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Text object before Create Outlines command applied.
Text object following Create Outlines. This is no longer an editable
text object, but gradient fill can be added.
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Text objects in Illustrator cannot be filled with gradient fills. However,
by converting the text object to outlines, the text becomes the same
as any other object. Converting the text is a simple operation, but
make sure that you have all the editing you wish to do before you do
the conversion. Text that has been changed to outlines cannot be edited
as text.
To convert, select your text object and select Text>Create Outlines
from the main menu. That's it! In the samples at the left, note how
the selection borders change from the regular text selection with a
bounding box and the baseline of the text, to a bounding box with character
nodes after conversion.
 To
fill with a gradient, you can follow the same method as for any gradient,
but it is usually best to use the Gradient tool to create a continuous
fill across all the characters. The sample here shows the effect. The
top sample has been filled simply with the Gradient fill command in
the toolbox. Note how each character has its own gradient fill. The
lower sample has been created by dragging the Gradient tool at an angle
across the entire word, creating one fill for all characters. All of
the instructions for editing and applying gradients we looked at on
the previous page apply once text has been converted to outlines.
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The top row here features two identical rectangles
with different fills. The lower sample is the result of blending the
two objects, selecting the top left hand node of the yellow rectangle
to blend with the top right corner of the green rectangle.
Objects blended as above, but with different shapes and center nodes
chosen as the blend points.
The same blend as above, but with the circle center
and the rectangle upper right corner chosen as blend points.
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Blends
As I mentioned earlier in this tutorial, we are only taking a very short
look at blends in this article. It deserves its own tutorial, but I
did want to include the idea here. The perfect effect may not be possible
with a gradient fill, but often can be easily accomplished with a blend.
A blend creates a gradient fill look, but with many extra controls
available to you. A gradient runs from one color to another. A blend
combines two objects together in incremental steps. See the samples
at the left. The yellow and green box are blended for a look that is
very similar to a regular gradient fill.
The power of the blend though, is not in blending two identical shapes
as shown here, but in the capability to blend completely different shapes,
and choose which nodes from the first object blend with selected nodes
in the second object. The second set of samples at the left illustrates
a circle blending to a rectangle. The center node of each was used as
the blend points.
This may sound a bit confusing, but trust me for a few minutes and
read on. It is really quite elementary.
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Take a look at the samples shown here. These are the two blends
shown at the left, but the objects have been selected with the
Selection tool. Note how the original shape is still showing.
The line connecting the two objects signifies that they have been
blended.
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To perform a simple blend, create two objects. Fill each object with
a different color and remove any stroke.
 Select
both objects with the Selection tool. Activate the Blend tool as shown
here. Although you do not need to select the objects in order to create
a blend, it can help to see the bounding boxes in the beginning. The
selection will look as shown here. The cursor will change to the Blend
tool symbol highlighted here with a red arrow.
 Move
your mouse over the first object, and a plus sign will be added to the
cursor. This indicates that you are on a path, and can choose a blend
point.
Click on the top left point of the rectangle and the top center point
of the circle. Illustrator will pause for just a moment while it figured
out the blend and will then redraw. In the result, as shown at the left,
I have left the selection active to show the relation between the two
objects.
If you wish to edit either of the objects, you can use the direct selection
tool to edit one of the objects in the group. Directly below the yellow
and blue sample, I have selected only the circle and changed the fill
to white to achieve this effect. You can also add another object and
repeat. Only two objects can be blended at one time, but there is no
limit to the number of items you can blend two at a time. The final
sample here takes the yellow and white blend and adds another blend
from the white circle to a new, small yellow circle. The illustration
with the selection active shows the first blend, with the new circle
drawn. The lower illustration is the effect after a blend has been created
between the white circle and the new yellow circle.
That's all we have room for this time, but I urge you to consider blends
when you are looking for a gradient effect. It will take some practice
before you can predict results with accuracy. But the total flexibility
is well worth the time.
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