# Make your own gradient: a Mark with your name on it

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/making-a-mark-and-earning-from-it)

Anyone can craft a Mark in the Forge. Publish it, and your name stays on it as its creator, whoever owns it next.

## The short version

- In Gradiently you make your own gradient as a Mark in the Forge: a living recipe of colours, stacked materials, light, grain, motion, type and a reaction to words.
- A Mark in the Forge is a private draft that saves every change until you choose to publish it.
- Publishing gives a Mark its code and a page in the Market, and fixes its recipe so it never changes under the designs that wear it.
- Before a Mark is published it is checked against every other Mark, and a recipe that is too close to an existing one is refused.
- The creator of a Mark never changes: your name stays on it as its creator even when someone else owns it.

To make your own gradient in Gradiently, open the [Forge](/forge) and craft a Mark: up to eight colours, a base material with up to two more layered over it, the light, the grain, the motion, the typefaces and the way it makes room for words. Every control is continuous, so the space of possible Marks is effectively endless. When it is ready, you publish it. It gets a public code and a page in the Market, and your name stays on it as its creator for good.

This guide covers the path from blank draft to published Mark, and what creator credit means. For a control-by-control tour of the editor itself, read [the Forge guide](https://gradiently.design/guide/forge-guide).

## Four ways to start a Mark

The Forge opens with four doors. None of them locks you in: whichever you choose, every control stays yours to change afterwards.

| Start | What happens | Good when |
| --- | --- | --- |
| From scratch | A fresh random roll to shape by hand | You enjoy exploring and want full control |
| Describe it to the AI | You say how it should feel; it picks the material, palette, motion and type | You can picture a mood but not the settings |
| From a photo | The photo's main colours become the palette; you pick the material | You have a place, product or painting in mind |
| From a Market Mark | Your private draft is seeded from a Mark you like; the original stays as it is | Something is close, but not quite yours |

The Forge's four starting points. All of them lead to the same editor and the same private draft.

Describing is often the fastest start. A place, an hour and a mood, such as *fog over a harbour at dawn*, gives the AI enough to choose a material and palette you can then refine. [Describe a Mark in a sentence](https://gradiently.design/guide/describe-a-mark) has examples of descriptions that work.

## Shaping the recipe

A Mark's colours are not just a list. Each layer paints with four roles, from dark to bright, and each role takes one palette colour. Changing which colour plays which role changes the whole mood, even with the same swatches.

- Shadow: #120b24
- Body: #3d1f6b
- Light: #9b6cf0
- Highlight: #f6c7a8

The four colour roles of a layer: Shadow for the deepest parts, Body for most of the surface, Light for the lit parts and Highlight for the brightest touches.

From there, the Forge's sections take you through material, layers, light and grain, motion, particles, type and reaction, ending in **Explore**, which lays twelve variations around your Mark: nearby moves, bolder or calmer versions, the same colours in other materials, or the same material in other palettes. Lock any section you are happy with and shuffles and variations leave it alone.

> **Test with real words** Switch the stage to **Try words** and type your actual headline. A Mark that looks beautiful empty can still be hard to read behind a line of text. The contrast readout shows whether words read well, aiming for 4.5 : 1 or more.

## Your draft is private until you publish

Everything in the Forge saves as you go, into a draft only you can see. Versions are kept automatically while you edit and before the AI changes anything, so you can compare two versions side by side and restore either. While it is your draft you can also wear it on your own designs in the Studio, and every change you make in the Forge flows through to them.

A square post with the words Made in the Forge set on a living gradient material

A draft Mark worn on a square post while it is still being shaped.

## The originality check at publishing

When you choose **Publish**, your recipe is compared with every other Mark. If it is nearly the same as an existing one, publishing is refused and you are shown the Mark it is too close to. The fix is to move it further: try a new palette, or change the base material, then publish again. This check is what makes ownership meaningful. Nobody can publish a near-copy of your Mark, and you can't accidentally publish a near-copy of theirs.

- An existing Mark's colours: `linear-gradient(135deg, #1b1033 0%, #6d3fc7 55%, #f0a3c8 100%)`
- Too close: refused: `linear-gradient(135deg, #1d1236 0%, #7043c9 55%, #efa6ca 100%)`
- Moved further: distinct: `linear-gradient(135deg, #07232a 0%, #1f7f86 55%, #f2c46d 100%)`

The idea behind the check, shown with simple gradients. A few hex steps away is still the same look; a different family of colours, or a different material, is a new one.

Publishing is final in a good way. The recipe is fixed from that moment, with its code and its page in the Market, so it never shifts under the designs that wear it. If you want to keep experimenting, make your own version from it: a new draft starts from the published look and the original stays exactly as it is. [AI design originality](https://gradiently.design/guide/ai-design-originality) explains why this kind of check matters more as more design is generated.

## Creators and owners

### The creator

- Whoever made and published the Mark
- Shown on the Mark's page, always
- Listed on their profile under created Marks
- Never changes

### The owner

- Whoever holds the Mark now
- Shown on the Mark's page as its current owner
- The only one who can export designs made with it
- Can change, one owner at a time

Once published, anyone can claim your Mark, you included. If you want it for your own brand, claim it yourself right after publishing so every design of yours can wear it. If someone else claims it, they become its owner and your name stays on it as its creator, wherever it goes next. Your profile keeps a record of every Mark you have created.

## FAQ

### How do I make my own gradient in Gradiently?

Open the Forge and start from scratch, from a description, from a photo or from a Market Mark. Shape the colours, materials, light, motion and type, then publish it as a Mark.

### Why was my Mark refused when I tried to publish it?

Its recipe was too close to an existing Mark. Try a new palette or change the base material, then publish again.

### Can I change a Mark after publishing it?

No. A published Mark is fixed so it never changes under the designs that wear it. Make your own version to start a new draft from it.

### Do I keep credit if someone else claims my Mark?

Yes. The creator of a Mark never changes, so your name stays on it and on your profile whoever owns it.

### Who can see my draft Marks?

Only you. Drafts stay private in the Forge until you publish them to the Market.