In this tutorial I will teach how how to create a non destructive distressed t-shirt mockup inside illustrator and photoshop. Non destructive means the effect is live and will work when you send it off for print and the effect can easily be changed. It’s a fast and efficient method of distress graphics where before this was a time consuming task where you had to use pathfinder panel to knock out each separate color, which also created complex and unnecessary vector points. I will also go over some basic techniques for preparing artwork for print.

You will need the files below. Please note that the image of the gorilla is mine and I am providing it solely for educational purposes. DO NOT RESELL OR USE IN COMMERCIAL PROJECTS.



https://www.dropbox.com/s/7py1j2rquiob2u1/Gorilla-Shirt.eps?dl=0

http://graphicburger.com/down/?q=t-shirt-mockup-psd



http://blog.spoongraphics.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/freebies/Vector-Grunge-Textures.zip

Once you have the files downloaded open the gorilla-shirt.eps and vector-grunge-textures.ai in adobe illustrator. Copy one of the textures on vector-grunge-textures.ai and place it in gorilla-shirt.eps. Scale it proportional to the size of the graphic and make sure the fill color is set to black.

Open the transparency panel by going to Window > Transparency. Select both the gorilla and the distressed graphic and go to make mask. Deselect the Clip box. Now the graphic is distressed in a non destructive way. Which can be undone or easily changed by clicking release. Save the file with the pantone color information and any more notes for the printer in the corner.

Note: Printing companies are different. For this file, I set the size to 11 inches by 17 inches. To change rgb or cmyk colors to pantone select the graphic and go to Edit > Edit Colors > Recolor Artwork. Click on the icon that looks like a gird (Limit the color group to swatches in a library.) Go to Color Books > Pantone+ Solid Coated. Keep in mind that the more different color inks you have the more expensive it will be when it’s printed. Open the file T-Shirt Mockup_Front.psd and place in the file called Bg-place-inside-PSD on the bottom layer. Double Click the layer called Your design here. Go back to Illustrator and copy the gorilla graphic and paste it in badge.psb, resizing as needed. Delete the layers you don’t need in badge.psb and then save. When promoted about the displacement map click OK and then choose DisplacementMap_Front. You can close this now and you should see your newly placed graphic on a black t-shirt.

To change the color of the shirt double click on layer change t-shirt color here and click the box beside color. Choose a color that closely matches the graphic, in this case #0c1145. Remember that a mockup is just to guide the printer as to what the final outcome should resemble when the shirt is printed. You would communicate to your printer that the graphic is to be placed in the center of a royal blue t-shirt. So your just trying to match the mockup to a royal blue color. Because of layer effects and differences between digital and print you can’t just use a precise color code for royal blue, it wont match, so just eyeball it until it’s close. One final step: Change the blending mode of the gorilla graphic to lighten so that it blends in with the shirt.

Save a copy of the psd in case changes are needed and flatten your artwork, it’s now ready to send to the printers!