Brush reference
Shapeaway has nineteen brushes. The first ten are on the number keys; the other nine are on Shift with a number. Hold Space for the radial tool menu, or rebind any of them in Settings.
| Brush | Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Add | 1 | Builds clay up under the brush, like pressing on a small pellet of clay |
| Carve | 2 | Removes clay under the brush |
| Smooth | 3 | Evens out bumps and blends forms together |
| Flatten | 4 | Presses the surface towards a flat plane, set where the stroke starts |
| Inflate | 5 | Pushes the surface out along its own direction, swelling forms evenly |
| Pinch | 6 | Pulls clay towards the middle of the brush, tightening creases and sharpening ridges |
| Grab | 7 | Drags a whole region of clay with the pointer, for changing proportions without sculpting |
| Shape | 8 | Stamps a solid where you click: a ball, cube, cylinder or ring, standing up along the surface |
| Paint | 9 | Brushes colour onto the clay |
| Mask | 0 | Paints a mask that protects the clay from every brush, paint included |
| Clay Strips | Shift + 1 | Lays flat strips of clay along the stroke, building form in layers the way you would with real clay strips |
| Crease | Shift + 2 | Cuts a sharp groove along the stroke, or raises a sharp ridge when inverted |
| Snake Hook | Shift + 3 | Pulls clay out along the stroke, tapering as it goes: horns, tentacles, tails, spikes |
| Layer | Shift + 4 | Raises (or lowers) the surface by an even height, without stacking up where strokes overlap |
| Noise | Shift + 5 | Roughens the surface with a fine noise pattern: skin, stone, bark |
| Trim | Shift + 6 | Cuts down only what stands proud of the plane under the brush, and never fills hollows: planes and bony edges |
| Polish | Shift + 7 | Flattens towards the brushed area’s own plane while keeping edges crisp: polished, hard surfaces |
| Dam Standard | Shift + 8 | A narrow, sharp, pinched crease: lids, lips, wrinkles and seams |
| Move | Shift + 9 | Grabs and moves the surface |
Every brush works on detail meshes as well as clay. Hold Ctrl (or use the pen’s eraser) to invert a brush, and Shift to smooth.
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