Creating Text Boxes

Hello and happy Thursday!  CTM Robin here bringing you a quick tutorial on making custom text boxes.  There have been some previous tutorials on the blog that are different from what I’m going to show you today.  For instance, THIS one shows how to use the pen tool in Photoshop while THIS one is for PSE users.  Today we will be using the shapes in your program to create text boxes.  Let me show you what I mean.

First, select the Custom Shape Tool in your toolbar.  It’s nestled in with Rectangle Tool, Ellipse Tool, Rounded Rectangle Tool, etc.  You may have to right-click on that tool button that to see the Custom Shape Tool.  Once you have that, go to the shapes at the top options toolbar and use the drop-down menu to select your shape.  Here you can see I did just this with the hexagon shape selected.

Next, while holding the SHIFT key to maintain proportions, draw the shape out and place it where you want it.  You can see my example below.

Now you simply select your text tool and move the cursor to the INSIDE of the shape you have drawn.  You should notice that the cursor changes to an “I” with a dotted circle around it.  Type away and notice that the text is constrained to the shape.

Don’t forget to delete or hide the shape after you are done! 

See how easy that is?

But what if you don’t have the shape that you need in your software?  That’s where the above-mentioned blog posts will help (the one for PS and PSE).  But you have another option too if you have Photoshop by using your Polygonal Lasso Tool too.  Let me show you how.  

Select your Polygonal Lasso Tool from the toolbar and use it to draw the shape you want (don’t forget the hint that pressing the SHIFT key while clicking the points keeps the line straight).   

Once you have your shape drawn, simply right click on your marching ants selection and select “Make Work Path”.  I usually use a tolerance of 1 or 2.  

Select “okay” and then just like we did above, select the type tool and click on the INSIDE of your outline. Voila!

Now I’ll be honest with you.  You could save yourself time and use a template.  Liz has her JournalWriting Shape Template:

And here’s a gorgeous layout made by Donna showing how to use it.

Don’t you love that half circle? I also like the Wavy Strips and Paths template set too:

Lor used it to create a fun layout about her beach day!

I love that these templates work in both PSE and PS without any problems.  They really help add oomph to the page.

Well, I hope you have learned something new today and had as much fun as I did.  Below is an example of how I used the default hexagon shape that I first taught you to create my layout using Liz’s Layer Starter Templates and StorytellerNovember 2018 by Just Jaimee.  This technique let me put my text exactly where I wanted it!

Stay safe and healthy and I'll see y'all again next month!