VECTOR ILLUSTRATION9 min read · Checked October 12, 2026

VectorCraft: SVG editing & first export

VectorCraft is ArtCraft’s vector illustration app. Its useful starting point is a drawing made from editable paths that can be resized and delivered as SVG. Evaluate the structure of that drawing as well as its PNG preview; a sharp-looking image alone does not establish vector editability.

The useful starting point

Our VectorCraft 0.9.0 CLI preserved two vector paths, their IDs and fills through SVG read/write and a native-file save/reopen. It exported the expected 320 × 180 and 640 × 360 PNGs. The SVG title changed to the input filename, an observed metadata difference worth checking before delivery.

We verified the official macOS universal CLI archive digest and ran the test on macOS 27.0.1 arm64. The badge SVG is original to this site. XML parsing and Pillow checked exported structure, dimensions and selected interior pixels independently; no Illustrator GUI or global render-equivalence test was run.

Use paths when the deliverable must scale

A vector drawing describes geometry and paint. A raster image describes pixels. For a logo, icon, diagram or scalable illustration, retaining paths lets the next editor modify shapes and render at another size. For photo retouching and layered image manipulation, PhotoCraft serves a different job.

VectorCraft’s official materials describe path tools and SVG/PDF interchange. Treat those as the starting scope. A format name does not establish that all fonts, clipping rules, filters, gradients and external images in a real file will survive.

Choose an official VectorCraft build

Follow the official app page to storytold/vectorcraft on GitHub. We tested the v0.9.0 macOS universal CLI archive. Choose a graphical installer when you want the drawing interface; a CLI ZIP and a source ZIP are different entry points. Use the release’s exact asset names and checksums.

ArtCraft Launcher can manage multiple native apps. If installing VectorCraft alone, match a standalone package to your operating system and processor. Keep the package name with any report and start with a small copied drawing before opening client work.

A shared brand or similar repository name is not enough to identify the official app. Start at getartcraft.com/apps/vectorcraft and follow its own links. Keep app and launcher release numbers separate.

Start with a two-shape badge

Our original SVG uses a 320 × 180 artboard, a blue rectangle and a red rounded badge. It deliberately has no text, fonts or linked files. That isolates basic geometry and fill handling before adding more complicated content.

Open the SVG, inspect its paths, save a new SVG and save a native .vectorcraft copy. Reopen the native copy in a fresh command process and export SVG again. Then render at the original size and at twice that size. These are separate checks: interchange, native persistence and raster delivery.

For a graphical exercise, make the same two shapes on a small artboard and change one fill. That is a suggested drawing task; our verified path below uses the CLI. Keep a copy of the original so you can distinguish a conversion difference from a change you intentionally made.

Paths survived; the title did not remain identical

The saved SVG kept a viewBox of 0 0 320 180. Independent XML parsing found two path elements, no image elements, the IDs background and badge, and the original blue and red fills. Rectangles became path data, including cubic curves for the rounded corners. That is a representation change, not a flattened bitmap.

Saving the native document and reopening it produced the same exported SVG bytes as the first SVG conversion in this fixture. Both PNG sizes were correct. Interior background and badge samples were RGB 30, 90, 210 and 220, 55, 35 at both resolutions. We did not compare every antialiased edge or claim that every SVG renderer produces identical pixels.

The input SVG title was “Original two-shape badge”; the output title was “fixture.svg”. Our result therefore separates geometry preservation from metadata preservation. If your receiving website depends on an accessible SVG name or description, inspect those fields in the delivered file rather than assuming they survived unchanged.

Actual VectorCraft export of the original red rounded badge on a blue artboard — Actual PNG from the saved SVG. Its source still contains two vector paths.

Reproduce the file workflow

Download the original SVG into a fresh folder and use the matching CLI. Each output gets a new name. The last command uses scale 2 for a 640 × 360 PNG from the same 320 × 180 drawing. Inspect the SVG XML independently; a PNG export by itself cannot tell you whether the source paths remained editable.

vectorcraft-cli info fixture.svg
vectorcraft-cli convert fixture.svg roundtrip.svg
vectorcraft-cli convert roundtrip.svg rendered.png
vectorcraft-cli convert fixture.svg saved.vectorcraft
vectorcraft-cli convert saved.vectorcraft native-reopen.svg
vectorcraft-cli convert roundtrip.svg scaled.png --scale 2

Illustrator handoff is a separate requirement

The upstream status notes distinguish supported PDF-compatible .ai import from reliable preservation of Illustrator’s native editing data. Do not treat a file extension or an embedded PDF view as proof that a recipient can edit every original object in Illustrator.

Try a copy of the actual client drawing. Include its fonts, linked images, clipping, gradients, strokes and effects. Make one required edit, export to the agreed format and open it in the receiving application. Inspect layer structure and editability as well as appearance. Our badge case has none of those more complex structures.

Current status and Illustrator interchange gaps

Choose SVG or PNG deliberately

Use SVG when the receiver needs paths or a scalable web graphic and its platform accepts your SVG features. Use PNG when the receiver needs pixels at a fixed size. Keep the native source and a known-good reference alongside the export; delivering PNG does not require pretending it remains a vector file.

Before publishing an SVG, inspect its viewBox, title, external references and rendering in the actual browser or application. For a print handoff, agree on page dimensions, color requirements and the requested format with the receiver and preflight the exported copy.

Common first-export questions

If a logo is blurry, check whether you are viewing a low-resolution PNG rather than the SVG. Our two-size example demonstrates a raster export from the same vector source; it is not a claim that enlarging an existing PNG restores detail.

If text changes, verify the receiving machine’s fonts and whether the exported file contains editable text or outlined paths. We deliberately excluded text from this test. Outline conversion, font licensing and editability are separate choices to settle for the actual handoff.

If import reports a preview or unsupported content, retain the original and review the warning before overwriting it. A file opening is not proof that every layer or effect was read. Record the exact app version and share a minimal permitted sample when reporting a problem.

Sources & evidence

Checked October 12, 2026. Source pages, discussions and releases can change. GetPhotoCraft is independent of ArtCraft.