FAKE MASK TOP BORDER

This tutorial is my own creation. Any resemblance to another is purely co-incidental. Please do not copy, translate or place on another site without my written permission. You are more than welcome to share this tutorial in a group setting. Please link to this tutorial page only.

Tools needed to complete this tutorial:

PSP V9

A graphic of your choice.
The graphic I have used is used with permission from Johanna Pieterman who has very kindly allowed me to use her wonderful artwork in my tutorials and stationery making.

No outside filters were used in this tutorial.

If you have everything you need, let's begin.

1. Open your graphic of choice. Reside so that it is no longer than 380 pixels. Shift + D twice. Close the original and minimize one of the copies for now.

   BACKGROUND

2. Effects, Distortion Effects, Polar Coordinates and use the Polar factory preset.

3. Layers, Duplicate.

4. Image, Flip.

5. Lower the opacity on this level to 50%.

6. Merge visible.

7. Effects, Image Effects, Seamless tiling and use the following settings:-
   • Edge Checked
     
   • Horizontal Checked
     (All other settings will be automatically chosen by the program).

8. Effects, Image Effects, Seamless tiling and use the following settings:-
   • Corner Checked
     
   • Bidirectional Checked
     
   • Curved Checkd.

9. Lower the opacity to around 70%.

10. Merge all flatten and save as your background.

11. You can now minimize this background.

    FAKE MASK

12. Maximize the 2nd copy of our graphic.

13. Promote background layer by right clicking in your layer palette.

14. Add a new layer.

15. In your color palette, set your foreground to white and your background to null.

16. Click on your pen tool and use the following settings:-

    

    

17. Place your curser 80 pixels from the bottom and holding down your shift key, draw the line from left to right across the image.

18. Using your mover tool, move the line down until it touches the bottom of your graphic.

19. Select the line with your magic wand and hit the delete button. Keep selected.

20. In your layer palette, make sure raster 1 is the active layer, and again hit the delete button.

21. Deselect.

22. Drag layer 2 below layer 1. We will use it for our background.

23. Image, canvas size and use the following settings:
    • Width:      1024
      
    • Height:      Total height of your original graphic
      
    • Placement:      Left middle arrow.

24. Layer, duplicate. Image mirror.

25. Using your mover tool, move the duplicated layer so that they match up. Depending on the width of your graphic, you may need to duplicate it again.

26. Close the bottom layer, and make sure one of the top two layers is highlighted, Merge visible.

27. Image, canvas size and use the following settings:-
    • Width:      1024
      
    • Height:      950
      
    • Placement:      Top middle arrow.

28. Effects, 3D Effects, Drop Shadow and use the following settings:-
    • Vertical:       10
      
    • Horizontal:      5
      
    • Opacity:       55
      
    • Blur:      4
      
    • Color:      Black
      
    • Shadow on new layer:      Unchecked.

29. In your layer palette, change your foreground color to pattern, and using the drop down menu select the background that we made at the beginning of the tutorial.

30. Making sure your bottom layer is the active layer, flood fill with your pattern.

31. Effects, Art Media Effects, Brush strokes and use the following settings:
    • Softness:      20
      
    • Bristles:      160
      
    • Width:      5
      
    • Opacity:       50
      
    • Length:      10
      
    • Density:       25
      
    • Angle:      102
      
    • Color:      #505050

32. Adjust, Blur, Gaussian Blur and use a setting of 2.

33. Add a new raster layer and bring to the top for your watermark.

34. Merge all, flatten.

35. File, export, JPEG Optimizer and you are now ready to take it into Letter Creator. A program that comes with IncrediMail.

    
        

    
    
    
    © An Aushorty Creation - November 2004

    
    

    
    

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