In this Letter, we report synthesis protocol for the creation of multi shaped nanocrystals based on a seeded-growth approach. We report real time monitoring of the shape evaluation during synthesis for understanding the growth mechanisms. Our results show that by varying the concentration of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, one can control the shape of branched gold nanomaterials. Growth mechanisms on how the shape control works for gold anisotropic nanocrystals have been discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.