Creating patterns can be a bit fiddly: Lining things up, avoiding obvious seams, making sure it all repeats cleanly. In Procreate, it’s much more forgiving than it looks. Here are three things that make pattern design in Procreate easier (and more relaxing).
1 Don’t overthink the subject, pick something fun
It’s tempting to sit and brainstorm the “right” subject for a pattern. Instead, pick something a little silly or fun instead! Sardines (and fish general) are a personal favorite of mine for exactly this reason. When the subject is lighthearted, you stop second-guessing every mark, and the pattern starts to feel like play instead of a project. The best patterns are the silliest ones.
Pattern making in Procreate help
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Capture the feeling of a Mediterranean summer; one tiny illustration at a time, on Skillshare.
How to Make a Festive Repeat Pattern on YouTube
In this mini tutorial, we create a festive pattern using Procreate.
Colorful Sardines in Procreate: Relaxing Pattern Design
Let’s draw a whole page of colorful sardines in Procreate, on Skillshare.
2 Use a pattern tester
Don’t wait until you’re “done” to see if your pattern actually repeats well. A pattern tester lets you export your Procreate tile and preview it as a seamless, repeating design while you’re still working on it, so you can catch awkward gaps or repeats early instead of redoing everything at the end. Simply drag your image (or a layer from Procreate for example) directly into the tester and make adjustments there.
Use my pattern tester for free: The Pattern Tester
3 Keep it simple
If you’re new to pattern design, resist the urge to jump straight into something complicated. Start with a single, simple motif in Procreate. Just one small shape or object repeated on its own, and just get comfortable with the actual process: placing it, spacing it, checking how it repeats. Once that feels natural, you can start layering in more elements, more colors, and more detail. Learning the process first, on something simple, makes it much easier to take on a complicated pattern later, and much less overwhelming to start.
These are the same habits I teach in Colorful Sardines in Procreate: Relaxing Pattern Design, a class built around exactly this idea: pick something fun, don’t overthink it, and let the pattern come together naturally.
Dive into the class 🐟
Colorful Sardines in Procreate: Relaxing Pattern Design
Let’s draw a whole page of colorful sardines in Procreate. This is a low-pressure project about play, repetition, and letting go of perfection. Brushes included.
Colorful Sardines in Procreate Class FAQ
No! The class is built for beginners and focuses on relaxed, low-pressure pattern making rather than technical drawing skill.
An iPad and Procreate. Included in the class are my Sardine Summer Procreate brushes & color palette.
The class is about 1 hour long, divided into 2 parts: We’ll start with our colorful page of sardines in Procreate, and then turn this into a repeated pattern using my pattern tester.
You’ll create a colorful sardine page in Procreate and turn it into a full pattern. As a bonus, you’ll also learn how to turn that pattern into a moving reel.
Skillshare offers a free trial period for new members, so if you haven’t used Skillshare before, you can check it out using my free trial link.
