Micro buttons are a popular addition to many websites nowadays, and are very
useful for sprucing up search engines, navigation systems, etc. Thankfully for
us, they are also simplicity itself to create, and can be easily customized to
individual requirements. Here's how you make your own:
Step 1: Create a new document around 200px by
200px in size with a white background. Create a new transparent layer on top
and make it active. Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool and use it to
make a rectangle 60px wide and 11px tall. Select Edit > Fill from the
menu and fill it with a nice light grey - I used #F2F2F2.
Step 2: Choose Layer > Layer Style > Drop
Shadow from the menu and enter in the settings on the left. Don't
press OK until the end of step 5.
NB. All settings
that are not shown should be left at their defaults - I just cropped them
out to save space.
Step 3: Go to the Inner Shadow subsection
and enter these settings. Seems easy? I told you they were
simplicity itself to create!
Step 4: Progress onto the Bevel And Emboss
subsection and duplicate these settings - you'll notice that your button now
looks almost complete in the background. Only one final step to go...
Step 5: Go to the often-neglected Stroke
subsection and enter in the settings on the left. The fill colour is
best left at a dark grey because black is far too strong. I chose
#616161. Now press OK and look at the neat little button you
have made!
Step 6: Default windows fonts often have problems
with writing this small, so download a pixel font from one of the internet's
many font websites and enter some text onto your buttons. Deleting the edge
pixels from your buttons can give them a rounded appearance, or you can go
that bit further and create little jigsaw pieces. Just experiment and
have fun! :)
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