How to create this Efect (Organic desktop)

**sparcx** · 01 April 2007, 02:06 PM

Hi,

i am new to this Forum and to XaraXtreme.

Any ideas how to create an efect like this
http://www.webdesign.org/web/vector-...ops.10326.html

I know xara doesn't have a gradient grid tool like Illustrator.

thnx. sparcx

**jamesmc** · 01 April 2007, 03:34 PM

Didn't have much time to dedicate to this, but how I would approach is using strokes. Then using Linear transparencies on the strokes after converting to shapes.

**Ross Macintosh** · 01 April 2007, 03:37 PM

Sparcx -- just to see how I might do something like that I played with it for about 15 minutes. I attach the result as a jpg preview and the .xar (Xtreme Pro) file so you can disect it if you want. I totally ignored the method in the tutorial -- I didn't even read it so it wouldn't influence my approach. My Xara wave is made with a blend between two transparent shapes that each have gradient fills and feathering. An overlay with an eliptical transparency helps define the shape. A small feathered highlight was also been added. The xar file uses three layers -- they have editing turned off in the download.

The Xara file is under 9k in size.

Regards, Ross

**masque** · 01 April 2007, 05:01 PM

Like Ross I didn't look to see how it was done in Illustrator as descriptions of how anything is done in Illustrator always gives me a headache. I didn't look to see how Ross did his either which might have been a better idea, but here's my effort a little bit streakier than the original now I come to look but not a bad approximation. All done with tapered lines, transparency and feathering. I suspect that every reply you get will have a different solution.
Derek

**colin_e** · 01 April 2007, 07:32 PM

Looks like we're all heading the same way here (blends between strokes converted to shapes, with transparency and feathering), although everyone else's execution is rather better than mine ;-)

**Ross Macintosh** · 01 April 2007, 08:00 PM

Nice effects guys!

Mine doesn't really look like the original. Seeing the original I had the idea of the surface flowing like a wave and then that's what I was trying to achieve. Looking at mine now it looks like the eyelid of a Great Blue Whale

Pixar style.

Regards, Ross

**Mike Bailey** · 02 April 2007, 03:19 AM

I goofed around with it for a few minutes. I used eye candy gradient glow for the fog.

**colin_e** · 02 April 2007, 05:06 PM

Blends are fun aren't they ;-)

**sparcx** · 03 April 2007, 10:14 PM

Hey thnx everybody, very nice inspirations.
Colin, could you post the .xar file of your last attempt?

sparcx

**gnurf** · 04 April 2007, 09:06 AM

As we see it can be done in many ways. My technique is to use a couple of wide lines with various widths and stroke shapes and some fiddling with the feathering profiles. Done in 5-10 minutes.