#Design tips

[redtailarts101]

Design tip: adding "imperfections" to your character designs helps differentiate and diversify them, and makes each individual design more interesting. Add acne. Blemishes. Moles. Freckles. Keratosis pilaris. Vitiligo. Eczema. Other skin conditions. Give them an overbite or crooked nose. Your designs will be more unique this way and they'll be visually interesting even without having to clutter other parts of the design.

"but I don't know how to do any of that" okay look up tutorials or just go in blind and try! You're allowed to do it "bad" and then get better with time.

[decorsociety]

The Timeless Palette of Art Nouveau 🎨

Hey there! We are Decor Society and we're passionate about bringing historical design to modern spaces, and we're kicking things off with Art Nouveau colors. Beyond those flowing, nature-inspired lines we all recognize, there's this gorgeous color world that defined the movement from 1890-1910.

Look at these incredible earthy tones, those muted greens, warm terracottas, and soft blues that somehow feel both vintage and completely fresh today (It is personally one of the favorite style at our office). The artists who pioneered this style (think Mucha and his posters!) pulled these colors straight from the natural world (autumn leaves, forest moss, and twilight skies.) 🌿

I've been playing with these color combinations in my own space lately, and they're surprisingly versatile (even for a beginner like me in the art nouveau space)! They bring in warmth without being overwhelming so they are perfect if you're going for something sophisticated but still livable (and it is good because you also won't get bored of it). 🏡

Want to experiment with these palettes yourself? We've got a design game in closed beta right now where you can actually play with historical color schemes like this one. Come join our Facebook community ✨ if you want to get in on the beta and connect with other design-obsessed folks like us!

[shikariiin]

Hello! I adore your art, and I was wondering if I could ask you a question:

How do you come up with your designs? They are so pretty, especially Eddie and James ♡♡

I'm asking this because I'm having trouble creating designs for both Gordon and James for my AU, Hope.

Thank you for seeing this, I wish you a splendid day/night! :3

Why hello!!!

Oh gee I would ramble alot in this

Before I make a design, I like to list things that I like about them, their hcs, their ethnicity, and their primary colors

For example, Edward's primary color is blue, but he as a character is a kind and soft soul, in my hc his patience thins faster in adults, so a combination of white and red is a great indicator of this, The red being on his Tie and hair tie so it doesn't overpower the other colors.

My James is the one that's a little complicated, mainly because he's more based on his ethnicity, but him being a vainy, self-centered and show-offy means he likes to stand out, he likes being in the center of attention, so gold is the next best option, but for my James because he have aspects of him that is more cozy (he likes cooking, making clothes and learning languages), earthy Brown is used to support the bright red, that also helps with tuning down his personality a bit.

And next, are Shapes!

Again, their personality plays a big part, in Designing it's a factor that you would want to show your character's personality through their design, The three pillars of Round, Square, and Triangle Aspects plays a huge role.

If you see here, My Edward has a more fluffy, friendly look to it, with a hint of an old soul, and a fire that had died out, his design is rounded.

The same with my James, he has more edge, a sharper touch than Edward!

Appearance is also important, wether you go hand to hand by giving them buffers like a literal anthropomorphic trains, mecha, or more human etc, appearance is an indicator.

You might make them all have the same uniforms because they're a worker, but giving (for example) Gordon square glasses, then combining it with his basely square body type, can indicate he's a strict person, so on.

My James has alot in his design

Golden details in his clothing, Brown as a secondary color, darker red on his coat so that it doesn't clash with the main red in his outer, earrings and lip piercing indicating he loves accessories to support/show off his appearance, the moles I give him for that beauty marks, the Batik on his coat to represent his proudness of his home country, the coat that he make himself, he wears make up to touch up his appearance.

Alot can go on in a design, Mine is not God-Tier level designing, and I'm not an extremely experienced character designer, but these are the indicators I usually do whenever I make my designs.

In simple terms, list what you want to have in your engine design, and build it off from there, this is to prevent overcrowdedness.

And that's all! Thank you for the ask!

You don't have to follow it step by step, be as comfortable as you like, these are just factors and tips to help in designing🩵

Hope it helps!!!

[alexandraisyes]

Hiiiii mootieeeeee

Do you have any character design tips perchance 👉👈

So personally for me the first thing I think about is the story. What vibes do I want this character to have? What's their goal, their aesthetic? What's their personality. And then I build them off of that.

For example, my AU designs. Especially TCAU.

KC is the one that I think about the most for this example (I even did a doodle of him for this :D )

You can immediately tell what his "vibes" are supposed to be. His personality isn't immediately apparent, but it does leave a first impression. He is scary, or meant to be scary. He's tall, lanky, monsterous. He immediately makes you start assuming things about him and what he's like. His lifestyle is reflected in his design.

We can even put shape theory to the test here! They all have the same sort of body type but they way they hold themselves and their silhouettes are important.

Triangles → Sharp, dangerous, dynamic Squares → Strong, stable, reliable Circles → Friendly, soft, innocent

Then you want to think of proportions! Different proportions can reflect aspects of a character’s personality, role, and background:

Larger or smaller proportions can instantly communicate personality traits at a glance.

Tall & lanky → Graceful, mysterious, or eerie

Short & stout → Sturdy, strong-willed, or comedic

Large upper body, small legs → Brute strength, less agility

Small torso, long limbs → Fast, agile, unpredictable

Proportions & Power Dynamics

The larger a character is compared to others, the more dominant or powerful they feel.

The smaller a character is, the more they might feel vulnerable, underestimated, or agile.

A character’s proportions can also reflect the world they come from:

Harsh Environments → Characters might have sturdier, survival-ready builds (e.g., thick limbs, broad shoulders for heavy labor).

Urban, Fast-Paced Settings → Sleek, agile designs might emphasize speed and efficiency.

Magical Beings → Exaggerated proportions (e.g., elongated arms, huge eyes) can make them feel inhuman.

Proportions naturally shift as characters age:

Young characters → Larger heads, bigger eyes, smaller bodies (e.g., chibi, Disney style).

Teen/Young Adult characters → More balanced proportions but still slightly exaggerated (lean or athletic).

Older characters → Broadening or shrinking in ways that emphasize age, wisdom, or frailty.

Different cultures within a world can influence how characters are built.

A nomadic desert tribe might be slimmer for endurance, while a mountain warrior society might be thicker and more muscular.

Social status can also reflect in proportions:

Elites/Nobles → Tall, regal postures, well-fed, symmetrical features.

Laborers/Farmers → Stocky, calloused, built for work.

Scholars/Wizards → Lean, refined, more delicate hands.

And of course my favorite. Color theory. I try to match colors to the characters "skin tones", so that things mesh together well. I always start with skin colors to figure out everything else. Find a color palette online! Find a picture of a feeling you want to go for (sunsets, calm, chaotic, etc) and color-pick it! Have fun with it! If you feel like things are off you can make it grey scale to see if it's unbalanced.

This is by no means a comprehensive guide, it's just the things I think about when I do character design. I put a lot of thought into world building and visual story telling when I design characters. What is their purpose? What's their personality? How do they flow with their setting? And build from there!

[aquakat-draws]

Some underrated creatures you can use for character design inspo (with no specific order)

Earwigs

Crayfishes

Centipedes

Chameleons

Gharials

Dholes

Wolverines

Nautili (nautilus)

Pangolins

Fossas

Frilled sharks

Okapi

Platypuses

Vaquitas

Komodo dragons

Thrips

Whip spiders (AKA tailless whip scorpion)

Barn owls

Ostriches

Star nosed moles

Coral snakes

Anacondas

Red bellied black snakes

City doves (common pigeons)

Angler fishes

Mole crickets

Cobalt blue tarantulas

Arabian sand boa (look this one up, it's funny i promise)

Weasels/stoats

Cross fox

Termites (I'm for real, yes)

Falcons

Sparrowhawk (qarghi)

Antlions

Moray eels

Lancetfishes

Prawns/shrimps

Ethiopian wolves

Hyena

Honey badgers

Hornets

Bumblebees

Lice

True crabs

Tarantula wasps

Dumbo octopuses

Seals

Otters

Vampire squids

Jellyfishes

Sea cucumbers

Red eyed tree frogs

Common toads

Silverfishes

Common grasshopper

Cicadas

Bristletails

Botflies

Phasmids

Aphids

Red pandas

Lobsters

Yeti crabs

Damselflies

Death moths

Fenec foxes

Capybaras

Arctic hares

Pygmy shrew

Stag beetle

Aye-aye

Chimps

Gibbons

Mantis

Rats

Red wolves

Tasmanian tiger-wolves (it went extinct long ago but it counts)

Tasmanian devils

Dingos

Ravens

Azawakh

So many animals to choose from, leave grey wolves and domestic cats alone a bit please/hj

[jadetheblueartist]

Help guys, what’s some sort of feature I can slap on my character to make her more distinct? Right now she’s resembling some other characters too closely and I don’t want that you know??

[blobbei-art]

Kasifer's design has a lot of thought put into it, so I always really wanted to share this information!

So here is a peek at how the process went and what I specifically intended with the design. It's not all of it but it's a pretty good overview.

Maybe this is even interesting to any other people who like character design!

[prehnite-soul]

anyone else struggles with DESIGNING BOOTS ON CHARACTERS????

and this is not about DRAWING feet and shoes

just DESIGNING them

WELL LET ME GIVE YOU A TIP: the next time you’re out shopping for shoes, take PICTURES

examples:

This helps me with designing them; look for where the boots are sewed typically, how tall they are, what DESIGN ELEMENTS they have

[sunnys-aesthetic]

Hi! I hope you are doing well and having a nice day/night

I've seen that you've previously worked with adoptables and I'm personally interested in making some too! But really besides a decent reference I don't know what else I'd let you do or how they work...

I've looked for some tutorials but I thought I'd ask someone with experience directly as well. If you have any tips to share or tutorials from other artists that might be useful I'd really appreciate it.

Again I appreciate your time and as an added bonus I love your art!!! beautiful as always ;)

yes!! absolutely! I know every artist has a different way of going about this, but in the most helpful way I can I want to help teach you guys too!

So, when it comes to creating adoptables, there are two ways of going about it: Creating a design from scratch, OR redesigning, an already made design that is yours. (Also knows as Re-Sells if you bought the design previously, but have permission to re sell it from its original owner, aka the artist.)

aand Boom!

a neat note i want to mention is that themes and aesthetics can be used interchangeably! Never limit yourself and throw yourself into the creative process, do anything, for everything makes sense when YOU are the one in charge in making a design :)

I hope this helps!! You've got this! and im so sorry for the late response aae!

emoji generator link here!

[ddoubleblindd]

✏️Here are a few design tips if you're looking to include artwork in your books!

While ebooks don't have these constraints, it's still good to keep them in mind just in case you ever make the switch to paperback.

Art by the wonderful Comt216

[afrourbanbeat]

Step 3: Get Organized

The Organized Mind, Daniel J. Levitin (2014)

Wow, so I've still been on this journey of trying to get my life back in order. And I realized that the problem was that all that external chaos that was going on was just an outward manifestation of the inner chaos that I had been experiencing for months and months on end. If someone could take an inner screenshot of what was going on in my mind it would look like a combination of a psych ward, a war zone, a vast and bone dry desert. I felt so empty, so angry, so disappointed, so lost. I felt so many things that I had not felt in a long time in my life, because I had had a lot of direction, focus, ambition and most importantly HOPE! I had lost my hope in my future and in anything pertaining to building the life that I had always dreamed of, and I had been feeling this way because of all the rejections I had faced in the job market and trying to carve a path for myself after working so hard to get my M.Arch Degree and just finding every door shut in my face.

I had sacrificed a lot, personally (leaving my daughter and fiance behind), financially (so much money was spent on applications, visa processing, flights, accommodation, etc), physically and mentally, because at the end of the day, Architecture (as any other creative endevour, is very draining pursuit, draining but also very rewarding, but it requires a lot of hard work, sacrifice and mental grit to keep on the path.) You say no to a lot of things to work on your design work. No to parties, friends, hanging out, going out and socializing, you have to buy things, software, model making materials, pens, computers, ipads etc. It takes so much out of you, but ultimately you do it because you desire to fulfil your dream of becoming an Architect and I had crossed a lot hurdles to get to the end of studying M.Arch and to just have every single job application that I made shut in my face, broke my spirit in a way that I never even knew was possible. And ultimately leading me to my giant wake-up call. And that changed everything. I still believe that I'm on a path of healing and regaining my passion again for architecture. But it has been a long road.

And one of the critical steps I believe in order to get there is to get organized. My thoughts have been jumbled for months, since possibly last summer. My design thoughts, my artistic thoughts, my creative thoughts and my business thoughts are all swimming around in my brain. And so I am on a mission to get organized mentally and the first step is in actually bringing order to all my work.

Funnily enough, even though my brain and all my thoughts were in turmoil and in chaos, it never actually stopped me from still creating and drawing and painting and designing. To be honest, it felt cathartic and so I found myself in a place where I had all these projects, designs, ideas, artwork, etc. But it's all in sheets or sketchbooks or random folders. There's no order to anything with regards to my design work. And so my mission now is to order all my work so that I can begin to pick up the pieces of what I thought my design career would be and begin to build something new from the ashes.

As for my career right now, ultimately I still desire to work at a practice and eventually become a registered architect, but in the meantime, so long as that door is not opening, I don't want to let my fire burn out. I have a job, I am employed and I make a decent living but I don't feel satisfied or fulfilled that I am living in my true calling and so I am taking steps to remedy that. I've decided to work on creating design content online. I have a great backlog of work and projects and just cool ideas I want to work on and I also just do love sharing on social media and connecting with people. I figured I'll do it through design, while at the same time trying to build my company's brand and business.

I really feel like new life has been breathed into me. And I will continue on this trajectory. But now, back to the topic at hand: Getting Organized. I love reading, more especially, I love self help books (do not judge me!). I also love autobiographies and biographies, those are literally the only type of books that I read and I do tend to find they help.

And so if you're following this journey with me, I'll share what I've been doing to get myself organized in order for me to start creating and sharing my work more effectively.

I bought a printer a couple of months ago, I hadn't opened it because I wanted to film an unboxing video, because like I said I love sharing online and one of my favourite types of content are unboxing videos. I bought the printer because ultimately I want to print and share my work with my followers and customers, I want to more easily be able to share my design work with my clients and also to work on drafts of my work and also to print out all my old project files and actually have them in packs as folders so that if I need to update the folders I can easily pull out a physical reference for my work. This will be an on-going process.

2. Reading! Sometimes we just don't know how to get things done and that's ok. That's why it's good to learn from others who have mastered and conquered the areas of our lives that we are struggling with. You will find that they have some very useful tips that could change the entire trajectory of your life. For me, Atomic Habits by James Clear was one of those books. Game changer! And given by how popular it is, I don't think I need to say much more.

Another good one (although a difficult read) was The Organized Mind by Daniel J. Levitin. This one really helped to truly break down every single aspect of my life but more especially my career and work life goals into thinking about how to easily access all my designs, drawings, sketches etc, and to think about creating an effective system that manages all my physical paper as well as digital files. So I'm working on creating an integrated system that will make that process a lot smoother and more orderly. I highly recommend this read.

3. A filing system. It's a very simple one but sometimes it's just basic organizing of documents and drawings in a filing system that is needed to bring order and drown out the noise of the chaos in your mind. So I went and bought a simple binder and some sticky notes and voila! Order! I managed to organize all the lose drawings I had been doing over the months and now I can clearly see what I've been working on and properly organize my artistic and design thinking and with the printer I can keep track of all my digital drawings as well as scan and print out other work so that I can properly keep track of my work process, my art and my designs for myself and for my clients. One folder is for my art and design work and the other is for my other important personal documents, business documents, financial papers etc.

4. Google Calendar! I cannot stress this enough. I've shared a lot online about how I love my google calendar so much. Committing is hard but I'm very good at planning and scheduling things on my calendar. For me this is one of the most effective tools in my arsenal of getting organized as a designer or creative, and it helps you keep track of all your meetings, deadlines etc because you can put everything in different categories and color code everything. Here's a sample of what mine looks like if you'd want to take any inspiration from it or figure out the categories you want to use.

5. And lastly, Be Patient! Be gentle and kind to yourself. I think that is my biggest lesson that I've learned this year, not to talk badly to myself when things aren't perfect, giving myself grace and allowing things to naturally unfold through their process. Learning not to rush things is my biggest lesson this year and it's alright if you don't have everything figured out. I'm learning more and more that life is a marathon and we can genuinely take our time through our phases of growth, healing, creating, etc. Everything in time.

Well that's all for today, but I'll be back with another post soon to share more about my journey into finding my feet and passion again and becoming a Design Content Creator.

[courtingwonder]

The Art of Color Coordination in Color Theory

[dainogo]

Look at the first design, and you immediately think: "Oh, it's simple, I know how to design it too."

And do you know what? 95% of people who think it's simple couldn't do it, or at least they did it wrong.

I just uploaded a tutorial video on Illustrator tips will blow your mind and change the way you design. I hope it proves helpful to you. If you like it, please give me a thumbs up. Thank you!

Video:👉 These Illustrator Tips will Blow Your Mind (Part 1)

[everythingaboutbiotech]

Design Tips #1: Stop using Pure Black in your designs

[design-studio-ui-ux]

Colors bring life to your designs! 🎨✨ Discover inspiring combinations that will make your designs shine and stand out from the crowd. Whether you're creating a website, mobile app, or graphic, the right hues can tell a story and evoke the perfect emotions. Check out these eye-catching palettes and start transforming your designs today!