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How to: create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

Elena Santos

Elena Santos

  • Updated:

Valentine’s Day is often accused of being just a Hallmark holiday, a tradition made up by department stores to sell more stuff on a certain date. Whether you fall into the consumer trend or not, you also have the possibility to come up with a personal gift instead of the traditional flowers and chocolates. And a gift made by you is always more valuable than anything you can buy! So how about creating your own Valentine’s card with Photoshop? Here’s how:

1. Open up a blank document and draw a rectangle about the size you want your card to be.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

2. Apply a Gradient Overlay to this rectangle with four different shades of red. You’re free to use your personal settings and choices of color, but here are my settings in case you need some inspiration.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

3. Now create a new layer and use the Custom Shape tool highlighted in the screenshot to draw some white rays over the background. Reduce the opacity of this layer to around 10%.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

4. Go to Filter > Distort > Twirl and apply this effect on the shape you just drew. You may try different angles, but in my case a 150º angle worked fine.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

5. On a new layer, use the Custom Shape tool again and pick the heart silhouette this time.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

6. Apply a Gradient Overlay on the heart as well, just like you did in step 2. I used only two shades of red this time.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

7. Make a copy of the heart layer and transform it with the Distort and Perspective tools under the Edit > Transform menu. We’ll use this layer to create a flare effect on the heart, so stick it to the top side and apply another Gradient Overlay effect using the “White to transparent” option to create the illusion of a shiny 3D heart.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

8. Use the Line tool to draw a string on top of the heart. Then merge the three layers that make up the heart (basic shape, glaring effect and string) and create two copies, so that you end up with three hearts. Use the Transformation tool to resize them and place them around the first one.

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

9. Finally, add a personal text to your card. Done!

Create a Valentine’s card in Photoshop

Elena Santos

Elena Santos

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