7 useful Illustrator tutorials: Icon design, shapes, 3D text and more

The great thing about the Internet is that if you've got a problem (or want to learn a new technique), there's always somebody who's 'been there, done that'. With that in mind, here are some of the posts that have caught our eye this week:

How to Create a Zodiac-Themed Portrait in Adobe Illustrator CS5

Sharon Milne shows you how to turn a stock photo into a Zodiac-themed portrait using a variety of Illustrator tools to add hair, manipulate facial features and change skin tones.

10 Tips to Improve Your Workflow and Work Faster in Illustrator

A clusterbomb of Illustrator tips at onextrapixel.com, which are designed to help you work faster and smarter. Includes working with symbol libraries and using multiple artboards.

Use Illustrator Layers & Text in Photoshop

A quick tip from Jay Nelson showing how to copy and paste text objects from Illustrator so that they appear as Type layers in the Adobe Photoshop programme.

40+ Simply Stunning Adobe Illustrator Icon Design Tutorials

Need to design an icon for a client? Then you're bound to be able to find a tip, trick or technique in this selection of tutorials.

Illustrator Trick #9: Colorful Waves

Learn how to draw a simple wave effect using the Pen tool in Adobe Illustrator CS5.

Create shapes faster in Illustrator

Get inside the mind of Manchester-based Illustrator Jonny Wan as he explains how to use the Pathfinder panel to efficiently manipulate paths and shapes.

3D Textured Text Effect

Follow step-by-step instructions and learn how to make a "stylized 3D textured text effect using various textures to give it a unique look with Illustrator & Photoshop."

If you've got an Illustrator tutorial you'd like to share, let us know about it in the comments below.