Color, Strokes, and Fills > Applying fills > Applying tiled fills

 

Applying tiled fills

Tiled fills are patterns based on a repeating object, or tile, that you create from graphics or text pasted into the Fill inspector. You cannot create a tiled fill from an EPS image, bitmap image, another tiled fill, or a lens-filled object.

To create and apply a tiled fill:

1

Copy the graphics or text you want to use as a tile.

2

Select the object you want to fill.

3

In the Fill inspector, choose Tiled from the fill type list.

4

Click Paste In to paste the tile in the preview window.

5

For Angle, enter a value or drag the wheel to set the tile's orientation.

6

In the scale entry text boxes, enter x and y percentage values to resize the tile.

7

In the offset entry text boxes, enter values to shift the tile's position within the object being filled:

Positive x values move the fill to the right; negative values move it left.

Positive y values move the fill up; negative values move it down.

To create a tiled fill with space between its tiles:

1

Draw a rectangle with a stroke and fill of None around the object you want to use as a tile. The stroke width determines the space between tiles.

2

Select the object and the rectangle and create a tiled fill as described in the preceding procedure.

To copy a tile from a filled object:

1

Select the object that contains the tiled fill you want to copy.

2

In the Fill inspector, the tile object appears in the preview window. Click Copy Out to copy the tile object to the Clipboard.

You can now copy the tile object into your document or use it to create a tiled fill for another object.

To shift a tiled fill's position within a selected object:

1

Choose Window > Panels > Transform to display the Transform panel, and deselect the Fills option.

2

Drag the object with the Pointer tool. The object moves, but the tiled fill stays in place.

3

In the Transform panel, select Fills. When you move the object now, the tiled fill moves with the object.