How to Add textures and polish

Frame photo

Open Mextures, then tap Camera or Library to take or choose your photo. Tap “Use” and then use the controls to crop and zoom into the portion of the image you wish to use. Tap “Crop” or “Uncropped” to select it.

Pick a texture

A list of categories – each containing multiple textures – will be shown. Tap one and the first texture will be applied as a layer. Tap other textures to preview them, or tap the ^ button to try another category.

Fine-tune effect

Move the opacity slider on the right of the image up to strengthen the effect, or down to lessen it. Tap the button in the bottom left-hand corner of the image to rotate the texture layer by 90 degrees at a time.

Blending mode

Tap the interlocking circles button on the left to change how the texture is blended into the image. Tiny thumbnail previews give you an idea of what each effect does, but again tap to preview. Tap the check mark to apply.

Add more textures

Tap + to add another texture on its own layer. Use the Manage Layers button (the square icon second from left) to view and switch between layers, plus rearrange (tap and drag), hide (tap the eye), or delete (tap the X) layers.

Make adjustments

You can add extra polish using a series of adjustments. These affect the whole image, not just a single layer. There are filmic effects, plus a series of sliders to tweak color, lighting, and other aspects of the image.

Export or save

When you’re finished, tap the Share button in the top right corner to save the image to your library, share it via the Share extensions menu, or save the current selection of textures and polishes as a formula.

Apply formulas

The quickest way to add striking effects to your photos is to leverage the hard work of others through formulas. Tap the beaker icon or return to the main Mextures-select screen and select “Formulas.”

Tweak formula

Once you’ve selected a formula you like the look of, tap the check to accept it. You can now fine-tune each of the formula’s layers as well as adjust applied polish settings to customize the formula to suit your photo.