Intertwined Text
Software Used: Corel Photo-Paint 8.

1.) I start with a new 24-bit RGB image 3 inches by 3 inches, 72 dpi, paper color white.

2.) I use the text tool to create the S with the following settings:

• Font: Beachman Script
• Size: 200
• Anti-aliased
• Paint Color: powder blue

3.) I then create the C as a separate object using the same settings.

4.) I select the S and chose Mask -> Create from Object.

5.) Then I use the Eye Candy filters to apply an outer bevel with these settings:

• Width: 18
• Shape: mesa
• Smoothness: 7
• Shadow Depth: 17
• Highlight Brightness: 80
• Highlight Sharpness: 15
• Direction: 135
• Inclination: 45

6.) I repeat steps 4 and 5 for the C. (By now your image should look something like the one to the left.)

7.) In order to make the letters look intertwined, I'll need to put the top part of the C behind the S, and the bottom part of the C in front of the S.

8.) I start by making a duplicate copy of the C object. (Select the C, right click and choose duplicate.)

9.) As shown in the next example, I use the freehand mask tool to select the top half of one of the Cs, and delete it. (Make sure only one object is selected before deleting.)

10.) With the mask still active, I select the other C object, then type Ctrl-I to invert the mask, then delete. The bottom half of the second C is removed. Next, I go to the mask menu and remove the mask.

11.) Now, in the objects docker, I drag the bottom half of the C above the S and the top half of the C behind the S.

12.) Next, I select all three objects and choose Object -> Drop shadow and I use these settings:

• Flat
• Direction: 225 degrees
• Opacity: 39
• Width: 9
• Direction: Middle
• Edges: Linear

13.) If you look closely, you'll see there is a slight overlap on the drop shadow where the two halves of the C meet. I'll need to fix that... I select the top half of the C in the object docker, right click, then ungroup it from its drop shadow.

14.) With just the top half of the C's shadow selected, I used the eraser tool -- set to a round nib, with a size of about 20 and transparency of 100 -- to erase a bit of the shadow where it overlaps the bottom half of the C shadow. (You may want to hide some objects to make this easier.)

That's it! Here's the final image...

I really liked the curves of these letters and how they intertwined. It reminds me of a decorative printer's ornament. I liked it so much that I decided to make a seamless tile out of it to use for wallpaper on my Windows desktop. To see the tutorial for making this image into a seamless tile, click here.

I did make one mistake in this image... can you spot what it is?
Click here for the answer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Answer: My drop shadow is on the wrong side! I should have used the same angle for the drop shadow that I used for the outer bevel. As it is, the angle of the highlights and the shadow do not correspond. Fortunately, I can combine the shadow objects in my image and move them as a whole to the proper placement. The corrected image is to the left.

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Sue Chastain
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Images: Copyright 1999, S. Chastain, unless otherwise noted.
Screen shots captured with Corel Capture 8. Image conversion and optimization with Ulead SmartSaver Pro.