Distressing artwork is among the most popular modern design techniques. The style (also known as grunge) hasn’t yet become a cliché because distressed design doesn’t necessarily look grungy: Most distressing is subtle, adding texture, depth, age, and realism.
Used with restraint, the 623 brushes below–all free, of course–can subtly improve many images; applied heavily, they can turn even the sweetest image into a dark, insidious opposite. The end effect is up to you.
Cracked (22 Brushes)
Drip and Splatter (20 Brushes)
Splatter (23 Brushes)
Ink Drips (35 Brushes)
Torn Paper, Straight Edges (10 Brushes)
Cracks (22 Brushes)
Crack Effect (15 Brushes)
Crack (5 Brushes)
Cracked (15 Brushes)
Old Book Pages (5 Brushes)
Old Letter (32 Brushes)
Vintage Grunge (17 Brushes)
Wanted Poster (9 Brushes)
Old Post Card Set I (9 Brushes)
Centric Ink Vol. 2 (26 Brushes)
Curl and Twirl (7 Brushes)
Anigraphuse Nature (7 Brushes)
Melancholy (8 Brushes)
Coffee Cup Stains/Rings (5 Brushes)
High Res Dirt (8 Brushes)
Wall Textured (6 Brushes)
Grungy Texturing (15 Brushes)
Go to page 2 for brushes that evoke rust, splatters, stains, steampunk, scratches, and more.
This article was last modified on July 20, 2021
This article was first published on November 15, 2010
Commenting is easier and faster when you're logged in!
Recommended for you
Modeling a 3D Bracelet with Photoshop
Photoshop’s 3D modelling environment has matured to the stage that with CS6 Exte...
Illustrator WOW! Techniques: Flexible Shading and Highlighting Effects
Would you like to add richer shading and highlighting effects to your vector art...
Special Offer on JixiPix Photoshop Plug-ins
Press release JixiPix Software has released the availability of a whole new powe...