50% Over Layer NOT showing up?

OK so i fill a layer of red to make a basic color of my shirt.
then i make a 50% layer for my shading and set it at as overlay
and as soon as i start shading it doesnt show up over the layer of red?

and ideas?

You'll have to be a little more specific about what's happening. When you set the 50% gray layer to Overlay, it should disappear. When you use the Burn tool to create a shadow, you should see some darkening of the underlying fabric layer. When you use the Dodge tool, you should see lightening of it. If these things aren't happening, check first to be sure that you are actually working on the 50% layer. Also, check the Flow of your Burn/Dodge tools. It should be fairly low so you can work carefully, but if it's too low, your changes could be more subtle than you think. Finally, try changing the layer's mode fom Overlay to Multiply. See if that makes a difference. It sometimes helps to use a 50% layer set to Multiply for shadows and a seperate one set to Overlay for highlights.

Try adjusting your red hue a bit. The 50% grey overlay layer method won't effect underlayers that are primary colours (eg. red that is R=255 G=0 B=0) or pure black or white.

Ah! That's a very good point, Betty. The Dodge/Burn method on a 50% gray layer works because you are changing the RGB values of pixels by adding to (with mode = Multiply) or subtracting from (with mode = Overlay) whatever is on the underlying layers. If the pixels are already primary colors (< 255,0,0>, < 0,255,0> or < 0,0,255> or close to black (< 0,0,0> or white (< 255,255,255> there are obvious limts to how much you can add to them. What's whiter than white? (I know ... Clorox.... ) You have two choices then. One is to do as you suggest ... change the underlying color away from a pure primary, or white, or black. That usually makes a lot of sense, especially with white and black. The other approach is to paint instead of using the Dodge/Burn method. Create a new, empty layer, set it to Multiply or Overlay mode, and paint your shadows or highlights with a soft, low-flow brush and a slightly off-primary hue of your underlying color.