Tutorial by Kathryn Bernstein
By the Sea Embroidery.
Photoshop Intermediate Level
By Kathryn Bernstein
This is not a tutorial but a few tips and tricks I used the make "By the Sea Embroidery."
Also included are other uses for custom hairbrushes.
The Design: Dingbat Font: "By the Sea." Created a shape.
Stroked an Elliptical Path with 18pt hard brush.(image is reduced below).
Created Two Layer Sets.
Set1 - Border
Set2 - By the Sea Design Shape
Load Border > Select > Save Selection
Load By the Sea Shape > Save Seletion
Choosing Colours. I wanted two colours.
Greenish and Purplish. Like Hair, brown hair just is not one colour but many. Made Swatches.
Making Hair brushes: It is importanat that you learn how to make these brushes and not just give then to you. ;)
Links on how to make brushes.
"the infamous brush palette"
"Digital Hair Mania"
"Brushes! Brush sets for Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro "
All links are working at this time.
I used this last one for the image.
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Her comes the fun part. How to do the Embroidery thread. I will show you just the "By the Sea" Layer Set. (Same goes for the Elliptical border layer set).
Step1. Select a very dark shade of purple.
In Channels load Sea Design. In Layers Palette: Create Solid Fill Layer Adjustment.
Step2. Create New Layer. Make a Clipping Mask. Select one of your textured Hair Brushes thats has tramsparencies. Choose a very light shade of purple for foreground colour.
Start making a few strokes. Select about two more light purples and do the same. Be careful not to cover up your base dark colour.
Step3. Duplicate your light colour layer.
Transform, nudge a little or move at different angle. (Point being, no need to repaint the thread again). Lock pixels, fill with a medium shade purple. Unlock pixels, add a few more strokes of another medium purple.
Add a small Drop Shadow. I also used Inner Glow, Multiply, Dark Purple, Opacity at 57, fiddle with the size.
Head back over to the Channels.
Load Sea Horse Design again. Contract around three. Inverse selection. Hide your selection (marching ants).
Back to Layer's Palette.
On the base layer you are going to paint BLACK on the mask to make the edges look like thread. The selection keeps you from going too deep into your design. start painting. If you have taken to much away, paint back with WHITE.
Deselect when finished painting.
That's all there is to it. The KEY is making those brushes. Make lots of them. they have many uses. I added a few more layers.
Here is what I ended up with.
Other uses for custom Hair Brushes:
Hair Brushes for hair, fur and grasses.
Repair or replace or paint in.
Example: I added more hair after using Extract.
Repaired Lions mane with a texture hair brush.
With Clone Stamp Toll, I sampled grass source image and painted in some new grass in front of lion on a separate layer.
General Tips.
Remember Hair brushes maybe used for any painting too. Brushes, Airbrush, Clone, Stamp Tool, Pattern Stamp, History Brush, Eraser Tool, Blur, Sharpen, Smudge Tool and your Toning Tools.
Remember you have Layer Opacity, Layer Blending Modes, Tool Opacity and Tool Modes.
Using a stylus instead of a mouse is very helpful.
Have fun with your new brushes!
Kathryn.
Thanks to Sherry London for Judy and the Lion Photos.
Copyright © 2003 - 2006 Kathryn Bernstien
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