CorelDRAW for Dye Sublimation: Understanding the Group Tools

The family of Grouping tools is a vital part to learning and working in Corel. The ability to group multiple objects together so they can be seen, moved and manipulated as one, makes working in Corel far easier, shortening the time it takes to create complex objects. There are three places where you can locate “Group”, “Ungroup” and “Ungroup All” selections. Under the “Arrange” menu, at the top of the page or when multiple items are selected, an icon should appear on the toolbar just above the drawing area.

You can also select multiple objects and then right click on them to access the group options. There are also keyboard shortcuts (Control + G and Control + U) that can be used. Ungroup all does not have a keyboard shortcut. Many clipart pieces you import have multiple objects grouped together inside of other groups, i.e., groups within groups. These can go many levels deep and sometimes present a challenge to get to or “reach” the level you desire. The danger is that if you ungroup all or ungroup a group of objects within other groups, is it is very easy to accidentally move an object and not realize it until after you have printed it and found a flaw that forces you to repeat the job. 

To avoid this pitfall, use the Ctrl + Left Click on the object you desire to change. This selects the single object and allows it to be deleted, changed, filled with color, etc., without ever really taking it out of its original group. Thus, when you clock off the drawing, everything goes back to its original condition.  Most designers, learn to group small sets of objects as they go along. This makes complex drawings easier to manage and often allows for faster, safer duplication of objects.