Drawing Studio Guide

Open Drawing Studio from the Dashboard. This is a manual 2D editor for shapes, details, layouts, and artwork that you want to construct directly. Scaled drawing and Artwork are two modes of the same editor.

Drawing Studio is in Beta and is available to members with active app access. The introduction appears when you open the editor. There may be undiscovered glitches. Use Send feedback in the toolbar to report problems, suggest improvements, or request features. The feedback form opens in a separate tab so your drawing stays open.

Name the project at the top of the page. New starts a separate drawing; if there are unsaved changes, choose Save and new, Discard changes, or Cancel. Save updates the current project. Save As creates a separate saved copy.

Start with a simple shape and save it before building a complicated drawing. The editor is a 2D drawing tool: it does not generate automatic 3D views, engineering tolerances, or fabrication approval.

Open Sheet Setup and choose Drawing mode. Use Scaled drawing for real dimensions represented at an architectural scale. Choose the paper size, orientation, and Drawing Scale before drawing. Custom Drawing Scale accepts a ratio such as 1:2 or an architectural scale.

Use Artwork for logos, decorative designs, and graphics whose final installation size is not yet known. Artwork uses 1:1, hides the architectural scale and Dimension Settings controls, and turns the title block off when you switch into it. Choose Artwork units: Inches, Millimeters, or Pixels. One drawing inch corresponds to 96 logical pixels.

Switching between modes keeps the visible geometry in place. Returning to Scaled drawing restores the remembered architectural scale and title-block setting. Check the measurement unit after switching; the unit choice can differ from the one used before Artwork.

In Artwork, Sheet Width and Sheet Height define the page without resizing its contents. Use the selected artwork Width or Height to resize the objects instead. Scale line thickness with artwork is enabled by default. Turn it off if outlines must retain their existing thickness.

The page is the drawing surface. The left sidebar contains Sheet Setup, Import, Drawing Tools, Selected Object, Style, Layers, Objects, and Arrange and geometry tools. Expand only the panel you need to keep the workspace uncluttered.

The top drawing toolbar includes Select, the last drawing tool, zoom, Fit paper to screen, grid visibility, and snapping. Hover over a tool icon, or focus it with the keyboard, to read its description. Tooltips stay inside the browser window.

Use the mouse wheel to zoom around the pointer. Hold Space and drag to pan, or choose Pan. Fit paper to screen brings the page back into view if you lose your place. Zoom changes your view; it does not change the dimensions of the drawing.

Ask Tig in the site header opens drawing help. The Drawing guide link opens this reference. Tig explains tools and steps on this page; it does not create, select, modify, save, or export objects for you.

Choose Line, or press L when you are not typing in a field. Set Line thickness before drawing. Click a start point and then an endpoint. You can also type a length after placing the start point and press Enter to finish the line.

Line angles snap every 15 degrees by default, including horizontal and vertical. Enable Free angles to draw at any angle. Hold Shift to constrain the line while Free angles is enabled. The entered line length uses the displayed drawing units; in pixel Artwork it is in pixels.

With object snapping enabled, joining butt- or square-ended straight lines accounts for their thickness so outside corners meet. Rounded ends and nearly collinear continuations behave differently. Watch the Outside corner snap indication when joining thick strokes.

To change a completed line, switch to Select and click it. The floating Line editor provides length, angle, and thickness without covering the line. The sidebar also has exact line controls and Keep fixed to choose the endpoint used as the anchor. Changing the angle changes the actual line geometry.

Delete or Backspace while a line is started cancels the unfinished line before deleting any completed object. While your cursor is inside an input, those keys edit the input text normally.

For a box, use Rectangle and drag between opposite corners. Then select it and enter Width and Height. This is usually easier than making four independent lines. Use separate lines if their individual lengths, thicknesses, or endpoints need independent control.

More tools exposes Polyline, Polygon, Ellipse, 3-point arc, Free path, and other tools. A polyline is an open connected series of segments; a polygon is closed. Click the points and press Enter to finish. Read the current tool instruction in Drawing Tools as you work.

Curve / Pen — lines and curves places corners with clicks and smooth curves with drags. Click the first point to close a path, or press Enter to finish it open. Free path follows a drawn stroke; use node editing afterward for precision.

An ellipse can also be used as a circle. Set equal width and height, or use the circle radius control where available. A 3-point arc is placed with three clicks. Shapes remain editable; some geometry operations convert them into paths so the resulting outline can be represented correctly.

Choose Select or press V. Click a visible object to select it. Ctrl-click adds or removes objects from the selection; Shift-click also works. On Mac, Command-click is supported. Drag across empty canvas to make a selection box.

Clicking a grouped object normally selects its group. Alt-click selects inside a group and can cycle through overlapping objects. Double-click a path-like shape to start editing its geometry; double-click text to edit its text.

Use the Objects list when items overlap or are hard to target. Hidden or locked layers cannot be edited. Check Layers if a visible item refuses to move or a drawing tool is unavailable.

Group related objects with Group, and use Ungroup when they should move independently. Copy and Paste use the editor clipboard. Duplicate opens the pattern popup instead of immediately making an offset copy.

Selected Object contains X and Y position and Width and Height where the selected geometry supports them. Type a value for large changes. Position arrows use precise steps: metric position fields use 0.1 mm; imperial position controls use small constant-speed steps rather than accelerating as you hold them.

In Artwork, changing Width or Height resizes the selected shape proportionally. A multiple-object selection or group has Artwork width and Artwork height controls for proportional resizing of the complete selection. The line-thickness option in Sheet Setup controls whether strokes scale too.

Selection handles resize objects directly. Hold Shift for proportional handle resizing. Rotation handles rotate the selection; use the exact angle control for a precise value. Flip horizontal and Flip vertical reflect an object; mirror-copy tools retain the original and add a reflected copy.

Alignment tools align multiple objects to a shared edge or center. Distribution needs enough objects to create even spacing. These tools are disabled when the selection does not meet their requirements.

Select a line or shape and choose Edit nodes or Edit shape. Paths show editable nodes. Drag a node to change the outline. Ctrl-click or Shift-click selects multiple nodes; dragging selected nodes moves them together.

Double-click a path edge to add a node while node editing is active. Right-click to open the context menu, including applicable node and path actions. Add node, Delete node, and Smooth or corner are also available in geometry tools when the selection supports them.

Curve handles control how the curve leaves and enters a node. Move the handles for a smooth bend; use corner nodes for a sharp change in direction. Removing too many nodes can substantially change the outline, so use Undo when experimenting.

Close path connects the end back to the start. Continue path resumes an open path. Reverse path reverses its direction. Join endpoints is useful for connecting open pieces. These actions differ from grouping: a group still contains separate objects.

Line thickness is available before placing a line and when a line or shape is selected. Scaled drawings use the physical thickness control in inches; pixel Artwork displays pixel values. Style contains stroke color, fill, opacity, and other available appearance settings.

Use fill for a closed logo shape. Open paths do not enclose a normal filled region. Compound paths can contain holes, which are different from placing a white shape over another shape.

Use solid, hidden, centerline, or dotted line patterns where appropriate. Section hatching has angle and spacing controls. Hatching follows the shape, including supported cutouts; it is also represented in CAD export.

Artwork can use multiple colors and text. Saving selected artwork to the library preserves its SVG appearance. Text remains text, so its appearance depends on available fonts; use common fonts and inspect the exported result if typography is critical.

Select one or more objects and click the Duplicate icon in Arrange and geometry tools. Ctrl+D also opens it. The popup has Grid and Circular modes. Changes preview live from the original selection; switching modes replaces the preview.

Grid uses X copies and Y copies, excluding the original in each direction. For a row of five total placements, enter X copies 4 and Y copies 0. X copies 2 and Y copies 1 makes six total placements: the original plus five copies. A placement repeats the entire selection.

Spacing X and Spacing Y measure between matching positions on consecutive copies, not the empty gap between their edges. Positive values move right and down; negative values move left and up. A zero spacing can intentionally overlap copies.

Circular uses Copies, Center X, Center Y, Sweep angle, and Rotate copies. Copies excludes the original. For four evenly spaced total placements around a full circle, enter Copies 3 and Sweep angle 360. A full circle avoids putting the final copy directly on the original. A partial sweep includes its final angle; a negative sweep reverses direction.

Rotate copies rotates each repeated object as it travels around the center. Turn it off to move the selection around the circle while keeping its orientation. Enter the center coordinates carefully; a distant center can place copies outside the page.

Create keeps the preview as one undoable action. Cancel restores the original drawing. Up to 1,000 repeated placements can be created at a time; large selections can still produce many objects. Start with small counts and inspect the spacing before creating a large pattern.

Select lines, shapes, curves, or groups of supported geometry. Click Skew horizontal or Skew vertical in Arrange and geometry tools. The popup appears over the sidebar so the artwork stays visible.

Type the angle or use the arrows. The preview updates immediately. Positive and negative values slant in opposite directions, with a supported range from -85 to 85 degrees. Returning to zero restores the original shape rather than applying another skew on top.

Done keeps one undoable change. Cancel or Escape restores the original. Shapes may become editable paths. Skew is disabled for unsupported selection types such as text or dimension annotations.

Trim segment removes a portion at an intersection; Extend to intersection lengthens an eligible open segment to another outline. If there is no usable intersection, the editor reports that instead of guessing.

Erase region removes geometry in the selected area. Open curves can split into separate open pieces. Inspect the result and use Undo if more was removed than intended.

Union combines overlapping closed areas. Subtract removes one area from another. Intersection keeps the overlap; XOR keeps the nonoverlapping regions. Selection order and operand shapes matter. Offset creates an outline at a specified distance, with join choices where available.

Check geometry reports potential problems such as open outlines. Open construction lines, dimensions, and leader geometry can be intentional; a diagnostic is not automatically an error. Review paths intended for cutting carefully.

The Dimension tool provides the available linear, radius/diameter, and angular annotations. Linear dimensions can be aligned, horizontal, or vertical. Place the referenced points and position the annotation. Exact object size and a displayed dimension label are different things.

Dimension text can include a prefix, suffix, tolerance, or override. An overridden label does not change the geometry. Use actual size controls when the object itself needs to change.

Text is placed on the page and edited directly. Leader notes connect a label to a feature. Numbered balloons can identify features in an assembly. These are manually authored 2D annotations, not automatically generated bills of materials or projected views.

To insert a blank table, open Drawing Tools, More tools, and Table. Choose Rows and Columns, then Insert table. Tables support up to 50 rows, 20 columns, and 500 cells. They have no predefined headings or parts-list content.

Select a table to expose blue nodes along its top and left edges. Drag a column node to adjust column widths or a row node to adjust row heights. The grid stays connected and cell text moves with its cell. Outer nodes adjust the overall boundary. A drag is one Undo step; Escape cancels it.

Double-click inside a table cell to enter or change its text. Click away or press Ctrl+Enter to finish. Empty cells stay available for later editing. Drag a table line to move the complete table; use the normal selection handles to resize or rotate it. Duplicate preserves the editable table. Ungroup converts it to independent lines and text, so connected table nodes are no longer available.

Tracing references lets you place supported images or PDF references behind the drawing, adjust visibility and opacity, and lock them. Calibration uses two points and a known distance. A tracing reference is a drawing aid and is not part of the clean exported vector artwork.

Select the objects that make up the component, then choose Save part to library and give it a name. The save includes visible selected SVG geometry, colors, fills, stroke styling, and text. It crops the component bounds around the artwork, including allowance for its strokes.

The original project retains its editable objects. The library stores a reusable SVG representation; importing that SVG representation is not the same as reopening the original project with all of its editing history.

Use Import to choose a saved library component and place it in the drawing. Saved ODP artwork also preserves its own appearance when rendered as a library component in the Designer. Resize it proportionally for a different placement size.

For existing vendor or legacy components, behavior may differ because those components use their own fill rules. If a component import fails, keep the current drawing, note the component name and error, and try a known-good component to distinguish the source file from a general problem.

Download saves the project and opens its export page. Choose the format and download. For Scaled drawing, PDF preserves the sheet size; SVG stays vector; PNG and JPG are raster images; DXF carries supported CAD geometry in the drawing units.

For Artwork, choose Export area: Page, All artwork — crop to content, or Selected artwork. To export a selection, select the objects before clicking Download. The export page carries that selection from the editor. Hidden layers are excluded.

Enter Width or Height in pixels. Proportions stay locked. PNG and JPG use those exact output pixel dimensions. SVG remains vector with the chosen output dimensions. PDF uses 96 pixels per inch to determine its page size. The supported raster limit is 100 megapixels.

Transparent background removes the page background for PNG and SVG. JPG cannot store transparency and uses white. Turning transparency off adds white behind the artwork. A white-filled object remains white even with a transparent page.

For a reusable logo, use SVG when the destination supports it, or transparent PNG at the required pixel dimensions. Inspect the downloaded file at its intended size. DXF is for CAD geometry and is not a full-fidelity color, typography, or transparency format.

Always inspect physical scale before using a drawing for fabrication. A printed PDF can be resized by print settings: use actual size when a dimensionally scaled print is required.

Watch the Saved/Unsaved status. Save and Ctrl+S update the project; Save As makes a separate copy. Download saves before opening export. Do not assume a visible preview means the project was saved successfully.

Undo reverses the last committed action; Redo reapplies it. Skew and Duplicate previews have their own Cancel control and create one undoable operation when accepted. Normal field edits and other operations can produce separate history steps.

The editor keeps browser recovery drafts and offers recovery when appropriate. This is a fallback, not a replacement for Save. If saving fails, leave the tab open, keep the error message, and retry when the connection is available. Recent versions provides the available saved history controls.

Use Save As before a large experimental change. Saving a library component is separate from saving the full drawing project.

V: Select. L: Line. Space + drag: pan. Mouse wheel: zoom. Ctrl/Command + click: add or remove objects. Shift-click: add or remove objects or nodes. Alt-click: target inside a group or cycle overlapping items.

Ctrl/Command + S: Save. Ctrl/Command + Z: Undo. Ctrl/Command + Shift + Z, or Ctrl + Y: Redo. Ctrl/Command + C and V: Copy and Paste. Ctrl/Command + D: Duplicate popup. Ctrl/Command + G: Group. Ctrl/Command + Shift + G: Ungroup. Ctrl/Command + A: select editable objects, or nodes while appropriate node editing is active.

Arrow keys nudge the selection; Shift increases the nudge distance. Enter finishes applicable multi-point paths or commits the active input. Escape cancels applicable pending operations or exits editing. Delete/Backspace cancels an unfinished line before deleting completed artwork.

While an input or text editor is focused, normal typing and text-editing keys take priority. Click back on the drawing before using drawing shortcuts.