Add backgrounds
Browse Kittl background images, apply one to a design, replace it, or remove it when you need a different backdrop.
In Kittl you have access to an extensive background image library. You can add or change the background of your designs with a single click. The background image library is curated to offer a wide range of options, catering to various design styles, themes, and preferences. Whether you're looking for a vibrant and energetic backdrop, a serene and nature-inspired scene, a sleek and minimalist environment, or any other aesthetic, you'll find an abundance of choices to suit your creative vision.
Open the Textures panel
Open a project, or start a new one from a template or a blank canvas.
Select the artboard you want to add a background to.
Click Textures in the left toolbar.
Select the Backgrounds tab to browse the background image library.
Apply a background image
Click a background image in the Backgrounds tab to add it to your design.
The image becomes your artboard's background layer automatically, so you don't need to resize or reposition it.
To swap it out, click a different background image at any time.
Find a similar background
Hover over a background thumbnail and click its ••• icon to open a detail card with the background's name and tags. From there, click See more like this to browse related backgrounds, the heart icon to add it to your likes, or Add to Project to add it directly without dragging it onto the artboard.
Adjust or replace your background
Click the background layer, either directly on the artboard or from the layers panel.
In the right panel's Background Image section, change the blend mode or adjust settings like opacity to match the rest of your design.
Click the minus icon next to Background Image to delete the image from your canvas entirely. To keep the image instead, release it rather than removing it (see Release your background image, below).
Release your background image
Click Release Image, at the bottom of the Background Image section, to turn it into a regular image layer instead of deleting it. Unlike the minus icon, releasing keeps the image on your canvas, just no longer as the background. Once released, you can crop or reframe it, erase parts of it, vectorize it, or add a border or shadow, just like any other image on your canvas, and its blend mode and opacity move to that layer's own settings. The artboard's background layer falls back to its background color underneath.
Expected outcome
Your chosen image fills the artboard as its background layer, sitting behind every other element, and any blend mode or adjustment you apply updates it right away.
Troubleshooting
I can't find my background layer
Every artboard has its own background layer, listed at the bottom of that artboard's layers in the layers panel. Open Layers in the left toolbar to find and select it.
My background is covering other elements
A background image always sits behind everything else on the artboard, so if something's hidden, check its layer order instead. Layers higher in the list appear in front of the ones below them.
Common questions
Can I remove a background completely?
Not entirely. Every artboard always has a background layer, whether it's showing a color or an image. Removing an image with the minus icon, or releasing it with Release Image, doesn't delete that layer, it just falls back to the artboard's background color, which then serves as the background. You can hide the background layer, but you can't remove it altogether.
Can I use my own photo as a background?
Yes. Right-click any image on your canvas and choose Use as background, or upload your photo first from Uploads in the left toolbar and apply it the same way.
Can I edit the background image directly, like cropping or adding a shadow?
Not while it's a background layer. Click Release Image, in the Background Image section of the right panel, to turn it into a regular image layer with full image tools like Reframe, Erase & Fill, and Vectorize.
What's the difference between removing and releasing a background image?
Removing it with the minus icon deletes the image from your canvas entirely. Releasing it with Release Image keeps the image, moving it to its own regular image layer instead of deleting it. Either way, the artboard's background layer falls back to its background color.
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