Rug Tutorial: Page 2

  1. Next, we will recreate the original rug in a new window. Select File and New and make a really big new window (henceforth referred to as "Big Window" in this tutorial). I make mine about 800 wide by 600 high and my prefered backgound is white. That's huge and sometimes more room than I need, but I like to make sure I don't have to resize canvas in the middle. :) Whatever space is comfortable for you to work in that will accomodate the finished rug is fine.
  2. Next we will copy all the rug peices - one from each of the six sections onto the Big Window we just made. Do this by using the magic wand tool. Click off anti-aliasing first so that your selections are not "feathered" in, then click anywhere in the yellow region. Once the yellow part is selected, Choose Select from the menu bar and Inverse from the pull down. You should have only the rug part selected now.




  3. Select Copy from the Edit menu or press Ctrl-C to copy the peice of rug, then select your new big window and Paste (Ctrl-V) or Edit: Paste. Repeat the selection, copy and paste process for each peice of rug. You should then have a new window with a white background and 6 layers - each containing a peice of the rug.
  4. At this stage, they kinda all pile on top of each other, but as long as you are creating new layers, they are all there, just covering each other up at the moment. Move the peices around by selecting a layer and then the Move button to arrange the peices until you've reassembled the rug. I zoom in at this point to about 225% to make absolutely sure there is no space between the peices (or worse that one is overlapping the other). The peices should butt up against each other exactly - pixel to pixel. Play with the spacing at this point, it's easy to get a couple peices out of whack at 80 or even 150% views. Incorrect placement is what causes those ugly yellow lines in your glorious rugs. It can be very disappointing to do alot of TMOG work only to have something turn out with yellow haze or lines running through it later, so it's worth the effort at this point to double check your placement.


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