Yeah, so you're a pretty nifty architect, and can make some really good looking structures, but what about the paint job? Sure, there are countless wall colors out there, and HomeCrafter isn't that hard to use if you want to make a new one, but sometimes you can't find quite what you really want, or just wish what you found had different trim. So I've put together a little something to help with that:

The Universal Wall Template (Photoshop .PSD). This .PSD contains all the Maxis moldings (Crown and Kick), Chair Rails, Beadboards, and Wainscotings seen on all the various textures, each neatly labeled and seperated into their own layers. It also includes the "missing" Dark Wood Beadboard (for those who really like beadboarding). It also contains two extra layers, one for the actual paint and other for wall textures (if you like faux finishes).

I have found this to be of incredible help in designing new wall coverings, as it keeps the consistancy of trim sizing throughout the whole house, and can be used to very quickly create a great deal of varity.

Obviously, it does take some understanding of how to use Photoshop and Layers, but it's really not that difficult, and I'm always glad to answer questions.

By default, the only active layer is the Wall Surface/Texture layer. This allows you to quickly lay out any colors or textures and then select a trim (or mix and match trims) to finalize your project quickly.

Pax,
Indigo

PS: Moderators - If this isn't the best place for this, feel free to move it, but do let me know so I can update my bookmarks ~I

I keep thinking that I should try my hand at making walls. Maybe this will provide the easy starting point I need. Thanks.

It will be a great help to make walls,
Blue, do you know the "wood workshop" and the "genetica texture viewer" at http://www.spiralgraphics.biz/ , they are nice and easy to use programs to make homecrafter stuff.

Edit : I add that they are free programs

Very, very cool! That must have taken you a lot of work. Thanks, IndigoRage!

I did want to point out one thing regarding it... We do have a way to apply crown and kick moldings via meshes, so that if you want, say, a certain wall done as basic wallpaper, then with a crown molding, then with a kick molding, then with both and a chair rail, then with kick molding and chair rail but no crown molding....... you can do that without having different wall textures for all of them: just a recolour of the mesh in the railing/molding texture you want, and -one- wall: http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=181834

Of course, there isn't anything there for beadboard and wainscoting but I thought I'd point it out... These are certainly still very useful, and in fact would probably be excellent for recolouring that mesh to make our existing wall textures that much more versatile.

Patul - I cannot tell you how much I LOVE Wood Workshop and Genetica. I wish I could shout from the rooftops how useful they are in making sim textures - you get perfect seamless textures and wood patterns that don't look like a photo, but a sim texture, with very little fiddling and no tears. Thanks for providing the link - I would recommend those programs to everyone who wants nice textures that look appropriate for sims.

Wow cool...
I kinda think this dl and the thread can be useful to both Numenor & Marylou's
Kickmouldings & Crowns (linked already in the previous post.)
and
to custom HCP Maxis-like products. Maybe, this thread can belong to the following forum... lol, just a suggestion only...
Recolouring and Cloning Templates
http://www.modthesims2.com/forumdisplay.php?f=337

Hmm.. Genetica and Wood Workshop do look pretty cool - never heard of either of them before, though it's not all that hard to use Photoshop to make seamless textures. Just a bit of fiddling with the clone brush and the offset filter ;-)
And Genetica isn't free, it's shareware, but it does have a downloadable demo.
I generally tend to work mostly from scanned textures and then edit them into something more environmentally friendly.

Looking at the Crown and Kickmolding meshes it seems to me this might make object placement a bit tricky from time to time, not to mention the added "expense" of additional meshes in-game, and the extra time involved in placing them makes me wonder how effective they are. They do certainly look good though, and I know the quality of Numenor's work =)

As for the time involved here - not quite as long as you might think... most of the time was spent scrolling through HomeCrafter making sure to have collected all the various trim pieces, and of course, creating and matching the Dark Beadboard.

Pax,
Indigo

A very creative, unique and fantastic idea! You have made an easy task ever so simple! Well done!

you are great!thank you so much!