How to use GIMP to recolor clothing/armor?

[JustWrong2]

I'm looking to use GIMP to add some extra colors on top of clothing from a clothing mod that I just downloaded and added to my game but I have no idea how to do so. Basically two questions:

 

1. I have GIMP and my clothing mod (added to game via a mod manager). Do I need anything else?

 

2. How do I put the clothing into GIMP? I'm trying to find them in files using GIMP but I can't find them.

 

I only found this guide below on how to recolor and how to save the recolored cloth but it doesn't tell me how to put the clothing into GIMP.

 

https://wiki.nexusmods.com/index.php/Recolouring_an_armour#:~:text=Select%20the%20area%20you%20want,you%20prefer%20and%20click%20OK.

 

Thanks in advance!

[RitualBlack]

If the mod you have downloaded contains lose files you can simply load the .DDS file (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DirectDraw_Surface) into GIMP, it would appear that the 3rd party extension is now integrated out of the box as well. If the mod is a .bsa you would just have to unpack the texture files before modifying them.

[byowag]

I've done this quite a bit with gimp. However, gimp doesn't really like .dds files much. The workaround I've used is to open up the .dds texture file with paint and export the .dds as a .png or .jgp to a seperate folder. I then work on the .jpg or .png in gimp. For recolor I most often add another solid color layer and use grain merge or HSL color options for that layer. Then simply tinker around with filling the color layer with whatever color you choose until you get the results you're looking for. Depending on your level of experience with gimp, you'll find it opens up all kinds of possibilities if you start adding new layers to play around with different textures or filtering with sharpening, etc. The possibilities are pretty much limitless.

 

After that, save the .png or .jpg, open up the .dds in paint and import the new layer over the original. Flatten the image, save it, and then redeploy with vortex to get the file updated.

 

Hope this helps.