fantrollartroom:

amanihoot asked fantrollartroom:

How do you draw the ancestors so well? Can you do a tutorial or something?? Thanks! Love your art btw

~Sure! this is how i make ancestors, btw, it may not always match canon ancestors exactly, but its pretty close ^^~

~i start by sketching a base, i use 500 x 800 canvas because tumblr resizes everything to 500 px wide, so if i want to keep sharp edges it has to be 500 wide~

~then on another layer i outline the silhouette and make it low opacity so i can see the sketch underneath~

~then i fill in the colors and get rid of the sketch!~

~(im not gonna show you how to draw a human/troll figure, btw, theres plenty of tutorials for that so ill just assume you can draw figures already)~

HOW I DECID WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE:

~first i just make a generic human troll shape~ then i figure out where i can overlay the symbol~

~i usually center the symbol on the chest (although in this case i made it part of the skirt)~

~i usaully try to use the whole symbol, but for a more complicated symbol you can break it up, like this for example~

~its important that the symbol wrap around the troll in some way, otherwise it just looks like a normal troll outfit with a bigger symbol~

~like that, which is boring~

~some ways you can make the symbol part of the outfit:~

~a symbol with a loop can wrap around the neck~

~a straight line can be a waistband~

~spindly sections can go down the arms~

~a triangle can make a skirt or a cape~

~interesting sections can be repeated on the hems~

OTHER THAN THE SYMBOL

~besides the symbol, horns (in a sinlge color) are colored, teeth are white, female trolls can have colored lips~

~and you can add pinstripes, circles or other patterns to sections of the clothing~

~unless you have a reason, you shouldnt use more than one or two colors, mostly variations on the blood color~

~but you can shade things, like making the inside of the cape a darker color than the outside~

~ i personally prefer to use skirts for females, but thats not canon~

~i would avoid bodysuits or formfitting outfits. They’re fine, theyre canon, but theyre a bit boring~ you can break up a form-fitting outfit by adding things like a skirt, a hood, a cape, a coat, or even just a chunky belt~

~clothing should be reasonably old-fashioned looking. learning about ancient cultures is my hobby, so i know lots of old fashioned styles, but if you dont, basically just dont do this~

~and of course if you cant draw, you can always ask me ;)~

~is there anything i missed?~