New Year - New Skills

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The first moments of this New Year found me downloading a free month of Photoshop/Illustrator in preparation for an online Illustrator class with Nicole's Classes.  After following her blog for months wishing to take Illustrator 101, I jumped at the chance with a Cyber Monday discount. 
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It's mind blowing and frustrating and gratifying and fun all together.  This is week two of class, and already our instructor has nicely taken us through a number of tools and Illustrator concepts.  Week one homework was to create a typography poster using our text sizing and coloring skills.  I wanted to be a lot hipper, but not so much after I saw the other participants' cool work.  Not bad though.  

Today, however, I hit gold!  I have been CRAZY to have the dashed line to frame my label.  A simple thing, I know, but as a modern sewist, I want my label to have that stitched frame.  Now I know.  (Hint:  Rectangle tool with stroke adjustments.) The frame design isn't perfect today, but it will be.  The lessons also covered pen and pencil tools, shapes, and line draw.  I found myself doodling and made another poster design.   
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My mission is twofold.  One, my embroidery software seems to be based on Illustrator type tools and I need to create vector graphics to digitize embroidery designs properly.  Second, I want to create my own graphics for everyday marketing, packaging, and labeling of my work and blog.  There is also a design in mind to send to Spoonflower for calicodaisy fabric printed to line my goods.  

Stop by Nicole's Classes and see all the interesting subjects offered -- just saw the new floral design and blog classes.