Have you ever tried to find the “add stroke” or “outline” option in Procreate? Well, although it is quite a common feature in most other digital art software, as of today, it’s still not available in Procreate. Luckily though, there’s a hack you can use to add strokes to multiple shapes quickly.
Video tutorial available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8xz-3Ay5Kuc
Note: you can use these steps for text, illustrations, anything! The only thing you want to ensure is that no matter what you are working with, your shapes are all either in one group or on the same layer.
Step 1: Duplicate your group/layer
Create a copy of the group or the layer your elements are on by swiping it towards the left with one finger.
Then, tap on Duplicate.
If you're working with groups, you need to flatten the bottom copy at this stage. The top one can remain as it is.
Step 2: Create a selection
Tap and hold on that layer with two fingers to select the content.
This will automatically open a selection in the selection tool of your content.
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Steps 3 & 4: Color & Feather
Select Color Fill at the bottom and set your color to whatever you want your outlines to be.
Tap on Feather and increase the amount to roughly the size you want your stroke to be.
Then, tap on the selection tool to exit the menu.
Step 5: Outline Strokes
If you go back into the layer panel, you can see that the bottom copy is now the color you picked. You should also see the beginning of a stroke, but right now, it’s pretty blurry.
To make it a nice solid stroke, pick the selection tool again.
This time, set the selection tool to Automatic.
With Color Fill still activated, quickly tap on one of your shapes and then use your finger to set the stroke.
Once you’ve added the stroke to one shape, you can tap on any other shape of your choice to add a stroke on that one as well.