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In Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Photoshop Elements, find your ScrapSimple Paper Templates file on your hard drive and select the template file you want to use. ScrapSimple Paper Templates: Ironwork-1 by Valerie Randall is featured here, but this works with any Paper Template.
Open your template file, do a "Save As" and rename it. Add a new layer, and drag it below Layer 0. Fill with a color; I used green: R-153 G-204 and B-153, but you can use any color you want. Use the Paint Bucket Tool to fill Layer 1 with the color.
Add a pattern to the color layer: Layer> Layer Style> Pattern Overlay. "Coarse Weave" is a good one to try, but select any pattern you want.
Here, the Blend Mode is "Lighten," Opacity: 45% and Scale: 200%. Click "OK."
Enlarge your view to see the actual pixels (to 100%) so you can see the details (Alt+Ctrl+0).
Select Layer 0, the Ironwork-1 Paper Template, and change the Blend Mode at the top of your Layers Palette to "Overlay."
You can reduce the size and fit it back onto the screen with Ctrl+0.
Duplicate Layer 0 and then go to Edit> Rotate 90 Degrees. Your pattern has been rotated.
If you want to keep your layers separate for later use, duplicate Layers 1, 0 and the copy of 0, and then make them inactive by clicking on the eye icon. You can use them later by activating them.
Now select and merge the duplicated Layers (Ctrl+E). (You don't have to duplicate the layers. If you want, you can just merge the layers, but you can't Undo anything once those layers have been merged.)
Go to Filter> Artistic and try things, there are so many fun things you can do to the paper templates, so play around a bit.
Here is "Paint Daubs": Brush Size: 6, Sharpness: 9, Brush Type: Simple.
Here is "Dry Brush": Brush Size: 3, Detail: 3, Texture: 3.
You can adjust the sliders and change the look to something you like. Click OK to apply the effect. You can apply effect on top of effect, too. But the more you apply, the larger the file size will be.
Above is the "Neon Glow" effect: Glow: -24, Glow Brightness: 50, Glow Color: Beige. (Click on the box to access the color picker and select another color. The default is usually yellow.)
Apply the Neon Glow effect and you have a great paper. But you can take it further by adding another effect, adding another ScrapSimple Paper or Photo Template Pattern on top or adjusting the color or by applying a texture.
To add a texture, and emphasize the original Ironwork-1, go to Filter> Texture> Texturizer.
There is a small circled arrow to the right of the window where you can select one of the default textures. If you click on that circled arrow, you can load in your own texture by finding a texture you want to use on your hard drive. Here, Mission Embossable Ironwork-1 is used. It matches the ScrapSimple Paper Template perfectly when the Scale is set to 100. Adjust the Relief to 3 or more to get the level of embossing you prefer. You can also play with the light direction, and make the pattern look debossed, or sunk into the paper instead of raised. You can also use one of the default textures.
Save, and then do another "Save As" and this time save your paper as a JPG, with a level of 10-12, 300 dpi and you have a fresh green background paper that is both digital and printable!
Tutorial uses:
Tutorial written by Valerie Randall
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