A Nouveau in Process (Patreon)

So I finished this piece as a commission and thought you all would like to see the progress images!

First image is the rough layout. Just the 'putting things in place' and making sure the proportions look right.

Second is the refined sketch. Just a clean up of the rough, and getting details in (You'll notice I didn't refine the flowers, but they go through the same process as the main image; also the BG is done at this time as the figure needs to be positioned over it right).

Third is Inks. Just following the refined sketch, and cleaning up anything along the way.

Forth is the 'add in details!' stage, basically where I fill in all the extra bits and finish off anything else that would be present in the image (like the flowers~).

Fifth is flat colors. For images like this it tends to be in several 'layers'- 1 for the figure, 1 for the flowers, and 1 for the BG; I treat each one as it's own set. You may also note I change the color of some of the inked sections to help them stand out.

Sixth is the 'finish'. There's several smaller steps in this stage, including the Shading and Highlights, again each part treated as it's own set. To unify the image I make sure to use the same color for shading and another for highlighting across all subjects in the image. Any shiny parts are treated with some 'shine'. In the far background I do a flat color with some shapes/lines to act as a supporting figure to the BG. And I also add a very thin layer of a parchment color set on a saturation setting over the whole image to warm it up and add a hint (very tiny hint...) of 'vintage' to it.

Bonus: The BG lines alone. This I usually do on a grid system to make sure it's clean and symmetrical (like HELL am I that good with drawing circles without it).

This process can take anywhere from a full (uninterrupted) day to a full week, depending on the response time of the client, availability of source material, and complexity of the design (Burnout also plays a roll in this, but that's a whole different game...).

Anywho, thought you all would like that! Thanks as always for the support, and see you next time!