Web Site Design at REASONABLE prices - SJC Designs - www.sjcdesigns.com
Framing Graphics

1. Open the graphic you want to frame.
2. Click on Image/Resize and make the graphic a reasonable size. Remember that the frame will take up a fair bit of room on the stationery too.
3. Make sure your background box

is a different colour from any around the edges of the graphic, then click on Image/Add Borders (a box will come up) set it up like this one

Click ok.
4. With the Magic Wand tool, select the border you've just made.
There will be two rows of marching ants, one around the outside of the graphic, and one at the edge of the image.

6. With the Dropper Tool, choose a colour from your graphic, and use the Bucket tool to flood fill the border.

7. If you want to, use a filter (whichever one takes your fancy, see my links page for free and commercial filter sites) to give the frame some texture and interest. Often this first frame is left plain, to make it take on the look of a mat surrounding the graphic.
8. Click on Selections/Invert. Now just the graphic should be selected.
9. Click on Image/Effects/cutout. A box will come up. Set yours up like this one

The cutout set up like this will give you definition at the top and left of the graphic.
10. Click on Image/Effects/Drop Shadow, a box will come up, set it up like this

The white shadow set up like this will give you difinition at the bottom and right of the graphic.
11. Click Selections/Select None.
12. Click Image/Add Borders, this time add a symetrical border of 25px
Click on the border you've just created with the magic wand tool and again, there should be two rows of marching ants, one at the edge of the graphic, and one at the edge of the first border.
13. Flood fill with colour chosen from you graphic, as you did before.
14. Click Selections/Invert, just the outer border and graphic should be selected.
15. Apply the same cutout, and drop shadow settings as before.
16. Click on Image/Effects/Buttonise a box will come up, set it up like this one.


N.B. The Buttoniser is affected by the background box colour... if you have a red background colour, the edges of your buttonised frame will have a red tinge to them.. so, make sure that the colour's right before applying the buttoniser.

Here's the finished frame.

Cut Out Frames



Using the technique above, it will be simple for you to make a frame for your stationery which looks as though it's been cut into the screen. Look at the finished frame below, to see what I mean.
1. Start with your background strip (1024 x 400px high) Using the bucket tool, flood fill with colour.
2. Follow the above steps 3 through 15 twice, but keep each new border 15. This will give you 4 cutout frames around your graphic.

Use the same colour for the borders as you have chosen for your background strip throughout.
3. When you've finished adding borders, click on Selections/Select None, then on Edit/Copy.
4. Click on your background strip (to make it active) then click Edit/Paste as new layer.
5. Move the framed graphic towards the top and left of the background strip, leave a border of background of 15px to the left, like this

Because the frame and the background are the same colour, it will look as though you've lost one frame when you paste as new layer to the background strip, hence your needing to leave a 15px edge at top and left.
6. Click on Layers/Merge All (flatten)
7. With the Selection Tool set to Rectangle, draw around your graphic and background strip leaving a 13px border at the top, and a 2px border at the bottom like this

when the stationery repeats in Outlook Express, it will show as a 15px border, which is what we're aiming for.



I hope this has been of help, there are more help files available on my Homepage


Sue C - SJC Designs

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