Path Patterns and Fill Patterns

Less than a month into my graphic design classes and I'm already in love with them. In a computer software class, we're learning about the power of the Adobe Creative Suite (namely Illustrator), and we've been working a lot in it. The pictures on this post are all various results.

Our latest assignment was to create fill patterns (repeating patterns within a shape) and path patterns (basically just borders). My design à la gauche ->


I'm incredibly drawn to textiles as well as vintage things, folksy things, and foreign things. What better inspiration then than traditional Russian embroidery? Their patterning is breathtakingly detailed and gorgeous. I took various  cross-stitch patterns, mixed and matched, and made them into vector patterns: Each cross stitch of the original pattern (which is so conveniently a square) is represented by a single, computer vector square. Every single one. Once I got the hang of it, it just became a lot of double-checking and aligning, and it wasn't too difficult. 


Definitely time consuming, but what amazing results. I've now got great patterns to use as stationary, borders, letters, wrapping paper, or cloth.