Creating an Iced Cookie Text Effect in Corel Photo-Paint
-by David Mutch, August 2002.

Create a new image:
24-bit RGB, white background, 500x300 pixels, 300 dpi.

Create some thick cookie-coloured text:
Set the Paint colour to 100% Black, then select the text tool and change the Text Property Bar settings: Choose a thick, round, serif font such as Cooper Black, point size around 32 and create the word “Cookie”.

Centre the text to the image using Object > Arrange > Align and Distribute. (Fig 1).
 

Add a biscuit texture to the text:
With the text object selected,
use Effects > Texture > Stone (PP 9+).
Choose Concrete as the Style, and change
Roughness = 83, Detail = 75

For PP8, use Effects > Artistic > Canvas
Click the Reset button then load stuccoc.pxc, then change emboss=30.

Save these settings as a preset in this dialogue box: Click the “+” button beside the Styles drop down list, type ‘Cookie’ then press OK.

Press OK again to set the texture to the text object (Fig 2).
 

Cook the mix and make it rise:
Create a mask from the text object (Mask > Create from Object’s. CTRL+M, or icon), then invert the mask (Mask > Invert, CTRL+SHIFT+I, or icon).
Apply a Glass Effect (Effects > 3D Effects > Glass). Change the settings to:

Save the setting as a‘Cookie’ preset in the Glass dialogue by pressing the ‘+’ button beside the Style box as you did above. Press Ok to apply the Effect (Figs 3a and 3b).
 

Fig 3a.

Fig 3b.

Prepare for the icing:
Remove the Mask (Mask > Remove, CTRL+SHIFT+R, or

Create a new object:
( Object > Create > New Object, or on the Object Docker).

The new object will be placed above the existing text object.

Set the Paint colour to White
(left-click on the white colour swatch on the palette to change the paint colour).

Ice the Cookies:
Change the Zoom setting on the Toolbar to 200%. You may need to re-adjust the image window in the workspace. Make sure you can clearly see the first few letters of the text object.

Select the Paint Tool from the Brush Tools on the Toolbox (F5) and choose Quick Doodler from the Brush Type drop down list on the Paint Tool Property Bar. Change the Nib Size to about 9.

Paint white strokes on the top surface of the cookie text, leaving some of the cookie surface visible around the ‘icing’. Don’t worry about being too careful here - make it a bit messy - just like icing really is!. (Fig 4).

Paint white over all the characters until they are all 'iced’.

You may have to adjust the Nib Size for the thinner sections.

TIP: Using a pressure sensitive pen in a situation like this can be most helpful. (Fig 5)

Tip: Another way to 'ice the cookie' is to create a mask from the Cookie text, reduce the mask by several pixels and then Fill it with white ;-)
 

Fig 4.

Fig 5.

Gloss up the icing:
With the painted ‘icing’ object still selected, create a mask from the object (CTRL+M) and then invert the mask (CTRL+SHIFT+I).

Reapply the Glass Effect using the saved Cookie preset. If you like, you can reduce the Opacity to around 30 and increase the brightness to 90 to give the icing a brighter look but the preset cookie values work just fine. (Fig 6)
 

Add some ‘sprinkles’:
The icing object should still be selected.
First, remove the mask (CTRL+SHIFT+R).
Add some Noise (Effects > Noise > Add Noise), using the settings:
Noise Type = Spike
Level = 90
Density = 90
Color Mode = Random
Click OK

(PP8 users select Color Noise here)

(Fig 7)
 

Add a drop shadow to the cookie:
Select the Cookie object (I prefer to do this using the Object Docker its always better), the select the Drop Shadow Tool and drag a nice drop shadow below the shape. (Fig 8, below)

That’s it!.