Tips and Tricks #2: Pen Tool

Many people have been asking us various questions about the pen tool and we decided to write a short blog post about it before we publish our complete manual in early 2018.

Those of you who are completely new to vector graphic design will quickly discover that the pen tool is one of the most powerful yet simplest tools available. It helps creating any 2D shape imaginable. Let’s start with the basics and for that, just select the pen tool in the toolbar on the left.

Tap on the canvas to add a corner point. Multiple taps will create a path with multiple “sharp” corners.

The pen tool also supports making curved edges. Just tap on a corner point and drag. Two handles will appear which allow controlling the curve.

Moving handles independently is possible by dragging a handle and placing another finger on the canvas simultaneously.

To close a path, tap the first node of the path. Tapping the pen tool in the toolbar or double tapping the last node will finish the path without closing it.

To continue editing an unclosed path, just select the path with the selection tool. Choose the pen tool afterwards and tap on one of the end nodes of the path. The path will be extended from this node.

Let us know in the comment section below what you would like to read about next!

- The Vectornator Team