How to Make a Western Swirl in Illustrator

Swirls are a common element in graphic design, and Western swirls are specific type -- a familiar sight on items such as cowboy shirts, boots and belts. Vector programs such as Adobe Illustrator are ideal for creating this type of swirl. Several tools can be used to create them easily and creatively: Spiral, Brush, Arc, Pen and Live Trace. These tools are useful for making parts of any style of swirl -- including a Western one. However, Live Trace is the easiest to use for beginners.

Instructions

1. • 1
     Open a browser -- Firefox, Chrome or Internet Explorer -- and search for an image of a cowboy shirt, or any other item, with a clear Western swirl. An image that's at least 400 pixels wide is best.
   • 2
     Right-click on the image and save it.
   • 3
     Open Illustrator and go to "File" and "New." In the dialog box, click the drop-down arrow in the "size" section and click "Letter," then "OK."
   • 4
     Go to "File" and click "Place." Find the image of the cowboy shirt or other item. Double-click on it, to place it in the new document.
   • 5
     Go to "Object" on the menu bar, move your mouse over "Live Trace" to open the submenu, then click "Tracing Options." The "Tracing Options" dialog box will open. Live Trace will transform the raster image into vector art.
   • 6
     Click "Preview" in the dialog box, so you can view the changes as you make them. Change "Path fitting" to 2.1 pixels.
   • 7
     Go to "Minimum Area," which is located under "Path fitting" and change it to 7 pixels.
   • 8
     Go to "Corner Angle" and change it to 77. The "Corner Angle" is underneath the "Minimum Area." Once you've made these changes, click "OK." Instantly the image has become vector.
   • 9
     Click the Direct Selection Tool in the Tools Panel. The shortcut is "A." Click on the inside of a swirl, then click "V" to activate the Selection Tool. A bounding box will appear around the swirl.
   • 10
     Click and drag the swirl away from the shirt and add color. With the swirl selected, double-click on the Fill icon, and click on a color to fill the inside of the swirl. If you want to create more than one swirl, continue selecting and moving additional swirls from the shirt and adding color.