XaraLX Gel button

[conholster]

Hello again. Before doing this tutorial I recommend reading my previous tutorials – Fill tool, Working with colors and Transparency tool. Not mandatory, but they will help you get the most out this one.

In this tutorial we're gonna create a gel button. Some might argue that it's quite pointless as you can find how-to-gelbutton tutorials all around the web. Personally I think it's an excellent way of learning the basics of  vector illustration, plus you get to use most of the stuff from my earlier tutorials. It's quite easy, it looks very cool, only takes a few minutes to finish and the girls/boys are gonna be all over you screaming amazing!

Step 1 – Named color

Create a new named color. Click Utilities->Galleries->Colour Gallery or press F9. Click New and name the colour GelBase, then click Create. Now in the Color Editor make it dark red, doesnt really matter what color as long as it's dark.

Step 2 – Shade of color

Create another named color, check “Make the color a shade of:” and select GelBase in the drop-down menu, press Create. In the CE move the crosshair to a brighter shade of red.

You should now have to named colors GelBase and Shade of GelBase.

Step 3 – Button bottom

Create a rectangle using the Rectangle tool. Make the corners round by clicking the “Curved corners” icon on the options toolbar.

Adjust the corners until they're almost an oval shape. Remove the line color and set the fill to GelBase.



Select the Fill tool and give the shape a Linear gradient. Set the Start color to “Shade of GelBase”. The gradient should be about half light/half dark.



Step 4 – The highlight

Clone the shape (Control+K) and change it's fill to flat and set it's color to white. Right click the white shape and select “Convert to Editable Shapes” (fourth from the bottom of the menu).

Now select the Shape Editor tool by pressing F4 or clicking the icon . If the white shape is selected it should have 4 or 8 nodes depending on how oval you made it. Select the bottom two nodes by either rubberband selection or clicking them individually while holding the Shift key down. Nodes turn red when they're selected.

Using the up arrow key on your keybord, move the bottom nodes upwards about 1/3 of the bottom shapes height.

Switch to the selector tool (press F2) and make the shape a few pixels smaller than the bottom by holding the Shift key down (so the shape doesn't move around), click and drag one of the corner handles towards the center of the shape. Use the Shape Editor tool to make the shape longer by selecting the rightmost nodes and move them with the keyboards arrowkeys, just like before. Same for the leftmost nodes. Counting keyboard presses helps make them even.

And finally use the Transparency tool to make a Linear transparency.



Step 5 – Bottom blur

Clone the highlight and move it to the bottom. “Press” it to make it narrow and then using the Feather tool (on the toolbar, says None by default), make it really blurry . Remove it's transparency and set it's fill to “Shade of GelBase”. If you think it looks too bright give it a flat transparency, you decide how much.

Make it a little higher and wider than what I've done here. It should overlap the highlight a little bit.



Step 6 – Shadow

Make a clone of the bottom shape, move it to the back (Control+B). Change it's fill to flat set it's color to GelBase. Make it larger by holding Shift key down and click-drag one of the corner handles outward. Now use the Feather tool to blur, apply enough blur so it's no longer visible. Move it down with the arrow keys.


Step 7 – Finish up

Select all by either pressing Control+A or rubberband selection. Press Control+G to group it. You're done, good job!

Change color of the Gel button

This is when defining the named colors really pay off. Press F9 to open the Color Gallery. Select GelBase and then click Edit. Move the crosshair around to change colors.



There's no such thing as I-did-it-once-and-got-it-perfect. Practice makes perfect.

Whew, that's all for this time. I hope you enjoyed this one Cya later.