Photoshop: Pinking Shears Brush Tutorial

I use my pinking shear brush a lot. I often use it as an eraser to create simple zig zag edges. Sometimes, I use it to create clipping masks to make other shapes like the “plaid fabric samples” in my navbar. I received a few questions asking how I achieved this effect — it’s really easy! You can create your own pinking shear brush in 6 easy steps:

Create the brush shape:

Step 1: Create a solid black square on a transparent background.
Step 2: Rotate the square 45 degrees so that it takes the shape of a diamond.
Step 3: Duplicate the diamond shape and position it beside the first shape.
Step 4: Repeat Step 3 until you have 4 adjacent diamonds (multiples of 4).
Step 5: Generate a square outline by repeating Step 4 for each side.
Step 6: Fill the empty space with black.

Define the brush (Photoshop):

Edit Menu >> Define Brush >> Name Brush >> OK

Applications:

• pinked edges: trim, dividers
• pinked shapes: photo frames, labels

And as a bonus for my peeps with extra access, you can download the pinking brush I made, all set and ready to go.