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No Photoshop? Milestone Template Tutorial - Part 2

Thank you to the couple of you who e-mailed me and mentioned that you didn't have Photoshop, but still wanted to use the Milestone Templates. You gave me the little kick in the pants to figure out a way for you to be able to use them! Drum-roll please?

Kidding.

Anyway, there is a program pretty similar to Photoshop available for download - for FREE. It's called GIMP, and you can download it here, or here. After downloading... come back for the tutorial on how to use it with the Milestone Templates.

**Attention** Because GIMP is free, they have added opt-in software to the download - make sure you read everything carefully when you are installing to make sure you ONLY download GIMP and not other software you don't want. The first screen of the installer has a link on the left that says "SKIP ALL OFFERS" that you can click - DON'T click "express install".

...

Okay, welcome back. Let's get started.

(I'm going to write this tutorial as if my mom is trying to figure out how to do it.. sorry if I include way too much information!)



0. Open the template you'd like to use, and a picture to match (file>open.. and make sure you open a .psd file - NOT a .tiff)

1. Click on the number layer.

2. Click on the Color Picker Tool, then on your picture wherever you want to match (I clicked on the purple icon on Avery's shirt). You can double-check that it's the color you want by looking at the color box.



3. Now choose the Paint Bucket Tool, and click on the number. It should turn the color you chose in step 2.

4. There will be little spots that didn't get painted, just click on those spots as well to change their color too.



5. Now click the "you" layer, and do the same steps to change it's color... Color Picker Tool, choose your color on the picture...

6. And use the paint bucket tool, then click the "you" on the template.


7. Unfortunately, GIMP isn't able to open the text paths that I did in Photoshop, and the text isn't editable. You'll have to make your own text boxes. Choose the Text Tool (the little A), and drag a box around the text in the template.

8. Zoom in so you'll be able to see what you're typing. I chose 25% and then maximized the window. (GIMP has since been upgraded, so no need to zoom... instead a new window will open "GIMP Text Editor." Type your text inside and click "Close.")



9. On the lower left hand side are all of your text options. I started typing (in the top box) "Century Gothic" and the list popped up, so I chose that font. Feel free to change your font to whatever you like.

10. Change the font size to 18 pt (not px).

11. Click the box, and choose black as your color.

12. You will type right over the words shown in the template. You can click the little eyeball next to "Milestones List" to turn my words off/on. One other thing... the text will just go over the number, so you'll have to hit enter every time your line gets close to it. Think of it as typing like on a typewriter...


13. If the "you" is in the way of your text, or you just want to move it to another spot, make sure the "you" layer is chosen, click the Move Tool, and drag it wherever you want.


14. Choose the Text Tool (little A) again, and drag a box around the weight and height measurements. Click the Center box down in the left hand corner.

15. Turn off my text by clicking the little eyeball next to "Weight/Height".

16. Type your text first, then highlight the lines you want larger. Change the text size to 36 pt (not px) and click somewhere inside the text box to unselect your text, then click Close.



17. When you're satisfied with your page, save it! Only GIMP will save it as some funky file extensions if you click save. Instead, click Export.



18. On the left side you can choose where you'd like to save your file. On the top, name your file INCLUDING the extension (like .jpg). Then click Export.

.....


Phew! Did I lose you? Hopefully all my photos and arrows and instructions weren't too confusing (or too bossy..). If you have any questions, just e-mail me: dayinmylifeblog@gmail.com. I'm happy to help!

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