the swatches palette to fill the expanded stroke with a gradient. This is the rainbow gradient in the Default RGB swatches palette.

The results will be the same whichever method you use.

If you want to change the gradient, use the direct selection tool to select just the text outline, and click another gradient in the palette.

Note, however, that in letters like "B" and "O" that have a hole inside the letter form, you will have to select the center stroke separate from the outer one, but if you hold the shift key, you can select multiple strokes.

3rd Word

How to Fill the Stroke with a Pattern Instead of Gradient

The expanded stroke can also be filled with patterns from the swatches palette.

Follow one of the methods used above to create letters with expanded strokes.

Select the stroke color swatch at the bottom of the tools panel. Set the stroke size to 10 or higher.

From the Swatches panel, click on the 3-line icon at the upper right and go to Open Swatch Library > Patterns > Nature > Nature_Foliage to find the floral pattern used as a stroke in this example.

See a screenshot of how to get to the patterns.

Use a word that fits whatever pattern you choose (like using "flowers" for a flower pattern).

4th Word

Filling Text with a Pattern

Step 1:

Create your text.

Step 2:

Either expand the text with Object > Expand, or use the Create Outlines command on the text menu.

Step 3:

Load a pattern file in the swatches palette. Click the swatches palette options menu, choose Open Swatch Library, then Other Library from the bottom of the menu. You will find a lot of great patterns in the Presets > Patterns folder of your Illustrator CS folder.

Step 4:

Click the pattern you want to apply, and if you want to apply different patterns to the individual letters, make sure to ungroup (Object > Ungroup) the text or use the direct selection arrow to select one letter at a time and apply the pattern.

These fills are from the Nature_Animal Skins pattern file in the Presets > Patterns > Nature folder. A two pixel black stroke was applied.

5th Word

Using Brush Strokes on Type

Step 1:

Start by creating the type you want to stroke with a brush. Set your fill and stroke colors, and make sure the stroke chip is active in the toolbox.

Click the selection tool in the toolbox, and go to Type > Create Outlines to make the text into a group of individual objects. The text will no longer be editable with the text tool.

I decided to fill this text with the jaguar pattern from the Nature_Animal Skins pattern.

Step 2:

Now open the brush palette and choose a brush to edge the type. This is one of the paintbrushes from the Artistic_Paintbrush brush sets in the Presets > Brushes folder. It was too wide so I changed the stroke width to 0.50 in the Stroke palette. The font is Cooper Black.