How to Create Offset Outlines in Adobe Illustrator on the iPad: A Step-by-Step Guide

Learn how to create stunning digital and printable stickers with Adobe Illustrator on the iPad. Perfect for printable planners, digital planners and/or generating passive income online.

Discover the power of Adobe Creative Cloud on the iPad with this step-by-step guide to creating digital stickers. Want to create your own printable stickers? Look no further than Adobe Illustrator on the iPad. Follow this simple step-by-step guide and start designing passive income today with digital stickers.

Import your Image and Duplicate the Layer

The first step is to import the image you want to use into Adobe Illustrator on the iPad. It is best to use a PNG with a transparent background or a white background image. Once you have done this, duplicate the layer so you have two copies of the same image.

Vectorize Image

Next, select the lower layer of the two and vectorize it using the setting logo and the black and white option. This will create a simplified version of the image that you can use to create your outline.

Adjust the Threshold 

Adjust the threshold until you get a complete silhouette of the image. This is where you need to experiment with different threshold settings until you get the result you want.

Ignore White and Expand Vectorization

Be sure to select [Ignore white] before you expand the vectorization. This will create a clean outline only that you can work with.

Change Colour and Add Stroke

The silhouette will default as black however unless you want a black outline change the colour of the outline and stroke to white or an off white if you want a subtle hint of colour. 

Adjust Stroke Weight

Adjust the stroke until you have the desired offset effect. If you are making a set of stickers try to find a stroke weight that works well for all of your images to give them a more unified appearance. If your image is being used as a digital sticker for digital planners in apps such as GoodNotes, then all you would need to do is export as a PNG with a transparent background and you are done.

If you are planning to use these stickers as printable stickers to cut out with a cutting machine such as a Cricut Machine, then you would need to do just a few more simple steps before you are done. Select the silhouette then select object > create stroke outline > release compound path > combine shapes> combine all> convert to path.