Soft Sleek Text Effect

This tutorial explains how to create an easy yet elegant text effect, using a couple of Layer Style to create the glossy sleek look, and then applying some Filters to add a soft marble-like texture.

The Final Result

Tutorial Details

• Software Used : Photoshop
• Version : CS5 Extended
• Time : 0:30 – 0:45

Resources

• Sail font.
• Purple grit tileable texture by thespook.

Step 1

Create a new 1024 x 768 px document. Set the Foreground color to #c577a4 and the Background color to #713c5c. Pick the Gradient Tool, choose the Foreground to Background gradient, and click the Radial Gradient icon in the Options Bar. Then create a radial gradient from the center of the document to one of the corners.

Place the Purple grit tileable texture on top of the Background layer, and change its layer’s Blend Mode to Soft Light. This texture is tileable, so you can apply it as a pattern as well.

Step 2

Create the text using the Foreground color. The font used is Sail and the Size is 250 pt.

Duplicate the text layer.

Right click the copy text layer, and choose Rasterize Type.

Make this layer invisible by clicking the eye icon next to it. We’ll get back to it later to create the texture.

Step 3

Double click the original text layer to apply the following Layer Style.

Drop Shadow
Use the default values.

– Bevel and Emboss

• Gloss Contour : Cove – Deep
• Check the Anti-aliased box
• Shadow Mode – Color : #8a8a8a

– Contour

• Contour : Ring
• Check the Anti-aliased box.

– Satin

• Blend Mode : Vivid Light
• Color : #eedfe9
• Angle : 0
• Contour : Linear

– Stroke

• Size : 1
• Fill Type : Gradient
• Angle : 90
• Click the Gradient box to create the gradient

The gradient uses two colors#6a6a6a and #e8f0f5. Add five stops for the first color and four for the second, and place them as shown below:

This will add a very nice and elegant effect to the text.

Step 4

Make the copy text layer visible again by clicking the empty box next to it.

Go to Filter -> Texture -> Craquelure and modify the values as shown below:

This is what you should get:

Then, go to Filter -> Distort -> Glass and modify the values as shown below as well:

This will create a simple marble-like texture.

Step 5

The last step is changing the Blend Mode. The Blend Mode used here is Soft Light, and the layer’s Opacity is 80%, but you can go ahead and try some other Blend Modes as well. A couple of them will give different nice results.

Hope you liked the tutorial and found it useful.