Posts Tagged make

Making perfect repeat patterns in photoshop

Posted by Mel on October 22, 2008  |  11 Comments

Sometimes using the pattern maker filter in Photoshop doesn’t give the results you want. Here’s how to create perfect repeating patterns using only photoshop and a brush set. This is the method we used to use at college when I was studying textile design.  Instead of slicing digital images we cut our hand drawn or painted paper designs in half and then taped them back together again. This way is much less destructive if it goes wrong!

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Filed Under: Tutorials

Things to Do

Posted by Mel on August 8, 2008  |  No Comments

The images is this set come from a 1970s craft book I found in a charity shop yesterday. It’s called 365 Games to make and play. Please read below before you download. (right click save as)

thingstodo.jpg

The book was written by Jac Remise, and published in 1975 by Octopus Books Limited, London. Be aware that you should not use these images for any commercial projects at all, and you should probably include a link to the author of the book and publisher when you use them. Use at your own risk!

Here’s the book.. it really is fantastic, although all the models in the book seem to require a cork. My son says i’m going to have to drink more wine… I’ll try my best

365things.jpg

Make your own brushes

Posted by Mel on August 8, 2008  |  No Comments

Its pretty simple to make your own brush sets. Here a quick tutorial.

MAKING BRUSHES
1. Open a new blank image with a white or transparent background.
2. Design your brush. This can be hand-drawn, a photo, a scan -
basically anything.
I made a simple circular image
.New brush design
3. Now go to Edit > Define Brush, and click OK.4. Select the brush tool,
and click on the dropdown brush menu (across the top toolbar). Scroll
down through the brushes and you will see your brush at the bottom
ready to use.
New brush example
5. Thats pretty much it, though you now have to save the brush you’ve made.
SAVING BRUSH SETS
1. You need to save the brush you’ve just made on its own. So delete all the others that you didnt make..
Hovering over a brush thumbnail, press alt and you will see a pair of scissors appear. Click to delete the brush.
2. Now you have to go through and delete all the other brushes
except the one you made.
Just one brush left
3. Now you can save this brush on its own, ready to use next time you want it.
Just go to the little arrow on the right and select ’save brushes’. Name your file
and hit save.
save brushes
4. Of course you can keep going and make more brushes to add to the set.
You just have to save over the same filename each time you add a new brush.
I find myself switching between the default photoshop brushes and loading my
brush sets in order to create new ones. Slightly fiddly but worth it so you can
keep a store of images as brushes to use regularly.

TIP

Make one brush and save it on its own ( i use my ’signature brush’ -
you’ll see it at the top of each of my brush sets). This saves you doing step 2.
above and having to delete all the other brushes every time you create a new set.

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Filed Under: Tutorials