This tutorial guides you through the process of drawing Christmas bells in Illustrator. Use them for decorating your web-site's header or desktop. Let’s get started.

Final Image Preview

Step 1

Set up a new document, take the Pen tool(P) and draw the body of the bell.

Fill with linear gradient of three colors (#a8a798,  #808076, #a8a798).

With Ellipse Tool (L) draw an oval (lower part of the bell) and fill and fill it with radial gradient (#1c1c1c to #646464).

Step 2: Highlights

Select the Pen Tool (P) again and draw the highlights, fill them with white color and set the opacity: 25%.

Draw the highlight from the left side with Pen Tool (P) fill with white color and put 30% of opacity.

Select the body of the bell and make a copy (Ctrl + C, Ctrl + F), now select this copy and the highlight and in PATHFINDER panel press Intersect.

With Pen Tool draw another highlight (we will name it "Center highlight"), fill with white color and set 30% opacity.

Make a copy of Left Highlight (Ctrl + C, Ctrl + F) and select this copy and "Center highlight". In PATHFINDER panel press Intersect.

Now draw the right highlight and make the same actions that we do for Left highlight.

Step 3: Clapper

With Rectangle Tool (M) draw a rectangle and under this rectangle with Ellipse Tool (L) draw an ellipse.

Select this shapes and in the PATHFINDER panel press Unite. Rotate the resulting shape 18 degrees cw.

To remove excess of this shape select lower part and make a copy (Ctrl + C, Ctrl + V) and select this copy and the shape. In PATHFINDER press intersect.

Apply a radial gradient (#808080, #333333).

Make a circle with the Ellipse Tool (L) and apply a radial gradient (#ffffff, #7a7861).

With Pen Tool make the shadow, draw a shape as you see below, fill with black color and put layer in Soft Light Mode.

Step 4: Details

Select the Pen Tool and draw the same we've drawn the highlights a line and fill with gradient (#daa233, #d88212, #e0be17). Put line sublayer under the highlights sublayers.

Make the copy of this line and put it above.

Step 5: Bow

With Pen Tool draw a shape as you see in the image and fill it with a radial gradient (#f8a56f, #dd2a26, #80192c).

Now draw the second part and fill it with a radial gradient (#ac252b, #630f27).

Select this two shapes and duplicate them (Ctrl + C, Ctrl + F). Go to Object > Transform > Reflect... (select vertical and press Ok).

Use Pen Tool to draw the node and fill it with gradient (#dd2a26, #630f27).

With pen tool make the ends of the bow and fill them with the same gradient that we've used for the node.

Step 6: Shadows

Draw the shadows with the Pen Tool, put these paths in the back of bow, fill it with #636152 color and set the opacity to 80%.

Final Image Preview

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