How do I do this is Xara?

[Citywolf]

This abstract effect shown and described here:

http://blog.spoongraphics.co.uk/tuto...in-illustrator

I don't know if the brush controls in Illustrator have equivalents in Xara and I just can't find them.

Thanks, Dan.

[Su Lawrence]

Hi Citywolf

For the curving lines I would use a blend rather than a brush.

To get the lines the correct shape to blend with and to get a stripey effect: Draw your curved line at 48pt, convert it to a shape (arrange menu > convert line to shape) and give it a 12pt line. Select the two nodes at each end (marquee/drag select with shape editor tool) and break at points (option in the shape editor infobar). Delete these two short end lines.

You should now have two 12pt lines which are the correct wave shape to blend properly. Change colour of one line so you can see what you are doing and apply a blend (make sure you have 1:1 enabled in the blend info bar). Then reduce blend to 3 steps. Ahh you've actually got five lines there ... but you can just delete one if you like.

Convert blend to shapes and ungroup, then adjust lines as necessary.

Hopefully that all makes sense, please let me know if you need more info.

Regards

Su

[Citywolf]

Brilliant. Thanks for the tech help. Dan

[csehz]

Hi Sue,

I am just trying your method, but was not sure whether the lines at the beginning should be straight, or can be already curved before doing the blend? I assume that is not possible to curve the 48pt line, doing the blend and having them without those white space?


Abstract_lines_try.xar

thanks,

[mwenz]

The reason why to use a blend is because Xara's brushes are very rudimentary.

Try this. Zoom in so your blend fills the screen. Hold the CTRL key down and click on the right most line. Now slowly move it closer to the one to its left. The whole blend will move and eventually they will begin to overlap. Stop the overlap as the last of the white space goes away.



Take care, Mike

[csehz]

Sue sorry please ignore me, finally understood your method, anyway really brilliant I would never find out by myself

The "give it a 12pt line" is the key where has been lost at the first try and did not do that, after there is no need any manual adjustment because the blend exactly fit as the 48pt distance is distributed equally for 12pt lines



Abstract_lines_try2.xar

[Rik]

Hi Su.

I can't get your method to work.
When I apply the blend, firstly, I get the result in Fig1.
Then if I convert the lines into shapes again, then I get a better result.
But, you can see that it's not acceptable.

I must be missing something.

[csehz]

Hi, let me attach how I understood Sue's method, beautiful is that logic that an outline gives the end lines and between them the 3 steps blend exactly gives the middle ones



Blending_lines.xar

[Black Panther]

Great work csehz, i like your work with the blend tool, sometimes you need to adjust the blend manually as Mike said in post #5 not only for the white space but as general with the blend work.
Best regards
BP

[wizard509]

Most of the time I still get the same result as Rik.