Using freehand strokes, Bezier based points, or useful primitives, shapes can be designed with smooth and sharp corners, and can be specified as unfilled or filled, and unstroked or stroked with a given weight.

Shapes can be open or closed, and multiple closed shapes can be compounded into a single shape with subtracted areas.

Filled shapes can have solid uniform colors, with real transparency. Additionally, shapes can have independent, point-based colors, including adjustable point-based transparency.

Shapes can also be filled by patterns of any origin, including other vector shapes or photographs. A shape's solid, or point-based color and transparency can also contribute to the pattern.

Any closed shape can be filled with typeset text, and any open shape can flow typeset text along its path. Shapes with text are linked, in an adjustable sequence, to a specified story.

Any flowing text attached to a shape can be assigned an independent color, transparency, and even a pattern. Drop shadows can also be assigned to both shapes and text. Additionally, text for a selected story block can be converted to outlines.

In a stroked shape, Artstream Variable Strokes allows center-line based brushes with varied, pressure and speed based widths. Pen point strokes also allow center-line based width adjustments.

Artstream Variable Strokes allow feathering to a given transparency, at a given distance from either the stroke center or edge.

Variable Strokes even allow single edge feathering, providing a frisket effect. The inner or outer edge of a weighed stroke can be disabled to prevent encroachment on transparent or patterned fills, or concentric shapes.

A wealth of attributes can be applied to independent points of Artstream Variable Strokes including color, transparency, weight, feathering limit and feathering distance,. Each attribute is automatically blended with adjacent settings.