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Written for PSP 8 (with notes for the PSP 7 user) Please feel free to link to this tutorial, and/or print it out for your own personal use, but do not copy it in any way to put on-line, pass out, or re-write without my permission. Any resemblance to any other tutorial like this is purely coincidental. This tutorial was written March 10, 2004. Thank you, © Barb's Hideaway For a Swedish translation of this tutorial, click here. You will also need Simple plug-in filter called Diamonds, available free here. (If you have trouble installing the plug-ins, please read here or here.) Step 1 Open a new image, 100 x 100 pixels, transparent, 16 million colors. Flood fill with a light color for your background, I used #CEB5DE. Step 2 Let's give it some texture. Select Effects > Texture Effects > Blinds. Adjust the settings to width=4, opacity=12, color=#610AC2 (a darker version of the background color, the same color you will use on your text), horizontal is checked, light from left/top is unchecked. Select OK. Step 3 Create a new raster layer. Change your foreground color to black and your background color to your darker color from step 2. Select your text tool, click inside your image, and select a script font. I'm using English111 Vivace. Select floating, size 48, stroke width=1, anti-alias is checked. Type your letter and select Apply. (For PSP 7, select OK.) Make sure none of your letter is outside the edges of your image and then deselect. Step 4 Here's a trick to center the text. Select Cut and then CTRL-L (paste as new layer). It's now centered on a new layer. Apply an inner bevel: Effects > 3D Effects > Inner Bevel > Presets: Frame. Adjust the intensity to 50, leaving the rest of the settings as they are. Select OK. Apply a drop shadow: Effects > 3D Effects > Drop Shadow. Use settings vertical & horizontal=2, opacity=80, blur=3.50, color=#808080, shadow on new layer unchecked. Select OK. Step 5 Create a new raster layer. Pick a little design to add to your background. I used a flower from the preset shapes, using black for the outline and the dark text color for the fill. To use a preset shape, select the Preset Shape tool, select the design from the shape list, click inside your image and drag the shape to the size you want. Here are the settings for PSP 7 and PSP 8:   For this background, I used a fairly small size. Don't worry that it covers your initial.  Step 6 Again, to center it, select Cut and then CTRL-L and it will be centered on a new layer. Apply the same inner bevel and drop shadow as the text. Step 7 To make this a seamless background, select Effects > Plugins > Simple > Diamonds > OK. Use the selection tool to select the center design  and then delete it. Deselect. You're nearly done!  Step 8 Save the file as a .gif file. It will prompt you that it will save it to a single layer, this is what you want. To make a matching inner background like the one on this page, go to the layer palette and adjust the opacity of layers 3 and 5 to 10% and adjust layer 1 to 50%.  Save again, using a different file name. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Feel free to play with different background textures, fonts and designs. What I hope is that you've picked up a new technique or a new idea to help you create your own personal graphics for web pages or stationery. If you have any questions or problems with the tutorial, please contact me at featherwatcher@hotmail.com. This tutorial and all the graphics and html belong to me. Do not reprint anywhere else without my written permission. A link is allowed without permission. Whatever you create with the tutorial belongs to you!  Get your own Free Home
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