Curves are a type of object in Blender that can be used in order to create a surface along a curve expressed by a mathematical function, which can be easier to alter and modify compared to an ordinary mesh.
Converting a curve into a mesh is very simple and there are many reasons that you may want to do so.
To convert a curve into mesh, first select your curve object, open the right click menu and select convert to -> mesh.
Continue reading this article for further detail and other methods to convert curves to mesh, reasons why you may want to do so, and also for examples on how this tool can be helpful for you.
Converting a curve to mesh is very simple and there are a few different methods of doing this.
As mentioned above, to convert a curve to mesh you can use the mouse’s right click menu, select convert and mesh.
After the curve has been created we can open the operator panel in the lower left corner of the 3D viewport. Here we can check "keep original" if we also want to keep a copy of the curve around. The operator panel can also be accessed by pressing F9.
Another way is by selecting your curve and then using the search tool with shortcut F3, type ‘convert’, and select convert to -> mesh.
Curves and meshes can also be converted to grease pencil objects. This could be helpful if you like to work with both 2D and 3D.
To convert a curve into a grease pencil object, simply right click the curve object and select ‘convert to grease pencil’. For a mesh, you will have to open the object menu > convert to > grease pencil. You can also search this function by clicking F3.
There are many different reasons that you may want to convert a curve to a mesh. The most common reason is because it’s often easier to create and mold the shape as a curve first before converting it to mesh.
There are a few different types of curves, which you may find easier to shape. For further information on using curve objects, you can take a look at this article:
Related content: Blender curve object: Bezier, Nurbs, paths, Modifiers and profiles
After converting the curve to a mesh, you will be able to use mesh edit tools or sculpt tools to manipulate your object in ways that you wouldn’t be able to as a curve.
You may also want to convert a curve to a mesh if you’ve imported a curve that you want to have as a mesh object instead.
Another important reason you would want to convert a curve to a mesh is if you are planning to UV map the object for texturing. Converting the object to a mesh will allow you to have more control over the object and more accuracy for UV mapping.
Related content: The definitive tutorial to UV mapping in Blender
A common example where you may want to use a curve is for creating a curved pipe-like shape. It will be much easier to create the initial shape with a curve and then use the object data properties to add depth. After the basic shape is created, you can convert the curve into mesh in order to add more details and texturing.
It’s really simple to convert a curve into a mesh and can be helpful for many situations.
If in any case you forget where to find the option to convert, you can always use F3 to open the search function. The search function is very handy and applies to any other tools or functions.
Thanks for your time to take a look at this article.
