Non Destructive Editing

1. Envelope Distort is a great way to edit a shape without losing the original shape information.

2. Shape Mode: click any of the shape mode button by holding option key.

If you need to finalize the shape, you can hit “expand”

3. Mask: use the top shape to create a mask (make compound path, command + 8 for using multiple shapes as a mask)

4. Graphic Style: Use the Appearance panel and Graphic Style panel at the same time to edit shapes effectively. Show/Hide option on Appearance panel will allow you for non-destructive editing. Graphic Style can let you apply your custom style to any object with one click.