PTU Snowflake Fae - Forum Tag

© AWDesigns Tutorials - November 2012

This tutorial is my own creation and any resemblance to others is purely coincidental.  This tutorial was written for those with a working knowledge of PSP.  Please do not copy or claim as your own.  Anything you produce from this tutorial is yours to do what you wish for personal use only.  No profit is to be made from your results.

Materials Needed:

PSP X or any version should work.

Eye Candy 4000 – Gradient Glow on credits and text

A tube of your choice.  I used the wonderful artwork of Maxine Gadd which you can purchase at Creative Design Outlet. You must have a license to use this art.

Scrap kit used  ScrapFoxy_IB-MaxineGadd-7-1 by Foxy's Designz which can be purchased at CDO

FTU Forum Mask 26 by Moonbeams & Spiderwebs – Here

Let's Begin

Open your tube in PSP – duplicate and close original.  Open a new transparent image 600 x 250, 72dpi. 

Flood fill with a darker color from your tube. Add Effects, Texture Effect, Textures - Grain Long Deep with these settings:

Open Paper1_FD from the kit - copy & paste as new layer above the textured layer.

Using your Crop Tool - crop to 600 x 250.

Apply MB and SW Forum Mask 26 to the paper layer and merge group.

Lower opacity to 65

Sharpen once on the masked layer.

Copy & Paste your tube of choice as a new layer - resize as needed. Add a nice drop shadow to your tube.

Open WordArt1_FD from the kit - copy & paste as a new layer - resize WordArt to 590 x 146 and lower opacity to 80.

Effects - Edge Effects - Enhance one time

Move WordArt layer below the tube layer.

Select All on WordArt layer - Float and Defloat

On the Mask layer hit delete key once

Select None

Open Element9_FD - resize by 50 percent - copy & paste as a new layer and move to left of tube (see tag) - duplicate and mirror this layer. Merge down so both branches are on one layer. Add drop shadow to branches layer - V/H 2, Opacity 30, Blur 5.

Close the tube layer and branches layer so you can see the next step better.

Open Element15_FD - resize by 90 percent - duplicate bead layer - move one below the WordArt and one above the WordArt. - apply drop shadow as before to the bottom bead layer.  Go to WordArt layer - Select All- Float & Defloat. Move to the top bead layer and activate your Eraser Tool.  Erase the beads that overlay the wordart to give the appearance of the beads intertwined with the wordart.

 Select None

Open the tube and branches layers.

Open Element11_FD - copy & paste as new layer - crop to 600 x 250. Move this layer below your tube layer. 

  Merge all layers visible

Add a new raster layer and flood fill with white - select all - modify - contract by 2 - hit delete one time leaving a thin white border.  Add Gaussian Blur 48% Monochrome to the border layer.

Merge Visible

Add a new raster layer and flood fill with the dark color you used in the beginning - select all - modify - contract by 1 - hit delete one time.

Merge Visible

 Go to Adjust - Sharpen - Unsharp Mask using radius 15, strength 5, clipping 4 - luminance only unchecked.

Add © copyright info, your license number and text (name or snag tag word).

Hugs~Anna 

Here is another beautiful example by Ashly