Here's a tutorial for this weave effect. I adapted a ps tut for it and the link to the original is in the pdf.

EDIT: Uploaded a more detailed description about the shadow layers. Hope that helps.

Thanks EK22, I've tried to translate your steps as a new G'MIC filter : viewtopic.php?f=28&t=6217&start=0

Very cool EK. Got it bookmarked ready to try.

Without detracting your work in this tut, there is another way would be to do something like this with this Gimp filter:

Ha that's interesting, we can see like fibers in it. Very nice idea, I'll try to put this effect on the plug-in too.

EK, or anyone.
I am stuck at the very beginning. I am starting out with a picture of Nicole Kidman with a background, (not transparent) The size of the pic is 768x768. I went to Image > configure > grid. I don't know what numbers I should put in for the size of my pic.

Molly - I've download the tutorial but not read through it yet but have you gone to view and made sure "Show Grid" is ticked.

As your image is 768 * 768 then you could use the values 16,32,64.

Where do I put those 3 numbers. All I see is height and width

Change the value of 50 in both the height and width to the value you would like if you use any of the values 16, 32 or 64 then your grid will be square but just different sizes.

The intersections are the squares where the stripes overlap. If your selection tool is still set to add to current selection, it should allow you to select all those squares. One at a time. And at the end of this step you should have an army of selected intersection squares.

As far as the size goes, I'm not pro at math. I lucked out and the size there just happens to match. Basically you want to fit enough 3 grid wide grid stripes for each weave strip. That allows for the strip and the little hole. You can have as many of them as thick or thin as you like. It's just prettier if the sides are even and all edges are covered by a strip.

The red squares are where you should select. I might need to rewrite that tut to reflect this. Sorry guys, it made perfect sense in my head. I'm not good with the outside world lol.

Thanks EK. I thought I tried that but I will take another go at it.

Yeah, this step annoyed me too, because I'm not a big fan of selecting a million and a half squares one at a time. The PS tutorial referred to some fancy way of using their layer masks to come up with this same selection that I could not reproduce. So I had to simplify the step. Sorry again. I'll add an addendum to the tutorial to this effect.

I did the next step by de-selecting every other square and now it is saved for tomorrow. I need a break from it. Anyway, it is my book reading time.

I've updated the tutorial to be a little more clear (hopefully) about the step molly had trouble with. The revised version is uploaded. Hope it helps.

Hi jamac4k,
Today I installed the gimp 2.8, but this plugin is not in my GMIC - artistic - Wave

Try here Akros...http://registry.gimp.org/taxonomy/term/224

EK, I can't get this next step, just spent two hrs trying to figure it out. I guess I need more screen shots of the layers.

We should now have 2 layers with squares that are offset from one another, and our horizontal and
vertical stripes layers, as well as a background.
This next part might be a little tricky to explain.
First we turn off the top square layer. Alpha to selection on the second squares layer. Add a new
transparent layer and fill selection with black.
Now alpha to select the horizontal stripes layer and then go back to the new black squares layer we just
made.
Now we gaussian blur by about 50.