Halloween Cosplay - Aja Tarron

Hi,

Unfortunately, I've not had much time to do any painting, but I did get a chance to be a little creative recently testing out this year's Halloween costume.

I've decided to go as Aja Tarron (in her human form disguise) from the animated series 3Below.

Watching the show was fun and I really liked her outfit so I decided to go for a little cosplay after coming across a similar plaid shirt-dress at a store. I've also wanted a pair of red Converse high tops for a while, so I finally bought those.

I already had a white wig, so I styled and trimmed it to try and match match her bun up-do.

I decided not to get blue contact lenses because I wasn't sure they'd arrive in time and I was worried about them irritating my eyes, so I just made my eyes blue in Photoshop. I also gave the eyes a little (+35%) enlargement in Photoshop, and made some softening adjustments to my facial features to to match the character more.

I wasn't sure how to tackle making my eyebrows white and tried to achieve the effect with foundation and concealer, but that didn't make them light enough. I'll have to watch some tutorials and try something new next time. Though, I do personally prefer for the eyebrows to be a little darker than the hair.

Till next time Internet, and hope you have a lively Halloween!

I Once Was An Adventurer Like You - A Reference Collecting Photoshoot

Hello friends,

No super notable updates here at the moment, just working on various things.

One of my slowly blossoming personal projects is an art series inspired by the tales from The Silmarillion. So, last weekend, since the weather was beautiful and all my costuming sourcing had come together fairly successfully - a photo-shoot was organized. The idea was to help build a collection of images which would be used for references in illustrations and also to have a lot of fun, particularly since it was the Halloween weekend.

Because I always had a fondness for Tolkien's work, for fantasy adventures, and an unfulfilled quota of dressing up in costumes this was one of the best Sundays ever.

Here are the some of my favourite shots from that day:

It's a long journey ahead.

Caterpillar friend!

 

I admit, I wish I could dress up in this sort of fashion and walk around in the woods every weekend. It has definitely awakened my whimsical side which wants to go bargain hunting to collect more fantasy outfits and have more photo-shoots. So, keep an eye out, there will be more photo quests!

-Location: Colony Farm Regional Park, British Columbia, Canada.
-Photo: Seth Rutledge
-Styling, make-up, and editing: yours truly
-Wig: 'Lani' style wig in 'white' by Mythril Wigs

-The green cloak, sword, and burgundy tunic top were from Value Village and the pants, belt and boots were pieces I already owned.
-The brooch was a vintage sterling silver celtic brooch I was lucky to find on Etsy from the JewelleryDetective shop.
-The necklace was one which was acquired many years ago while vacationing.


Wishing everyone a great November!

Pattern Pastimes Part II

Hello there and happy autumn equinox!

Alrighty! So amidst working on projects I can't show just yet, I've started a new mini series of patterned images.

They've become my turn to work when I'm falling short on optimal creative brainpower but still have enough energy and will to create something fun and finished.

I started with this umbrella and a desire to make a simple and seasonal design.

(Colour motif variations)

Naturally, a pattern also had to be made :)

Then, one night a pumpkin appeared.

(Again, exploring different colour approaches)

A pumpkin patch!

And then, I thought it might be a cute idea to come up with three of such stylized, patterned images per season (autumn, winter, spring, summer) and maybe make a mini calendar or postcard set or something at the end. So, that's what I'll be doing. Yay! Another excuse to add even more patterns into my work and life! =)

Here's the latest, Halloween inspired image:

These are all vector illustrations drawn mostly with the pen, line segment, and shape tools.

(Subtle variation)

(More subtle variations of ears, line weight and nose size with an inverted colour scheme)

And another simple, half-drop repeat pattern!

Oh, and for fun - above is what my patterned images look like when I'm working on them in Adobe Illustrator. I like to use lots of colours so that I can see well if lines are overlapping where they shouldn't be. Psychedelic! =)

Be well and till net time!

All images are ©Mariya Olshevska and may not be used or re-purposed without the artist's consent.