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
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