Introduction

Kenage Here!

I want to share some easy tricks to making some really pretty designs: the symmetry ruler!

I find it to be a powerful tool for making interesting and unique brushes with intricate lines and detail while keeping everything balanced and symmetrical!

It can be an easy way to draw flowers, snowflakes, foliage, royal crests...

Whatever you can imagine!

Setting up a canvas.

Before we can start, let's set up a canvas that works well for making a brush.

 

I like to use 1000 x 1000 pixels. The square shape is simple to work in and has enough room for details. Of course, you can use whatever you like.

I set the resolution to 350.

The most important part when making brushes is to make sure that you are working in "monochrome", with this setting here.

When we go to make our design into a brush, we will be able to change colors freely because it was made in a monochrome layer. You can easily change black or white areas to any color you like.

Now that we have our canvas all set up, let's set up the symmetry ruler.

I go to View > Grid to turn the grid on as it helps me keep things a little more even.

Make sure to work in a Vector layer as well.

Click on the Ruler tool > Symmetrical Ruler.

You can change the number of lines to anything you like, but right now we are going to use 4. I clicked directly in the center of the canvas to create this section of four squares.

Now we are ready to draw!

Drawing a design.

I started drawing an "S" like shape with the "G Pen" tool in one of the squares -- because of the symmetry ruler, it was mirrored in every square!

 

Then I added more shapes until I liked it.

Because it was done on a vector layer, I used the Line Correction Tool to make the lines thinner. I also cleaned up some of the lines by using the pen with transparency. If you try erase with an eraser tool, it will NOT mirror it in the other sections and you will lose symmetry.

 

Since I was satisfied with how it looked, I rasterized the layer so that I could color in the shapes with white. This will make the brush have dual colors that can be changed freely.

The final result.

Making the design into a brush.

Now that we have a design, let's make it into a brush we can use!

If you don't know how to make brushes, I will explain briefly.

Click Edit > Register Image as material.

Enter the information (Title, tags, location, etc.) you want. Make sure to check the "use for brush tip shape" box in the bottom left. Otherwise you can't use it in a brush.

Make a copy of an existing tool and change the brush tip to the new material we just made. Edit the settings as you like.

In this case, I set the "Ribbon" feature on.

Here is the finished result, and different color combos. Pretty cool, right?

Making flowers with the symmetry ruler.

You can also draw flowers easily with this tool!

This time, I set the ruler to "5 lines" and placed it in the center of the canvas.

I drew the shape of a single petal in one of the sections and it was mirrored like so:

I keep adding petals and details until I like it.

The same as last time, I cleaned the lines and rasterized the layer. Then I colored it in with white. Now I can use it in a brush!

Easy snowflakes with the symmetry ruler

Snowflakes mostly follow a rule of having 8 sides. So this time, we will set the lines to "8", and draw a snowflake easily!

This is what it should look like.

Start by drawing a line on each ruler line, you will only need to do this once on each side, since the symmetry ruler will mirror it.

Then, draw a diamond or circle in the center, add more lines, then detail the lines with branches to complete the crystal look.

Here is a quick step-by-step example:

Every snowflake is unique! You can add more lines, crosses, diamonds, etc. Have fun with it and make it your own.

In conclusion...

With this technique, you can quickly make an otherwise complicated design easily and cleanly with perfect symmetry.

The possibilities are endless! You can make hundreds of unique designs by combining shapes like petals, diamonds, swirls, etc.

Here is a sample of some designs I made using this method:

I hope you enjoy making your own designs with this technique.

Thank you for reading!