- By Design Bundles
- 8 Mins
- Illustrator Tutorials
How to Use the Width Tool in Illustrator
Learn how to use the width tool in Adobe Illustrator with this step by step tutorial.
The width tool in Illustrator allows you to create varied widths on one single line. This is usually drawn with the Pen Tool. The option allows you to add depth to your designs, quickly and easily. We will show you how to use the Width tool in Illustrator.
Step 1 - Create your document and choose your font
Create your document by selecting File > New and select OK to create your artboard. Then select your font from the Character Panel. Script fonts work great with this tutorial. I’m using The Trickster Font Duo from Font Bundles.
Step 2 - Draw your swash line with the Pencil Tool
Select the Pencil Tool and draw where you want to create your swash. I’m connecting mine to the ‘S’ of Bundles. Don’t worry if this line isn't perfectly smooth, we can fix this later.
Then fill your new line with a colored stroke, by double clicking the stroke icon in your left toolbar and selecting your color, I’m currently using black.
Step 3 - Select the Width Tool to create the swash
Select the Width Tool from your left toolbar. Then, click and drag on each of your nodes on the new line to adjust the width. Start by selecting and dragging your very last node. This is the one you want to be the widest. As you widen this node, it will create an even width across the line from the start to the end point. You can then use the outer nodes to change this width if needed.
Step 4 - Perfect your swash
Select Object > Path > Simplify to smooth out your line. It will also help remove unwanted kinks and you can adjust this bar to get your desired effect.
When you are happy, select Escape on your keyboard. If the start point was connected to the end point of your letter like mine, we need to ensure the connection is smooth.
Zoom in to the connecting points of the end letter and the start of the swash. Select with Width Tool again.
Select your first node, hold down the Option key on your keyboard to widen just one side of the line. Do this until it is roughly the same size as the end point of the letter.
Step 5 - Expand appearance to convert your strokes to outlines
As you will see, your new line is still one single path. To edit this further, select your new line then select Object > Expand Appearance to convert your strokes to outlines.
Zoom into your last letter to ensure it is connected properly to your new swash.
If it is now connected smoothly, like mine, use the Direct Selection Tool (white arrow). Then select and move the node that will create the smooth connection.
Step 6 - Outline text and unite design
Once done, select your text and choose Type > Create Outlines to expand your text to paths.
When you highlight your whole design, you will notice that paths of your letters will overlap. When you have completed all of the above steps you can Unite your text to make it one solid shape.
Open the Pathfinder Tool by selecting Window > Pathfinder.
Then, make your design into one single shape, by selecting the Unite Tool (see screenshot).
This is what the result should look like.
If you need more help check out our tutorial on how to work with the pathfinder tool in Illustrator.
Step 7 - Use the Direct Selection Tool to fine tune
For my design in particular, I would like to mimic the end lines that you see on the font.
By using the Direct Selection Tool (white arrow), I will pull out the lower end of my swash to create more of a point. You will also see a small circle appear on your selected nodes that are on a corner. Hold down these circles and drag to create softer, rounded edges.
You should now have a smooth looking design.
Now that your design is complete, you can use it in your other projects.
If you liked this tutorial, make sure to check out some of our other tutorials such as how to create SVGs in Illustrator, and how to fill text with a gradient.
6 Related Illustrator Tutorials
This tutorial is going to take you step-by-step on how to utilize the blend tool with text, this is a great technique to create ‘tube-like’ 3D text. The blend tool is a great tool to use within your designs to create unique styles and finishes. You can also find out ...
The shape builder tool is great for designing illustrations or icons that can be created by using various shapes, as it allows you to combine and subtract one shape from another. This tutorial is going to go through the fourways in which you can benefit from using this tool, by ...
The pathfinder tools are really useful to design unique and custom shapes. Within the Pathfinder Panel, you have 4 Shape Modes and 6 Pathfinders. Shape Modes will create new shapes with the selected/overlapping shapes, whereas pathfinders will break/change existing paths.In this tutorial we will cover all of the Pathfinder ...
The Puppet Warp tool allows you to distort portions of your artwork naturally and can help you create credible seamless artwork variations. This is really handy if you need to create some sort of animation or if you need to have different options for the same subject.For this tutorial, ...
In this tutorial, you will learn how to use the Adobe Illustrator Pen Tool. The Pen Tool is the most versatile drawing tool within Illustrator for vector illustrations. It allows you to create unique shapes by adding curves and corners. When using the Pen Tool, the shapes are built up ...
The Knife tool in Illustrator is a really easy tool to separate one shape into multiple shapes, working similarly to the Divide Pathfinder tool. The difference with using the Knife tool is that it is a freehand path that you draw which instantly divides the shape into new shapes.In ...