Polish Those Gems!
Give the necklace a bit of extra sparkle. Select the QuickShape tool (the star icon on the Quick Shape flyout) and then create a 6 point star. Before dragging the shape on the page, click the Starred Shapes button on the Infobar, and then go over to the Number of Sides drop-down and choose 6.
Click a node between the points and drag inward to make the points long and skinny. See Figure 28.
Now choose the Ellipse tool and draw an ellipse just slightly smaller than the outer points of the star. Place the ellipse on top of the star, and give it a circular transparency. Group both the star and the ellipse, and then choose the Live Effects tool again, and give the group the same Soft-focus effect; this time, set the top slider at 2 and the bottom at 3.
Scale the sparkle down, and then place it on the necklace. Right-click and drag, to create copies and place them at different points around the centre area of the necklace. See Figure 29.
Add some white text in a nice script font (the “Great Vibes” typeface can be seen here) and the cover is done! You can leave the back of the card blank if you like or you can create a little bit of text that says “created by …” or if you dare, use the Hallmark or American Greetings logo. I’m kidding, I’m kidding; that would be…wrong. J
As for what to put inside the card? That’s up to you! If you’re not sure just what to say to your someone special, go to quotationspage.com, and start thumbing through Cyrano de Bergerac and Don Juan.
Discuss this tutorial and show the work it inspired in the Xara Xone forum on TalkGraphics.com
(Angelize online), is the co-publisher of the weekly, Good Morning Sunshine! that has brought a smile to the faces of print and online subscribers for 14 years. She uses Xara products extensively in her work for her firm, SunWings Graphic Design. She loves to teach and share her love of Art though her YouTube channel, her contributions to The Xara Xone and her work on Xara’s TalkGraphics forum as a moderator. You can drop her a line through her website or better yet stop by the Xara Xone forum on Talkgraphics and chat with Angelize there.
The tutorial Making A Handcrafted Valentine Card including the artwork and the downloadable examples file are Copyright © 2013 Frances Proctor. All Rights Reserved.
