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CobraToon [2019-01-04 21:59:29 +0000 UTC]

Merry Critmas from the Poinsettia Pikes !
Thanks for providing questions. The shading adds definition to his body and as “super simple” near-symetrical shading it works fine, though it’s a tiny bit darker than I would expect if Pikachu were in a average-lit room. I personally prefer a more complex shading, where there would be more or less shading under his hat and arms, around his ears and hat, or on his tail and the sides of his neck depending on where the light source is. I would not have thought the background was a present; the wrapping paper style is obvious, but the bow just seemed to be floating there and an actual box should have more definition, softer corners, and maybe a peek at two sides. I liked how your color palette was done as presents (somehow that was obvious?) but I didn’t notice the tree shape above it. I have zero problems with your choice of title, I think it works well ... though “not even an electric mouse” could be neat if it fits.

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Kandi-Kidz [2018-12-30 14:55:41 +0000 UTC]

I love it!! (^o^)
Those cute little presents and that bow are amazing!
Thank you for sharing this. C:

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ninebark [2018-12-29 08:30:57 +0000 UTC]

Lovely! Bold black lines create such a great contrast in the picture, and the pikachu is adorable. I like the palette you picked, going warmer than the usual pikachu bright yellow to create that cozy holiday vibe.

I immediately got that it had a present theme going on – the lighter red lines going down and across with the bow in the middle are great. The little star above your signature creates the look of a Christmas tree. I didn’t immediately get the presents under the tree – they looked like color swatches to me before I saw that they had the little bows on them, and even now, they still look like swatches.  

The tree and star idea are so cool…but the green sig itself disappears a bit against the red. My gut says that if you make the font yellow, there will be too much yellow in the picture, and the tree design would disappear, so that’s a no go.

But what if you add a bit of black, either as a full outline around the letters, or as an offset behind the text so one size is outlines? Looking closely, I think you might have already done some drop shadow to separate it. But because red is such a strong color, I’m not sure its enough to really set the words out from the background. (Or maybe white outline? Not sure…)

Again, awesome work. Great picture!

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neurotype-on-discord [2018-12-28 16:33:36 +0000 UTC]

Haha this is cute, and I thought the title was funny, though to justify it I'd maybe add milk and cookies somewhere to show it's the night before Christmas (ok, this doesn't fit your current color palette at all). For someone who's personally picky about titles, I'm very bad at it myself, so I tend to go with references to songs/culture/whatever, based on what's in the work.

I like what you've done with the shading, it fits the cartoony style and the heavier lines. There's no reason cel shading can't be accurate to the light source, although it is tricky to determine how much to use. Overall I think you did a good job with those decisions, although there might be a bit much on his tail. Body too I think might need a bit more definition as he looks concave rather than more rounded outward, but I'd straight up say try setting up a plushie like that and see what the shadows look like.

Had to think about it for a sec but the background package works. Your signature isn't quite as successful in creating that illusion. TBH I'd just draw a tree and put it in there, realize the proportions will be a bit challenging though so you could go with a different Christmas motif that doesn't need as much vertical space.

I've not used FireAlpaca before but it looks like you have a solid handle on creating lines and smooth shapes within this software. Good sense of design and composition here.

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SlytherclawPadawan [2018-12-28 07:45:14 +0000 UTC]

[Commenting with the spirit of Critmas 2018 . ]

Hi there, that's cute pokemon Christmas card! Since you've mentioned some pointers in the description, I'll just go with it for the critique.

. I think you did the shading already well in this simple style, if you strived to be 100% the drawing would look rather boring than dynamic anyway.

. For the background personally I didn't recognize it as a present wrapped with ribbon. If you wanted to make that impression I suggest to give more line stroke to the ribbon (e.g. thick outline) and make a large bow instead of yellow flowey thread.^^

Also I just realized that "Ria illustrates" was supposed to be a Christmas tree with presents underneath it, since I don't see any resemblance with the basic shape of the usual tannenbaum tree. If you really want your signature to have that shape then try to warp/distort it until it makes a full triangle shape, but personally I might think of it rather forced, so it's up to you.

. An advice in titling pieces.. hmm.. Personally I'd go with the first impression and keeping it simple, e.g for this one I might name it something like:
"Yellow Christmas"
"Poke-Christmas"
"Merry Poke-mas"

But again it's up to you, we have our preferences.

That's all, I hope this helps.^^

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CensoredSecret [2018-12-25 03:52:34 +0000 UTC]

Omg this is so cute! I love how you made a festive signature version here!! And the shading looks good to me, it makes sense to my eyes! And it helps make the details pop. nice additional highlights on the pokeball ornament to help the eye see its roundness, just like the curves helping the 3D feel of Pikachu. Great work! The bg also looks great, the bow on its present is perfect!

also I like this title! I have no tips for titling though, I usually just use names or vague phrases 

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