But another super simple way to get a sketch onto your computer is take a picture of it with your phone and then email it to yourself. If you an app on your iPad, you can airdrop onto your computer. Okay, so you have a sketch and you want to get that sketch into Adobe Illustrator. But what I'm talking about today is working with Adobe Illustrator. I have been using Adobe Illustrator for 15 years and I love it! There are a bajillion tutorials on YouTube, and SkillShare (get 2 months free here!) that walk you through how to use it and I'll probably put a few up here myself later specifically for pin stuff. It's a monthly payment and I highly recommend it. If you want to dive into Adobe Illustrator you can get Creative Cloud. Be sure to check with your manufacturer if they offer it and confirm any extra cost. Sometimes it's an extra cost, but occasionally they provide that service for free as a bonus for using them. If you don't have Illustrator and you prefer to use Photoshop, an app like Procreate that doesn't use vector files, or just sketch on paper, a lot of manufacturers can vector it for you. Adobe Illustrator is the industry standard for creating vector work, there are other vector programs out there that you can use. The file type that manufacturers want are vector files. Let’s talk about files and how to set up your files for delivery to your manufacturer! Note that if you use Illustrator, we have a swipe file you can also use in conjunction with this.What Types of Files do Manufacturers Need?

It helps ensure your pins are meeting 'best practices' for enamel pins. This resource lists the proper settings for Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. Adobe Illustrator And Adobe Photoshop Cheat Sheet The cheat sheet is really handy because it guides you on best practices regarding line width, pin sizing and other things you need to know so that your pin is production ready. Once you are done designing your pin, use the sizing boxes, electroplate swatches and enamel fill swatches to colourize and vectorize your art. Be mindful that when you are creating an area less than 2mm at actual size, it's will not hold enamel (too small). Step 4: Most people design pins larger than actual size to start with. Step 3: If you are new to pin design, Review our YouTube channel with lapel pin design tutorials or sign up for our free enamel pin design course. Step 2: Copy and paste the top portion of the sheet onto a new page.

How To Use The Enamel Pin Design Template Now when you send your designs to enamel pin manufacturer's, you'll be speaking the same language. You can use all the same design tools and templates we use when designing custom enamel pins. To use this tool set for Adobe Illustrator, hit the download button. Our enamel pin template offers tips and tricks for designers.

Hard enamel pin mockup