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Make a Fireplace to decorate for Christmas
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You will need to download
this texture for this tutorial. This would be a good texture to add to
your easy palette, because it is a nice brick pattern and it is seamless.
Click
here to find out how.
Download this one also for the bricks in the arch. |
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Open a new canvas.
I like to use 640 X480 when making projects of this sort because that way
I have plenty of room.
Press Control and 0 (the number) at the same time to view the window full size. Click the path tool,
and set the shape to rectangle. Mode should be set on 2d.
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Now draw another rectangle
for the mantle. Make this one the same width, but much shorter. Right click
while it is selected, and click duplicate. Click object/convert object
type/from path to image. We are going to use this piece for the top of
the mantle.
Change to the transform tool, and click the perspective button in the attribute toolbar. This is the fourth button from the left. |
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Click on the top left handle, and drag it over to the center. Try to drag in as straight a line as possible. Your rectangle should new look something like this. |
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Now click on the first button in the transform attribute tool bar, and drag the top middle handle towards the bottom. The top should not be very wide at all if it is to look natural. This process seems to inexplicably make the rectangle narrower, so you will most likely now have to make it wider again. Click the middle handle on the right side, and drag it outward so that this rectangle is again the same width as the mantle front. |
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Hold down control
while clicking on the mantle front. The selection lines should now be around
both objects. Right click and merge as a single object for version 6, and
combine as a single object for version 5.
Right click and click shadow. Place a check mark in the box beside shadow. Change the X- offset to 0, and leave all other settings on the default. Click ok. |
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Open the lilbrick.jpg
texture, and right click, and click copy.
Go back to your first canvas, and paste the brick onto the canvas. (Ctrl V) We are going to use this brick to create the arch. Change to the transform tool. Do these steps 6 times. Right click, and click duplicate. Under rotate by degree, type 15.0. Click the arrow to the right of the window to rotate the brick clock wise. Place the left corner of each brick just a little ways away from the right corner of the brick to its left. When you have completed this step 6 times, you will have half of the arch. |
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Hold down the control key while clicking on each brick except for the first one you placed. Right click and group. Right click and duplicate. Click rotate and flip in the attribute tool bar, and click rotate horizontally. Arrange this part to the left of the first block, leaving the bottom right corner a little ways away from the bottom left corner of the first block. Hold down control, click on the first block and the right arch half so that the entire arch is selected. Right click and group. |
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Change back to the
path tool. Click the rectangle under the word shape, and click custom shape.
Find the half circle in the shape gallery. Double click it. Draw a half
circle that will fit inside the arch. Use the transform tool to make the
width and height just right. Click object/convert object type/from path
to image. Click the minus sign beside the sun enough times to make it several
shades darker than the brick of the outside of the fireplace. It should
be almost black.
Draw another half circle the same width and height as the outside of the arch. Click edit/fill. Click the color tab, and fill it with a medium gray. Click effect/texture/texturizer, and click the down arrow beside texture, and select sandstone. Change the level to 13 or 14 to simulate the roughness of grout. |
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Click the layer manager
button in the easy palette, and drag the grout thumbnail behind the arch
thumbnail. Arrange all three parts of the arch so that they look something
like this. When arranged, click on each part while holding down control,
right click and click merge/combine as a single object.
For added 3d quality, add an all around shadow to this part if you like. |
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Change back to the
path tool. The half circle shape should still be active. Click the box
with the brick pattern in it under the word color, and click black. Draw
one more half circle. Use the transform tool to make this one as tall as
the inside of the arch, but not as wide. Center it on top of the arch.
This is the very back of the inside of the fireplace.
Arrange all parts so that your image looks something like this one. |
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Change back to the path tool, and draw a rectangle a little wider than the fireplace front. Click edit/fill, and fill this image with the brick texture. Click object/convert object type/from path to image. Again, use the transform tool, click on the perspective button, and shape this rectangle like the one we did for the top of the mantle. You will have to go through all the same steps. |
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Change back to the
path tool, and draw another rectangle the same width as the bottom of the
fireplace front. Place it so that it looks like this.
Now hold down control, and click on each piece. Right click and group. Drag your fireplace to your easy palette. |
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Your fireplace is
done. You may use my log fire for the inside. Click on the fire to
get it in ping format. The actual flames were from Dawn's site.
Take a break. You've earned it! After you're all rested again, use tubes and objects to decorate your fireplace for Christmas. |
| Stocking project | Father Michael had
made s stocking ufo good for version 6. You can download it and decorate
it as you like, or you can download his set of decorated stockings. Place
your candle on the mantle to further decorate it.
This project would make a great graphic for a splash page, or to use for stationery. Have fun with this tut. |
Click here to visit my main site, and see my stationery and backgrounds.
