Requests are finished! Tysm guys to everyone who requested someone :) @ray-elgatodormido @trisshawkeye @the-kingdom-of-wei @vineyardelf
Notes:
Lu Bu - This was probably the hardest one because of the armor TvT I drew him big so I wouldn't have to draw all the armor, also it's really messy because this was the first one and I kind of forgot how to shade
Ayanga - Sorry this outfit is like the least fancy one, but I really liked it because of the butterfly pin :) I tried to make it look sort of like him but I kinda failed lol
Pang Tong - This one was my favorite :D HE LOOKS SO COOL I LOVE HIS LITTLE MOTH HEADBAND THING WITH THE ANTENNAE
Ao Guang - The horns were really hard ToT but he looks so good whoever designed him is awesome, thankfully there wasn't enough room for his shoulder armor lol
Zhuge Dan - He and Ao Guang have the same expression I swear he looked like this mad face in all of the pictures XD I drew his hairline so wonky though but it's fiiiiine :p
Maedhros - This one was the only one with my design :D I had to make a new design for him because I didn't like my old one and I think it turned out good :)
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TWO DAYS AFTER CHRISTMAS, ONLY A FEW DAYS TO NEW YEAR?! HOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW?!?
Anyway! Thanks for how much time I spend on studying art tips and how tos from Youtube, TikTok and lately, Xiaohongshu ,a Chinese platform I just registered and used for quite sometimes (And yes, I'm binging on 3K stuffs there A LOT LOL)
And Guan Ping...Ah, little crane of Guan Household, a little happiness to many , a blessing to Guan Yu and Lady Hu, he's wearing a military hat (Han era accurate...) and holding a sword, which are all Baba's. And yes, mah boy try his best to look fierce like Baba (but fails, adorably)
Bonus : Also, I did a black & white version as well, not sure if it's similar to manga or lianhuanhua (Chinese styled pictire book)...
Took 3 days (7 hour per Procreate timelapse recorded) to finished this piece, Really proud of the Color Dodge effect I learned from other artists, this makes the art look vibrant and lively!
In this picture, here we see Emperor Xian or Liu Xie , holding hands with Guan Ping, which realistically and historically NEVER happened, however in WWTBG, a novel about Guan Yu's wife and their family during the collapsing era of late Han, I had written about Guan Ping met the Emperor through dreams. (Also I speculated Guan Ping to be born around 182 AD, which technicall made him one year younger than Emperor Xian and Zhuge Liang...What a coincident)
As an author, I tend to leave the ambiguity : Was this a fever dream of a pure hearted teenager? Or was this a real dreamwalking scene that tied with karma , loneliness and shattering youth innocence? No one knows, and I'll let you, the readers and the viewers discuss what really happens in the dream.
Read Whispering Wind Through the Bamboo Grove (WWTBG) in ao3 , still on going within 50 chapters. Make sure to comment , bookmarked and leave some kudos!
(Now writer is on hiatus due to the latest dramatic chapter...*sniff*)
A few years back I was sitting next to this extremely talented girl who was selling these incredibly intricate illustrations. Iām talking hundreds of hours worth of work that were going for $10 a pop, and at the end of the day she had only made three sales.
I felt kinda guilty because I was so overrun with orders that I skipped lunch and had run out of paper by 3pm. i had to close up shop and switch to pre-orders. I told her portraits sold well and tried to get her to switch tracks, but she said she didnt feel comfortable with faces because she wasnāt āgood enough.ā
Tip: portraits sell. Learn to draw faces.
When I first started four years ago, I was not a portrait artist. I was a bio major who wanted to be a scientific illustrator and my main focus was on animals. I didnāt even know the uni market day was happening. My friend told me about it the day before, and more or less dragged me there kicking and screaming. I owe my current growth and trajectory to literally one person who believed in me at the time.
I had no idea what i was going to sell. She pointed out I recently done a cover for the uni magazine, which had a bunch of faces of the editors on it. Why not do portraits? āBut that single page took me 12 hours!ā I said. I couldnāt draw on command! I couldnāt draw realistic people! Hell, I couldnāt even draw fast. But my friend wouldnāt give up, so I hastily put together some paper, and ran over after my morning classes. I was such a last minute addition, I didnāt even have my own table. I just turned up and was allowed to sit on a bench in the corner. Another friend turned up on her lunch break and ended up staying until 6 oāclock, single-handedly doing the job of salesman, cheerleader and accountant, so I could focus on drawing. Thanks to them, I made $300 that day, and discovered a new way to improve my skills. That one day gave me the confidence to officially start selling art online, and got me to where i am today.
Iām the only portrait artist whoās been here every year, and consistently made $100-500 each year. Based on my experience, people want something that is unique and personalised. Something that speaks to their identity, something they cannot get anywhere else, and is affordable for a broke student. A portrait of their friend, family or beloved pet fulfills all these needs.
Tip: location location location
I figured out very quickly that no one wants to stay for 30 minutes for a portrait. They were on their lunch break and had class afterwards. So how can i draw them without them being there? I got them to send me their photos, and I would text/email them after it was done.
The location was a huge factor to my success. I was in a school setting and thereās a higher degree of trust for a fellow student. the people would also be hanging around for many hours for classes, and they could also come back the next day to pick up preordered drawings. Scope out your location and keep your eye out on community events. Talk to your locals, theyāre the ones who are the most help. Prioritise local weekend markets, community celebrations and art conventions, rather than street corners and random popups.
Tip: do market research. Stand out and be outstanding.
I always make sure to take a quick look at the other stalls, ask about earnings, and what crafts were the most popular. Right now the crochet market has become oversaturated, and everyone has reported making less money every year. Iām the only one with consistent growth because my strategy has effectively cornered the market. My pens and inks are professional quality. i draw with brushes and dip pens which has a steep learning curve that other artists find difficult to replicate. (Last year I saw people drawing on printer paper and sharpies. Dont skimp on materials, guys, someone else will not and theyre gonna smoke you).
Tip: make people stop and stay
Every year I bring a bunch of beautiful, handmade crafts whose purpose is to take up room, and never sell. Iāve made mug warmers, hand cut bamboo pens, paintings, clay sculptures, books with hidden compartments. Over the course of three years Iāve only sold about four items. These decorations serve a completely different purpose; engagement. I fill my table with small, fidgety crafts and encourage people to play with them. Humans are social animals, if they see a big group standing around something theyāll become curious and be drawn in. This is the most organic way to advertise your stall, especially when youāre the only one there and you canāt market and draw at the same time. The stall itself needs to be a growing and evolving partner to help you out.
Tip: dont let people leave empty-handed
I have a giant stack of handmade business cards that I hand out to people, and they find the novelty quite amusing. I also asked them to scan the qr code to my insta, and it allows people to contact me if theyāve changed their mind. Donāt be afraid to talk and banter! If someone says āI donāt wanna buy anything,ā I answer ā thatās fine. Just chat with me for a bit. It makes me look popular ;)ā the bamboo pens this year were a huge success in that regard because everyone wanted to play around with them, and i would get huge groups crowding around me.