First collect all the pictures you would like to use in the making of the label.
Second you will need Paint.net.
Install and open the program you should see this:
Now you need to decide on the label size: Click File click on New and choose your size.
I will use in this instance 14 inches by 6 inches.
I know it is way too large for a standard beer bottle but it gives me a larger label to work with and I can reduce the finished product by half to fit on the bottle.
Here I have clicked the zoom out 1 time so the label can be seen without the History, Layer, and Tools boxes covering it.
Now I use explorer to point to the image I want. Right click the mouse and select copy.
Inside of Paint.net select Edit and paste.
Now we can see that my selected image is too big so I chose Keep canvas size.
The background is way larger than I want so I will use the small boxes around the pasted picture to resize the background image and place it into the correct position.
Giving me this:
Now I will repeat the process for the other side giving me this:
Depending on your background selections you might be able to skip this step.
I am a fan of gradient coloring so I will address that now. It will help even out the gears for adding text without making it to hard to read.
I like to do the gradient in 2 different directions so I will click on the Rectangle select in the tools menu and draw a rectangle around the left set of gears. You can see that this shows the selection with a blue tint.
In the tools menu is the gradient select just below the hand. Click this and then press F8 to bring up the colors menu.
If this is what you see pick more on the upper right hand side.
You will notice that along the bottom some of the colors appear to have small boxes inside of them. This is an indication that they are a transparent color. I chose red as my primary and the red transparency as my secondary.
The red was a little bright so I adjusted it by using the Red slider to darken it.
Once you have your colors chosen, you may place them on the background.
I achieved this by clicking and holding from the bottom and dragging the color to the top.
I repeat the process for the right side except I pull from the top to the bottom giving me this:
Now that my background is finished I will save it. I save so that I don't have to go through this process again and I will only have to change the center picture for a new beer label.
I'll add a new layer next. Back to explorer to select the next picture to use and paste into a new layer.
Resize and relocate as needed. Here is what I have:
Text is next: I rotate the image so the area I want to put text in is up. Under IMAGE ROTATE 90 degrees clockwise
On the tools menu is a "T" this is where you select the text tool.
You will now notice some new options appear in the upper left. This is how you will select which font and what size you like. Also justify left or right or centering of text is an option.
In the layers box click the box with the little green + sign to add a new layer.
Choose your font, size and color. and click in the label where you would like text to appear. It took 3 tries to figure the size I needed the arrow box that appears as you type will allow you to reposition your text.
Here is my finished left side:
Rotate the picture back to normal.I selected another pic to place in the label. Resized and placed in the correct location.
You will notice the white box, can't have that.
In the tools menu is what appears to be a magic wand just above the paint bucket, select this tool.
I used the wand to select the white and then I selected the eraser tool and erased the white.
Use the magic wand to click outside of the erased area and add a new layer for text.
Rinse and repeat, aka new layer, new text.
When Finished go to Image and resize to 7x3, save as JPG and flatten image under a different name so your background can be re-used in the future. For your next label open the background and use it to start putting in new text and a new main label picture.
So, why all the trouble to create layers? Lets say I look at my finished label and I have decided I don't like where I put the text est 2014. In a non layered label I will have to delete everything back to where I typed est 2014 and then I'll have to redo the entire label. Now with a layered label I can just find the layer (in the layers box) that contains the text and select to edit or delete as needed preserving all other work done on the label.
On a side note:
Laser printers colors don't run when wet and I use avery sticker paper and cut out the labels when printed.
Print three to a sheet in landscape mode when using this size label.
