Load and Save Custom Swatches in Adobe Illustrator CS6

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Video: Load and Save Custom Swatches in Adobe Illustrator CS6

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You're watching VisiHow. In this tutorial, we're going to show you how to load and save custom swatches in Adobe Illustrator CS6 in Windows 7.

1. 1
   To begin, you should open Illustrator either from the desktop or by coming down to the bottom-left corner of your screen and clicking the Windows icon

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   This will reveal a list of your recently used programs, where you may find Illustrator. It has a brown-and-orange icon with the letters "Ai".

   

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2. 2
   If you still can't see Adobe Illustrator, use your search bar along the bottom of the Start menu to begin typing "Adobe Illustrator"

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3. 3
   Click "Adobe Illustrator CS6" to open it

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   It will immediately start loading and take us directly to the workspace.

   

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4. 4
   From the workspace, click "File" in the top left-hand corner of the window

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5. 5
   Click "New" in the drop-down menu that appears

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   Alternatively, press the shortcut "Ctrl"+"N" on the keyboard. You can also open an existing document. A new window will appear in which you can specify how you want your document to look. For an explanation of these options, please view our other Adobe Illustrator tutorials.

   

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6. 6
   For this tutorial, we simply click "OK"

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7. 7
   Make sure there is the "Swatches" panel on the right-hand side of your window

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   The swatch icon looks like a grid.

   

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8. 8
   If you do not see this panel, click "Window" in the menu at the top of your screen

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9. 9
   Then, make sure "Swatches" is checked

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10. 10
    Click "Swatches" and the "Swatch Libraries" icon at the bottom-left corner of the "Swatches" window

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11. 11
    From the drop-down menu that appears, you can select a customized swatch that you have created or one from Illustrator

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12. 12
    If you want to save a swatch library, click the drop-down menu in the corner of the "Swatches" window

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13. 13
    Then, click the "Save Swatch Library in ASE..." option at the bottom of the drop-down menu

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14. 14
    Alternatively, click "Save Swatch Library in AI"

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    ASE is specific to swatch libraries, and AI is probably much easier. Clicking one of these options sends you to a directory of swatches.

    

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15. 15
    You can save your custom swatch with a name of your choice

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    For this tutorial, we will use the name "My Custom Swatch". Click "Save" when you have finished.

    

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16. 16
    You can then click the "Swatch Libraries" icon in the swatch window to go back

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    Your saved library should appear under "User Defined" near the bottom of the drop-down menu.

    

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17. 17
    When you click your new swatch library, a new dialogue box will appear that you can move and use

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This concludes our tutorial on how to load and save custom swatches in Adobe Illustrator CS6 in Windows 7. If you have any questions or queries regarding this tutorial, just add them to the comment section below. Thank you for choosing VisiHow!

If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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