31.12.14

INTO THE NEW YEAR WITH GRACE JONES

Happy New Year guys! I hope you're all having a great time ♥
I am not, as you can see so I worked on a graphic! Yay. Haha So I decided to give a try to real face again and I decided to go with Grace Jones. Honestly, took me around 30 minutes to make but I am happy with the final result! I am actually playing with colors and brushes in Gimp getting some fancy crap on the graphic!
So, wish you all a happy, happy New Year once again! xx


30.12.14

Lanvin + Happy New Year

Just finished what will be my last graphic and request of 2014! This was from AudreyHepburn. who sent me this amazing reference which I couldn't pass up making =) It's definitely not perfect, the left hand is pretty bad and the hair still needs work, but overall I'm pleased, especially with the dress - a Lanvin piece that I love! (Stardoll Chair and Background used - mastering interior objects is not in the near future for my graphics skills, haha!)

Constructive comments more than welcome =D

27.12.14

Not there yet

This is from the Chalayan SS15 collection with Isabella8103 as a model.
It's not great, but I liked the look and wanted to try a few different things with my technique to see if I can work on anything differently. I don't think it's a good piece overall, but I do quite like the black clothing and also how I approached the hair - no, it's not wonderful hair, but it's documenting me working on different things to find my niche within hair!

26.12.14

C B

Are you already tired of me this week? I've been posting so much! Two graphics in two days, who would say.
This is my latest graphic for the new project of mine, self-titled blog CARMEN BYNES or as the header says, CB. I will be posting daily looks, inspirations, icons, stylings, spoilers, reviews  and must haves daily so make sure to follow the blog and check for daily updates!
I hope you like the graphic as much as I do x

LINK TO THE BLOG

LOVE Magazine

A couple days ago I launched the blog for my new project called LOVE magazine

After a lot of thought and messages from many different people on my social media I decided to start my very own magazine


 Click Here to visit LOVE
Click on this image to visit LOVE'S Homepage 


Here you can see the official banner, I want the issue to be what I'm most known for which is a fun youthful and kitschy look that I bring to this industry 

Hope you all go ahead and follow/support this new project! You can read more at the webpage and also you can already check out the release date!

Don't forget to subscribe !!

25.12.14

Christmas All Black

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you are having a good time with your friends and family!
I was pretty bored today, so I made this simple graphic. It wasn't much job; I took the birkin and the hair from Stardoll. This is probably representing my outfit of the day this Christmas; All black.

So, Merry Christmas again and hope you like this short edit. xx

24.12.14

Hair Speedpaint Video + 900 entries!

Merry christmas everybody! (or any other holiday you celebrate according to your faith)

So last night I decided to put together a little video of a speedpaint of my hair technique, it's not a tutorial whatsoever but I think for designers who have experience it could be helpful in a better understanding of new techniques! Anyhow consider it a little christmas present!




Hope you all get to have a wonderful day with your family and friends!! 

xo.

Don't forget to comment and share! 

Ps: This entry is entry no. 900 in the vault! How cool is that? 

21.12.14

DKNY PreFall 14

Finished a request from Blinnes this afternoon - and this is the result. I think it could have been a lot better in all aspects, but I'm still getting back into working on graphics, hopefully I'll improve for my next pieces!

20.12.14

LANA DEL SLAY

I have to say that I am very proud of me today! I was actually sitting here since morning until now 5:30pm doing a graphic which I, believe or not, finished!
Yes, I finished a graphic in one day, an amazing graphic in only one day! It usually takes me so much more but today, I was in a great mood for work so I took Lana's Grazia shoot in my hands and made this. I can say that I LOVE how it turned out, and I must say that I am very proud of my skills which improved a lot since my last real face drawing! I loved this picture from Lana's latest photoshoot so much and I actually downloaded it and opened my working space in one second after I saw it! And now, after nearly 7 hours of work, I've done it! I've done this, my best graphic since I joined the industry! Leave your opinions below xx


17.12.14

So it's been a while - Christian Siriano

Been a bit since I've posted a graphic! And boy my techniques are rusty, so I'm pretty pleased I managed to complete a whole piece in just a couple of days =) 
There are many little faults and mistakes with this piece, I think I could have worked more on the skin shading in all areas of it, the models right underarm stands out to me as just needing a little more. The hair is a marked improvement for me I think, it's not there just yet, but I've made a step in the right direction! Some areas look good, like the models right side of hair, and kind of the top half of the rest. It goes a little astray towards the ends, but hey, I can work on that for next time =)

Please leave me some comments - and if you have some constructive tips, particularly for hair, they are most welcome =)

16.12.14

Ultimate Designer, a retrospective.

WE DID IT !

So yesterday the results for the graphics project were announced, and yours truly was crowned ultimate designer, I already thanked everyone who supported me and believed in me, but in this post I'd like to share my thoughts on what got me this win, maybe this way I can encourage some people who are considering on joining to actually do it! 

I think the main thing that got me a lot of places in this competition was uniqueness, I feel like I was able to look beyond "Fashion Approved" concepts, say for example the Betsey Johnson challenge, all of the fashion connoisseurs  would have been outraged by such a "Tacky" editorial, but I started thinking of something that I could relate Betsey Johnson to, I feel this makes for a very special entry, making it personal,  you have to find a way to fall in love with the reference you're working on (or concept) something has to speak to you about that reference.

You could also say it was my unapologetic behavior about my work, I was gonna present whatever I wanted and the way I wanted to, many would worry about being too much or overdoing it, but you gotta stay true to YOU, every entry has to tell something about your personality,your style and what you stand for, and you should always stick by your decision. 

For any competition you need to be able to take criticism and apply it, don't just go around saying that judges hate you or have favorites, stand on your own, work and prove them that you are everything and more than what they ask for, take this comments and apply them, don't just nod and smile.

Be you, but a little bit more like Beyonce 

No but seriously, give the best of you, don't go for the easy, tackle 3 models in one week (See task 2), push yourself to do the best of the best and never stop until you reach that perfect result (Which means you'll never stop we all make little mistakes here and there) 

And most importantly, know where you stand, if you've been practicing hair for a month and you still can't perfect it, don't go for an editorial that is all about hair, you're going to stress yourself and loose motivation, for this competition you need to play to your advantage, until you're not confident in your technique for all of the parts that make a graphic choose one or two features that stand out, say skin and hair or clothing and skin, and make those your focal points, this way you will always have a result that mesmerizes everybody and is appealing to the eye

Before finishing up this post I'll share a little video I put together of my progress since Dec. 2012 when I started 




and before I leave heres a BIG and heartfelt 

Thank you!

See ya tomorrow on day two of W.W.W ! xo. Pablo. 

15.12.14

W.W.W. A week of wonder.


As the holidays, Christmas, Hanukah, however you may call it depending on your personal beliefs (Had to make it politically correct right?) approach, and since my first project like this was a big fail I decided to give this another shot.

Starting today and for one week I'll be posting DAILY, wether it's a graphic, a spoiler or anything of that nature, to warm up for the release of my fashion line, as always I exhort all of my fellow posters to join in and post during this week as much as possible! 

AND the usual model hunt begins, comment below your username and I'll choose some of you to be featured in special edition Christmas graphics! xx 

I'll share with you my favorite christmas song! 


It's actually a playlist but these are like my favorite Christmas songs! I even listen to these when it's not Christmas sometimes! 

I'd love it if you would share in the comments some of you holidays tradition, if you celebrate something other than Christmas or whatever other funny holiday story you may have! 


Face, Face, Face!

Hello everyone! I don't really know if this is something you guys would like to see or not. So please tell me ok?
A friend of mine asked me to edit her face for her and I did it because is so fun! xD

Here you can see the difference of before and after.

Hope you guys enjoy it. And maybe if you guys want too see how your dolls would look like it edited I can show it to you. 
Just leave a comment with your dolls name and depending on how many comments I'll chose a few.

13.12.14

Valentino


A little Valentino never hurt nobody right? I got a request from the lovely SmileyBither in sd, for this stunning picture which is referenced on Miranda Kerr in her Elle cover

This is a picture ive been wanting to make for THE longest time and the fact that i got paid for making a reference I love is amazing! It was a great experience because i had a little bit more of a struggle with this one, my computer screen got messed up and it has a huge grey-ish shadow on it so i can't really see what I'm doing 

Anyhow! As always I hope to see some comments and hope you take the time to thick a box !! Much love xx! 

Have you checked out yours truly in X Magazine? You should! @ Haus of X  

12.12.14

Dior is the new black

So as I've been lazy for days, weeks actually, I finally decided to work on something!
It took me one and a half hour to find the easiest, most basic picture of Dior's pre-fall 2014 outfit!
I honestly like how it turned out, and I was so happy to finally use my old graphic of Lady Dior hair inspired by Jennifer Lawrence in Dior's ads. So it took me 2 hours of work and it's here - my new graphic! Finally, after a long time.

 As always, there are two versions; original and the one with effect.

I just noticed how the shading of the trousers is almost invisible from my point of view here, while writing this, but just look closer and you will notice it! (at least, you should notice it lol)

So, that's it for today! Prepare yourself for more Carmen coming out this winter! x

11.12.14

XIV - X Magazine FW14

The much anticipated comeback issue of X Magazine is now released! 





Thank you!

7.12.14

The Gun + Raffle #2


So as you all know I'll be releasing my very first fashion line in a couple days, as a spoiler I altered one of the dresses (This is inspired by Charles James, cause this has been my dream dress for a lifetime) I decided to give out this dress to my very best friends AND I'll give it to 3 lucky commenters! Just leave your username below and you'll automatically be in the raffle! 

I have a really strong back story for the collection, very conceptual as my usual works!

Like always I wish you are having an amazing weekend! And please please comment and thick a box!

Before I leave I'll give you the name of the collection:

"We Both Reached For the Gun"


Now the collection is not inspired by the 20's nor Chicago, but it really fits the theme of my story, maybe you get an Idea of what's happening here !






6.12.14

* RAFFLE WINNERS *




It's been a couple weeks since I posted about making a giveaway, a raffle, and so many people commented/viewed actually as of today we reached 305 VIEWS!! You guys im so thankful and excited about this! but anyhow, I've been having some personal issues and honestly was not in the proper state of mind to do anything but my final exams, but now I'm back and lets go on to the raffle winners!!!

Congrats!!



Congrats!!!

you will be receiving graphics number 4 and 2





Fishbowlsoul


Lesliie17890




Stay tuned to see the complete prizes!!!!


To start off right the weekend heres my song of the week!




NERD

Hello everyone! Yay is finally finished :D I really enjoyed doing this one, I loved the way the skirt turned out and the hair is pretty cute too.
I had this picture since forever and always wanted to turn it into a graphic.


I really liked the graphic with those two backgrounds, but the girl who requested the graphic used another one.

 As always, here is the before and after of the face. (After changing her mind a million times the girl decided she wanted different lips. That's why the aren't the same as in the graphic.)

Did you like the graphic? If you did, please click on the good boxes and leave me a comment. If you think is not so good, mark the bad box and leave me a comment with a constructive criticism.

Feedback's are always appreciated. Thank you!

5.12.14

Rejection + SPOILER



Sometime soon I'll release my very first line, I've been wanting to start this project for a while now, and since I had some personal issues and had only a laptop I figured why not give it a shot, so I took this gorge mannequin by Jack and gave it a shot, this outfit didn't make the cut, give me your opinions, leave a comment and tick a box, 
see ya soon xx 

30.11.14

Soon...

To me is really cool to make requests. A lot of people see my graphics and other peoples graphics and want one with their dolls on it. Timelines are a challenge for me personally, because I like to feel the creativity flow when I make a graphic, and with a date to deliver, It feels more like an obligation.

I'm making this really cute, lookbook-ish graphic and is going really well so far.
Please don't think is anything near finished, i'm in the process of making it. Here you can see a small preview of it.

29.11.14

Upcoming graphic II

While I am finishing the graphic I posted earlier, I have already started the new one!

This year Santa has gifted me a little bit of patience and time earlier! I have this mood for making graphics since last week and it's not passing me! I am still working and have many things planned like upcoming project and five more stunning references which will hopefully turn into five stunning graphics! This is the first one I decided to do and I am still trying to figure out if I should put wool texture on it or leave it plain. This is how it looks with texture on:
Which one is better? Help me decide!

27.11.14

Body ody ody!

Hello everybody! I hope you're not sick of me yet xD

Is so hard for me to find good images to use for graphic. My patience level is below zero and i'm very ocd :/ So my images needs to be big enough, medium to high quality and can't have too many details (crazy amount of jewelry, messy hair, small prints on the clothes). I know, I know. I'm very picky! So you can understand my level of happiness when I find good images right? :)
I was dying to graphic a certain image I found, and when the doll Peypeylee asked me to make a graphic for her I saw the opportunity to use it.
This is the result.

The hair was drawn by a very medicated self (I was sick) and I'm definitely proud of the result.

My favorite part is her legs.

Oh! And I'm also in love with the face shading on the model. Here you can see the before and after of her face. She uses facemasks on her doll so I decided to draw the lips and nose on Photoshop but maintaining the shape she likes.

Did you like the graphic? If you did, please click on the good boxes and leave me a comment. If you think is not so good, mark the bad box and leave me a comment with a constructive criticism.

Feedback's are always appreciated. Thank you!

25.11.14

Soon to come

I am currently working on a graphic which will be done until the end of this week!  Here is one small part of it, blurred and unfinished without editing and other stuff...
I wasn't thinking to make a graphic, but then I found this reference and simply fell in love! I can say that I am having so much fun doing this and that I really like my work on this one!
I am so excited to see the final result!

23.11.14

White dress

Hello everyone! This graphic I made a few months ago. The model is PortocaliuSore who requested a graphic similar to one I had made for a friend of hers. This piece was fearly simple to make. The dress contrasts beautifuly with the skincolor of the doll.

(I updated the graphic a little bit, I removed the pattern of the dress)


Closeup time!

 Anyways, I almost never work with full body images (I hate it). They take a lot of time and patience. But I'm very pleased with the results here. I really worked the shading of the skin because I wanted to keep the shading of the dress at a minimum. White is very hard to shade, if you darken it too much it becomes gray.

Well, I hope you guys enjoy it. Leave your opinions about it! I'm open to constructive criticism but please be kind :3



22.11.14

Selfish



A couple days ago the results for task 7 @ TGP were announced, having filip as a drop out for this cycle Rozalia and myself are the final two.

When Jack revealed that Task 7 was to do a fun kitshy editorial with Betsey Jhonsons fashions I decided I wanted something extra-fun, Betsey is known for having really themed runways and ad campaigns, so my first thought was to make something that I could see in a Betsey Jhonson store, and with the massive popularity of selfies in Pop-Culture something themed around it was the perfect idea for me.

Another thing I took into consideration is how popular Betsey Jhonson is for prom! So i decided that Jack and I were going to Stardoll Academy Senior Prom, mixing this different aspects I think I created a really fun editorial and the "Instaglam" inspiration fit perfectly with the prom-ish look I went for

I do realize I may have over-flitered (oops) but I'm really happy with the outcome, it youthful and fun which to me embodies all that Betsey is, now I've never worked with such a small reference, really it was super hard and I basically swinged everything in this photoshoot, I didnt have much reference as to were shadows and light went because of the size 


This was the original reference I used, normally I dont share but I feel like its appropiate this time around I had a crazy hard time making the phone and the bracelet but I think they came out good

So tell me what you think, did you like this photo? Do you think I'd have won top photo if this was for a previous task? Also don't forget to tick a box!!

Btw who else is SUPER excited to have Keshan posting here!

See ya ! Stay Beautiful. 




20.11.14

I'm new here!



Hello everyone! I'm a new designer here, and I want to tell you a little bit about me.
My name is Déborah (not many people knew about that before), i'm 20 years old and from Brazil. On stardoll you may know me as Keshan (keshanpartyboy). I've been using Photoshop for the last 7 maybe 8 years, but I only started doing graphics 3 years ago.
I'm always learning new things and perfecting my techniques. I really hope you guys enjoy my work, i'm really  happy to be given this opportunity.

Here is some example of my evolution :3
OLD 



NEW




18.11.14

Unfinished, unreleased and forgotten graphics

So as I accidently opened my folder ''DO NOT OPEN'' I found so many graphics I literally forgot about. I don't even remember when I made some of them! But I also liked some. I actually found my first graphic ever, jesus!

This is the graphic I've made this summer! I see many things I would change now but it's fine enough, I guess.
Moschino Jacket I've also done this summer... And now I see how many things could've been done so much better lol
Bambi! This started so good, her face and the flower, Bambi itself... And then I sucked something about it.
When I remember that this was supposed to turn out as Andreja Pejic....
This was the first time I have done an amazing, detailed hair!And then my brother deleted it.
I am sure that I will edit and finish this one soon!
I simply forgot about this one. Just forgot.


Then I tried again with the Dior hair!
Somehow this one got deleted before I finished it like a year ago and I never got a chance to make it again or continue. This was my first real face drawing!
Just to show how bad I was more than two years ago... I am ashamed lol
My favourite old graphic! Idk why because it's so bad, but I had so much fun back then...
And my second favourite bad, old graphic.
Oh my god. This post was long! It could have been longer but let's stay with these!
Stay tuned for new graphics, improved and better ones, haha