First Tutorial - Be nice :)
Hey Guys! I just joined and everyone has had such helpful tutorials! It's kind of convinced me to post one. I usually just mess around with stuff until I get an effect that I like so here is one icon made with PSP 8, I'm not sure whether or not it will transfer into photoshop...
The icon we will be making:
Okay first we start with this picture:
and crop it into a square (I did maximum height and then made the width the same). Resize to 100x100 to get this: 
Duplicate the background twice, set the first to screen at 50% opacity and the second to soft light at 50% opacity:
Make a new layer and flood fill it with #0A0B28 (dark blue). Set this layer to lighten, opacity 100%:
(note: this does not do too much, the end icon would look generally the same without this layer but I like the icon with it)
Make another new layer and flood fill with with white. Set at overlay, opacity 70%:
Now we're using gradients. Mkae two new layers with this gradient:
(dark colour: #49410B light colour: #FBCC95, aka gradient1) Set the first at multiply, opacity 100%; the second at soft light, opacity 100%: 
I added a 5 pixel border inside the image in white, and set it between the first gradient and the white layer:
Now I add a little bit of text: three lines of random song lyrics (Love is a many splendored thing) in 1pt Times New Roman. This goes in between the two gradients.
That looks pretty good. In fact I'd use that one too. But to get a kind of 'older' look I add one more gradient:
(dark colour: #2CAEF8, light colour: #C0FFFF). I put this final layer at hard light, opacity 20% and there is the finished product!
Here is what my "layer properties" box looks like:
Hope everyone found this interesting/helpful! Thanks :)
The icon we will be making:
Okay first we start with this picture:
and crop it into a square (I did maximum height and then made the width the same). Resize to 100x100 to get this: Duplicate the background twice, set the first to screen at 50% opacity and the second to soft light at 50% opacity:
Make a new layer and flood fill it with #0A0B28 (dark blue). Set this layer to lighten, opacity 100%:
(note: this does not do too much, the end icon would look generally the same without this layer but I like the icon with it)Make another new layer and flood fill with with white. Set at overlay, opacity 70%:
Now we're using gradients. Mkae two new layers with this gradient:
(dark colour: #49410B light colour: #FBCC95, aka gradient1) Set the first at multiply, opacity 100%; the second at soft light, opacity 100%: I added a 5 pixel border inside the image in white, and set it between the first gradient and the white layer:
Now I add a little bit of text: three lines of random song lyrics (Love is a many splendored thing) in 1pt Times New Roman. This goes in between the two gradients.
That looks pretty good. In fact I'd use that one too. But to get a kind of 'older' look I add one more gradient:
(dark colour: #2CAEF8, light colour: #C0FFFF). I put this final layer at hard light, opacity 20% and there is the finished product! Here is what my "layer properties" box looks like:
Hope everyone found this interesting/helpful! Thanks :)