How to Create Brand Pattern Swatches in Illustrator

A fun element of any branding and design project is creating a unique, repeating brand pattern. I personally add these into my own branding and design projects to make the visual message of the project more unique and to add personality to the overall brand.

Creating a pattern that perfectly repeats may seem tricky, and time can be lost trying to create the perfect seam.

Enter Illustrator’s pattern swatches: they’re easy to make, look amazing and will tile seamlessly time and time again. Ready to learn how to create these patterns for yourself? Keep reading!

Step 1 : Create a new artboard.
First things first: you’ll want to create a new artboard in Illustrator (I prefer a 1500 x 1500 square when creating patterns). This will serve as the foundation for your soon-to-be created brand pattern.

Step 2: Design your pattern.
Now for the fun part! Design and arrange the elements of your pattern within your artboard. Incorporate any desired colors, shapes or type that you’d like to see within your pattern here.

Step 3: Make your pattern.
Click and drag to select all elements within the artboard and select Object > Pattern > Make. This will create a repeating pattern from your elements and save them as a new reusable swatch in the Swatches panel.

Step 4 : Fine turn and perfect your pattern.
Next, you’ll rearrange the elements of your pattern as-needed in the pattern view editor. I prefer making aligning patterns in a "brick-by-row" orientation, but depending on your design a "grid" orientation may work best.

Step 5 : Save out your new pattern as a swatch!
Once your pattern looks how you would like it to, click "Done." Your final pattern will now be saved as a swatch in the Swatches panel that can be dragged to any dimensions and will display as a repeat pattern.

Adding a pattern element into your design project can add value by allowing the brand stand out, leave a memorable impression, and inevitably draw potential customers in to engage with your brand in the wild.

Have you tried out these steps on how to create seamless pattern swatches in Illustrator? Were they helpful to you? Let me know your thoughts and questions in the comment section below!