This tutorial is my own work. It is not to be uploaded to another site for other people to work from, nor is it to be passed through email groups. If you'd like to use it in a group lesson, please email me first. If you feel that someone may be interested in trying it, please offer a link to this site, where this tutorial belongs. Thank you!

Supplies needed:

Paint Shop Pro from Jasc software. You can download a fully functional demo here.

Blade Pro, (optional). You can download a 15 day demo from the Flaming Pear site.

The gold Blade Pro preset used on the oval shape is jan-puregold from Bejewelled. You can download it here,
or use a metallic gradient in PSP.

If you'd like to use the lace I used, you may download a zip file here. If you're using a colour other than the one I used, the lace will have to be colorized to match the colour you're using.

The texture file included in the zip is for use with the texturizer filter. Since the texturizer filter is copyright by Adobe, I cannot offer it for download here.

  1)  Open a new image, 500x500 transparent background.  I like to work on a large canvas, but you should work with whatever is comfortable for you.

 2)  Preset shapes tool/ rectangle/ filled/ antialias checked/ create as vector unchecked.  Start at coordinates 35/185 and end at 385/240.

 3)  If you're using the texture I used, go to plugins/ texturizer filter/ load texture/ light crystalize/ scaling 100%/ relief 4/ light direction top left. Click OK.

 4)  Add a new raster layer.

 5)  Using the preset shapes tool with the same settings as before, draw a rectangle from coordinates 25/185 to 395/240, and texturize as you did the first one.

 6)  Using a darker shade of whatever color you're using for your box, add a drop shadow to the smaller rectangle as follows:  Opacity 50%/ blur 6/ Vertical offset 4/ Horizontal offset 0.

 7)  Layers / Merge / merge visible.

 8)  With your magic wand, click on the extraneous shadow that falls outside the box, then hit the delete key on your keyboard.

 9)   Add a new raster layer. Set your foreground colour to white and your background to null, and using the preset shapes tool set as follows, draw a white ellipse in the center of your box bottom. 

10)  With your selection tool, draw a rectangle around the ellipse you just made, and then click inside it to select the oval. Go to 'plugins / flaming pear / blade pro', and then add a Blade Pro gold preset, or f you prefer, you could use a metallic gradient in PSP.

11)  Add a new raster layer, and place a picture that you like in the center of the oval you just created.

12)  Add a new raster layer, and place flowers or whatever decoration you choose around the oval.

14) Layers / merge / merge visible. Add a new raster layer, and place your lace on the lid part of the box.

13) Go to your layer palette, and highlight the layer containing the box. With your selection tool,  draw a rectangular shape around your box, then click inside it to select the box. I forgot to add the lace to this one, but you can see placement for it in the header image above.

14)  Keep selection active, add a new raster layer, and change your foreground color to a deeper shade of the box color.

15)  Using the line tool/single line/ style stroked/ width 25/ antialias checked/ all others unchecked, draw a straight line from the top to the bottom of your box, beginning at about 90/185.  Go to Effects/ Blur/ gaussian blur/ radius 18 and click OK.

16)  Keep selection active, and add a new raster layer.  This time change your foreground color to white, and draw another line starting at coordinates 250/185 down to the bottom of the box.  Again gaussian blur at radius 18 and click OK.

17)  Keep selection active, and merge visible layers.

18)  Add a new raster layer, and with your foreground color set to a darker shade of your box color, go to effects/ cutout/ fill interior with color unchecked/ opacity 75%/ blur 45/ vertical offset 0/ horizontal offset 45.

19)  Keep selection active, and add a new raster layer.  Do another cutout with the same settings, but change the horizontal offset to about -25 (minus 25).

20)  Deselect (selections/ select none), merge visible layers.  Add your bow and you're finished!