Hems, stitching and seams

I tried searching for this topic and couldn't find anything, so if it's been discussed at length before, please forgive me.

One of the things I'm discovering as I make more clothing in SL is that the little finishing touches mean everything. You can have the greatest texture in the world, but if you don't have realistic folds and even some appropriate burn & dodge to give it that 3D look, it's not going to be as impressive as if you do.

And one of the final steps I'm trying to take on my stuff is adding hems. I've tried several methods but none of them really leave me feeling like I've gotten the effect I want.

I'll share some of my approaches and I would appreciate feedback on what's wrong or right with them as well as any pointers you care to pass on.

First, I've tried to fake it Select the clothing layer, then contract the selection, usually by about 4 pixels. Then make a 4-pixel border. This gives me a nice template around the edges of the garment. Then i use a low-intensity dodge brush along the bottom hem, the neckline and end of the sleeves.

Second, I've tried using stitching brushes. I'm not happy with this at all but it strikes me as having some potential. Just need to find the right brush and the right technique.

The third method I've tried is a little more tedious but probably has the best potential. I start with the border from Method #1. I use dodge on the upper half of the border and burn on the lower - both set to very low intensity - to try for a 3d hem effect. The problem here is that I don't have a Waccom tablet, so all my painting is done with the mouse (ick). It requires the right size brush, a tight zoom-in, and lots of undoing on the history palette before I get a stroke that's right.

It can't be this hard, can it?

Hi Cindy,

for the 3D effect I sometimes use the selection method you describe (expanding & contracting for larger and smaller selections) and then on new layers use "stroke" (forget which menu, edit maybe ?) to create a darker & lighter line for the highlight & shadow. These can then be blurred and blended as required with the original layer. You might find some variant of this technique works for you !

If you're trying to stroke along a line and having trouble drawing with the mouse you might try creating a path. You can set it up just the way you want it and then use "stroke path" to stroke along it. If you flub just undo and adjust your path accordingly. If you need to vary the width of the stroke you can do that after the fact with smudge or liquify.

Oh... another thing. I don't have a tablet, and always try to avoid using brush tools too. For example if I wanted to darken the edge of something I'll make a selection around/outside it, give it an appropriate feather and then adjust the brightness - this creates a smooth blend of darkening over the area outside your selection by virtue of the feather. You can repeat this process with different degrees of feathering for more depth.

In short, make selections using the wand, lassoo or bezier pen (path) and then use expand/contract & feather so whatever process you then apply has the desired effect. I hope this makes sense - I'm self taught, but seem to have developed methods of working that don't take a steady hand with the painting tools !

Thanks, you guys. I'm going to print this thread out and try some new approaches when I get home

And, Chip - what a great word "flub". It perfectly describes the ten thumbs approach I use in Photoshop.

Hi Cindy!

I do this by using the Select Expand/Contract method, but with a couple of differences.

First, after I make the selection, I make a new layer, and Fill the selection to save it. (Since I don't want to mess with extra Alpha channels, since There Can Be Only One.)

Then,



And that should do it. No actual drawing involved.

If you want to reduce the number of layers, you can drop both of them onto a layer set to Overlay, but I've found that leaving them as separate layers increases the flexibility. Also, if you don't like the look of multiply, try some of the others, such as Color Burn. But try them all! You might find one that looks perfect!

Excuse me, Robin...but what is the "stitch" brush and where can I find it? It does not seem to be one of the default brushes in CS2, that I can find...unless I am missing it or mininterpreting your instructions.

Thank you for posting this, by the way.

- Rachel Darling

Hi Rachel!

Sorry; I should have mentioned that this is just a brush that you can make to look like stitches.

Making brushes in PS is so simple that I make them all the time, without even thinking of it, and sometimes I forget that there are some people who haven't discovered how to do that yet!

To make a stitch brush, use a default brush 5 pixels or so wide, with a round "dab," maximum hardness, and color set to pure black. Hold down the Shift key, and drag a straight line as long as you want your stitch to be. (Horizontal or vertical; whichever you prefer, since you can always change the angle later.)

Use the Marquee to select it, and go to Edit > Define Brush Preset, and name it something like Stitch so you can find it in the menu. That will give you your basic brush.

Now, in PS CS2, select your new brush from the Brushes palette, and then open the Brushes palette (in the well on the right side of the interface.) (Other versions have these options in other places, and some weren't available until CS; but if memory serves I could do most of this stuff in earlier versions.)

Click on Brush Tip Shape, and give it the size, angle, and spacing you want. For running stitches (as opposed to satin stitches, ribbing, etc.) click on Shape Dynamics and set the Angle to Direction. (Add a little Jitter if you want it to look hand stitched, and not exactly in a line. If you want the stitches to be different lengths, add some Jitter to the Roundness.

Finally, click on the little Flippy Triangle at the top right of that palette, and choose New Brush Preset.. from the drop down menu (you might have to scroll up to see it,) to save the Brush with the settings you've just worked out so it's ready to go, and you won't have to do all of that again.

(For extra insurance, open the Preset Manager using the menu under the flippy in the normal Brush Preset Selection menu (right click when you're using the Brush tool,) and save the new brush as part of a set, too. Otherwise, if you crash before you close PS, you'll lose that brush. You can also use the Preset Manager to move the brushes around in the menu, so that they are grouped by kind. Select as many as you want when you're saving a Set. If you save it to your Photoshop > Presets > Brushes folder, you'll see the set at the bottom of the menu under the flippy, which can be very convenient. )

Then just use your brush! This works particularly well to stroke Paths with, especially if you want something that looks like professional machine stitching.

Experiment with all of the other settings, too. The Brushes in Photoshop are extremely powerful. Becoming familiar with the Brushes palette will allow you to come up with all kinds of textures and detailing that you can't really get any other way.

(Especially if you combine the results with various Layer Styles, to, for instance, apply an Inner Glow, Bevel and Emboss, and Drop Shadow to shade the studs you made by increasing the Spacing of a regular round brush.)

Hope this helps!

Robin

Ach...thank you for the detailed instructions. Unfortunately I've barely learned how to use specialty brushes just yet, much less how to make them. I've been so focused on learning the pen tool that frankly I hadn't gotten there yet. (btw...pen tool = goooood

Being a photoshop novice who wishes to design clothing is very slow going, I must say....a lot of starts and stops each time I come across a feature or effect I need...but very educational. I may, however, win the record for the longest time expended in creating a face veil...yikes!

o.O And why have I never noticed that before ??? Duh! Thanks for the tip.

*goes off to watch seams grow*