DEV Community: Kristjan Retter

Train a Custom AI Art Model

Kristjan Retter — Thu, 12 Feb 2026 16:16:41 +0000

AI image generators are great at making cool one-off images. But designers usually need a set. Same style, same colors, same feel across every piece.

That's where fine-tuning comes in.

How It Works

Fine-tuning trains the model on your specific visual style. Upload 10–20 of your existing illustrations, wait ~2 hours, and you get a custom model that generates new images matching your aesthetic.

Type a prompt → get on-brand illustration.

Training Data Tips

Quality over quantity. 10 consistent images beat 20 mediocre ones.

JPEG or PNG, ~1024px, no transparent backgrounds
Simple clear subjects, white space around edges
For style training: same style, different subjects
Avoid gradients/shadows, if you want SVG export

If you work with illustration assets and want to try training your own style, I'd love to hear how it goes. :)

Train AI Art Model on Ilus AI

Midjourney Alternative for Professionals

Kristjan Retter — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 16:49:24 +0000

Midjourney was one of the first great generative models, and it remains an incredible tool for artistic exploration and one-off creative images.

Features like --sref allow for some style consistency, but its core strength lies in artistic interpretation.

How Ever Designers don't usually need one image. They need a set. Same style, same colors, same feel. Every piece has to look like it belongs with the others.

The FIX

Ilus AI was built from the ground up to address the specific needs of professional workflows.

Stylistic consistency, true fine-tuning, SVG export, and clear CC0 licensing help designers and business owners create on-brand assets at scale.

Stylistic consistency:

Create a custom style using (10-20) sample images:

If you want creative AI art, use Midjourney. It's genuinely good at that. Different tool, different job.

If you work with illustration assets and have thoughts on what's missing from current tools, I'd love to hear it. :)

Ilus AI

SVG Converter

Kristjan Retter — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 15:45:56 +0000

Link: SVG Converter

I needed to convert a large number of PNG illustrations to SVG, but couldn't find a tool that was affordable and would work well with colors. Everything was either behind a paywall or produced messy results. That gave my friend and me an idea: how hard can it be to make it ourselves?

Initially, my friend and I wanted to turn this into a full product, an image to SVG converter API. But after creating the first over engineered MVP, we hit a wall with the color selection feature, and the project eventually got abandoned. So rather than letting it die, I created a simpler free version.

It is free, no signup needed :)

If you want to hear what I make next, feel free to follow me on Twitter/X

I share there when I've built something new. Currently working on Ilus AI

3 Free Tools I Built Because I Couldn't Find Good Ones

Kristjan Retter — Sun, 12 Oct 2025 22:46:32 +0000

1. Tailwind Grid Generator

Link: Tailwind Grid Generator

I find it much easier and faster to draw up grid layouts with a UI rather than writing code. I didn't like existing generators, so I decided to make my own.

Originally, I dreamed of building a full drag-and-drop website builder. The idea of dragging and dropping together a simple site that could be exported always appealed to me. But after playing around a bit, I realized it's a massive undertaking, so I decided to settle with a grid generator.

2. CSS Grid Generator

Link: Css Grid Generator

After Tailwind Generator got popular, I made the same thing for CSS because all the code was already there.

3. SVG Converter

Link: SVG Converter

I needed to convert illustrations to SVG but couldn't find a free tool that lets you adjust colors. Everything else was either paid or gave messy results.

At first, my friend and I set out to create a product out of it—an image-to-SVG converter. But after building the first over-engineered MVP, we really struggled with the color selection aspect and the project got a bit abandoned. So, like with the first project, instead of letting it die, I made a simpler free version.

All three are free, no signup required :)

If you want to hear what I make next, feel free to follow me on Twitter/X

I share there when I've built something new. Currently working on Ilus AI

What tools do you wish existed?