Xara X and background layering

[njcouple]

Hi everyone. I have looked at so many graphics pages and see now that they have 3 backgrounds. The 1st one then a border then a wide center. I know that this is done with html codes but am wondering if there is somehow I can accomplish this with Xara X?

I tried the Xara X help but it did not give information about putting backgrounds togeather like this.

Would anyone know?

Thank you very much [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[njcouple]

Hi everyone. I have looked at so many graphics pages and see now that they have 3 backgrounds. The 1st one then a border then a wide center. I know that this is done with html codes but am wondering if there is somehow I can accomplish this with Xara X?

I tried the Xara X help but it did not give information about putting backgrounds togeather like this.

Would anyone know?

Thank you very much [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[Egg Bramhill]

NJ
I can't quite understand what your trying to achieve. If you could give us a link to a page that's using the backgrounds your wanting, I'm sure someone here will help.
Egg

[njcouple]

Sure Egg. Sorry I did not know how to really describe it myself... Here is a graphics page that I love to visit...

http://mymouseworks.com/home.html

If you look on the furthest background she has mice then a plaid green border then in the center it is a light background with green stars. I know it is 3 seperate backgrounds and love the look.

I am wanting to incorporate this into my projects that when finished I frame and hang at my home.

Forgive me I am very new to all of these graphic things... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

Thanks...

[tikka]

Hi NJ,
She is using a background image for the body, then a centred table with a background image and cell padding then the table cells also have a background image specified.

Have a look at the source (use the appropriate menu command in your browser because she has 'disabled' right mouse clicking) and look for the filenames mw-bkg-?.gif.

Hope that helps,
Ric

[wfcentral]

I duplicated the effect you're looking for. You can go see an example and the HTML code at http://www.wfcentral.com/tables


Tables example

[Egg Bramhill]

now I know what your after. At the same time, if I understand you correctly you aren't interested in a web page but as an image ie (I am wanting to incorporate this into my projects that when finished I frame and hang at my home.) If this is correct your not wanting detailed HTML source code but wish to replicate the effect in a simple immage?
I will try and post a method of producing this shortly
Egg

[njcouple]

Thank you very much wfcentral but it was not html code I was looking for. I know that is how they do the background layered effect on the web but wanted to do something like this on Xara X to put togeather graphics that I find and make a nice layered look to frame my finished work with. You know how you can buy mats and put them in a picture frame and then a picture? With this layered look I am hoping to achieve that without buying mats... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] But you showed me now how to do this on the web with html for future use. Gosh I hate looking at all these nice things and not knowing how to do them..

Thank you Egg for taking the time out to try this. And you hit the nail on the head about wanting it for projects and not web pages. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[Ross Macintosh]

Nj - You can quite easily create matting effects in Xara X. For the example below I had an image with a background to which I overlayed the virtual mats and then the frame. Using this approach you don't think of the matting as the background as it appears and is overlayed. The mats themselved were simple to make. I drew a square shape and then subtracted a smaller shape out of it. To the resulting square with a square hole I applied a bevel - I used the bevel tool instead of an exacto knife [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]. To get the "cut" edge of the matting a different colour than the surface I just dragged the desired colours onto the beveled edge. Making the second layer of matting was simply making a clone of the first and then resizing it. I then dragged a colour onto it to change its surface colour. Because the bevel tool added bevels to both the "holes" and the outer edge I made a frame to cover over that outer bevel.

Making the frame was easy too. I drew a square and gave it no fill colour. I changed the line's width to something like 4pts. and then used Xara's new ability to convert lines to shapes. To that shape I applied a bevel creating the 3d frame effect.

All in all, it isn't difficult to make frame and matting effects like this. You should give it a try and have some fun!

Regards, Ross

<a href=http://www.designstop.com/>DesignStop.Com</a>

[Ross Macintosh]

Here's a xara file with the matting/frame if you want it...

Regards, Ross

PS - lately this forum has been adding "[1]" to the uploaded .xar files. Edit it out-a there and the file should open in xara.