{"id":2731,"date":"2025-10-15T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T17:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/?post_type=knowledge-base&#038;p=2731"},"modified":"2025-10-21T11:09:31","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T11:09:31","slug":"how-to-insert-and-customize-ready-made-shapes","status":"publish","type":"knowledge-base","link":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-insert-and-customize-ready-made-shapes\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Insert and Customize Ready-Made Shapes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This guide will walk you through the process of using the ready-made Shape tools in DRAWings PRO XII. These tools allow you to quickly create perfect geometric shapes like circles, rectangles, and stars, which form the foundation of many embroidery designs.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed wp-block-embed-youtube is-type-video is-provider-youtube epyt-figure\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><div  style=\"display: block; margin: 0px auto;\"  id=\"_ytid_43275\"  width=\"1290\" height=\"725\"  data-origwidth=\"1290\" data-origheight=\"725\" data-facadesrc=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GR7B5fIptlE?enablejsapi=1&#038;autoplay=0&#038;cc_load_policy=0&#038;cc_lang_pref=&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;loop=0&#038;rel=0&#038;fs=1&#038;playsinline=0&#038;autohide=2&#038;theme=dark&#038;color=red&#038;controls=1&#038;disablekb=0&#038;\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__ epyt-facade no-lazyload\" data-epautoplay=\"1\" ><img decoding=\"async\" data-spai-excluded=\"true\" class=\"epyt-facade-poster skip-lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"YouTube player\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/GR7B5fIptlE\/maxresdefault.jpg\" title=\"\"><button class=\"epyt-facade-play\" aria-label=\"Play\"><svg data-no-lazy=\"1\" height=\"100%\" version=\"1.1\" viewBox=\"0 0 68 48\" width=\"100%\"><path class=\"ytp-large-play-button-bg\" d=\"M66.52,7.74c-0.78-2.93-2.49-5.41-5.42-6.19C55.79,.13,34,0,34,0S12.21,.13,6.9,1.55 C3.97,2.33,2.27,4.81,1.48,7.74C0.06,13.05,0,24,0,24s0.06,10.95,1.48,16.26c0.78,2.93,2.49,5.41,5.42,6.19 C12.21,47.87,34,48,34,48s21.79-0.13,27.1-1.55c2.93-0.78,4.64-3.26,5.42-6.19C67.94,34.95,68,24,68,24S67.94,13.05,66.52,7.74z\" fill=\"#f00\"><\/path><path d=\"M 45,24 27,14 27,34\" fill=\"#fff\"><\/path><\/svg><\/button><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>1. Locating and Selecting a Shape Tool<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ready-made shape tools are conveniently located in the &#8220;Shapes&#8221; section of the main Tools bar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Find the <strong>&#8220;Shapes&#8221;<\/strong> section on the Tools bar. The icon displayed will be the last shape tool that was used.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To use the displayed tool, simply click on its icon to activate it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To select a different shape, hover your mouse cursor over the &#8220;Shapes&#8221; section icon. A flyout menu will appear, showing all available shapes: <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-add-customize-and-edit-ellipse-shapes\/\">Ellipse<\/a>, Pie, Rectangle, Trapezoid\/Parallelogram, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-insert-and-customize-polygon-shapes\/\">Polygon<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-insert-and-customize-star-shapes\/\">Star<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Click on the desired shape from the menu to activate it. The icon on the Tools bar will update to your current selection for easy re-use.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>2. Inserting a Shape<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once a shape tool is activated, you can place it on the design canvas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-transform-designs-move-resize-rotate-skew\/\">Move<\/a> your cursor to the desired starting position on the canvas.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Click and hold<\/strong> the left mouse button.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Drag<\/strong> your mouse to define the size and dimensions of the shape. You will see a live, virtual preview of the shape as you drag.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When the shape is the desired size, <strong>release the mouse button<\/strong>. The shape will be finalized and placed on your design.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The shape tool remains active, allowing you to continue adding more shapes of the same type. To deactivate the tool, simply <strong>right-click<\/strong> anywhere on the canvas or select the <strong>Rectangle Selection<\/strong> tool.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>3. Customizing Shape Properties<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can adjust the properties of a shape either before or after you place it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Before Placement:<\/strong> After selecting a shape tool but <em>before<\/em> you click and drag to draw it, look at the <strong>Tools Options bar<\/strong>. Here you will find properties specific to that shape.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Example:<\/strong> If you select the <strong>Pie<\/strong> tool, you can set the <strong>Start and Stop Angle<\/strong> on the Tools Options bar to create a specific wedge from the start.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>After Placement:<\/strong> You can also select and modify a shape after it has been created using its object properties or node editing tools.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>4. Using Keyboard Shortcuts for Precision<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Use keyboard keys while dragging to create a shape for greater control over its size and placement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Hold <code>Ctrl<\/code> for Proportional Shapes:<\/strong> To maintain an equal width and height, hold down the <strong><code>Ctrl<\/code><\/strong> key while dragging. This is essential for creating perfect circles (with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-add-customize-and-edit-ellipse-shapes\/\">Ellipse tool<\/a>) or perfect squares (with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-add-and-customize-rectangle-shapes-in\/\">Rectangle tool<\/a>).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Hold <code>Alt<\/code> for Grid Snapping:<\/strong> To <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-use-align-auto-size-and-distribute-tools\/\">align<\/a> your shape perfectly with the design grid, hold down the <strong><code>Alt<\/code><\/strong> key while dragging.<strong>Useful Tip:<\/strong> The <code>Alt<\/code> key acts as a temporary toggle for the Snap to Grid function. If you have &#8220;Snap to Grid&#8221; permanently enabled in the <strong>View<\/strong> menu, holding <code>Alt<\/code> will temporarily <em>disable<\/em> snapping. If snapping is off, holding <code>Alt<\/code> will temporarily <em>enable<\/em> it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Hold <code>Shift<\/code> to Draw from the Center:<\/strong> To draw a shape from its center point outwards (instead of from corner to corner), hold down the <strong><code>Shift<\/code><\/strong> key while dragging.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>5. Combining Keyboard Shortcuts<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/knowledge-base\/how-to-use-combine-and-break-apart-tools\/\">combine<\/a> these keys for even more powerful control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Example:<\/strong> To create a perfect circle that is drawn from its center, hold down both the <strong><code>Ctrl<\/code><\/strong> and <strong><code>Shift<\/code><\/strong> keys simultaneously while dragging the Ellipse tool.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By mastering these tools and shortcuts, you can create precise and complex vector artwork for your embroidery designs with greater speed and efficiency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This guide will walk you through the process of using the ready-made Shape tools in DRAWings PRO XII.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2732,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":""},"categories-kb":[333],"class_list":["post-2731","knowledge-base","type-knowledge-base","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categories-kb-how-to-training"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"categories-kb":[{"value":333,"label":"How to Training"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/how-to-insert-and-customize-read-1024x576.jpg",1024,576,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"DRAWings Embroidery Software","author_link":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/author\/drawings\/"},"comment_info":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledge-base\/2731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledge-base"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/knowledge-base"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"categories-kb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drawstitch.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories-kb?post=2731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}