Part 3: NN Lettering Tools .brushset
Explore this set of brushes containing the essentials for drawing helpful guides and beautiful letters.
The tools in this set are based on my techniques and process for creating consistent and balanced lettering compositions.
Let’s dive into the contents of this set.
Brush Types:
1. Drawing Brushes
Nic Pencil Brush* – thin brush used for light pencil drafts or practice sketches.
Nic Detail Brush* – medium-sized brush used for adding details on illustrations to give depth.
Nic Drawing Brush* – main drawing brush to create your letters.
These brushes are designed to adjust with pressure and speed. Harder pressure gives a thicker stroke. A faster movement gives a thinner, faded look.
2. Weight Brushes
The weight brushes are for creating guides to help you achieve consistency in the weights of your letters.
Use the Flat Weight Brushes when you only need vertical strokes, and use the Circular Weight Brushes when you have curved parts in your letters.
Use the smaller (S) weight brush for the thinner strokes of your letters, and use the larger (L) weight brush for the thicker parts of your letter.
3. Texture Brushes
Use the texture brushes for the background or foreground.
4. Letter Spacers
Spacing letters correctly can be challenging. The Letter Spacer brushes will help you size and space your letters without having to make a lot of adjustments later on.
The Letter Spacer brushes are available in different sizes (box ratio) depending on the desired width of your letters – from narrow letters to wide letters.
To use these brushes, add one box for each letter, space the boxes mechanically, and adjust them optically.
How to use:
Watch the video and follow the step-by-step instructions below.
Let’s use an arc layout shape to use as an example.
Step 1
On a new layer, draw a series of boxes - one box for each letter.
First, select the appropriate size of the Letter Spacer brush, then draw a line. Make sure to hold the pen until Procreate converts it into a line. Then use your other finger to tap the screen to lock the boxes in a horizontal path.
Move your pen horizontally to adjust the spacing of the boxes.
Step 2
Adjust the widths of the boxes depending on the width of the letters.
If you have wider letters (e.g. M, W), use the Rectangle Selection Tool to select half of the box, then move it horizontally (using the Transform tool with Magnetics turned on) to widen the area.
Step 3
If you have narrower letters (e.g. I), reduce the width of the box by erasing the middle parts of the box, then close the gap by selecting one side & moving it towards the other to form a closed box.
Step 4
(Optional) Draw quick letter sketches in the boxes and adjust the spacing of the boxes optically.
Step 5
Transform the boxes to fit into your layout shape.
Start by transforming the boxes (in Freeform) to size them correctly. Then use the Warp or Distort tools for your layout shapes that are not rectangular.
Step 6
On a new layer, use the weight brushes to draw your letters’ weight guides.
Step 7
Finally, use the drawing brush to draw your final letters.
Note:
You may refer to alphabet guides to know which letters are narrower, a little bit narrower, normal, a little wider, and wider.
And to correctly space your letters, the whitespace between each letter must be optically uniform.
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