Snowflake designs come in handy this time of year. Whether they’re on cards, gift tags, prints, stickers, etc, snowflakes are a really useful design to use for the holidays. Today I wanted to try to make some snowflakes using the symmetry tool in Procreate. Even if you’re a beginner, you can easily create snowflakes this way. Follow the steps below to learn how to make your own custom snowflake.
Supplies:
- iPad Pro (I used a 12.9 inch)
- Procreate App (this tutorial uses version 4.2.2)
- Apple Pencil (recommended)
Step 1
- Open Procreate.
- Click the plus sign on the top right of the screen to create a new canvas.
- The size will vary depending on how the snowflake will be used. I used the preset square canvas (2048 x 2048px).
Step 2
- Tap the wrench icon on the top left of the screen to get to the “Actions.”
- Tap “Canvas.” Turn the “Drawing Guide” on.
- Tap “Edit Drawing Guide.”
Step 3
- In the Drawing Guide tap “Symmetry.”
- Turn on “Assisted Drawing” and “Rotational Symmetry.”
- Tap “Radial” in the bottom right corner so multiple lines appear on the screen.
- Tap “Done” on the top right corner of the screen.
Step 4
- Depending on what you’re using the snowflake for, you may want to use color. Select a color that you like before drawing. I chose a shade of blue.
- Tap the brush icon at the top of the screen to bring up the “Brush Library.”
- Select a monoline brush. I used the “Monoline” brush that comes with Procreate and is located in the “Calligraphy” section.
- Use the top slider on the left of the screen to set the brush size. You can make it as thick or thin as you like. I set mine to 60%.
- Use the bottom slider to set the brush opacity. I set mine to 100%.
Step 5
- Using your Apple Pencil or your finger, draw a straight line starting from the center of the screen and tracing one of the symmetrical guidelines. This should reflect all around the screen creating 8 lines.
- To draw a straight line, hold your pencil down and after some time the line should straighten. You could also draw the line and tap your finger next to it to create a straight line.
Step 6
- Tap the layer icon at the top right of the screen. Tap the + sign to create a new layer.
- Tap on the layer and when the options appear turn the “Drawing Assist” on. The layer should now be labeled with the word “Assisted.”
Step 7
- Use a straight line to draw a branch coming out of the side of the main line you drew. This should reflect all around the snowflake.
- In the top menu, tap the arrow icon to select the branches.
- Swipe down with three fingers on your screen and when the options appear tap “Copy & Paste.”
- With the copied branches selected, on the bottom of the screen under “Freeform” tap “Flip Horizontal.”
- The copied branches will flip so that the snowflake should look something like the image above.
- Tap the arrow icon again to deselect the branches.
Step 8
- Repeat step 7, starting with adding a new layer for each branch you want to create.
- Pay attention to the length of the branches. Longer branches may create a shape or cross when flipped.
Step 9
- Leave the snowflake as it is or add shapes.
- Create a new layer and turn on “Drawing Assist.”
- Draw a shape where you want it. If you want a perfect shape, draw your shape and continue to hold down your pencil until the”Edit Shape” option appears at the top of the screen.
- You’ll be given options related to your shape. Choose the shape you want such as “Circle.”
- Add as many shapes as you want for an interesting snowflake.
- You can also add extra lines between the main lines if you want more points.
Step 10
- Once you’ve completed your snowflake, merge the layers.
- You can do this by pinching the layers together with your fingers or by tapping the top layer and then tapping “Merge Down” until all the layers are merged.
Step 11
- Finish preparing the file. If you want to change the color of the entire snowflake, you can grab a color and drag it onto the snowflake.
- Use the eraser to clean up any areas that need fixing.
- If you want to export your snowflake as a PNG file with a transparent background, turn the background color off.
- When you’re ready to save your file, tap the wrench icon.
- Tap “Share.”
- Decide what format to save it in depending on what you’re using it for.
- I saved it as a PNG.
- You might want to take the saved file into another program to finish it or resize it for the project you’re working on.
- Use the snowflakes for whatever you want. Have fun!
Step 12
- Make more snowflakes! The symmetry function in Procreate makes it easy to create many different types of snowflakes. Add more shapes, add more lines, change the size, change the color, etc. If you need some inspiration, I recommend looking up pictures of magnified snowflakes and listening to some festive music. Let it snow!
I found this very useful as an elderly beginner . Well written and explained simply but thoroughly. Only found the layer and assist difficult and not knowing if assist had to be added every time and can never understand why colour keeps reverting back to previous colour. Otherwise all ok. I will now practice until I gat a grip. This is my grandsons I pad and app he is an expert using it for his tattoo drawings but useless as a teacher showing grandma the way to use it.
I’m glad the tutorial was useful! Every time you create a new layer and want to draw with the symmetry function, you’ll need to turn the Drawing Assist on. You can see if assisted drawing is on because the layer will say “Assisted” on it. I’m not sure why the color was changing though.