Layered Illustration with Felt
A course by Naíma Almeida, Visual Artist
Create three-dimensional artwork with layers of felt based on a vector illustration in Adobe Illustrator
Combining the geometric simplicity of design with an explosion of color characteristic of Latin American pop art is one of Naíma Almeida's specialities. As the winner of various internationalawards such as a D&AD Award and a Clio Award, this Brazilian visual artist has produced pieces for names like Carolina Herrera, Adobe, and Instagram.
In this course, learn to transform a digital illustration into a handmade three-dimensional piece of art using felt. Naíma teaches you to create a digital design in Adobe Illustrator and how to cut and layer felt elements to achieve a unique sense of depth.
What will you learn in this online course?
14 lessons & 12 downloads
What's included in this course?
Start the course by hearing a little about Naíma's journey through the world of visual arts and see some of her most notable pieces. She shares the artists she most admires and her main sources of inspiration over a range of different creative media.
Next, look for references for your own illustration by putting together a mood board. Begin your project by creating various elements in Adobe Illustrator to practise making shapes and lines. Define a color palette and, once your vector illustration is complete, prepare the templates for cutting your felt.
Now it's time to get crafty with the artisanal stage of your illustration! Naíma shows you how to cut the felt using your templates and build your artwork piece by piece. Then examine your felt layering and make some final adjustments before finally fixing all the elements in place using glue.
To finish up, Naíma gives you some tips on conserving your piece, which frames to use, and even how to photograph your work. She also shows you some tricks to apply the same technique using different materials such as acrylics, wood, or other synthetic fabrics.
- 100% positive reviews (68)
- 1,475 students
- 14 lessons (2h 4m)
- 12 additional resources (3 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: Portuguese
- Spanish · English · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish · Romanian · Indonesian
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
Recommended software & tools for this course
Adobe IllustratorWhat is this course's project?
Create a vector illustration in Adobe Illustrator and then work on making your handmade piece with felt layering.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Designers, illustrators, and anyone interested in flat illustration who wants to bring their creations into the physical world.
Requirements and materials
Basic notions of Adobe Illustrator are necessary for this course.
As for materials, you need a computer with access to this software, some felt, glue, paintbrushes, a cutter, a cutting board, some scissors, a ruler, sewing pins, a printer, pvc foam board, and some sheets of paper.
Reviews
Naíma Almeida
A course by Naíma Almeida
Naíma is a Brazilian visual artist with a background in graphic design. After working in different agencies and offices, she began to dedicate herself to personal projects which allowed her to experiment with unconventional materials as well as combine manual and digital creative processes.
She has produced pieces for big names like Instagram, Carolina Herrera, The Washington Post, and Natura, among others. Her work has received international acclaim with awards from D&AD (London), Clio (New York), Ibero-American Design Biennial (Madrid), and Latin America Design Award (Peru).
Content
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U1
Introduction
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Presentation
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Influences
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U2
Creating the illustration
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References and mood board
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Illustration and stylization
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Montage and visual composition
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Defining the color palette
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Organization of layers
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Preparing templates for printing
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U3
From illustration to felt
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Materials
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Cutting
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Mounting
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Collage
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U4
Finalization and other possibilities
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Part completion
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Other materials using this same technique
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FP
Final project
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Layered Illustration with Felt
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
This is an intermediate-level course, recommended for those with basic digital illustration skills who want to combine digital and manual techniques to create three-dimensional felt compositions.
You will need colored felt, strong PVA glue, scissors, a craft knife, pins, a printer for templates, and access to Adobe Illustrator to develop the digital projects.
Basic knowledge of Adobe Illustrator is recommended, as the course teaches vectorization techniques, template creation, and shape manipulation for felt application.
You will learn how to plan illustrations, create mood boards, vectorize, assemble templates, select color palettes, cut and manually assemble felt, and finish three-dimensional pieces.
The process involves creating the illustration in Illustrator, generating templates, printing, cutting the felt according to layers, and assembling the physical piece by layering the elements.
Yes, the course shows how to find references, organize images on Pinterest, and create mood boards in Illustrator to plan your illustrations.
Yes, the course teaches how to calculate the ideal amount of felt for each color, optimizing material use based on printed templates.
Adobe Illustrator
This was a fun, informative and inspiring course! I never thought to use felt in art this way (in layers versus sewn together), but it's inspired me to create my 30th anniversary art/gift using just this tecnique! The teacher is informative and interesting, and seeing how she comes up with the work via the whole process is so helpful. Loved this!
bello e entusiasmante, Naima è un'artista eccezionale!
ótimo curso!
Excelente curso, Sobre todo para las maestras que dan clases de manera profesional .Saludos a mi amada Mayela Briseño .
Sono molto felice di aver conosciuto questa artista fantastica. Oltre ad ammirare i suoi lavori, sono rimasta affascinata dal modo semplice e coinvolgente con cui spiega.
Spero di mettere in pratica al più presto e con successo i suoi insegnamenti.