Are
you always interested in creating new Adobe Illustrator brushes that
you can use in your designs to give them a special twist?

Well,
if you love the look of vintage designs and illustrations but never
knew exactly how to do it, then this tutorial is perfect for you. You
will learn how to make a brush in Illustrator (in this case an Art
Brush and a Pattern Brush), how to save it correctly, and how to apply
it to a set of fruit badges.

These
vintage brushes are easy to use to add texture, details, highlights
and shading in Illustrator, and you will be able to use them in many
future projects.

Expand
your brushes library by going to GraphicRiver, where you'll find a
great selection of brushes and textures in various styles, shapes, and themes.
Also, check out the vector icons and illustrations, where you will
find plenty of resources ready to be used along with these
Illustrator brushes.

Let's
start! 

Tutorial
Assets

To
complete the tutorial, you will need the following assets:

• Berry
  Badges


• Round
  Any Corner Script

1. How
to Open a New Document 

Launch
Illustrator
and
go to File
> New to
open a blank document. Type a name for your file, set up the
dimensions, and then select Pixels
as
Units
and
RGB
as
Color
Mode.

Next,
go to Edit
> Preferences > General and
set the Keyboard
Increment to
1
px and
while there, go to Units
to
make sure they are set as in the following image. I usually work with
these settings, and they will help you throughout the drawing process.

2. How
to Create a Vintage Art Brush in Adobe Illustrator

Step
1

Learning
how to make a brush in Illustrator can be an easy process, especially
for an Art Brush, and this is one of those cases. Grab the Line
Segment Tool (\) and draw a line on your artboard that's 156 px in
length. Give it a 9 pt Stroke and press the Round Cap option in the
Stroke panel to get the rounded ends.

Next,
go to Object > Expand to turn the stroke into a filled shape.

Step
2

Now,
we need to distort this shape a little. Use the Add Anchor Point Tool (+) to add extra points along the path in the areas
indicated. After that, move these points with the Direct Selection
Tool (A) to modify the shape. The aim is to get a thinner shape in
the middle area and a sharper tip.

Step
3

Continue
to distort the right end of this shape and make it look less
perfectly rounded. Once you are done, color the shape with off black.

Step
4

Take
the Pen Tool (P) and draw a short path at one end of the black shape.
Give it a 6 pt Stroke using the Width Profile 4, and select the
Round Cap option in the Stroke panel.

Continue
to draw similar paths along the shape and apply the same settings. I
would not recommend making copies of the first one because they need
to be slightly different. The end result of your vintage brush will
be more accurate.

Step
5

Select
all the spikes and go to Object > Expand Appearance to turn them
into shapes. Color them with the same off black, and now we are ready
to save the brush in Illustrator.

Select
all the shapes and drag them into the Brushes panel to be saved as a
New Art Brush. Type “Vintage Art Brush” as the name, select Tints
as the Colorization Method, and then hit OK. Easy, right?

3. How
to Create a Vintage Pattern Brush 

Step
1

Grab
the Line Segment Tool (\) again, and draw a path on your artboard at 45 degrees with a length of
64 px. Give it a 3 pt Stroke using any
color for the moment. While this path stays selected, go to Object >
Transform > Move and type 260 px in the Horizontal field. Hit Copy
and you will get a second path to the right.

Step
2

Keep
both paths selected and go to Object > Blend > Blend Options.
Choose 15 Specified Steps and then go back to Object > Blend >
Make (Alt-Control-B).

Next,
go to Object > Expand twice in order to expand the blend and
to turn the stroked lines into shapes. Ungroup (Shift-Control-G) all
the resulting stripes.

Step
3

While
all the stripes stay selected, go to Effect > Distort &
Transform > Roughen and apply the settings shown, followed by
Object > Expand Appearance to expand this effect.

Step
4

While
all the stripes stay selected, go to File > Scripts > Round Any
Corner and apply a Radius of 1 in order to get more rounded edges all
around.

Round
Any Corner is a great script and useful in many situations. Go to 20 Free and Useful Adobe Illustrator Scripts, follow the instructions to install it in Illustrator, and after
that, you will always find it in File > Scripts ready to be used.

Step
5

Now,
we are going to modify the stripes quite a bit to give them that
vintage look, and here is how to do it. Zoom in on one of the stripes
and grab the Eraser Tool (Shift-E). Start to delete a portion at the
top and make the stripe a little shorter.

Step
6

Do
the same thing for some other stripes, making them shorter at the top.
Focus more on the center area of the brush and leave the stripes at
the ends as they are (1).

Now,
let's repeat this process at the bottom and use the Eraser Tool
(Shift-E) again to delete portions of the stripes, as shown in the
image below (2). Take your time and remember that you don't have to
be too precise as we are trying to obtain a vintage look.

Step
7

How
to save a brush in Illustrator can be tricky sometimes,
especially when it comes to Pattern Brushes. Let me guide you through
the process and learn how to save a brush correctly.

Grab
the Rectangle Tool (M) and draw a rectangle starting from the bottom
end of the first stripe up to the top end. Make sure that the entire
first stripe is inside the rectangle, and it should go over the next
two stripes as well, but this is okay (1).

Copy
and Paste
in Front (Control-F)
the rectangle and move the copy to the end of the brush whilst
holding the Shift key to make sure they stay horizontally aligned.
Make the width of this shape smaller in order to cover only the top
portion of the last two stripes (2).

Finally,
draw another rectangle between them to cover the rest of the stripes
(3).

Step
8

Select
all the stripes and Group (Control-G) them. Make two copies in front
of the group because you need one for each of the three rectangles.

Now,
select one group of stripes along with the first rectangle, and press
Crop in the Pathfinder panel. This will cut that section, and you will
get the Start Tile of the Pattern Brush (1). Drag it into the
Swatches panel to save it.

Select
a copy of the stripes group along with the middle rectangle and press
Crop in the Pathfinder panel again. This will cut that section, and
you will obtain the Side Tile of the Pattern Brush (2).

Select
the second copy of the stripes group along with the third rectangle
and press Crop again. You will obtain the End Tile of the Pattern
Brush (3). Drag it into the Swatches panel to save it.

Step
9

Select
the middle section and drag it into the Brushes panel to save it as a
New Pattern Brush. Type “Vintage Pattern Brush 1” and notice that
the middle section already appears under the Side Tile (1).

As
the Start Tile (2), select the New Pattern Swatch 1 from the
drop-down options, which is the first section saved in the Swatches
panel.

As
the End Tile (3), select New Pattern Swatch 2 from the drop-down
options, which is the last section saved in the Swatches panel.

Finally,
under Inner Corner Tile (4), select Auto-Sliced and set the
Colorization Method to Tints. Hit OK and your new Illustrator brush
is now saved and ready to use.

Step
10

Following
the technique explained in this section of the tutorial, you can
create a bigger pattern brush with more details. It may look the same
as the one we just saved, but the fact that this one has more stripes
and more areas deleted with the Eraser Tool (Shift-E) will create a
different vintage brush stroke. It is definitely worth the effort to
make it, and you will use it in future projects as well.

Follow
the same steps and, once done, save it as “Vintage Pattern
Brush 2”.

4. How
to Use a Vintage Brush to Add Texture in Illustrator

Step
1

Now
that we have saved both brushes, Illustrator will display them in the
Brushes panel, and they are ready to be used. To demonstrate, I am
going to use this set of Berry Badges from Envato Elements. Open the vector file, and let's focus on the
cherries for the moment.

Step
2

Use
the Pen Tool (P) to draw a straight path along the middle of the leaf
but a little inclined (1). Stroke this path with the Vintage Art
Brush, which is the first brush we have created. Increase the Stroke
Weight to 2 pt and set the Blending Mode to Multiply to give it a jet
black color (2). You can also use other stroke colors, and the brush
will automatically change color as well.

We
need the spikes of the brush to go outwards and upwards, so
open the Stroke Options window from the Appearance panel to see the
settings. Check Flip Along and Flip Across and then hit OK (3).

Step
3

The
leaf of the cherry is made of two separate shapes. Select the top
half and then Copy and Paste in Place (Shift-Control-V) to make
a copy of it in front of everything (1). Keep this copy selected
along with the stroked path and go to Object > Clipping Mask >
Make (Control-7). As a result, the vintage brush will only be visible
and add details on that part of the leaf (2).

Step
4

Next,
draw a similar path on the bottom half of the leaf (1). Stroke it
with the Vintage Art Brush again and increase the Stroke Weight to 2
pt. This time, choose white as the stroke color and set the Blending
Mode to Soft Light (2).

Next,
select the bottom half shape of the leaf and then Copy and Paste in
Place (Shift-Control-V) to make a copy of it in front of everything.
Keep it selected along with the stroked path and go to Object >
Clipping Mask > Make (Control-7).

Step
5

Use
the Pen Tool (P) to draw a straight path along the middle of the
leaf; then give it a 6 pt Stroke using Width Profile 5 in the
Stroke panel (1).

Select
the two half shapes of the leaf and then Copy and Paste in Place
(Shift-Control-V) to make copies of them. Press Unite in the
Pathfinder panel to merge them into a single shape (2).

Keep
the newly obtained leaf shape selected along with the middle path and
go to Object > Clipping Mask > Make (Control-7). This will
define the midrib of the leaf and contribute to the vintage look
(3).

Step
6

Let's
add a simple highlight on the leaf. Use the Pen Tool (P) to draw a
curved path along the edge of the leaf; then give it a 5 pt Stroke
using the Width Profile 1 in the Stroke panel. Set the stroke color
to light green.

At
this point, we are done with the details on this leaf. Use the
techniques explained to transform the right leaf in the same way. The
settings remain the same.

5. How
to Use a Vintage Brush to Add Shading in Illustrator

Step
1

Focus
on the lower left side of the cherry and draw a curved path using the
Pen Tool (P) (1). Stroke it with the Vintage Pattern Brush 2 and
increase the Stroke Weight at 2 pt. You will get a nice vintage
shading texture (2).

Here
is how to create a criss-cross texture quickly. There is no need to use
other Illustrator texture brushes or make a separate new brush. All
you need is a simple trick.

Keep
the path selected and go to the Appearance panel. Press Add New
Stroke and you will get a second Stroke attribute above the first.
Use the same Vintage Pattern Brush 2 but keep the Stroke Weight at 1
pt. Double-click on this Stroke attribute to open the Stroke Options
window, and check Flip Along and Add space to fit. Hit OK, and the
cross-hatching is done (3).

Step
2

Select
all the shapes that make up the cherry and then Copy and Paste in
Place (Shift-Control-V) to make copies of them. Press Unite in the
Pathfinder panel to merge them into a single shape (1).

Keep
the newly obtained cherry shape selected, along with the stroked path,
and go to Object > Clipping Mask > Make (Control-7) (2). Once
done, apply the same technique to create the same vintage shading
look on the other cherry (3).

Step
3

Zoom
in on the cherry and draw an oval shape with the Pen Tool (P) or the
Ellipse Tool (L), as shown in the image below (1). Stroke it with the
Vintage Art Brush and reduce the Stroke Weight to 0.5 pt. This will
create another style of vintage shading at the base of the stem (2).

Do
the same thing for the other cherry.

6. How
to Use a Vintage Brush to Add Highlights in Illustrator 

First,
select and delete the two existing ellipses that are adding highlights to the
cherry because we will create a new one in a vintage style (1).

Use
the Pen Tool (P) to draw a slightly curved path on the right side; then
stroke it with the Vintage Pattern Brush 1, set the Stroke Weight to
0.75 pt, and reduce the Opacity to 70% (2).

Do
the same thing for the other cherry, and you can see what the cherries
look like at this point in the image below. 

7. How
to Enhance the Vintage Look With Strokes in Illustrator

Step
1

Select
the two shapes that make up each leaf and then Copy and Paste in
Place (Shift-Control-V) to make copies of them. Press Unite in the
Pathfinder panel and you will get two new leaf shapes. Apply a 4 pt
black Stroke.

Repeat
the same thing for the cherries, and once you get the two new cherry
shapes, give them a 4 pt black Stroke as well.

Step
2

Now,
select the stem shape along with the small end piece at the top, and
apply a 4 pt black Stroke using Width Profile 2 in the Stroke
panel.

These
simple strokes really make a difference to our design and improve the
overall vintage look of the badge.

8. How
to Use a Vintage Brush to Create Shadow in Adobe Illustrator

Step
1

Use
the Pen Tool (P) to draw a curved path at the bottom of the badge,
behind the cherries. Stroke it with the Vintage Pattern Brush 2 and
set the Stroke Weight to 3 pt (1).

Add
a New Stroke in the Appearance panel above the first, and use the same
brush but set the Stroke Weight to 2 pt. Open the Stroke Options
window, check Flip Along and Add space to fit, and then hit OK. This
will create the cross-hatching look, as you did before (2).

Set
this path to Blending Mode Soft Light and reduce the Opacity to 50%.
Make a copy of the badge circle and use it to mask this path to get a
clean design (3).

Step
2

As
a final step, select the badge circle and, along with the existing
light-blue fill color, also apply a 4 pt black Outside Stroke in order to
maintain the same style. At this point, the cherry badge is done.

9. Strengthen
Your Knowledge

Step
1

Practice
is the key, so continue to use and apply these Adobe Illustrator
brushes for another badge in the set. Let's focus on the blueberry
badge.

Here
is a sequence of images that can guide you through the same process
again. Use the same settings as before, and always mask the stroked
paths to get a clean design.

Step
2

As
an extra detail on the blueberries, use the Pen Tool (P) to draw
three short paths right between the two shapes that make up each
blueberry. Give them a 4 pt Stroke using black and Width Profile
4 in the Stroke panel (1).

Continue
to add the vintage style highlights, as you did for the cherries (2).

Step
3

You're almost done! It's time to use the Vintage Pattern Brush to create
the shadow behind the berries (1) and complete the design with a 4 pt
black Stroke applied to the badge circle. Press Align Stroke to
Outside in the Stroke panel to make it fully visible (2).

Step
4

Bring
back the purple background from the original file, and let's add a
shadow to make the badges stand out. Select the two badge circles and,
along with the existing appearances, also apply a Drop Shadow
effect by going to Effect > Stylize > Drop Shadow. Use the
settings shown in the image below and hit OK.

10. How
to Desaturate a Vector Illustration in Adobe Illustrator

The
new vintage badges that we have created are beautiful as they are, but
if you want to go one step further and obtain that specific faded
vintage look, here is how to do it fast. You can also apply this
technique to any other illustrations that you have.

Select
the background rectangle or draw a new one the same size as your
artboard. This shape should be in front of the illustration, so
go to Object > Arrange > Bring to Front (Shift-Control-]) to
make sure it is. Color the rectangle with pale gray and, after
that, set the Blending Mode to Saturation. Done! 

Tip:
Choose a darker shade of gray to obtain a cool black and white look.

Congratulations!
You're Done

Illustrator
texture brushes and all kinds of other brushes are always fun to use
because you can obtain a unique look and put your personal touch into
a design or illustration. Now you have the knowledge to create a
vintage look using brushes in Illustrator, so continue to apply them
in future projects. 

Expand
Your Adobe Illustrator Skills!

Don't
stop here! Continue drawing to expand your skills and learn many more
useful techniques. Here is a list of recommended tutorials that can
help you achieve this goal:

• 

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• 

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• 

  How to Make a Texture Brush in Illustrator

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• 

  How to Make a Watercolor Brush in Adobe Illustrator

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• 

  How to Make a Pickle Pattern Brush in Illustrator

  Learn how to make a creative pickle pattern brush in Adobe Illustrator and give it a special twist inspired by Pickle Rick.
  
  


• 

  How to Make a Tentacle Art Brush in Adobe Illustrator

  Learn how to make creative tentacle art brushes in Adobe Illustrator and use them to create a unique text effect.
  
  


• 

  How to Create a Grunge, Vintage Text Effect in Adobe Illustrator

  In the following steps you will learn how to create a grunge, vintage text effect in Adobe Illustrator.
  
  


• 

  How to Create a Vintage Spring Portrait of a Girl in Adobe Illustrator

  In this tutorial you'll get a step-by-step guide on how to create a vintage spring portrait of a girl in Adobe Illustrator.