How to Make Swiss Dots in PSP

Swiss dots can make a simple, appealing background for a photo.

Creating a Swiss Dots pattern in Corel PaintShop Pro can be done quickly and automatically using the Pattern Effect to fill in the precise rows of tiny dots. The process of creating a Swiss Dot background requires you to first create a background layer and add the color to appear behind the dots, and then add another layer for the dots to appear in. Then the first dot can be added manually with the Ellipse Tool, and manipulated and duplicated with the Pattern Effect settings to create the intricate Swiss Dots pattern.

Instructions

1. Open the PaintShop Pro program.

2. Click "File" in the program menu at the top of the window, and select "New" from the drop-down menu. Use the provided text fields to set your preferred document size. Set the "PPI" field to 200 and click "Open."

3. Click on the "Flood Fill Tool" in the left toolbar to select it. Use the color spectrum in the "Materials" toolbar on the right to set it to the background color of the Swiss Dots pattern. Click anywhere in the document you have opened to flood it with this color.

4. Click "Layer" in the program menu and select "New Vector Layer" from the drop-down menu. Type in "Dots" in the "Layer" text field and click ok.

5. Select the "Ellipse" tool in the left toolbar. Use the color spectrum in the "Materials" toolbar to set the dots' color.

6. Click anywhere in the document to create a dot.

7. Click on "Objects" in the program menu. Mouse over "Align" in the drop-down menu, and select the "Center in Canvas" option.

8. Mouse over the "Dots" vector layer in the layers toolbar and right-click on it. Select the "Convert to Raster Layer" from the drop-down menu.

9. Click "Effects" in the program menu. In the drop-down menu, mouse over "Reflection Effects" and select "Pattern" from the pop-out options. Wait for the "Pattern Settings" window to pop up.

10. Set the "Horizontal Offset" field to "0."
    Set the "Vertical Offset" field to "0."
    Set the "Rotation Angle" field to "90."
    Set the "Scale Factor" field to "-100."
    Set the "Number of Columns" field to "3."
    Set the "Number of Rows" field to "3."
    Set the "Horizontal Shift" field to "0."
    Set the "Vertical Shift" field to "0."

11. Click "OK" to create the Swiss Dots pattern.

References

• Corel: PaintShop Pro X4 Ultimate
• DigitalScrapbookPlace.com: Easy Swiss Dot Background Paper in PSP