Dutch graphic designer Mirella Fabienne shows us how to make a mesmerizing, marbled effect in just five simple steps.
Prep your color palette.
Start by choosing your set of colors. Mirella recommends starting with three, but feel free to choose more if you’d like. Next, use the Shapes tool to create a simple palette on your artboard — Mirella has used circles here, but it doesn’t matter which shape you use.
Color your canvas.
Next, fill your artboard entirely up with colors. Using the Eyedropper tool, click on one of your shapes to select the same color. Then, use the Brush tool, and get coloring! Experiment with different textures and brush sizes, and get as precise or abstract as you like. Repeat with your other two colors until you’ve got planes of overlapping colors filling the entire artboard.
Blur your colors.
Now let’s soften up your colorful creation. Go to Filter > Blur and select Gaussian Blur, which will stylize your colored canvas with a hazy, dreamy blur and blend the edges of your colors. Adjust the Radius setting to your liking. The larger the number, the blurrier the image will render.
Get swirling.
Go to Filter > Liquify, which will prompt a new window. Select the Forward Warp tool — here, you can play around with the Brush size settings — and move it around freely on your artboard. Notice how the brush blends it all together, like swirling colors in a paint bucket. Hashtag oddly satisfying.
Keep experimenting.
Swirl the colors until you’re satisfied with the final result, then press OK. Now you’re ready to Export your creation and use it as part of your next project. “It would be cool to see this on a tee-shirt, a poster, a quote card for a social post, or as a phone background,” Mirella suggests. “Maybe even a book cover!”
Share your colorful creations with us on Instagram by tagging @adobecreate #creativeprompt.
