[Note: This tutorial has been graciously translated into Dutch by Harriet. Thank you Harriet!!!! If you'd like to visit the Dutch version of this tutorial, click here.]
Optional: Eye Candy 4000, and my gradient glow preset. Place this in your Eye Candy 4000 gradient glow folder. (Note: you can do this tutorial without Eye Candy). My selection files. Place these in your PSP selections folder (or another location of your choice). My stylized line preset. Place this in your PSP lines folder. You may download all of my materials here. My color chart. Right click on this and save it to your computer.
Step 1. Open a new image 400 x 400, white background. Copy your color chart and paste it as a new layer onto your canvas. Move it to the top out of the way. When you need a color, just click on it with your eye dropper tool. Step 2. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black and your background color to color #2. Choose your preset shapes tool, rectangle, retain shape unchecked, antialias checked, create as vector unchecked. Draw a shape approximately 220 x 214in the center of your paper (Watch the numbers in the lower left of your screen). (Note: The screenshot below is resized down - yours will be larger).
Step 3. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black. Choose your preset shapes tool, rectangle (retain style unchecked, create as vector unchecked, line width 1). Draw a small black rectangle (it's a window), approximately 40 x 52. Duplicate this layer 3 times and move into position, approximating mine. (Hint: If you need help lining them up, turn on your grid (go to view>grid), and then just use the lines as a guide).
 Step 4. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black and your background to color #2. Choose your preset shapes tool, and draw a rectangular shape approximately 40 x 6. Place it at the bottom of your window. Duplicate 3 times and place on the other windows.
Step 5. Add a new layer. You're going to draw some shutters for your windows. Using same color settings as last step, draw a rectangle approximately 20 x 54. Apply the blinds filter (go to effects>texture effects>blinds), and use the settings in the screenshot.
Duplicate this layer 7 times and place around your windows. Don't worry about getting it perfect, since you'll probably need to adjust it later. I've rotated some of mine a bit (I wanted them to be falling off the windwo). To do that, just use your deformation tool and turn the shutter until it's in a position you want.
Step 6. Add a new layer. Set your foreground and background colors to black. With your preset shapes tool, draw a rectangular shape for your door, approximately 30 x 85.
With your foreground color set to black and your background on color #2, draw a small rectangle at the bottom of the door (for your step).
Step 7. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black and your background to color #3. Draw a small rectangle approximately 10 x 45. Add a new layer. Change your background color to #2, and your shape to ellipse. Draw a small circle for the top of your pole. Add a new layer. Change your background color back to color #3, and your shape back to rectangle. Draw a small horizontal rectangle.
Hide all layers except these 3 you just drew. Merge visible layers. Turn your other layers back on. Duplicate this layer 3 times and place along the front of your house, roughly like mine (don't worry about the exactness, you'll adjust this later).
Step 8.Add a new layer. Load selection 1 from disk (go to selections>load from disk - then navigate to the location where you placed the selection files). Flood fill with black. Contract by 1 (go to selections>modify>contract). Flood fill with color #3. Apply the blinds filter, same settings as before. Move this layer into position on your house, similar to mine.
Add a new layer. Load selection 2. Flood fill with black. Contract by 1. Flood fill with color #2. Place this on top of your roof.
Step 9. Repeat step 8 for selections 3 and 4.
Step 10. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black and background to #2. Draw a rectangular shape at the front of your house, similar to mine. Duplicate it and place on the other side.
Step 11. Add a new layer. Foreground color black, background color #2, draw a rectangle on top of your roof.
Add a new layer and place it underneath the last layer. Set foreground to black, background to color #3. Choose your draw tool, single line, size 2 (antialias checked, create as vector unchecked, close path unchecked). Navigate to the "pracken_haunted" line you downloaded. Draw some lines on your house, similar to mine.
Add a new layer and place it on top of the last two layers you drew. Set foreground color to black, background to #1. Draw a small rectangular shape, for the chimney. Then set your background to black and draw a horizontal shape to go on top of your chimney.
Ok, your house is now complete. Realign and adjust things as you need to now. When you're satisfied with the house, hide your color chart and background layers. Then merge visible layers. Turn your house layer back on. You should now have 3 layers - a background, a color chart, and the house. Now you can decorate the house as you wish. If you want to do it like mine, just continue on with the tutorial. Step 12. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black, background to white. Choose your draw tool, freehand line, size 1-2. Draw a ghost - it doesn't have to be perfect! Then change your background color to black, choose your preset shapes tool, ellipse, and draw some eyes on your spook.
Duplicate this layer as many times as you want and arrange your ghosts where you want them. Step 13. Now to draw the tree. Add a new layer. Set foreground to black, background to #2. Choose your draw tool, freehand line, size about 30. Start at the bottom and draw upwards. As you move up the trunk, change the size of your draw tool, down in increments of about 5. By the time I reached the top of the tree, mine was at 5. Even out any jaggied bits.
Step 14. Add a new layer.Place it underneath your house layer but on top of yoru tree. Set your foreground and background colors to #4. Draw a rectangular shape at the bottom of your canvas . Then, with your paintbrush, size about 8, draw a bit of grass on the tree.
Step 15. Make your background layer active and flood fill it with color #5. Add a new layer. Place it underneath your house and tree layers. Set foreground color to black, and background to color #6. Choose your preset shapes tool and draw a moon.
Step 16. Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to black, and background color #7. Choose your preset shapes tool, and navigate to my "pracken_pumpkin" shape you downloaded. Draw a pumpkin. Duplicate it as many times as you want, and arrange.
Step 17. Add a new layer. Load selection 5. Flood fill with black. Set your foreground color to #8 and background to black. Draw some eyes for your cat.
Step 18. Add a new layer. Load selection 6. Flood fill with black. Use your paintbrush, size 1-2, color white, to paint in some eyes.
Step 19. Now to draw a spiderweb. Add a new layer and flood fill it with white (you're doing this so you can see what you're doing - when you're done drawing the web, you'll delete the white layer). Set your foreground color to black and your background to null. Choose your draw tool, freehand line, size 1 and draw a shape similar to this.
Change your draw tool to freehand line, and draw some connecting lines, similar to this.
Now delete the white layer you added. Position your web as you wish on your house. I also made a larger web for the top of mine - to do that, just duplicate your web and mirror it. Hide all your layers except the webs and merge visible. Then turn all the layers back on.
Step 20. Add a new layer. Load selection 7. Flood fill with black. Contract by 1. Flood fill with white. With your paintbrush (size 1-2), paint in some black centers. I added some glow to my eyes, but you don't have to do that. To add the glow, add a new layer and place it underneath the eyes. Open Eye Candy>gradient glow>settings - then navigate to the preset you downloaded (it's "pracken_haunted").
Hide all layers except the eyes and the glow. Then merge visible layers (if you haven't applied the glow, then you can skip this). Duplicate and arrange as you wish on your house. I've put them in the windows and the door (also, one in the tree).
Step 21. Add a new layer. Load selection 8. Flood fill with black. Contract by 1. Flood fill with color #3. Move the path to the front of your house door.
Step 22. Your house is basically done, and you could stop here if you wish; however, I added a few more finishing touches. If you want to do that, continue with this step. Add a new layer and place it on top of your grass layer. Choose your paintbrush, size about 3-4, and paint on some of color 4,up onto the house wall.
Make the grass layer active (the large green area you drew earlier, not the grass you just did). Add a new layer. Set your foreground color to #9 and your background to #3. Choose your airbrush with the settings in the screenshot, and spray some color on the grass.
Step 23. Add a new layer and place it on top of all of your layers. Choose your tube tool and navigate to the clouds preset (use default settings, i.e, scale 100, step 266). Draw some clouds over your graphic. Then lower the opacity of this layer down to about 20. When you're satisfied with your creation, save as a master psp file with all layers intact. That way you can go back and change things later if you wish. (I also save each of the individual items, e.g., the cat, bat, house, etc as psp files. Now delete your color chart and merge visible layers. Whew! All done. I do hope you've enjoyed making this Halloween scene, and as always, please let me know if you have any problems.
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