How to Create a Versatile Herringbone Tile Pattern in Procreate

1. Introduction & Class Project: The herringbone tile pattern is a classic and elegant choice that adds sophistication to any space. Its signature exact layout created by placing rectangular tiles at a 90 degree angle gives a sense of movement and depth. This pattern enhances both floors and walls by drawing the eye along its dynamic lines. Hi, everyone. I'm Gatan gli, an artist, illustrator, surface pattern designer, and Tanka painter, based in the beautiful coastal state of Goa, India. In today's short class, we will create a versatile herringbone tile pattern in Procreate. Whether you are a beginner or have some experience, this class is designed to make the process easy and enjoyable. I will walk you through each step. Ensuring you feel confident in creating your own unique patterns. For your class project, you will create a herringbone pattern with a tile effect using Procreate, export your final designs as JP. Share your patterns in the student project gallery. I can't wait to see the incredible designs you create. Let's dive in and start making. 2. How to Create a Versatile Herringbone Tile Pattern in Procreate: While the process of creating a herringbone tiled pattern differs slightly from the weave pattern covered in my previous class, the starting point remains the same, that is choosing the right file size. First, we need to determine the tile size. The proportion of the tiles height to its width plays a key role in defining the overall look of the pattern. For instance, a height to width ratio of one is two creates a compact design with narrow diagonal lines. On the other hand, adjusting it to one is to three or one is to four results in a more open pattern, adding a greater sense of movement. For this example, I'm using a one is three proportion. To ensure that the herringbone tile pattern repeats seamlessly, we need to set our file size to double the tile width, which equals six by six. If your tile proportion is one is 24, your file size should be eight by eight and so on. You can choose between pixels or inches based on your preference. I will be using inches and setting the file size to six by 6 ". Let's begin by opening Procreate. In this case, our file size will be six by 6 " at 300 DPI. Choose the color profile that best suits your needs. I will be using RGB. Now tap create. Step two is to create the grid. Tap the wrench icon, go to Canvas settings and enable drawing guides. Then select Edit drawing guides and keep the two dgrid selected. Set the grid size to 1 ". You can also adjust the opacity, thickness, and color of the grid to suit your needs. Finally, make sure to enable drawing assist. This will help you align the rectangles accurately. Keep in mind that with the drawing assist enabled, you won't be able to draw curved lines as it follows the grid lines. To draw curved lines, go to the grid settings and disable drawing assist. Once done, you can freely draw curves. I will turn it back on to work on the herring bone pattern. Step three is to create the first style. Start by drawing a rectangle that is 3 " wide and 1 " tall. To do that, choose a fill color and drag it onto the canvas. Then tap the transform tool and set it to free form. Next, enable magnetics and snapping and set both distance and velocity to maximum. Tap on the blue.in the left corner and enter the dimensions. 900 pixels, which is 3 " for the width. Now disable the lock icon and then enter 300 pixels, which is 1 " for the height. Finally, tap on the arrow again to confirm the transformation. This will align the rectangle to the blue dot we selected on the left side of the canvas. Now we will add an outline to our tile. This will make it easier to see the pattern when tiles are placed next to each other. To add an outline, duplicate the tile layer and apply the second color you have chosen for the outline. Next, tap on the selection tool and choose rectangle. Keep the add option selected. Now zoom in and make a rectangular selection, ensuring event spacing around the selection. Then swipe down with three fingers and choose cut. This will remove the selected part, leaving a border around the tile. You can adjust the border with to your liking. For more precise adjustment or to create rounded corners, use the monoline brush under the calligraphy section or any solid brush you prefer. The outline doesn't have to be perfect, just enough to clearly define the tile edges. Once the outline looks even, merge the two layers, and that's it. Your tile is ready. Step four is to create the repeat tile. Select the rectangle layer and swipe left to duplicate it. Select the duplicated layer and rotate it 90 degrees. Align it to the left and above the first tile. Make sure to zoom in for perfect alignment. This step is crucial because all the subsequent copies will snap to this initial placement. Turn off the grid to check for any gaps. If the first rectangle is misaligned, the rest will also be misaligned. Take your time to get it just right. Select both layers and group them. Then make a copy of the group and move it one grid unit up and to the right. Click on the group thumbnail and choose combined down to merge them into one group. Now we have four copies in one group. Duplicate this group and move it to the right and top, placing it next to the first group. Repeat this step to continue extending the diagonal pattern. For the top left corner, make another copy of the group and place it so that the horizontal tiles extending from the right continue seamlessly on the left, maintaining the same proportion. For the bottom right corner, duplicate and position the group, so the vertical tiles align correctly, keeping the same proportions. Continue this process until the entire canvas is filled. Merge the groups and flatten them to create a single layer. This itself is a seamless repeat pattern where the tiles are arranged in a staggered perpendicular manner. However, to create the herringbone pattern in a act form, we need to take a few more steps. Select the tile and tap on rotate by 45 degrees one or more times to adjust the ziag direction to your liking. Once you're happy with the orientation, select fit to Canvas. Then make four copies of this layer and place one in each corner to complete the pattern. However, when rotating and scaling down a tile, slight pixelation may occur. You might also notice a fine line around the edges when duplicating and positioning the copies. To prevent this issue, here is a simple tip. When you rotate a shape, the pixels on the edges can become slightly transparent. To fix this, duplicate the layer and merge it. Then make another copy and merge again. This process helps saturate the edge pixels. Now when you duplicate the tile and place it next to the center one, the pixelated line disappears. Repeat this process for the remaining three corners to complete the pattern. Finally merge all the five layers. That's it. Your final tile is ready and will seamlessly repeat when arranged in a grid format. Save this file and name it as Herring bone tile pattern. You can use the same method with different tile appearances to create various pattern variations. 3. FAQ's & Final Thoughts: Based on the responses and questions I received for my other short classes, I decided to answer some of the most common queries. These insights will help you not just in this class, but throughout the entire series. How to avoid gaps or pixelation. For the best quality, use a larger canvas to prevent pixelation when rotating or resizing lines in procreate. I recommend setting your canvas in inches with a 300 DPI resolution. When rotating a shape by 45 degree or any angle where the horizontal and vertical lines become diagonal, H pixels may lose some saturation. To fix this, duplicate the layer multiple times and merge them together. When using the transform tool, set the interpolation to bicubic or bilinear for smoother edges and minimal distortion. How can I edit the size of the first style more easily? Ensure the lock icon is disabled when entering dimensions. If it does not work on the first try, you may need to repeat the step. You can also manually drag to adjust the rectangle size, but this can sometimes cause the last pixel to blur, creating a white line between the tiles. To avoid this, it's better to use the first method. How do I achieve perfect alignment? Make sure your snapping is on and the distance is set to max. Enable drawing assist for accuracy. If alignment is still tricky, try turning off the other layers near the object you are adjusting. To check for gaps early on, turn off the grid during the initial steps. If you have any other questions, feel free to drop them in the discussions page. I would be happy to assist you. I hope you enjoyed this class and can't wait to see the beautiful patterns you create. Please consider leaving a review and sharing it with your friends. If you like this class, check out my other short classes in this series on creating plaids, houndstooth, Chevron, and herringbone patterns, Inpro Create and Illustrative. Don't forget to follow me on Skillshare to stay updated on my upcoming classes. Until then, happy at