How to Create Greeting Card for Valentine’s Day with Cute Glossy Hearts in Adobe Photoshop CS6

Final Image Preview

Start working by creating a new document (Ctrl+N) in Adobe Photoshop CS6 with the size 1280px by 1024px(RGB color mode) at a resolution of 72 pixels/inch. Click on Add a layer style icon from bottom part of theLayers panel and select Gradient Overlay.

Click in the color bar to open the Gradient Editor and set the color stops as shown. Click OK to close theGradient Editor dialog box.

We’ve got the next background for our greeting card:

Using the Ellipse Tool (U), we may represent a small circle.

Click on Add a layer style icon from bottom part of the Layers panel and select Gradient Overlay.

Click in the color bar to open the Gradient Editor and set the color stops as shown. Click OK to close theGradient Editor dialog box.

We’ve got the next result:

Make a copy of the layer containing the circle and remove out of it the Gradient Overlay effect. Put the copy under the very first circle’s layer, go to the Mask Panel and set Feather to 172px (in case if you can find Mask Panel on the right side just activate it on main menu Windows > Masks):

We’ve got the next result:

Next we’ll draw the rays, choose the Pen Tool (P), set the drawing mode on Shape Layers in Options barand draw the next shape as shown, placing the made layer under the circles’ layers.

Set Fill to 20% for the rays’ layer.

This way we can represent the next rays of white color, almost like on the next picture. Place the layers under the circles’ layers.

Combine in a group all the layers containing the rays (press CTRL button to select the necessary layers and hold on the left mouse’s button while dragging the selected layers on Create a new group icon from bottom part of the Layers panel).

Insert the mask on the group by choosing Add layer mask on the bottom part of the Layers panel and choose the Soft Round brush of black color (set Opacity to 60% in Options bar).

Paint in the mask using this brush to hide out the rays as it is shown on the picture.

Make a copy of the rays’ group and place the copy under the circles’ layers. Remove the mask out of the copy. Using the Free Transform (Ctrl+T) command, we may turn over the copy by circle.

On the group’s copy insert the mask now the same way described above. Using the Soft Round brush mentioned above, hide out the rays the same way described on the picture.

Next we’ll represent several rings around the circle, using the Ellipse Tool (U). The rings’ layers must be situated above the circles’ layers.

In Adobe Photoshop CS6, there’s now a convenient Stroke option on your Options Bar when you have a shape active. Use drop downs to set the next Stroke options for our circle, Fill – (None), Stroke color –#FFF568, Stroke type – Solid:

We’ve got the next result:

Set Fill to 45% for this layer.

The next ring must be represented with the same Ellipse Tool (U).

The Stroke options:

We’ve got the next result:

Set Fill to 45% for this layer.

Let’s draw the next ring of the same width, applying the same tool.

The Stroke options:

Set Fill to 45% for this layer.

Continue representing the rings, using the Ellipse Tool (U).

The Stroke options:

Set Fill to 13% for this layer and change the Blending mode to Linear Light.

Now we must represent a dashed line on the central part of each ring, using the Ellipse Tool (U) too.

Set the next Stroke options in Options bar:

Set Fill to 28% for this layer and change the Blending mode to Linear Light.

Make three copies of the recently made layer containing the dashed line and choose the Free Transform (Ctrl+T) command to change the copies’ sizes, placing them the same way indicated below.

Create a new layer and select the Soft Round brush of white color (brush Opacity – 60%).

Use this brush to paint above the circles as shown:

Set the Blending mode for this layer to Overlay.

Create a new layer and select for it the same Soft Round brush mentioned in the previous example to paint above the rings with the color #FFE400 (brush Opacity – 7%):

Set Fill to 60% for this layer and change the Blending mode to Hard Mix.

Create a new layer again, choosing for it the Soft Round brush.

Use this brush to paint again above the rings with the color #FE0042 (brush Opacity – 20%):

Set the Blending mode for this layer to Overlay.

Next we’ll draw a small heart, using the Pen Tool (P) and the Convert Point Tool. Using the Pen Tool (P), insert the anchor points of the shape, but the second tool may be used when correcting the heart’s shape.

Set Fill to 0% for this layer and click on Add a layer style icon from bottom part of the Layers panel to selectStroke.

Add Inner Shadow:

Apply Gradient Overlay:

Click in the color bar to open the Gradient Editor and set the color stops as shown. Click OK to close theGradient Editor dialog box.

Add Drop Shadow:

We’ve got the next result:

Now we’ll insert a highlight on the heart, applying the Ellipse Tool (U).

Make sure that highlight’s layer is active in Layers panel and hold CTRL button when clicking on the heart’s layer on the Layers panel to get the next selection:

Insert the mask on the highlight’s layer by choosing Add layer mask on the bottom part of the Layers panel.

Set Fill to 32% for this layer.

Rasterize now the highlight’s layer. In this case create a new layer above the old one and select them both layers in Layers panel. Press CTRL+E to Merge Down. Using the Free Transform (Ctrl+T) command, displace a little the rasterized layer.

Make sure that highlight’s layer is active in Layers panel and hold CTRL button when clicking on the heart’s layer on the Layers panel to get the next selection:

Insert the mask on the highlight’s layer the same way we did before, this time, cutting out a part of the highlight’s element.

Choose in the mask a Soft Round brush of black color (brush Opacity – 15%).

Paint in the mask using this brush to hide out the highlight’s edges:

Create a new layer and hold Ctrl button when clicking on the layer containing the heart in Layers panel to get the next selection:

Use the Paint Bucket Tool (G) on the new layer to fill the selection with the color #700E19:

Press Ctrl+D to remove the selection. Insert the mask on this layer by choosing Add layer mask on the bottom part of the Layers panel and choose the Soft Round brush of black color.

Paint in the mask using this brush to hide the heart on its central part.

Make a copy of the very first layer with the heart on it and remove the layer’s styles. Fill it in whitecolor, placing it also above all the layers.

Hold Alt button or select Subtract from shape area (-) from Options bar and draw an ellipse using theEllipse Tool (U) to cut from heart shape exactly as on the picture below:

Insert the mask on the layer by choosing Add layer mask on the bottom part of the Layers panel and choose the Soft Round brush of black color.

Paint in the mask using this brush to hide out the lateral heart’s highlights.

Create a new layer and select the Soft Round brush of white color (brush Opacity – 10%).

Use this brush to paint on the central part of the heart.

Set Fill to 32% for this layer and change the Blending mode to Overlay.

Combine in a group all the layers composing the heart (press CTRL button to select the necessary layers and hold on the left mouse’s button while dragging the selected layers on Create a new group icon from bottom part of the Layers panel).

Make five copies of the group we’ve got and choose the Free Transform (Ctrl+T) command to change the copies’ sizes, placing them as below.

Next we’ll draw the thread element, using the Line Tool (U) draw the next line (set Weight – 2px in Options bar):

Set Fill to 43% for this layer.

This way we may represent the thread for the other hearts.

Create a new layer and select the Soft Round brush of white color.

Use this brush to represent several spots. Use a brush of different sizes, including different Opacity value.

Set the Blending mode for this layer to Overlay.

Click Create new fill or adjustment layer from bottom part of the Layers panel and click to Curves to adjust the curve shape as shown to make a little color corrections.

We’ve got the next result:

Create a new layer and select the Paint Bucket Tool (G) to fill it with #BFBDF0 color.

Set Fill to 12% for this layer and change the Blending mode to Hard Mix.

Finally insert the greeting text on our Valentine’s Day card. Select the Horizontal Type tool (T). Select a font, size and color in the Character panel. I used this font from FontSquirrel.

Click in the canvas and type ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’. Press Enter to apply the text.

Insert the mask on the text’s layer by choosing Add layer mask on the bottom part of the Layers panel and choose the Soft Round brush of black color (set Opacity to 20% in Options bar).

Paint in the mask using this brush hide out the edges:

Create a new layer and select the Soft Round brush from Brush Tool (B). We need to customize our brush inBrushes panel (F5), select the Brush Tip Shape. Click and drag any of the sliders to change the size, thespacing and brush angle as show. The Preview window displays the changed brushstroke.