Independent Research #4: Creating My Own Trim Sheet in Blender

Welcome back to week 4 of my independent research!

Last week, I shared my research on creating trim sheets and explored how I might approach designing one myself. I then concepted a trim sheet digitally in Procreate, using what I had learned to guide my design decisions.

This week, I focused on bringing that concept to life, spending most of my time in Blender modeling the trim sheet I had envisioned. Here’s the design I started with and concepted:

My Trim Sheet Design in Procreate

I was feeling pretty confident with this design at first, but after considering what I learned about how trim sheets tile and repeat horizontally, I realized that the middle section — the one with the “light” in the center — wouldn’t tile very well since it was too unique and symmetrical.

When I started modeling my trim sheet, you’ll notice that I made several changes to address this issue. I began by adding loop cuts to divide the different areas of the trim sheet, then incorporated some Boolean designs and smaller details. After polishing each section, I created thinner horizontal strips and even added a row at the top dedicated to decal information.

Here’s an image showing my modeling and design workflow:

My Trim Sheet workflow

Here is my final trim sheet design (for now):

I’ve now realized that with this trim sheet, most of the details are centered and symmetrical — something I learned last week to avoid. While brainstorming ways to add more variety and visual interest to my scenes, I discovered decals.

Decals are 2D images projected onto a mesh that add surface details — such as graffiti, vents, panels, or even bullet holes — without altering the base mesh geometry. They’re a great way to break up repetition in modular assets and make environments feel more dynamic and detailed.

Here are some examples of decals used alongside trim sheets:

"Trim Sheet Creation" - Decal Machine

Honestly, figuring out how to create decals has been a bit of a confusing journey — should I make them in Substance Painter, Blender, or somewhere else entirely? To simplify things, I decided to focus on just one method for now, even if it might not end up being my preferred workflow. I chose to experiment with baking decals in Blender.

To learn how to do this, I followed Ryan King Art’s incredibly helpful video tutorial on creating normal map decals in Blender:

"How to Bake Normal Map Decals in Blender (Tutorial)" - Ryan King Art

In his video, he demonstrated some hard surface modeling techniques and explained how to bake normal information onto a new plane. The process involved positioning a plane just above the modeled geometry, adjusting the baking settings, and then hitting “Bake.”

Creating a normal map for our custom decal

I decided to give this method a try using a grated vent that I modeled. I began by adding a new plane to my 3D space and positioning it slightly above my mesh. Next, I added new image textures to both objects, making sure they both referenced my created image titled “baking.”

After that, I adjusted the bake settings — most importantly switching from Eevee to Cycles, since Blender’s Eevee engine doesn’t support baking. Then, I hit “Bake” and watched the magic happen!

Here’s the process I followed:

Creating my own custom decal normal map

While I feel this was a successful experiment, I still have more to learn about how to texture this unique decal. It might be that instead of generating a normal map, I’ll need to bake a different type of decal altogether.

My goal for next week is to continue learning about decals and texture the entire trim sheet, focusing on sci-fi surface details. I plan to do this by watching more tutorials and studying texturing techniques.

Getting a bit ahead of myself, I also came across a really interesting video by hbitproject titled “Mastering Details in Blender – Trim Sheets Tutorial.” In it, they demonstrate how to manipulate geometry on a trim sheet after completing the full creation, baking, and texturing process, as well as how to adjust Blender’s displacement maps to create height information from the finished texture.

"Mastering details in Blender - trim sheets tutorial" - hbitproject

Everything I’ve learned so far about trim sheets has been incredibly fascinating — and since they’re such an industry standard, I’m honestly surprised I hadn’t learned this much about them before. I’m excited to keep studying, practicing, and experimenting with creating decals and completing my sci-fi trim sheet!

Until next week — stay tuned for the finished product!