Make a simple wooden texture in The Gimp

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\wood4.JPG$

Learn how to make a quick and simple wooden texture in The Gimp

Step 1: Ready the canvas!

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one.bmp$

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one_2.bmp$

Open up The Gimp and create a new project (File -> new...).

Set up your canvas by selecting the height and width. I chose 300x300 because it has alot of space to work with and its a square so it'll be easier to tile.

Then select the fill bucket tool and choose a shade of brown for the base.

Then, fill the 300x300 canvas with the brown color using the fill bucket.

Step 2: Make some noise!

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one_2.JPG$

Ad some noise to the image to give it a grainy look. ( Filters -> Noise -> scatter HSV...)

Then, mess with the settings to get a nice bummpy(-ish) look.

Soon after you need to create some motion blur to give it that nice wood grain look. ( Filters -> Motion blur...)

Step 3: Look sharp!

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one_2.JPG$

Make this a tilable image by selecting Filters -> map -> make seamless..., isn't that nifty?

The seamless function blurs some areas of the texture so you'll need to sharpen the image. ( Filters -> Enhance -> Sharpen...)

Step 4: Make it bumpy

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one_2.JPG$

Next, you need to duplicate the layer, desaturate the duplicate, and use it as a bump map to the color version. This step descrbes these actions and how to do them, advaced users can do this quickly and skip to step 5. But for all you novices, listen up!

Duplicate the layer: Layer -> Duplicate layer.

Desaturate the duplicate: Layer -> Colors -> Desaturate

Bump map: First, select the original layer. Dialogs -> layers, click on the colored layer. Then, use the desaturated layer as a bump map Filters -> map -> bump map...

Now, all you need to do is delete the desaturated layer. Using the layer dialog select the B&W layer and delet it by pressing the trash can button.

Step 5: Stain the wood

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\step one_2.JPG$

$C:\Documents and Settings\HP_Administrator\Desktop\wood4.JPG$

If you are not quite satasfied with this texture's color, for example if it is to bright, I have a nice way to stain it and make it a little darker.. its funny how this works in real life and on the computer.

First, select the paint brush and a black color.

Set the mode of the brush to 'overlay' and paint where you want to stain the wood texture.

Wala! You have a beautiful seamles wood texture!

ginger20037 says: Jul 23, 2011. 8:56 PM

I love Gimp and this is an awesome instructable, but what do you save the image as in order for it to work as a gimp texture?

ginger20037 in reply to ginger20037Jul 23, 2011. 9:49 PM

Pattern I mean, man, I always get that mixed up when it comes to gimp xD

YellowZealot says: Sep 3, 2009. 2:01 PM

This is what I wound up with, a good instructable though

psalm1914 says: May 30, 2008. 2:18 PM

Very nice. I did this wood effect by repeating the whole bump map thing with a second "spread" noise with motion blur. It made for a nice rough texture, just what I was looking for. Thank you for teaching me how to use the bump map feature!

Folin1 says: Feb 9, 2008. 4:54 PM

Nice, Instructable it's easy to remember too. I did this one with one layer and Iwarp.

berky93 says: Jan 28, 2008. 10:03 PM

yay! I love gimp I'm always using it but I suck at it! but thanks to you Ive learned about so many more features! thank you

tomfoolery (author) in reply to berky93Feb 3, 2008. 2:51 AM

I'm glad I could help. I haven't been on in a long while but I'm thinking of making more tutorials for The Gimp, and YouTube tutorials for other programs. Is there anything you would like to learn about 2d or 3d design and/or animation that I could start on? I have been meaning to take on a new project.