How to make a desktop background for XP

How to make a desktop background for XP

by Stacy Carlson
Published on 01-15-2009 12:02 PM 0 Comments
Written by Kathryn Estry

These instructions are written for PSE and Windows XP, but they might work with other programs and operating systems as well.

If you love looking at your LOs as I do, I make many of them into desktop backgrounds as well as regular square LOs. Here's one I made tonight:

I flatten the LO and open a new file sized 16in wide and 12in high. (This size works for me as I have a standard screen. You may need to play with the size or just use a ruler and measure your screen first.) I fill this new file with a coordinating paper, usually a fairly even background, either light or dark but with very little pattern. You can either enlarge the paper or make 2 layers of the paper and slide one over. You don't want a seam to show though, so make it toward the right if you line your icons up on the left of your screen. Then use the healing brush to blend the seam if necessary. Avoid this step by just using one layer of the paper and stretching it - just don't stretch it out of proportion if there's a pattern in the paper as there is in this sample.

Layer your LO right on top. I put mine on the right because my icons are on the left. I also raise it a little above center so that it will appear centered above the start bar. I like to add a small bevel and maybe a shadow to the finished LO.

Flatten this and save it as a jpg in a folder called Desktop Backgrounds. Then you can easily change them out whenever you like. Just right click on your screen, choose Properties/Desktop/Browse - find your file and double click on it. Give it a few seconds to load, and then it should show in the window. The position is stretched. Press apply and enjoy your LO whenever you turn on your computer. Put lots of LOs in the folder like this, and you can change them out whenever you want.
This article was originally published in blog: How to make a desktop background for XP started by Stacy Carlson