PORCH SWING WITH CHAINS & HOOKS
For PI 8
Check out my new PI SCRAPBOOK COURSE
Software: Ulead PhotoImpact 8
Author: Claudia Conover A.K.A. Dia
Homepage: Dia's Dimensions
Terms Of Use: Please Read
Title: Porch Swing w/Hooks
Skill Level: Beginner-Intermediate
Featured Tools:
Path Edit
Selection Tool,
Selection Manager
Transform Tools,
Stamp Tool,
Object Paint Eraser
Line & Arrow Tool
Additional Files:
Rosie's Wood 10 Preset
Rosie's Gold Chain Stamp from her Suncatcher Tutorial.
Thank you Rosie for giving me permission to use your preset and stamp! I soo appreciate it!
Description: This is a realistic wooden porch swing
complete with chains and ceiling hooks.
Unzip and Import Rosie's Wood preset to your Easy Pallet. This swing is made with wood # 10.
Unzip and install Rosie's chain stamp to your Stamps folder.Swing Back
Open a New Image white, 400x400 set up like this:
Click on the Path tool, rectangle, 2D any color, and draw a horizontal rectangle 300x30px long. Double click on Rosie's wood #10 in your EP (Easy Pallet). Change to 3D Mode and open the Material box above. Change the Border to 6, and click OK to apply. R-click, Align, Center both. Press Enter or click on the white image to deselect your 'board'.
Draw a vertical rectangle 26x105px long below your board. The wood is going in the wrong direction for our purposes, so open the Material box again.
On the Color tab that comes up click on the Options button. Click on 90°, click OK and OK to apply.
R-click Duplicate and move one to each end of the board just inside the outer edges (3px in on each end) use your arrow keys for exact placement, and 1 px up onto the board itself. Save As a .ufo and give it a name. Remember to save often :) Deselect.
Draw another vert. rectangle 12x105px. Line up inside next to the first wider board and 1 px up on the horizontal board, duplicate and send to the other end of the swing. Line it up. Don't worry about spacing yet. We'll fix that in a few minutes when we have all our boards created.
Draw another vert. rectangle 15x105, line up again, move it over a bit and duplicate, doing the same to this board as you did before. Duplicate this board 4 more times lining them up evenly on each side with the middle of the swing back open. Save!
Make a center board 55x105px. Place in the center. Move the other boards over if needed. Open Material box and reduce the Border to 4 or 5 for this board.
Click on your Outline Drawing tool, Custom Shape, and select the heart. Draw a heart in 3D Mode, 54x42 or that will fit in the middle of this wide board you just made with a little room left on the sides and top. (You may also create 3 smaller hearts. Adjust your size accordingly if you make 3). Move it down on top of this wide board and Duplicate it. Move that one down under the first and space them evenly on the board. (If you made 3 smaller hearts, repeat - space evenly.)
Click in the Layer Manager, R-click, Select All Objects. Hold down the Ctrl key and click on your 2 or 3 hearts to deselect, release the Ctrl key. Now click on the little eye to hide the rest of your objects. Press Enter to Deselect all.
Change to the Magic Wand tool and select outside of the two hearts by clicking on the white area. R-click again, Invert. On the main menu above, click on "Selection" and click on "Store". Your Selection Manager will open and you will see your new heart selection.
R-click on the white area and choose None.
Select all of your objects you've hidden and unhide them. Press Enter to Deselect.
Delete your 2 or 3-3D hearts on the center board.
Open your Selection Manager, double click on your Stored Selection to place your heart selection on your board.
Select the center board they are on. R-click, Convert Object Type, From Text/Path to Image.
Click your Delete button or on the scissors above to cut out the hearts on your board. You still have the magic wand tool on, if not select it, and R-click, choose None and Deselect.
Center this wide board Horizontally (R-click, Align, Center Horizontally). Line up your vert. boards "by eye" so they are spaced as evenly as you can get them using your pick tool and your arrow keys. I tried to use the R-click, Align, Space Evenly command, but it pulled the right outside board over too much. If you want to try it, go ahead and select all your vertical boards and give it a 'Test'. They need to be as even as you can get them. Save!
Select all your vertical boards if they aren't and R-Click, Arrange, Send to Back. Deselect.
Select all, move everything up on your image so you can work beneath these parts for the swing seat, Deselect all. Save. Your swing back is finished for now. :)
Swing Seat
Select your Path Edit tool. Make a horizontal rectangle (the wood preset should still be in use) 306x20px. under the vertical boards.
R-click, Align, Center Horizontally.
Our board grain is going in the wrong direction, so open the Material box, Color tab, click on Options and tic the 0, click OK and OK to apply.
Duplicate this board, use your arrow keys to move it down to almost touching the board above. Duplicate the board 2 more times moving them down each time. You should now have 4 horizontal boards in a row, evenly spaced almost touching each other. Save!
Draw a thin horizontal board 306x8 (or 10 - even number), Align horizontally beneath the last board down. Bring it up so it is just touching the board above.
Click on Format, Brightness & Contrast, click the 1, then the 2, and the 3 like on the sample below and OK to apply. Save!
Move your boards with your arrow key so they look like the selection below.
Select your 5 boards, R-click, Merge as Single Object.
Click on your Transform Tool and on Perspective. Close the back up a little.
Pull the front edge out.
Move your seat up under the back to the bottom of the vertical boards.
Click on your Resize Tool and with the lock unlocked on the top right 
narrow the seat of the swing to 351x50.
R-click, Align, Center Horizontal.
R-click, Arrange, Send to back; use your arrow keys to move it just under the swing back by 1 px like the sample below. (Your swing seat's back side should be about the same width as the top board of the swing back. Use your Resize tool to shorten or lengthen if necessary.) Deselect and Save!
Click on the Standard Selection Tool, Soft Edge 0. Zoom to 200.
Draw a small square or rectangle at the very end of the swing seat's front corner. You will be removing the "angle", so it looks like a realistic board. Use your arrow keys to move the selection into place to square off the end of the board.
Click on the seat object (layer) in your Layer Manager to select and click on the Delete key or the scissors.
Use your arrow keys to move your selection to the left of the swing seat and repeat this procedure. R-click over your image and choose None. Deselect the layer and Save.
Swing Arms
Click on the Path tool, shape Rounded Rectangle, 3D Mode. Now click on the same Wood preset #10 (or the preset you are using) to reset the preset properties.
Create a vertical rectangle 6x45px. Click on the Material box to open and change your wood direction to 90° in the Color, File, Options box.
On the border tab click on 4, Apply changes.
If your post is darker than the other parts use this step to lighten. Click on your Brightness & Contrast icon (or Format) and click on the Top, Right selection "once or twice", click on preview to see if it's the lightness you need to match. Apply.
Line up your arm post on top of the seat board to around the center of the board like the sample below.
Duplicate this shape 4 more times, spacing them like this:
With your 5th post selected, Click on the Transform tool, Perspective.
You may want to Zoom to 200 for this part. Stretch the top out to
15x46.
Click on the pick tool and Deselect the post. Save.
In the Layer Manager select all 5 posts and duplicate. Send to the left side edge of the swing. Use you Pick Tool and arrow keys to move them one at a time into place like the other side.
Click on the Path Edit Tool and draw a Vertical rectangle 16x45px for the arm rest.
Open the Material box and change the wood direction to 90°. Change the Border to 3
Line up the back of the arm rest so the back post is centered under the arm, and then move it up just high enough to cover the post completely.
Zoom to 200. Click on the Transform tool, Perspective and make the back of the arm rest narrower.
Change to the Transform Slant tool and move the front end over the top of your posts as centered as possible by eye. You may have to move the whole arm over to the left more, so it looks the best over all. Use your best judgment. Save!
Duplicate the arm rest, Transform Tool, Flip Horizontally, send to left side, and center over those posts. Save!
You have your basic swing finished. Save. :)
Swing Hooks
Click on the Line & Arrow Tool. Open your EP and click on the Material Attributes + to open. Click on the Metallic section and find preset "Steel 4". Click twice to apply the preset. In the Material box it should be 3D, Border 2, Depth 30, and straight line.
Zoom to 200. Above or below your swing, draw a straight line. You can't tell how long it is, so click on the Transform Tool and resize to 10x4px from there.
Click on your Path Outline Tool. Click on the "Steel 4 preset again if needed. Shape Circle, 3D, Boarder 2 - Depth 30 in the Material box, and draw a tiny circle 7x7 at the right end of your shaft. Use the Transform tool to resize if you need to. Center it by eye against the shaft end.
In the Layer Manager select the shaft with the circle and Merge as Single Object. Save.
Click on the Transform tool again and resize to 16x11.
Using the arrow keys move your hook to the right front end of the seat next to the bottom board. Move it over the board just a bit and center if you can on the board.
Duplicate, Flip Horizontal, send this one to the left side and position the same way.
Duplicate again, Transform tool, Flip or Rotate 90° to the right, and place on the top of the swing back. Duplicate that one and move to the right side. Save.
With the Pick Tool, click on all 4 hooks and R-click, Arrange, Send to back. Save!
R-click, Select All, move down so you have room for the chains. Deselect, Save.
Chains, Chains, Chains
Click on the Stamp Tool. In the selection box choose the gold ring. Set your Stamp Tool up like this. Feel free to adjust the chain spacing as far up as 95 and they will still touch each other. Going lower just seems to bunch up the loops, but not so they look interlocked like I would actually like to see.
Put the horizontal line of your Stamp Tool on the top right side of the circle like this and click. The circle will be centered in the hook after you draw your chain line.
Draw your line of stamps near the top of your workspace leaning in slightly like so. Save!
Do the same process to the top hook. Try to match the chain link you end up choosing to land on. HINT: When you end your line of stamps, end it the same way you started it - on the top right side of the chain. Remember you can always use the Transform resize tool to shorten/lengthen the chain 1 or 2 pixels with no harm done, so don't drive yourself nuts trying to center it perfectly
For the 'seat' chain click on the seat board and draw up to just below where your top hook chain ends. Try to make it so it matches the chain again like you see here. This will take some practice, but you have a little wiggle room on the board to move it once created. This will go to the back, so you wont see the 'seat' end of the chain. Be careful when you move it that it doesn't go off the seat board because it will show from the back side.
Select all 3 chains, R-click, Duplicate, Transform Tool - Flip Horizontally, and move to the left side. You may have to do a bit of realigning, so use your arrow keys to move them in to place like the right side.
R-click on the seat chain and send to back. Save! Your porch swing is almost done! :) I heard that *Sigh! :)
R-click, Select All, move everything down or expand canvas at the top (Format, Expand Canvas) 25px to have enough room to put your ceiling hooks into place. Deselect All.
Click on the Outline Tool, Shape - Ellipse. Click on the Steel preset (EP, Material Attributes, Metallic, Steel 4:) Set the Material box Border to 1 or 2 (your choice). Draw an Ellipse 20x36. Move it over and "center it on your top chain link".
My ellipse should be down a bit more to be correct. Try to center it in the hole better than I did here! :)
R-click, Convert Object Type, From Text/Path to Image.
Click on your Object Eraser Tool, with Soft Edge 0, Size 10-20 (your choice), Trans 0, Freehand, erase the left quarter of the ellipse and a bit of the top so it looks similar to this.
Duplicate, Flip Horizontally, and send to the left side positioning it the same as the right. You may have your hooks facing in or out, whichever you prefer.
Select both hooks and R-click, Arrange, Send to back.
Click on the Object Paint Eraser set up like this
Zoom in to 600 as this is very small to erase right. Erase the inside part of the chain, so it looks like the hook is going through the chain. Click to remove what's needed directly over the hook. Zoom back to 100% to check out your chain. Repeat process if there is more needing to be taken off.
Move to the right side and click on the long chain object. Repeat steps above to remove part of the chain. Zoom back to 100% and check out your chain. Save!
Now a bit more erasing for your other hooks! Use the same process to remove part of the chains. Feel free to adjust the size of your eraser or direction of the slant for whatever hook you are working on.
Make sure everything is the way you want it to be and R-click, Select all, Merge as Single Object.
Click on the Eye at the top of the Layer Manager to hide the background, and Save it as a .psd (PhotoShop file) This is the same type of file as a .tub/psp as it keeps the transparent background. :)
Wipe your brow! You are finished with your porch swing and also created a "Tube"! :)
I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial.
Feel free to contact me if you get stuck and need help!
Now that you have finished this tutorial, feel free to R-click save my award and display it on your webpage. This award is offered on the honor system.
Want to learn more?
Click to subscribe to Dias_PI_Newbies_Too