I know this is probably a stupid question to ask, but how do I use the templates that are available for download from here for creating designs in Photoshop CS3 for my store items.

http://www.tutortanith.com/use_template.htm

Out of curiosity, once I've done the art and made sure that it fitted to the correct template size; say 3 inches by 3 inches at 200DPI and saved it as a PNG, I take it that's all I need to do before uploading it to my CafePress store...

There's nothing really to it.
Just draw your design in a large size, save as PNG for qualities sake, then upload.

You should probably make the images on a transparent background as well. Just a tip. They just look more professional that way.

There is nothing in particular to do after creating the image and saving as PNG other than upload. There are, however, a couple things to do before saving as PNG. Make sure your colors are printable. Most "web safe" colors are too bright for the ink used in printing. http://tutortanith.com/#imagecolor

Also save in the native mode, for Photoshop, save as PSD. That will preserve the layers, text etc in an editable form. It is good practice to drag the template layer into the trash at this point to ensure it does not show. Then, in Photoshop, you can manually merge layers and then save as PNG to create your file for upload. I prefer to use "Save for Web" to create my PNG file in Photoshop because (1) I don't accidentally save my merged file version and (2) it will automatically do the merging and change in image mode (from CMYK to RGB - see color discussion) thus saving a couple steps. I do get messages that the file is too large but it works well anyway.

Transparent backgrounds are great for apparel, and will give you the best flexibility in applying the image to various products. The bleed products, however, look much better with a colored, patterned or otherwise attractive background. Transparent background buttons, stickers, clocks, cards etc get you a white background. That can look just fine, but typically good can be made better with a well executed solid background.

http://tutortanith.com/designtips2.htm
http://tutortanith.com/designtips1.htm

Tanith, when I do a brand new design in Photoshop CS3 that involves text, I take it that I #should always do the background with full transparency?

The settings that I have when creating a new blank piece includes Color Mode and I was wondering if it was safe to set the color mode to 16 bit when using the RGB Color Mode or CMYK Color Mode.

Another question is: can I use the RGB Color #670804 for a design or is it restricted to the colors on the chart that's on your site?

When it comes to things like Drop Shadows and Bevels, would they come out exactly like the original design or would they look slightly different?

[Sorry about all the questions but I'm more used to designing website graphics than graphics for apparel and merchandise]

I always start with a transparent canvas for apparel. I always start with one of several standard sets of backgrounds for buttons, stickers, clocks, cards, posters etc. Those are my "templates" rather than the CP provided ones.

I think 16 bit is OK.

You can tell whether a color is in the CMYK when you look in the color pickers. If a little triangle shows up when you pick a particular color then it will color shift when printed. You can get to a printable color by just clicking the triangle but I like the results better if I just re-type the numbers that appear in the CMYK boxes. Based on experience I will usually NOT type them exactly the same way, although I did in the beginning. But now I know, for example, that yellows tend to come out greenish so I warm it by bumping the cyan down a notch and the magenta up a notch.

Becareful of bevels and drop shadows. Opaque to opaque drop shadows and bevels work fine on everything. On dark apparel, however, opaque to transparent bevels and drop shadows can have a white halo http://www.tutortanith.com/designtips2.htm

So if I was designing say, a design for a T-Shirt or Mug that was made up of text with the background being transparent, everything would be OK as long as the size was the right size for the design?

With dark apparel, it's just confusing when it comes to things like drop shadows and bevels...

Here's a example test piece for which I hope to do a final version for a few items:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albu...anJayce/a91fd7c9.jpg

Would this work with both dark apparel and items of various colors like T-Shirts and Tote Bags.

Looks good, but you would lose the drop shadow when printed on dark apparel. You know you can alter the design for black or dark apparel, upload the new design, and apply it to the dark products. Name your image yadayada_forDark.png

Test your design on a dark bgd, you can adjust the darkness of the bevels, delete the drop shadow.

Did I totally fail to explain things in the two links I offered? Did I screw up in explaining how to check your designs for whether they will work with dark? Honestly I'm feeling completely bummed that I wrote the explanations, provided the links, and somehow failed in providing the tools for you to assess your design for use on dark.

Tanith, there's no need to be sarcastic... I'm new to this sort of thing and when it comes to learning new stuff, it just takes a bit longer to learn than it would take other people.

Tanith, those were the best links and tutorials I've ever seen. So well explained.
I think our friend shadowind just didn't read all of the links, is all. It happens.