This tutorial is written in Version 9 but will work well in Version 8. You will need only a basic knowledge of PSP, including the Layers, names of tools and where to find them. All other instructions are written in detail.

Supplies needed for this tutorial:

1. Paint Shop Pro, Version 8 or 9
   (Instructions are given for Version 9 but should work in all versions.)
2. Crescent Moon Filter - Free - Click here to Download
3. Font of your choice
4. Optional: ***See Note below
   Super Blade Pro Click here to Purchase or download demo
   ***Note: Super Blade Pro is used to create the original Picture Tube for this tutorial. If you do not have it or wish to get it, I am providing the heart tube I made as a download and you can skip the first part of the tutorial.
5. Optional: ***If using Super Blade Pro
   My preset for creating the heart picture tube. Click to download my preset here (Unzip and place with your Super Blade Pro presets.)

This section of the tutorial makes a Heart Picture Tube using Super Blade Pro. I've provided the heart Picture Tubes for both versions of PSP if you would rather not make your own.

Click here to download the .PspTube - Version 9,
Click here to download the .PspTube - Version 8

Unzip the tube and put in your tubes folder and then skip to Begin the Sig.

Make the Heart Picture Tube

Open a new raster image, 300 x 300 pixels, transparent background, 16 million colors.

Activate the Preset Shape Tool and locate the heart preset shape. You may have 2 or more hearts in your preset shapes - choose whichever one you want.

In the Materials Palette set the Foreground/Stroke to Null (turn it off) and set the Background/Fill to White. For the settings in the Tool Ribbon use:
Retain Style = Unchecked
Create as Vector = Checked
Antialias = Checked

1. Draw the heart covering most of your image. It's always nice to give yourself a bit of space to use and to make sure that you don't chop any parts of the heart off later.

2. Go to your Layers Palette and right click on the new layer created by drawing the heart and choose Convert to Raster Layer. Then double-click on the layer and rename it "Heart".

3. Use the Selection Tool set to "Rectangle" and surround the entire heart. Then click once anywhere on the heart to select only the heart.

4. With the heart selected, Effects/Pluggings/ Blade Pro and find my preset named rb_redheart.q5q and apply it to the heart.

5. Make the bottom (transparent) layer active, and delete that layer using the Delete button on the layer palette or right click on the layer and choose "Delete" from the menu.

6. Your new heart is now on it's own transparent layer and is ready to export as a Picture Tube. (File/Export/Picture Tube). Give your new heart any name you would like.

Patterned Hearts Tutorial

First Heart

1. Open a new image: 300 x 300, 16 million colors, Transparent Background.

2. Create a new Raster Layer

3. Activate the Picture Tube Tool and locate the Heart Picture Tube you just made (or mine if you downloaded it). Adjust the size of the tube so that it does not cover the entire image and place it on the new layer you have created.
   
   Note: I have used a scale of 80% for my first heart.

   

4. Name the layer you just placed the heart on "Heart 1".

5. Duplicate the Heart 1 layer.

6. With the Duplicate Heart 1 active, (it will be highlighted in the Layers Palette) go to Effects/Plugins/Crescent Moon/Cut Glass and use the settings shown below. Once you have them set, click OK to apply to your heart. (You don't have to select the heart because it is on it's own separate layer.)

   

   Note: If you have made your heart a different size than mine, you may need to adjust the settings used here to apply the patterns to your liking.

7. Make sure the Duplicate Heart 1 layer is still active and select the Mover Tool, . Grab the heart and move it just a bit down and to the right. We want to give a 3D look to the heart, rather than showing two separate hearts. The screen shot below just shows a portion of the top of the heart so you can see I have moved the filtered one only enough that the rim of the lower heart shows.
   
   Remember: You will only be moving the heart on the upper layer.

   

8. When you have moved the heart on the upper layer, right click on that layer (Duplicate Heart 1) and choose Merge/Merge down. This leaves you with the merged heart on one layer and the transparent layer at the bottom. Do Not Merge all.

   If you haven't been saving your .pspimage, do it now and many more times throughout the tutorial so you don't lose anything.

Second Heart

This heart will be easier because we'll use the same procedures as for the first one

9. Create a new Raster Layer at the top of the others and name it "Heart 2".

10. Use the Picture Tube Tool again to place another heart tube, but this time decrease the scale more than you did for the first one. For my second heart I used a scale of 60%. It doesn't matter where you place the new heart because you can move it around later.

    

11. Duplicate the Heart 2 layer,

12. With the duplicate Heart 2 layer active (highlighted) go again to Effects/Plugins/Crescent Moon but this time choose Quilt and use the settings below. Then click OK to apply.

13. As with the first heart we did, use your Move Tool and move the one you applied the effect to so you can see the edge of the one below it.

14. When the new patterned heart is moved to your satisfaction, right click on the top layer and choose Merge/Merge Down from the menu. Your image and Layer Palette should now look like the examples below.

  

Third Heart

The third heart should be a piece of cake now.

15. Create a new Raster Layer at the top of your layer palette and name it "Heart 3".

16. Place a new heart picture tube on this new layer, and this time set the scale even smaller than you did on the last heart. I've used a scale of 50 for mine.

17. Duplicate the Heart 3 layer.

18. Make sure you are on the "Copy of Heart 3 layer" and this time and go to Effects/Plugins/Crescent Moon/Warm Cloth. Apply the settings below.

19. Use the Move tool to move the new patterned heart to reveal a bit of the heart below it as we did with the other two.

20. Make sure the new patterned heart layer is active. Right click on it and Merge/Merge Down.

    You now have 3 separate hearts on 3 separate layers and a transparent first layer. Use the Move Tool to move each heart into a position that you like. Leave enough space for your signature.

Complete Sig

At this time I suggest that you save this as a .pspimage so that you always have the original individual hearts for future use. You can make tubes out of them or use each one in many ways. Then use Shift D to make a duplicate the the entire image and close the one you have saved.

21. Add a Drop Shadow to each heart. If you use the Move Tool and click on a heart you'll see the layer it is on become active. Start with the largest heart, Heart 1. Once the layer is shown as active in the Layer Palette apply the drop shadow with these settings: (or use your own settings)

    
    
    
    • Vertical: -2
    • Horizontal: 3
    • Opacity: 50
    • Blur: 3.00
    • Color: Black
    • Shadow on new layer: Unchecked
      

22. Add your name using any font and/or effect you'd like. Here is how I added mine.

    • Font: Corabell (I found that a sort of fat font worked best with the filter I'm using)
    • Used the Eye Dropper tool to select a red in one of the hearts to use as background color for font.
    • Font Settings: Create as Vector, Size: 48, Stroke: 0, Style: Bold, Anti-alias: Sharp,
    • Placed text and rotated before Converting to Raster Layer.
    • Selected font and applied Effects/3D Effects/Inner Bevel.
    • Left font selected and applied Effects/Plugins/Crescent Moon/Quilt with the following settings:
      Horizontal Spacing: 61, Vertical Spacing: 199, Transparency: 0.
    • Added same drop shadow as used on the hearts.

23. I've also flood filled the transparent 1st layer with white because I find that transparent graphics with drop shadows do not always optimize as nicely as we would like. Then I cropped the image to the at which I wanted to save it.

    Then export as a .gif or .jpg, whichever you prefer for quality. You do not have to merge the layers prior to exporting if you are using Version 8 or Version 9 of Paint Shop Pro because merging is an automatic setting when saving. My completed one below was exported as a .gif image.

Terms of Use

Terms of Use This tutorial is copyrighted....©RollieB. Any similarity between this and any other tutorial is coincidental. The Picture Tube used herein is also copyrighted by me and you can use it in this any any other graphic but do not share it or offer it in any way for download or for sale. The image you make with this tutorial is yours to do whatever you like with.

You may link to this tutorial using a text link only but may not share this tutorial in any other way through e-mail or on another site. If you are a member of a group and would like to share or do this tutorial in a group setting, please e-mail me for permission using the link below.

e-Mail Rollie

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