Some ideas for sprucing up text. Examples shamelessly drawn from FF fandom, though the styles are applicable anywhere.
1 The Box
Make a box with rounded corners around your text like in the following examples. As you can see the box is best accompanied by another box under the first one and a few pixels off in another color.
anniereckless2 Different color, same font
Remove all the spaces from your text and alternate colors for each word. This way the text is visually stimulating but people can still read it.
deria_himeA variation is changing the heavyness/size of the words.
mine
x_maps3 Shadow text
Copy the text layer and make the bottom layer a different color to make the text stand out. This solves the problem of a multi-colored background making text hard to read. Subtle and classy alternative to Drop Shadow.
mine4 Rotated rectangle
Create a background for the text in the form of a rectangle. You can use the polygonal lasso tool to make your own shape. This works well with rotated text.
fantasia0829
mine5 Centered text
Place text horizontally centered on your icon. This works well when there's an empty space in your icon for text, and also when your subject is centered too.
kikoshou
folkloric6 Double text
Copy the text layer, drop the opacity and move it away from the primary text. It almost achieves the effect of tiny text without resorting to tiny text.
whispyr
ryfeeOther Examples:
franchetteI love how complex this icon is, but the text is still so readable. The multiple versions of "the queen" support each other, so that even if one is not all readable, the others fill in.
aesriellaThe text is quiet and given a lot of space, which fits the mood of the image perfectly. It gives the icon an uncluttered feel and is simply beautiful.
so_vayneDespite how much text there is, the placement and color make it fit seamlessly into the image.
← Ctrl ← Alt
Ctrl → Alt →
← Ctrl ← Alt
Ctrl → Alt →