Introduction
Hi guys. Welcome to another tutorial by yours truly: Stelamoris⭐
In this tutorial I'll show you how to get your clothes patterns to be more form-fitting instead of just flat, which can make your art look rather boring.
The tools I’ll be using for these adjustments are the Puppet Warp and Liquify Tool found in Clip Studio Paint.
Video Tutorial
For the video tutorial, please see the YouTube link below.
Let’s go 👗👖--> 💃🕺
Written Tutorial
To save time, I’ve already set up my document in Clip Studio Paint.
It has just two layers. One layer filled with blue and another layer with my character drawn onto it. The character is fully colored except for her pants which only has the outline.
I will be giving her a close-fitting pair of pants with a nice plaid pattern.
Setting up the Pattern
I start by creating a Layer Folder where I’ll put the layers with patterns into.
To do this, I click the New Layer Folder icon in the Layer Command bar to quickly create one. This Layer folder is to be below the layer that my character is on in the Layer palette.
I renamed this Layer Folder to ‘Pattern’.
Next is to get the pattern I wish to use onto the canvas.
I already have the pattern I want in my Materials palette; I just need to find it.
Thankfully, I easily found it by using the search bar.
While still on the ‘Pattern’ Layer Folder, I drag the pattern onto the canvas so that it’s added into the ‘Pattern’ Layer Folder.
I then resize it and rasterize it by going to the Layer menu > Rasterize.
The pattern is pretty big, so I need to trim it down so it's easier to work with while also leaving enough for the adjustments.
I use the Selection Area tool > Lasso sub tool to make a selection of suitable size on the pattern, then invert it by going to the Select menu > Invert selected area.
Then I delete the selected area by pressing the Delete icon on the Selection Launcher.
Next, I press the Deselect icon to cancel the selection.
The next step is to get the pattern to only show inside the line art of the pants.
To do this, I will need to mask the areas outside the pants on the ‘Pattern’ Layer Folder.
Note: the pattern layer is inside this ‘Pattern’ Layer folder.
I hide the pattern layer then click on the Layer with the pants outlined.
Then use the Selection Area tool > Magnetic Lasso sub tool to make a selection around the pants.
When done, I click back on to the ‘Pattern’ Layer Folder then I go to Layer menu > Layer Mask> Mask Outside Selection.
The mask is made, but it needs correcting as it’s not perfect yet.
I click on the mask in the Layer palette, then click the Mask Settings icon in the Layer Property bar. From the drop-down menu, I check the Show Mask Area option.
As shown, areas covered by the blue highlights are those that are hidden and vice versa.
While still on the mask, I use a Pen tool to erase the mask to show the contents and the Eraser tool/ Pen tool with transparent color selected to apply the mask which hides the contents beneath it.
When done, I unchecked the Show Mask Area option.
Then finally, I unhide the pattern layer.
Most people would stop here and call it a day.
But some of us would go further to make this pattern look more flattering on our character.
This is where the Puppet Warp comes in handy.
The Puppet Warp
To use the Puppet Warp, I click back onto the pattern layer then go to Edit menu > Transform > Puppet Warp.
Now, using the Puppet Warp, I will adjust the pattern in stages.
First, I focus on the waist area.
This is more useful than the Mesh Transformation as I decide where the pins go and the density.
Also, I can rotate the pins for more precise adjustments.
When done, I click ok.
Now, onto the next stage which is to do the right leg, which is to my left.
So, on the same layer with the pants waist adjusted, I use the Selection Area tool > Lasso sub tool to make a selection around the right leg keeping in mind the adjustments I plan to make.
Hence, it needs to start from the right hip area, be long enough to cover the length of the leg and wide enough to fit around the width of the leg.
Then I click the Copy and Paste icon from the Selection Launcher to easily copy the selection onto a new Layer.
I then canceled the selection and renamed the layer to L.
While on layer L, I activate the Puppet Warp.
I start with a few pins to move the pattern to match the direction of the right leg.
Then I add more pins for more adjustments.
I try to keep the pattern at the waist area the same, hence the line of pins near the bottom of the waist area.
When done, I finalize the Puppet Warp by pressing OK, then erase the unneeded parts from the pattern.
I hide the original pattern layer to avoid confusion while erasing and unhide it when done.
Now that I'm done with the right leg, I hide its layer to not confuse me while doing the other leg.
I go back to the original pattern layer where the waist area was adjusted.
Once again, I make a selection on it but for the left leg this time the same way I did for the right leg.
I then copy the selection onto a new Layer, press the Deselect icon and renamed Layer to R.
Then, I activate the Puppet Warp and make similar adjustments as I did for the right leg.
It's ok to use the Puppet Warp more than once for the same object. Not everyone will get the perfect result the first try.
Like I did previously, I erase the unwanted parts after finalizing the Puppet Warp keeping in mind that I will still need some extra pattern for further adjustments.
The Liquify Tool
Now that I’m done with the Puppet Warp Adjustments, more precise adjustments can be made but this time with the Liquify Tool.
I start off by selecting the Liquify Tool from the Tools Palette.
In its Tool Property palette, I set the mode to Push left to push the pattern to the left when moving in a top to bottom motion. This is helpful in adjusting the pattern near the edges of the legs.
This same mode is used to push the pattern to the right as well; I just go in a bottom to top motion instead so, no need to switch mode.
Then I select a big enough Brush size and set the Strength and Hardness to a low number. About 20 was good enough.
Additionally, I use the Push mode for smaller concise adjustments.
When done, I merge all the pattern layers back onto the original pattern by going to Layer menu > Merge with Layer below.
Now I go on to do more edits as the patterns are now merged into one.
Finishing Touches
Finally, it’s time to add shadow to my pattern. Shadows are useful for enhancing the dimension of the object it is on and helps them stand out.
Firstly, I create a new layer above the ‘Pattern’ Layer Folder by pressing the New Raster Layer icon.
Then, I clip this layer to the Layer Folder by pressing the Clip to Layer below icon.
Next, I change its Blending mode to Multiply.
I then select a nice color and a brush tool to add shadows to the pants.
And here is the final result.
💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Thank you for reading ⭐💖
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