Shoot Day! Practise for the Final Show

Two days ago I practised my whole design and had it photographed. This was a brilliant opportunity to see the design come together as a whole, and to see if there are any changes I want to make, to improve it. (There is always room for improvement!)

I wasn't able to use the model I am using for the show, which would have been nice to see it as it would be on the day. The model I did use however was great, and really suited the design!

I prepped her with barrier cream and gave her fluffy socks and a dressing gown to wear. To begin with, I wanted to get her hair up whilst there was no paint on her. I used Gafquat and water to slick it down. I then prepped her skin and applied foundation to allow it to settle, before applying anything else.

I found painting the base colours on to the body a bit stressful at times, because had problems with the green colour. The application of the yellow and the blue was nice and thick, but the green was very washed out and wouldn't seem to build upon itself. I had to be patient and keep layering it on until it was a strong enough colour.

I blocked all the colours on to the body before blending all the colours together at the edges. Sometimes this would take the paint off so I would have to reapply, but overall it was nicely blended. I wasn't too fussy if it didn't look perfect on the torso, because I knew the black lines would cover it well.

I then painted on the black pattern. It wasn't as symmetrical as I had hoped, but I know why it wasn't perfect. My model was laying down and I was leaning over the side of her to paint the lines, and I think I should of had her lying back more, and stand more in front. I started to run out of time towards the end so I made the pattern on the legs a lot bigger than the torso, but it didn't look too different. I also didn't have time to paint the back, but now I have practised, it shouldn't be a problem on the day.

I finished off the look with the makeup, hair and accessories (loin cloth, head dress,feather front and shoes). It was at this point that I realised that the feather front was covering most of my nice line work, so I cut it down to make it smaller whilst retaining the same shape.

Looking at the pictures now, I think I want to blend the black on the shoulder in to towards the chest slightly, rather than the pattern turning into a block of black. It will just soften that line off.

I also need to pull the skirt down slightly, which might mean getting longer string. I can also see that I needed to bring the blue from the hip down the leg a bit more, as it just seems to stop. 

I am really pleased with how it went, and how it looks! There are a few things that need adapting, which will make the design a lot better on the day.