3 Tips for Building a Cohesive Illustration with Lines and Stamps

I love focusing on shading, gradients and textures in my digital illustrations. But there’s something incredibly powerful about creating an illustration with lines. You can use line brushes to convey movement, create patterns and add details that can become part of your unique style.

In this post, I’ll share three practical tips for detailed, expressive line work in Procreate.

tip 1. Use Lines to Add Texture and Detail

Lines aren’t just for outlines; they can also suggest texture, material, and even shading. Line texture plays a huge role in the feel of an illustration with lines. Use short strokes, hatching, crosshatching, or scribbles to add visual interest and richness to your art. Especially when using a limited color palette, lines can add interest and set your shapes apart.

This is especially satisfying with textured line brushes, where even a few strokes can add so much life to a surface. It’s a great way to enhance areas of focus without relying on shading or color fills.

If you use texture line brushes, choose one or two line brushes with compatible textures and use them throughout the illustration. This kind of consistency will give your work a polished, cohesive look. Combining too many different textures can make your art feel disjointed.

Related article: Mastering Textures in Procreate: 3 Techniques for Illustrators

tip 2. Repeat lines and stamps to create motifs

Repetition is one of the easiest ways to make an illustration with lines feel intentional and cohesive. It creates rhythm and visual unity without needing color or shading. You can use lines to frame your art, to make your piece feel more dynamic or static, give it movement and more.

Using simple line brushes, you can create patterns, frames, recreate materials or textures, and design motifs. You can do the same thing with stamp brushes, like symbols, dots, stars and more, to create patterns and add interest to your design.

Related article: Make it Pop: 4 Tips to Elevate your Illustrations in Procreate

tip 3. Keep it simple

Lastly, don’t overwhelm yourself with all the available brushes and add ALL to your illustrations. To avoid a chaotic or mismatched look, limit yourself to one or two complementary line textures throughout the piece. I rarely add more than 3-4 different line or texture brushes in my designs (and when I do, I make sure they complement each other!).

Consistency in line style makes your illustration feel intentional and cohesive. Your art should be about your choices as an artist, not about the complexity of the brushes, layers and textures you used. You can add intricate details and textures, but don’t overdo it with a variation of different styles and textures. Pick just a couple of brushes per design to use, and stick to those. The brushes serve as a tool and add to the tone of your piece, but your art is the main show!