Welcome to our
Illustrator in 60 Seconds series, in which you can learn an Illustrator skill,
feature, or technique in just a minute!

Illustrator in 60
Seconds: How to Install and Use a Custom Swatch Pattern

The ability to add and use custom swatch patterns is probably one of Illustrator’s most attractive features, but sometimes the actual process of adding them can prove to be a difficult task, especially if you’ve never done it before. In today’s tutorial, I’ll show you how you can make it look easy.

The swatch pattern used in this tutorial is available to purchase from GraphicRiver.

How to Install and Use a Custom Swatch Pattern

Step 1

So you want to expand your pattern library using a new set that you’ve just gotten your hands on. But you’ve never actually done it before.

If that’s the case, you’ll want to start by extracting your new assets from their archives since most of the time they come pre-packed that way.

Step 2

Once you’re done, you can open up Illustrator and bring up the Swatches panel, where you’ll want to access the Swatch Libraries menu and look for Patterns.

As you can see, there are a couple of included patterns that the software comes pre-packed with.

Step 3

But since we want to add some new ones, we need to click on Other Library. A new window will pop up allowing us to indicate the location of our new pattern set so that we can load and use it.

Now since the set isn’t located within the software’s default folders, we’ll have to manually add it by going over to Swatches and then Patterns and creating a new folder inside it which we’ll name Custom Patterns. As soon as you’ve added your assets within the new folder, your patterns will show up within the Swatch Libraries menu, where you can select and use them as you please.

A Bit More Detail

Learn more about Adobe Illustrator on Envato Tuts+:

• 

  How to Create a Winter Fair Isle Pattern in Adobe Illustrator

  In this tutorial, you will learn how to create an ornamental traditional winter pattern (similar to the ones on your cozy sweaters) within the grid, using…
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  How to Create a Simple Geometrical Pattern in Adobe Illustrator

  In this Quick Tip tutorial, you’ll learn how to create a simple and trendy geometrical pattern, the quick and easy way.
• 

  How to Create the Carpet Pattern From “The Shining” in Adobe Illustrator

  In today’s tutorial we’re going to continue with the Horror Movie Special, and learn how to create the trippy carpet pattern from Stanley Kubrick’s “The…

60 Seconds?!

This is part of a series of quick video
tutorials on Envato Tuts+ in which we introduce a
range of subjects, all in 60 seconds—just enough to whet your appetite. Let us know
in the comments what you thought of this video and what else you’d like to see
explained in 60 seconds!