Wednesday

Beads on a Wire & Wire Words

Tutorial - Beads on a Wire (by Tracey Renemo) * 2017 tutorial no longer available, see notes below.




Tutorial Note from Pat

Here I drew a curved vector line across my page and used a script to place the beads, then placed smaller beads by hand in between the larger ones. I then texturized and sculptured the line to make it like a string or cord.

Don't be afraid to experiment with sculptures, bevels, textures and colourization, you will be surprised what you can come up with!

Try using preset shapes or vector shapes and use your vector/tube paint script to place your beads, or place them by hand individually, on wire words for example.

Wire Words Tutorial

See 16 Beads for a tutorial on making your own beads




Thanks to the wonderfully talented and generous tutorial writers who share their talent, I am continually learning!

Tuesday

Photo Prong


Look at these prongs - can you see the simple shapes? Ovals and circles. This is where you begin creating your prongs with shapes.


Tutorial Notes from pat/PCArt

Save your first prong as a flat grey template with your brad still on a separate layer.


Copy and use your template to make many different brads.
When you are finished and your layers are merged,
go to Selections / Select all / Float / Defloat and crop to selection.
Save as .png

Try Different bevels, Textures, Sculptures, Pattern Fills,
The possibilities are endless!




This was a 12 inch x 12 inch page and the finished prongs were pasted onto it.

When viewing the page in Paint Shop Pro at 100% the Prongs are as big as you see the loose ones in this post, but on the page when viewed in Paint Shop Pro at between 17%and 20% which is about how big it would be when printing it out, they appear proportionately on the page as you see them above in this preview.

Perhaps this helps to explain why we create our elements "so big" :)

Chalked Edge Effect

Tutorial - Chalked Edge Effect
(By PCArt)


Using Paint Shop Pro - Open new canvas 600 x 600 pixels 300 pixels per inch
Fill with your colour choice

duplicate layer

On copy layer
Go to freehand selection tool - draw a narrow random selection quite close to the edge
all the way around your canvas to select the edge to be chalked.
(You could also Select modify and contract however much you want to)
Delete inner selection. (leaving edge on canvas) Select None.
Effects / Art Media Effects / Coloured Chalk - detail 20 - Opacity 20
Adjust Blur Gaussian Blur 13
Adjust add / remove noise - add noise - uniform - monochrome - 17%
On Chalk Layer Adjust /Sharpen and change layer property to Lighten.

(Optional - Apply texture to both layers)
I used Texture Canvas Coarse, size 150 depth 1 (smoothness, ambience, shininess 0)
Angle 315, Intensity 50, Elevation 30.

Merge Visible Layers and Save

Try this technique with other shapes.


Stamped Text




Note from Pat

Using Paint Shop Pro - on a 600 x 600 pixel canvas - played with the words, cutting and pasting them where I wanted them to be.

Heart was done with preset shape and stitches done with a script and then the stitches colour was adjusted using -Adjust / Hue and Saturation / Hue /Saturation/Lightness - I experimented with the settings until I got the colour I wanted.

The white lettering layer was lowered in opacity and nothing else was done to it.

I used Filters Unlimited for the background texture and a Rose preset shape, coloured, texturized, and lowered in opacity.

Adler Font

Monday

Make a scrap book page

Tutorial - Make a Scrapbook Page
(by Pracken)


I added the Peace symbol because it is also 50 this year. Click on image to see a larger preview. This image was downsized from 12 inch x 12 inch 300 pixels per inch
to 78 pixels per inch and 600 x 600 pixels - smart size in Paint Shop Pro.

This is an interesting tutorial - which I recommend you to only use as a guide.
It gives you a good example of a simple and elegant well balanced layout.
Do the tutorial exactly as presented if you want to.
By using your own images, elements and colours the result will be uniquely yours!
Use any free elements and tubes if you wish.

Tutorial Notes from pat/PCArt
I created my paper on a 12 inch x 12 inch canvas 300 pixels per inch - and Scribbled a lot with my paint brush set at default / round and size 50 - No two papers will be the same because our scribbles and colour choices are different.

Then I Applied Fantastic Machines Paint Engine - just hit the random button till I saw something I liked. Then I applied Brush Strokes as in the tutorial but used a darker shade of my dark colour. Applied Kaliedoscope at default - Applied Pattern at default - Applied Brush strokes again.

Creating paper like this takes a long time because of the size so you need to be very patient!

The fibres were drawn freestyle on a new layer, then selected and selection expanded by 7 - float - defloat and apply Fantastic Machines to give a fibrous look to them and a drop shadow.

My heading was done in Freestyle Script
set to bold and 90 points, then used the deform tool to rotate it slightly.

My buttons were made using Preset Shapes from Scrap Stuff with PSP

and I applied Effects - Flaming Pear - Laquer to them. Try any other glassy or sculpture effects on yours.

Thursday

Easy Grosgrain Ribbon

Tutorial - Easy Grosgrain Ribbon
(by PCArt)

Preview Shown at approximately 20% - Click on image to see larger preview.

You may need to adjust the various settings depending on the size of your ribbon - please note tutorials are merely a guide for you to work with - ultimately the end result reflects your own creativity and individuality and style. Try different noise and blinds settings. Also when creating for a scrap page that you intend printing and creating at the large sizes stipulated, Try viewing at approximately 17% to 20 % to see what the printed image size will be like.

1 - Open a new canvas 17 inches x .50 inches (or however wide or long you want your ribbon to be)
17 inches is so that the ribbon can be used corner to corner at 45 degrees across a 12 inch x 12 inch page.
2 - flood fill your canvas with your colour
3 - selections /select all /modify /contract x 12 pixels / invert selection
4 - add a new layer and flood fill selection with a darker shade of your colour
5 - effects / texture effects / blinds / width 30 opacity 50 colour #202020 / horizontal and light Unchecked
6 - effects / 3d effects / inner bevel / default round - change depth and width to 2
7 - adjust / add remove noise / add noise gaussian monochrome 10 - 15
8 - lower opacity of this edge layer to 50 percent
9 - apply the same blinds and noise effects to the bottom ribbon layer
10 - merge visible
11 - effects / Greg's pool shadow / intensity 52 and lightness 190
12 - use your selection tool to select the end parts of the ribbon "frame" and delete so that your ribbon has raw ends.
13 - selections / select all / float / defloat / crop to selection

File / save as / image name .PNG
Greg's Pool Shadow Zip


Wednesday

Creating stitches in Paintshop Pro

Tutorial - Creating Stitches in Paint Shop Pro
This is an advanced Tutorial (from Just Mommies)



Here I used the script to stitch around preset shapes "square, heart and flower
1 - in vector mode - draw your shape,
2 - choose your tube/stitch/bead
3 - and then run the script!

To get the script for stitching (or beading etc.,)
around your vectors, go here

If you require help contact me, email is in side bar.

Monday

Simple Bezier Flowers

Tutorial - Simple Bezier Flowers(by SuzShook)  Tutorial link no longer available - see my notes below.

Tutorial Note by pat/PCArt
I made the first big pink flower following the tutorial - (well...sort of)
then duplicated and colorized for the red and orange
then played with preset shapes for the little pink ones and fern leaves. Use preset shapes and then use the WARP tool to manipulate the shapes slightly as you prefer. Paint or spray paint selected areas with gradients

Thursday

Dymo Tape Label


Tutorial Dymo Tape Label
by PCArt



Shown at 20%

File New
3600 x 142 pixels 300 pixels per inch Raster background
this is for the tape

Flood fill with colour of choice
Open Font ARLRDBD

Click on Text tool and choose your font
you will see it as Arial Rounded MT 1 from your dropdown menu
and type your words - Auto Kern Off - Kerning 149
Colour white size 100 as Vector
Object - Align - Center in Canvas
Go to your layers and convert to Raster

SAVE

on your text layer
Selections select all float defloat
selections modify expand x 8 ok
add new layer
fill selections on new layer with tape colour
Select None
Effects 3d effects inner bevel
Default bevel 1


Adjust blur Gaussian blur 1
Lower opacity of this layer to 50%

on your top white text layer
(if not at the top - move to the top)

effects 3d effects
bevel default bevel 1
change width to 15 and depth to 5

merge visible
cut tape

apply inner bevel
default bevel 1
change width to 2 and depth to 1

save - you are done

xoxoxo pat/PCArt

Looking for Freebies? Click on the Freebie Label to see what is available!

Digital Scrapping Class

Tuesday

Polaroid Frame


Tutorial - Polaroid Frame(by ©PCArt)
Using Paint Shop Pro



Click on image to see Frames Shown at approximately 20%

Keep in mind the kind of dimensions a typical Polaroid Frame has
and this has to be one of the easiest things to do!

File New Image
1125 x 1353
300 pixels per inch
(Resize this to 20% if you only want to make a tag)

First Layer Create frame using selection tool rectangle
and flood fill Frame #dbdfe2
Use selection tool again to cut out the middle
(see sample images as a guide to where to cut out)
Bevel default 2
change to width 3 depth 3

(Optional Inner Film)
Select with magic wand inside frame
expand selection by 8
Add New Raster Layer
Fill selection on this new layer #202632
Gregs Pool Shadow and reduce layer opacity to about 40%
Make sure inner film layer is underneath

FINISH
Merge visible layers
click magic wand outside frame
invert and crop to selection
and save as .png


Challenge - Decorate those frames!



Now why stop at a plain old empty frame?

You've learned some pretty interesting things - you've made a colour palette, you've made a mat frame, a polaroid frame, a few embellishments, like the charm, a few felt shapes, and perhaps even some papers - now it is time to jazz up your work and make it uniquely you!

Go back to your simplest frames and decorate them and re-save them as a new creation.
Go back to your paper and select a piece of it and make a matching frame for your paper.
Bevel your frames and add other textures to them.
Make frames in different shapes!
Add your bows, buttons, beads etc to them!
Try using the colourizing feature in Paint Shop Pro to change the colours of your pieces

E x p e r i m e n t !
I n s p i r e !
C r e a t e !

Let's see what you can create!
Then show us what you have made - this way we can inspire each other
to try new ideas.

Visit other blogs and see what they make
and then "steal with your eyes" and make something of your own.