Patchwork Text Effect Tutorial for Photoshop

Patchwork Text Effect Tutorial for Photoshop

27/05/2020 0 By Carol

Patchwork Text Effect Tutorial will walk you through creating this somewhat messy, but fairly realistic patched and stitched text. A very easy tutorial, but you will have to give yourself a couple of hours to complete it as there is some rather repetitive stuff to be done.

Resources:

Patchwork Letter Font from Dafont
Denim Fabric Texture by Rawpixels on Freepik
Patterned Fabric Texture (1024 x 768) from Textures.com
Patterned Fabric Texture (Image 2, 1024 x 768) from Textures.com
Patterned Fabric Texture (1024 x 709) from Textures.com
Patterned Fabric Texture (758 x 1024) from Textures.com

Step 1

Open the denim texture and go to Image > Image Size. Change the resolution to 72ppi and the size will reduce to 1766px x 1179px.

Denim Background

Step 2

Duplicate the denim texture layer.

Image > Adjustments > Desaturate.

Double click on the layer to bring up the blending options, and apply the following Color Overlay settings:

Color Overlay Settings

You should now rasterize this layer. If you are using Photoshop CC, simply right-click on the layer and click on Rasterize Layer Style. With previous versions you have create a new empty layer then merge that layer with the black denim texture layer.

Ctrl + T to enter Transform mode, reduce the size of the texture to 60%. Do this by looking along the top of the screen, notice the W and H values show 100%. These need to be changed to 60%:

Transform

Rename the layer text texture

Text Texture

Step 3

Using the Patchwork Letter font at size 250pt (depending on how much lettering you are using), type each word on a separate layer.

Now is as good a time as any to lay out the words as you require, although they can be moved later.

Text

Step 4

Make the first word of your text active, ‘Patch’ in my case, using the Magic Wand tool, click anywhere outside of the text.

Hold down the Shift key and click in the holes in the text, such as the P and A to add them to the selection.

Select > Modify > Expand – set to 2 and click OK.

Select > Inverse

Now make the text texture layer active, Ctrl + J to copy the pixels onto a new layer.

Repeat this step for all words of your text, making sure you move the text texture layer if necessary to fill the word you are working on, then turn off the visibility of the text texture layer.

Rename these layers by their words followed by denim: patch denim for example.

Denim Text

Step 5

Double click on any of the text denim layers to bring up the blending options. Apply the following Bevel & Emboss and Contour settings:

Bevel & Emboss Settings

Contour Settings

Right-click on this layer and click on Copy Layer Style, then right-click on the other text denim layers and Paste Layer Style.

Denim Text Styled

Step 6

If you have turned off the visibility of the original text layers, restore visibility.

We will now add the patches.

Each patterned texture needs to be resized simply by changing the resolution to 72ppi.

Drag the textures into your work file, under the original text layers.

Choose which patches you want in which texture, then make sure that texture is under the patch and completely covering it. Make the text layer active and use the Magic Wand tool to select the patch.

Select > Modify > Expand – set to 2 and click OK.

Make the texture layer active, Ctrl + J to copy the pixels to a new layer.

Repeat for all patches and rename the layers – for example: patch p The renaming of these layers is particularly important as there are quite a few of them and you will better be able to find the one you wish to work on.

When all the patches are done, you should delete the patterned texture layers.

Select all the patches layers by clicking on the top one, holding down the Shift key and clicking on the bottom one. Ctrl + G to group them. Name the group patches

Patches

Step 7

We now have to wrap the patches around the letters.

Turn off the visibility of the original text layers.

Double click on the top patch layer to bring up the blending options and apply the following Bevel & Emboss settings:

Bevel & Emboss Settings - Patches

Right-click on the layer and click on Copy Layer Style.

Select the rest of the patches layers, right-click and click on Paste Layer Style.

As you will see, only the patches that are on the left of the letter are correct, so we will have to go to the blending options for each patch that is at the top, right or bottom and change the Bevel & Emboss settings as shown below:

Angle Settings

Step 8

It is probably easier to add a color overlay on the original text layers of white or a bright colour that contrasts with black for this step. I used a bright green #7FC918.

Select a hard round brush, size 4px.

Create a new layer above the original text layers and zoom well into the canvas.

You can do each word of each line on one layer in this step as long as you won’t be wanting to move the words again. Otherwise, create a new layer for each word.

Paint over the stitches around each letter and around the patches. I also added a few small stitches in the holes of the words.

Painted Stitches

Create a new layer and repeat this step for each word of text.

Name the layers patch stitches etc., or whatever your words are.

Step 9

Double click on any of the stitches layers to bring up the blending options and apply the following Color Overlay and Drop Shadow settings:

Color Overlay Settings Stitches

Drop Shadow Settings Stitches

Step 10

Create a new layer under the stitches layers.

Using a soft round brush, size 12pt, click once at each end of each stitch – this is a little time consuming, but you don’t have to be absolutely precise about the placement.

Lower the level’s opacity to 45%.

Double click on the layer to bring up the blending options and apply the following Bevel & Emboss settings:

Bevel & Emboss Settings Stitch Highlights

And you’re done!

Throughout this tutorial I have shown images of a smaller canvas than the file size, so I have been making two examples, the full size, then scaling down for the example to fit it on the screen. Here I show just 2 words at full size for your reference.

Patch Work Full Size