Full Icon tutorial...my first, actually ^_^
This is my first time writing a tutorial, so any input would be greatly appreciated.
First, the cap.
01. Which I cropped, and resized:
02. Then I [Filter>Sharpen>Sharpen] ran the Sharpen filter through it twice. And before I did ANYTHING else, I [Edit>Fade Sharpen>50%]:
03. Now, that's way oversharp, and she looks like an old hag. So we take our Blur [
] brush (don't ever go beyond a size 9 brush) and go over the skin to smooth it out. This is a rather super-popular effect, so you probably know this already. Now, HOW much airbrushing depends on what you're planning to do with the icon. If it's gonna have about 347239423 layers on it, you can go for a little oversmoothing, but if it's gonna be a relatively basic icon, then...don't overdo it.
04. Ok, combined steps here. Although it shouldn't be difficult to follow. Duplicate the layer, and then go to [Image>Adjust>Hue & Saturation] (or Ctrl + U) and bring the Saturation down (on the new layer) to -50. Set the new layer to Screen. Duplicate -that- layer, and set the duplicate layer's blend mode to Soft Light. Now...slightly different. On your original layer, reduce the Opacity to 90%. Then make a new layer UNDER the original layer, and fill it with white. This is how it should look:
05. Now, make a new layer in between the Screen and the Soft Light layers. Fill the layer with a dark blue (#000033, for example) and set the blending mode to Exclusion. Then, above the Soft Light layer, create a new layer, and fill it with a light pink (#F3C2C2, for example) and set the blending mode to Multiply. Create a new layer above THAT one, and fill it with a light peach (#F3F0C2, for example) and set the blend mode to Multiply again.
06. Okies, and now we make a new layer above allllll of those and go to our wonderful gradient. Now, select the Red>Green gradient preset:
And drag the gradient from top left to bottom right in the icon. Now, set the Blending Mode to Color Burn, and the Opacity to 50%.
07. Aaaaaaaaand...to add to our ever-growing layer collection, we make a new layer, hide the gradient layer briefly, and hit Ctrl + Shift + Alt + E. This will stamp everything visible onto a new layer. Now, unhide the gradient layer, and set the -new- layer's blending mode to Screen at 22% opacity. Then, make a new layer above -that- one, and go back to our gradients and select the Violet/Orange gradient preset, and once again go from Top Left to Bottom Right. Then set the blending mode on that layer to Darken with 42% opacity. Now, go to the normal black and white gradient, new layer, oncea gain top left to bottom right. Blending mode is Vivid Light at 43% opacity.
08. New layer again, #E2AD79 fill, set to Soft Light, 100% opacity. Now, that's about it for the base of the icon. But before we go any further, go and cut out 3 small squares from the picture. (ie, I cropped her lips, and both eyes) Paste these onto a new picture, and resize them all to 30px-30px. Now, on the icon, go to [Image>Rotate Canvas>Flip Horizontal]. And now, apply this brush to a new layer above all of those:
(by 
crumblingwalls, I believe....
Paste the small picture crops back onto the original icon image in their respectable boxes in the brush.
09. Now that just looks....weird, so what we do is....hide the boxes for a moment (including the pictures inside, btw) and merge all visible layers (Ctrl + Shift + E). Duplicate that layer, and nudge it to the left.
10. Add text, and a one-pixel black border, and you're done!
Final:
First, the cap.
01. Which I cropped, and resized:
02. Then I [Filter>Sharpen>Sharpen] ran the Sharpen filter through it twice. And before I did ANYTHING else, I [Edit>Fade Sharpen>50%]:
03. Now, that's way oversharp, and she looks like an old hag. So we take our Blur [
] brush (don't ever go beyond a size 9 brush) and go over the skin to smooth it out. This is a rather super-popular effect, so you probably know this already. Now, HOW much airbrushing depends on what you're planning to do with the icon. If it's gonna have about 347239423 layers on it, you can go for a little oversmoothing, but if it's gonna be a relatively basic icon, then...don't overdo it.04. Ok, combined steps here. Although it shouldn't be difficult to follow. Duplicate the layer, and then go to [Image>Adjust>Hue & Saturation] (or Ctrl + U) and bring the Saturation down (on the new layer) to -50. Set the new layer to Screen. Duplicate -that- layer, and set the duplicate layer's blend mode to Soft Light. Now...slightly different. On your original layer, reduce the Opacity to 90%. Then make a new layer UNDER the original layer, and fill it with white. This is how it should look:
05. Now, make a new layer in between the Screen and the Soft Light layers. Fill the layer with a dark blue (#000033, for example) and set the blending mode to Exclusion. Then, above the Soft Light layer, create a new layer, and fill it with a light pink (#F3C2C2, for example) and set the blending mode to Multiply. Create a new layer above THAT one, and fill it with a light peach (#F3F0C2, for example) and set the blend mode to Multiply again.
06. Okies, and now we make a new layer above allllll of those and go to our wonderful gradient. Now, select the Red>Green gradient preset:
And drag the gradient from top left to bottom right in the icon. Now, set the Blending Mode to Color Burn, and the Opacity to 50%.
07. Aaaaaaaaand...to add to our ever-growing layer collection, we make a new layer, hide the gradient layer briefly, and hit Ctrl + Shift + Alt + E. This will stamp everything visible onto a new layer. Now, unhide the gradient layer, and set the -new- layer's blending mode to Screen at 22% opacity. Then, make a new layer above -that- one, and go back to our gradients and select the Violet/Orange gradient preset, and once again go from Top Left to Bottom Right. Then set the blending mode on that layer to Darken with 42% opacity. Now, go to the normal black and white gradient, new layer, oncea gain top left to bottom right. Blending mode is Vivid Light at 43% opacity.
08. New layer again, #E2AD79 fill, set to Soft Light, 100% opacity. Now, that's about it for the base of the icon. But before we go any further, go and cut out 3 small squares from the picture. (ie, I cropped her lips, and both eyes) Paste these onto a new picture, and resize them all to 30px-30px. Now, on the icon, go to [Image>Rotate Canvas>Flip Horizontal]. And now, apply this brush to a new layer above all of those:
(by crumblingwalls, I believe....Paste the small picture crops back onto the original icon image in their respectable boxes in the brush.
09. Now that just looks....weird, so what we do is....hide the boxes for a moment (including the pictures inside, btw) and merge all visible layers (Ctrl + Shift + E). Duplicate that layer, and nudge it to the left.
10. Add text, and a one-pixel black border, and you're done!
Final: