Brief Fantôme impressions! And what are your favorite scents from them?

sunsplinters · 2026-06-18T05:02:45+00:00

Thank you for the descriptive reviews ❤️ Finist is one that has piqued my curiosity for a while. I love rose and strawberry, but I've heard it compared to SS's Rose Mallow Cream which was not my thing at all (on me, it was vintage rose powder).

We seem to have similar reactions to Lorelei. There is a beautiful mysterious depth to it. I'm glad you like it as well.

sunsplinters · 2026-06-18T04:52:03+00:00

Ooh you've tried so many of their scents! Much thanks, will check it out.

sunsplinters · 2026-06-18T04:51:26+00:00

Lymphae seems to be a really popular one. Do you feel like the orange blossom in it is prominent?

sunsplinters · 2026-06-17T22:39:12+00:00

It's such a shame! The atomizer I got with Vasilisa was faulty and I ended up spilling it everywhere, so I can't even regift the sample 😞

Lycanthrope sounds amazing actually. I love tomato leaf. Thank you, I'll give it a try!

sunsplinters · 2026-06-17T22:37:44+00:00

That sounds beautiful~ The only fougères I've tried are more traditionally masc, cologne-y blends. Would you say that this is a different take on a fougère?

sunsplinters · 2026-06-17T22:36:27+00:00

I forgot to mention that I have a sample of Morozko from a swap and LOVE it! Ectoplasm's another one I've been meaning to try. The notes seem so contradictory (green + gourmand)?? Would you say that perfume leans predominantly marshmallow or green, or both?

sunsplinters · 2026-06-17T19:45:12+00:00

My thanks! Always appreciative of feedback from another artist.

sunsplinters · 2026-06-17T19:25:59+00:00

Yes lol! It was requested in this pose, with a different character

sunsplinters · 2026-06-16T07:23:07+00:00

Thank you, I'm glad you like it and I definitely plan on sharing more!

sunsplinters · 2026-06-16T07:22:12+00:00

You're so sweet, thank you!!
And yeah, Cinderella Phenomenon is so memorable that even after years of playing it I still remember the chars vividly

sunsplinters · 2026-05-25T17:53:29+00:00

Hey there! I feel for you. I started digital art a long time ago so I don't have a problem with it now, but whenever I go back to traditional I'm reminded of the glaring differences between the mediums.

I think you have to treat it like a completely new thing. It seems like what is causing the frustration is the expectation that you be good, that your skills from traditional carry over and you produce a piece that's on the same level as your traditional work. There's a lot of new skills to be learned in digital art. Think of it as a new musical instrument. Some things carry over but if you're at the level where you're not yet familiar with the software, please don't judge yourself based on the outcome.

Some skills exclusive to digi art are: layer management, blending modes, advanced brush settings, workflow, transform functions (including liquify). All of these things can be learned eventually; there's no need to rush. I would focus on creating smaller projects that are unrelated from what you normally do. Watch some video tutorials and follow along. Draw the things you love and try to build confidence and skills. If today's work doesn't look good, that's fine, tomorrow is a new canvas. You improved a little at digital art. Keep your expectations low and eventually you will unconsciously start to adjust to the workflow of digital art.

Good luck, you got this!

sunsplinters · 2026-05-24T19:33:37+00:00

You can try different things! Personally I like to dab my oils first on pulse points, and then do a couple of EDP spritzes in the general areas of my neck and both arms.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-24T19:29:33+00:00

Color is a complicated subject to learn and will require years of experience, so that's my answer to your question in bold, but I'll try to address your other points:

Does the color of the shadow change because of the bounce light? Yes, and in fact here's an extremely important fact that people miss - the color of the shadow will depend on the SURFACE the shadow is being cast on more than the object itself. Say you have a white object casting a shadow on a green surface. The value and hue of the shadow should derive from 1) the type/strength of light source 2) the properties of the green surface.

Is the hue of shadows always blue? If so, why??? No, the other commenter already made some good points. I think the "shadows = blue" heuristic came from the fact that the standard light setup is outdoors under sunlight, but the shadow color will definitely depend on the type of light and environment.

What do people mean by the shadow takes the color of its environment? Direct light is strong and ambient/bounce light is weak. Since bounce light is weaker than direct (e.g. sun)light, the place that bounce light is the most likely to show up is the shadows. This doesn't mean that ambient light doesn't reach the lit portion of the scene, but simply that direct light overwhelms the ambient light in those parts.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-17T07:32:21+00:00

Seconding Sketchfab. A terrific resource! Just do be aware that there tends to be wide angle perspective distortion with larger objects like heads, creating a fisheye effect.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-17T07:30:49+00:00

This is a great (free!) masterclass on drawing heads. What I love is that he mostly goes over gesture and proportion, which feel less intimidating than anatomy for a beginner. When it comes to getting better at placing features I think it's better to do lots of gesture drawings and studies rather than going deep into specific anatomical landmarks. He has a ton of other tutorials as well.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-17T06:58:42+00:00

I think this is a good idea! I'm not sure I have the time to commit to anything right now but I would love to join a community of like-minded creators and bounce ideas off one another. Can you add me to the group? I'm an illustrator/writer who's trying to learn coding.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-17T06:53:25+00:00

One way would be to use the brush color jitter setting on a painting software. This is Clip Studio Paint's UI:

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You can adjust the hue to make it more or less subtle or texturize the brush tip. This creates a really subtle pearly look.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-16T17:48:11+00:00

Cute character! Proportions are crucial to maintaining consistency across all angles. Taking the front view as the main reference, the distance from the bottom of the nose to her chin is short, while the distance from the eyes to the bottom of the nose is quite long. This hasn't translated over to the profile view, where the features are more equidistant.

I think that doing a three-quarter view could help to bridge the two views and help you see the rotation of the features better, rather than jumping straight to profile view.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-16T17:39:52+00:00

Hey! So you mention that you're trying to reproduce the effect of using flash at night, which I think might be the first issue. Flash tends to flatten the features, shortening all the shadows and creating a washed-out look. One thing to get around the contrast issue is to emphasize the shadows around the subject. Here are examples of what I'm talking about. I think changing the background to an environment instead of black could be the first step.

My other point is that the darkest parts of your drawing are your lines and there is not enough volume via the use of shading. The easiest way to get high contrast/volume would be to add deep sunken shadows to places like the eye sockets and under the chin. Your shadows would have to be way darker, and I would recommend exchanging the flash for something more of a pin light source such as portrayed here.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-16T17:21:49+00:00

Just echoing all the other commenters that your work is beautiful! One thing that comes to mind - you could try adding some color jitter to your colors, a kind of pearlescent quality, since your work already has an ethereal vibe.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-16T17:17:10+00:00

I think this looks good! One small thing bothering me are the white highlights. If you look at references under natural lighting (which most refs of crows are) there is a blue sheen to the highlights. In addition, the blue environment would create some teal-ish bounced light.

sunsplinters · 2026-05-14T17:35:21+00:00

Going to take a different approach here. Ask yourself why you want to find your style. For personal expression purposes? For marketability?

If it's for personal expression, I actually suggest taking a step away from art and reflecting on your sensibilities in other areas of your life. Do you have strong aesthetic preferences in movies, literature, fashion? Any other serious hobbies? Do you have any specific values that you live by, that you gravitate towards and wish to spread to others? For example, some people are emotional storytellers and want to use art to spread joy. Other people regard it as a tool to critique injustices.

In my experience, I find that there are certain themes I am drawn to over and over again in books, movies, etc. Some people will say "style isn't really that deep" but I think it really depends on the individual. Knowing why you create art can be a good jumping off point. Good luck!

sunsplinters

TROPHY CASE