Just Like Candy Designs: FTU Your Sweetness is my weakness

This tutorial is my own creation and any similarity to any other tut is merely coincidental. Please do not copy and paste anywhere else and link back to my blog. This tut was written January 19th, 2013. My first written tutorial so bear with me.

This tutorial was done using Photoshop CS5

Supplies needed are as follows:

Candy Hearts element from this Scrapkit HERE called Chocolate & Roses (for the candy below her legs)

Font used for name: The Nautigal

You can find this font HERE for free

Tube of choice is from VeryMany. Her name is Aurora and she can be purchased HERE

*You can also purchased Verymany tubes from HERE & HERE*

Template- Download HERE

Filters used: Penta(Color dot) or Soft Vignette, Xero Porcelain & Radiance

You can download any of these Filters and more HERE

Mask- Click to enlarge, right click and save

Directions:

Open your template. You can work on this template if it's easier for you. When you go to save it, make sure you change the name of the file, so that you maintain the original template copy on your computer. Delete the credits. This is already sized 650x650. I am going to shrink it down 600x600.

Uncheck the heart layers in the center and also the Diamond Heart element so that only your frame is showing on top of the circle and dotted layers. Open up your Tube. Uncheck that layer. Place a medium sized-large size copy of her face facing to the right. Size it to fit on the left hand side of the brown frame as shown here:

Now while still with the Tube layer selected (making sure you're still over the brown center rectangle layer) go to Layer>Create Clipping Mask. Now your tube should be inside of the brown box like this:

Now, with that same Tube layer still selected, add Xero Porcelain with these settings:

and add Xero Radiance with these settings to the Tube as well:

Change the Blend mode of this tube to Screen. So that you have this:

Now lets click on the duplicate tube copy. On your Layers Palette with the original tube selected that we just worked with, right-click and go to Duplicate Layer. Now you should have two tubes inside of the brown rectangle like this:

Make sure you check the heart layers to make sure that the Tubes on on either side of the Hearts and not totally obstructed by the hearts. Now lets merge the Tubes and Brown rectangle layer together.

Press Control and click on the Tube layers (both of them) and the Brown Rectangle layer until only the 3 of them are lighted Blue on the Layer's palette. Makes sure those 3 are the only things in Blue, otherwise, you'll be merging other elements in addition to the tubes and the square and we don't want that. It should look exactly like this screenshot below:

Now press Control E on these 3 layers only. They should be merged together now. You can rename this layer anything you want. I renamed them Tubes. Recheck all of the other layers on your Layers palette. Lower the opacity of the Kiss lips layer to 65%. Your project should look like this now:

Go to the brown rectangle Tube layer you just merged, and apply Penta: VTR2 with these settings:

Now we're going to open a new full size Tube copy. Place her over the hearts and under the Diamond heart element & Word art. Apply Xero Porcelain & Radiance. You won't have to adjust anything, because the settings we used previously should be saved. You should have this now:

You're more than halfway done. At this point we're going to open up Candy #4(Candy hearts). You may have to play with the hue and saturation on the candy to get it to match the template exact. These are the settings I used to get mine this way:

the settings here are -31 and -26

Before moving your candy to your canvas if you're adjusting the color, make sure you merge the Hue/Saturation and element layer together. Then transfer it to the project. Place the Candy hearts below where her legs are on the right hand side. Right click that layer, and make a duplicate copy. Now place a set of candies on the left. Erase the first 4 candies on that one. You should have only 3 candies on the left, connecting with the candies you put on the right. Press Control and highlight only those 2 candy layers and then press Control E to merge them. Make sure when you've merged them, that they're still under the Word Art and over the Template. Add a subtle drop shadow to the candy hearts. These are the settings I used:

Now, go to the Brown colored heart and duplicate it by Right-clicking and duplicate. Shrink this duplicated brown heart until it's inside of the original brown heart. Add a color overlay of any color, so that you can make sure the heart is where it's supposed to be. I used a bright Pink color #f7378d. You should have this:

Now create a layer above the new heart you made. Click Control and The new empty layer, plus this new heart layer. Now you should just see the new Pink heart with no effects on it. It's now ready for us to add some layer styles and effects to it. Add these effects to that heart now:

Drop Shadow

Inner Shadow

Now merge the two bottom (Magenta colored) circle layers together) Click Control and click only the 2 circle layers. Then click control + E. The layers should be merged. Now we're going to change the color to make it match the tube/project. Add the following settings:

Add a layer and merge it with the new pink circles layer we just made and now add these effects to it

Bevel & Emboss

Drop Shadow

First, go to Layers>Merge Visible. Now everything you just made and worked on, should now be combined into one layer on your palette. At this point, if you want to make it smaller, you can use the Transform tool (Edit>Free Transform) and adjust it to your liking. At this point so that you don't forget go ahead and add your copyright information somewhere discreet but visible, in a font that is easy to read, onto your Tag. Once you have copyright correct and neat, you can again, merge this with the completed tag by going to Layers>Merge Visible.

Applying the invisible mask

and now lastly, we're just going to add the mask. I'm going to quickly show you how to make a mask transparent. Once you learn this, you're doing to do your masks this way from now on. It's really easy.

Take your mask and put in beneath all of the layer. Make it your very first layer at the bottom. Adjust and Transform as needed. If you need to adjust your tag again a little, do that but be sure not to do it too much or you'll make your tag look blurry. Note pic below of mask. None of the sides should be touching any of the corners or else it will look cut off on your finished work.

Uncheck the tag, and make sure that only your Mask is showing on your layers tab. Make a new layer and fill it with the paint bucket tool with a baby pink. I used the color #fbd2e4. Uncheck the pink layer, make sure the tag layer is still unchecked. Go to your mask layer and click the Channels button above on the layers palette. While Press Control and click your mouse, on the very first picture of the mask that says RGB. The Mask should be selected now within the mask. Click the Layer button now. Uncheck the mask. Check the Pink layer you filled. Now the mask outline should be on that pink. Now press the button I have circled below in this pic. This creates a layer mask of your mask.

After clicking you should know have this:

Delete the original mask layer and check the tag layer. So now both the new pink mask, and tag layers should be selected. Now Layers>Merge visible. Add the name in the font Nautigal. The color is #fd63a9. I added to the text, Inner shadow & Stroke settings of these:

Inner Shadow