#naoki shing

"I'll be down in a minute!"

Naoki in some different looks; showgirl costumes, loungewear, lingerie... Less clean designs than my usual, but I dig it. I wanted to go for a watercolor meets "paper doll" vibe. Yep.

Hi-res versions (including a bare booty!) under the cut:

All I really want is moonlight, and you right beside me~

Still doing 1920′s themed pie eye/rubber hose limbed art as cool downs.

'"You're snoring, Qian"

LOOK AT THIS-- I’m really proud of this one, lol.

It’s technically supposed to be part of a series of images, but I’m trying to actually post as I go, as opposed to hoarding my stuff like some ill-advised perfection awaiting dragon prepping for a grand reveal. I’m learning that finishing things, even Imperfectly(TM) is Good and better than not finishing at all, lol.

I hardly do backgrounds/so many figures, so this was a fun turn at making a “crowded” looking breakroom scene. You can peep my behind the scenes/process shots >> here << ♡

I feel like I accidentally chronicled this process a little closer than usual, so here’s some bts tidbits! {Mirrored on my Behance page}

^ A verrrrry early screenshot, featuring not only the first draft of Naoki, but the initial sketches and my frustrated "her arm is too long" directional arrows.

In fact, here’s the full original sketch:

(Which is why I think I have y’all who commission me A Little Concerned when I hit you with the “loose sketches” to figure things out, hahaha.)

^ Then came me yellingly trying to figure out just how Naoki (and Keo’s hand) should be posed. Leaning, like in the original sketch?? Nah. Leaning, turning the couch into some kind of, chaise type thing? Nooo. (Continue this for a whole drawing session, until I realized “sitting looks cute and natural”.)

^ The second-to-last draft; I really liked how everything looked, but I wanted to add lighting, as well as more "messiness" and more figures (like in the original pencil/paper sketch) to make it look busy. After all, it's a dance hall break room for not only a band, but dozens of dancers. Definitely needed more activity!

So natch I sat the picture down and let it simmer for months 😂 (Eventually I finished it though! You can see it posted >>here<< )

A few choice props//figures-- some of which are a little obscured in the completed shot, so they’re getting a chance to shine here, lol.

Things that are directly interacted with by the main figures are outlined

Things meant to blend into the background/setting are left lineless

(The feathered boas are the exception to the first rule; they’re left lineless to give them a “weightless” vibe.)

That particular mint/lavender color sample via:

http://maithatee.blogspot.com

kinda defunct; I found it on pinterest, but that’s the source source, lol

Keo, Haruna, and Naoki Close Ups!

💕 Result of my longtime favorite cooldown activity: creating extremely specific playlists + album art for my orig. characters~

A throwback "break off your engagement" kinda mix ft. Andra Day, Lianna Gutz, Koop, Niia, Anjulie, Renee Olestead, and Aaradhna

Where’s that one storytelling post that’s like “Yeah, that relationship is all magnetism and burns with the passion of one thousand suns, but are they even friends?” The second pic is semi-inspired by that.

Self indulgent shippery, ahoy! So the top pic has been sitting in my creative cloud storage for like...three valentine’s days. And that’s just as the digital file. It’s existed as a sketch for like, eons, probably. 

I was never going to revisit it in full (because sometimes a gal learns better Adobe Illustrator techniques and begins using layers logically to the point where working on anything older than a year feels like punishment--) but I did whip up a follow up shot. For “can’t avoid jokes/general antics” characterization accuracy.