There are several ways to do it. The simplest is to select your sign, create a new blank layer with selection active, Edit<Stroke. Putting the stoke on a separate layer, allows you to easily adjust or remove the stroked outline if you change your mind.
Terri
To add to Terri’s post…
When you click on Stroke, there will be three options; centered, outside or inside (meaning in relation to the marching ants selection box). A selection must be in effect before using the Stroke command. You would need to choose Inside if you want all of the border to show. Enlarging your canvas would allow you to use Centered or Outside. The width of the border is determined by the value for pixels you choose, the color will be whichever color is showing as the foreground in the two swatch color boxes at the bottom of the Tool Box.
knew there would be would way, thank god. that is a lot faster then making those recantgular box. for ever edge. also is there a way to make the border have rounded edges?
Sparkss,
Choose the rounded rectangular tool, third tool down on the left column. If it is not showing, click the tiny arrow on the Custom Shape Tool and choose rounded rectangle. At the top, adjust the radius to desired rounding of rectangle. Just drag out the desired size or set an exact size. Put this on a new blank layer. You really only want the outline, so control/click that layer in Palette to get the selection line around the edge. Create another blank layer and do the Stroke thing.
edit—
sorry, forth tool in the column
Sparkss,
If you are going to paste this somewhere you might want to make sure the little bits in the corners are transparent so the image doesn’t appear to be a rectangle, which it is. All images are rectangles, can’t get away from it, but you can make portions transparent and then save in a format which respects transparency, like .psd or .gif (jpg does not). Or you can make the bits in the corners the same color as the page you are going to paste it on so they won’t show.
So , how wo uld i do it with out making the cornes the same color as the page that im giong to show
Create a selection, the marching ants, which includes the border and everything inside, then Invert the selection and press the Delete key on the keyboard. You must save in an appropriate format (Save As and choose from the drop down format options). Remember, only people who have Photoshop (for the most part) can open .psd format, the other possibilities for format are more universal, but not jpg.
Sparkss,
You said you were wanting a simple, "no fuss" border. The simplest you can get is using the Stroke procedure, which I outlined.
The border you have a link to is a bit more complicated. Actually the border isn’t complicated, but what I think you are seeing as the border requires a bit more studying and practice with the program.
o, well could i ask you how i would do that so i could learn?
That image’s border looks to be a drawing, itself, with some effects applied…
You could try drawing the shap of border you want, in the color you want, and then practice applying Bevels, Shadows, Glows, etc. to see how each looks individually, and in combination.
Or it could be a border by subtraction. Fill canvas with color. Make selections, delete them, then apply a style to what is left.
Terri
Edit: Start with a transparent document otherwise the deleted areas will fill with your background color.
