these are MONTHS old at this point. well actually they're revamped versions of decade-old designs but the art is months old.
thoughts/design info under the cut!
sorry for breaking my awesome all-lower-case aesthetic, but i wrote this somewhere else first and don't want to edit it all. proper grammar be upon ye!
They're all a little thinner than I'd like, just because the base I started with to draw them all over was quite thin, but otherwise I'm really happy with them! I've always been a fan of humanized designs that use their coat color as their dominant clothing color, since it is a great way to incorporate that color without going the EG blue and purple skin route. Speaking of skin tones, this is just kinda how I've imagined them since I was like 14 so. Not really many specific thoughts or reasoning that I remember. I've seen a lot of humanized MLP designs that give the pegasi their wings, but much less often do I see the unicorns get their horns which is just ridiculous to me. Give them both their stuff or give them neither. I like giving them a little bit of a fantastical twist (as you can see in their hair and eye colors too) so I gave them their wings and horns. Now, onto the individual commentary!
Twilight: Not much to say lol. We're all in agreement that she's a NERD who wears button-ups and sweater-vests and pleated skirts. One of the few things EG got right. Schoolgirl look. I think argyle fits that style. I gave her very subtle clear nail polish, because while she is a nerd not a fashion-focused pon- uh, person, she is still pretty girly. She also likes to seem clean and professional, so subtle colors (or, again, clear) I think would be more up her alley than anything bold. Nothing special for her body type.
Pinkie: She likes to wear FUN and SILLY and CUTE outfits with multiple statement pieces! She doesn't mind mixing patterns or wearing "conflicting" pieces, as long as she's having fun with it. I think she'd like anything with a "gimmick" to it - sparkles, ruffles, sounds… It also speaks to the era I made these in that I went the "skirt over jeans" look, but I think that fits her still (which is, of course, why I kept it)! I think she was wearing the pants as pants then decided she liked the skirt and put it on as an accessory. She seems like she'd prioritize having fun with fashion, and putting her favorite colors on. There's some mismatched elements (namely her socks and shoelaces) because she'd think they're very fun! And you CAN'T tell my she wouldn't love Silly Bandz. Her whole look is a little Claire's, a little Disney Channel (except that she's an adult so she can also be showy). On the body types, she's supposed to be chubby but you can't super tell here. I think she suffered the most in that respect.
Rainbow: She is a SPORTY TOMBOY do NOT speak to me if you're going to femme her up just because "b-b-but she's a girl!!!1!11!" She wants something she can do athletic stuff in, and maybe that looks cool. Awesomeness and mobility. Those are her priorities. So basketball shorts, a cool t-shirt hoodie, and some attention-grabbing running shoes. I could stand to make the cloud pattern on her shirt a little more distinct, but I wanted to be sure it read as "stormy" (cool) and not "bright, sunny day" (cute). Because she actively dislikes cute and girly! That's like. Her main thing. She wants to seem tough and also like she's very nonchalant about it. She cares a LOT about her image! But she doesn't want to seem like she cares. I think that's part of why she does her hair long and choppy - she wants it to look cool, but also effortless and like it just kind of ended up like that. If it looks styled then there's a problem. Anyway. Body-type wise she's an athlete so I tried to give her some lean muscle. Though it was most visible in the shoulders, which got covered up. Ah well.
Rarity: This is the only one that I really have any comment on her skin tone, which is that "white clothes on dark skin gives better contrast aka more visual interest than indistinct white on white on white." Rare's hair is one I struggle a lot with, because she's very much got a mane style, not a hairstyle. I think I managed it well though. Also subtle thing that often gets overlooked, but she does have bi- (or even tri-)color hair, with the dark magenta-y ombre on the underside! It's not just flat violet. Anyway outfit. I think simple and elegant works more for her on a day-to-day basis. She's obviously not afraid of a showstopper outfit, but I also think she very much appreciates the more subtle and understated. Not that this outfit is fully that, just that I don't think she'd be walking around in tons of frills or a ballgown day-to-day. I just also didn't want the design to be boring. She's confident in her body and I love a cutout, so you get one of those too. Obviously she can walk in heels and knows how to do makeup. Makeup specifics also fairly obvious, because she has the blue eyeshadow in the show. For her nails, while I think long nails might be something she likes style-wise, she's also a working woman. So I tried to balance "a bit longer and more shaped" with "practically short enough."
Applejack: Another one that there's not much to say because we all know that's what she looks like. The cowboy boots to match her cowboy hat. The flannel shirt. She and Rainbow get conflated a lot for both being less feminine/more masculine, but they go about it in different ways - Rainbow Dash does care about her appearance and actively tries to be more masculine and less feminine, whereas Applejack doesn't really care about her appearance, and is only perceived as more masculine because she doesn't put any effort into femininity. She's all about practicality, and practicality means some quality jeans and a shirt that you can roll up the sleeves. The one place I think she might indulge (especially because she does care about branding) is a big fancy belt buckle. Body-type wise I tried to give her the "muscle and fat" body that a lot of hard-working farm women get. Oh, and one thing about her hair - I honestly think the way she ties her mane is more equivalent to a low ponytail on a human (we can of course see a high ponytail on young Cadence). Oh yeah and also obviously farmer tan.
Fluttershy: She's the one that changed the most from how I designed her all those years ago. She's kind of all over the map in terms of how people think she might dress - oversized and nondescript to avoid drawing attention, like a hippie, more practical… but one thing that often gets forgotten is that in the early show, she's shown to have an intimate knowledge of and interest in fashion, including specific styles (s1e14 Suited for Success) (this is contradicted in a later episode, but I think this one was more iconic). I know it was more for the gag than anything, but that does mean that it's an established fact in-universe. She has a sense of fashion and strong fashion preferences! Now unfortunately I couldn't take a ton of inspiration from the specific styles she mentioned, as they were more event-wear than day-to-day clothes, but I did take some elements from it - sure she might not be wearing a ballgown silhouette out every day, but maybe she likes those types of patterns, those color families, those necklines, those fabrics… I saw lots of low, straight-across necklines, and intricate patterns, as well as deep colors. Also, just based on her Gala dresses, she seems to enjoy turquoises and teals, as well as obviously more nature-y themes. So I gave her an organic pattern on her skirt, some knit detailing on her almost capelet-like sweater, and stitching on her boots (which. let's be honest she does need to be a little practical). A stone on her choker to elevate it a bit and bring the black up. Black painted nails to match that too. That's the other thing - style-wise she does seem to have a bit of edge to her. So I gave her just a little edge. Her knowing fashion and looking good day-to-day also makes sense with the fact that she's been scouted as a model multiple times (if she hid her body in shapeless clothes, she would be way less likely to be noticed). This segues nicely to her body type - with her being scouted as a model, and the fact that she was tall and thin as a filly, it makes tall and thin the obvious choice (not that you can see the "tall" here). I'm also partial to trans!Fluttershy so that may have fed some of the fashion choices I made for her - a choker and a shirt with shaping elements that emphasizes the bust. I also gave her some subtle tan lines because she spends a lot of time outside with the animals.
