Create and manage islands

Mark model areas as islands and manage them in the Patterns workspace.

Islands define areas of your 3D model whose patterns update dynamically as you edit them. Island patterns are separate from the automatic patterns generated by the Unfold button on the pattern toolbar. The island tools sit above the 3D model in the Patterns workspace. Select an island in the Islands menu, then use the tools to mark or inspect the model.

Island tools

Tool	What it does
Decimate	Reduces the model’s polygon count, which can make a dense model easier to work with.
Paint Island	Adds the faces you paint on the model to the selected island.
Erase Island	Removes faces from an island by painting over them.
Flood Fill Island	Adds a connected region of model faces to an island.
Island Picking Tool	Picks an island from the model so you can make it the current island.
Symmetry	Enables symmetric island editing across the model.
Show/Hide Islands	Toggles the display of islands on the 3D model.
Islands menu	Chooses the current island. The colored swatch helps identify it.
+ / −	Adds an island or removes the selected island.
Clear Islands	Clears the model’s islands. Confirm the action when prompted.

Create an island

1. Select the workspace containing your model.
2. Click + beside the Islands menu to add an island.
3. Select Paint Island and mark the faces you want to include. Use Flood Fill Island to mark a connected area more quickly.
4. Use Erase Island to remove faces you included by mistake.
5. Add more islands to separate other areas of the model.

Work with existing islands

Choose an island in the Islands menu, or use the Island Picking Tool to select one directly on the model. Use Show/Hide Islands when you want to inspect the underlying model without the island display. The − button removes the selected island; Clear Islands clears them all.

Start with broad areas using Flood Fill Island, then refine their boundaries with Paint Island and Erase Island.

Decimation changes the geometry you use for pattern work. Check the model after reducing its polygon count, especially around details you need to preserve.