This tutorial is my own creation. Any resemblance to another is purely co-incidental. Please do not pull it apart and claim it as your own. Do not copy, translate or place on another site without my written permission. You are more than welcome to use this tutorial in a group setting, but please link to this page only.

Tools needed to complete this tutorial:

PSP 9

Toadies Filters

VM Natural

A graphic of your choice.
The graphic I have used is by Mr Jim Warren who has very kindly allowed me to use his artwork in my tutorials and stationery creations.

Ok, if you have everything you need, lets begin.

1. Open your graphic of choice and resize if necessary. Shift + D twice. Close the original, and minimize one of the copies for now.

   BACKGROUND

2. Effects, Distortion effects, Waves and use the following settings:-
   • Horizontal & Vertical Amplitude:      4
     
   • Horizontal & Vertical Wavelength:      10
     
   • Repeat Checked.

3. Effects, Distortion Effects, Displacement map and use the following settings:
   • Displacement Map:      Zoom wave
     
   • Blur:      0
     
   • 2D offsets checked
     
   • Intensity:      50
     
   • Rotation:      0
     
   • Repeat checked.

4. Effects, Plugins, VM Natural, Lakeside Reflection and use the factory default settings.

5. Effects, Plugins, Toadies, Weaver and use the default settings:

6. Effects, Image Effects, Seamless Tiling and use the following settings:-
   • Corner checked.
     
   • Vertical checked.

7. Effects, Image Effects, Seamless Tiling and this time check horizontal.

8. Right click in your layer palette and promote background layer.

9. Lower the opacity to around 50%.

10. Merge all flatten and save as a jpeg. You can now close this graphic down, but remember where you saved it to.

11. You can now maximize our 2nd copy of the graphic.

    FRAME

12. Selections, select all.

13. Selections, modify, contract by 15.

14. Selections, invert.

15. Effects, Plugins, Toadies, Weaver and use the same settings as before.

16. Effects, 3D Effects, Cutout and use the following settings:
    • Vertical:       2
      
    • Horizontal:      10
      
    • Opacity:       45
      
    • Blur:      10
      
    • Shadow color:      Black
      
    • Fill interior color:      Unchecked

17. Effects, Cutout and change your vertical and horizontal to minus.

18. Deselect.

19. Image, add border and add a 10 pixel border using a colour from your graphic.

20. Select the border with your magic wand.

21. Effects, Plugins, Toadies, Weaver and use the same settings as before.

22. Deselect.

23. Image, add border and add a 25 pixel border using a complimenting colour from your graphic. Select the border with your magic wand and apply the Toadies, Weaver plugin again.

24. Effects, 3D Effects, Cutout and apply the 2 cutout settings from above.

25. Deselect.

26. Image, add border, and add a 2 pixel border using your first border colour.

27. Image, add border, and add a 2 pixel border using your second border colour.

28. Image, add border and add a 2 pixel border using your first border colour.

29. Selections, select all.

30. Selections, modify, contract by 6.

31. Selections, invert.

32. Effects, 3D Effects, inner bevel and use the following settings:-
    • Pie Bevel
      
    • Width:      8
      
    • Smoothness:      2
      
    • Depth:      10
      
    • Ambience:      0
      
    • Shininess:      5
      
    • Color:      White
      
    • Angle:      315
      
    • Intensity:      40
      
    • Elevation:      40

33. Deselect.

34. Resize if necessary. Adjust, sharpness, Sharpen.

35. Add a new layer for your watermark.

36. Merge all flatten. You can now put it all together in Letter Creator.

    Letter Creator is a product that comes with IncrediMail.

    
    
    © An Aushorty Creation – November 2004