Preserving Art Brush details when using Live Paint Bucket

[Sophie Rawlingson]

I designed my own brush to use for line work with illustrations, but when I want to add colour to the drawing using the Live Paint Bucket tool (K) a dialogue message pops up saying "Complex visual appearance attributes such as brushes, live effects... options may be lost when converting to a Live Paint Group". When you press OK, the line work I've created with the Art Brush applied converts to a rounded Basic looking stroke. 

This also happens when you create width profiles and use that with the Basic stroke style. It will convert your ine work back to a Basic rounded line that lacks any cool variation you might have wanted.

Does anyone know how I can avoid my line work being simplified when using the Paint Tool, or if theres another way to colour in line work without compromising the art brush applied?

[Monika Gause · Accepted solution]

You could expand the brush strokes to shapes before using live paint. They won't be easily editable afterwards, of course.

[Sophie Rawlingson · Accepted solution]

Hi Monika, thanks for replying. I think that would be the last resort! Like you say, harder to edit after. I'd love to keep them as strokes ideally!

[Sophie Rawlingson]

This is what I went with in the end! So long as I don't enlarge the outline after it's been flattened, my lines will be consistent between drawings 👍

[Ton Frederiks]

You could also make a copy on a layer above and lock the layer.

Use the layer below for the Live Paint.

After expanding the Live Paint, you can delete the stroke group from the Live Paint layer.

[Sophie Rawlingson]

Thanks Ton! A good option... I'll try this for sure! Seems the best option so far.

[Ton Frederiks]

Good to hear, Sophie, let us know if it works for you when you've tried it.