How to use the Scribble effect in Vectornation by Zaweba

Perfectly flat fills can make an illustration feel cold. The Scribble effect in Vectornation by Zaweba replaces a solid fill with lines that look as though someone shaded the shape by hand, back and forth with a pen or crayon. Because it is a live effect, the shape stays a clean path underneath and you can switch the scribble off or change its settings at any time.

It is the right tool for children's books, friendly icons, packaging with a crafted feel and posters that want energy rather than polish.

The main settings

Scribble has five settings, and each has a variation control alongside it, so the lines can be perfectly regular or pleasantly uneven.

Angle sets the direction of the strokes. A diagonal angle feels natural for right handed shading; horizontal or vertical strokes look more deliberate and graphic.

Overlap decides how far the strokes run past the edge of the shape. A little overlap looks lively and hand drawn. None at all keeps the scribble tidy inside the outline. Large values look loose and messy, which can be right for a sketchy style.

Stroke width sets how thick each line is. Thin strokes give fine hatching; thick ones read more like marker or crayon.

Curviness controls how sharply the line turns at the end of each pass. Low curviness gives sharp zig zags. Higher values give looping turns, more like a pen moving quickly.

Spacing sets the gap between passes. Close spacing gives dense, almost solid colour. Wide spacing lets the background show through and looks lighter.

Variation is what makes it look human

Each setting has variation, and this is the part that turns a mechanical pattern into something believable. A small variation on angle and spacing makes the strokes wobble the way a hand does. Variation on stroke width gives the feel of pressure changing as you shade.

Add variation a little at a time. Too much and the fill becomes chaotic and hard to read at small sizes.

Starting from presets

Scribble comes with presets, which are a good way to see what the effect can do before you start adjusting numbers. Pick the closest one, then change one setting at a time. It is easier to understand what each control does when you only move one at once.

Using scribble well in a design

Scribble works best on simple, medium to large shapes. On very small shapes the strokes do not have room to read and the fill turns to noise. On huge shapes, widen the spacing and stroke width so the lines stay visible from a distance.

Use different angles on neighbouring shapes so they separate clearly, much as an artist changes the direction of shading on different surfaces. Keep the same stroke width and curviness across an illustration so it looks drawn with one tool.

Scribble also sits happily with an ordinary stroke on the outline. A solid outline around a scribbled fill gives the classic colouring book look, while no outline at all looks looser and more painterly.

Things to check before output

Live effects are flexible, but a cutter, plotter or laser needs plain paths. If your artwork is going to one of those, make sure what you send is plain shapes, and keep a live copy for later changes. For print, view the artwork at its real size to make sure the strokes do not fill in or vanish.

Scribble is one of the friendlier effects in Vectornation, and it rewards a light touch. A few minutes with the presets and the variation controls will show you whether a design wants that hand made warmth.