Start simple and build up

Powerful Mature Regal Elegant Opulent Futuristic Avante Garde Beautiful Exotic Other Worldly Sharp Clean Pristine Synthetic/ Organic

1 Is your character rich, middle class, poor? Artistic? Reserved? Overtly sexual? Just like in the real world, how a person dresses can tell you a lot about their story. Create a list of adjectives you would like to see conveyed in your final design, and keep them in mind as you draw. Doing this will help you find your way when you come to forks in the road. 2 I start with a base silhouette and draw on top of it, only focusing on the outline. By keeping things simple, I can quickly experiment with a lot of different ideas. Often I’ll use the edge to indicate something specific such as a frilly skirt, but other times I’m just drawing in triangles to see what my brain creates from the abstract shapes. 3 Once you have enough thumbnails that work, separate them from the rest and start adding in a second value. My usual approach is to create a new layer over the silhouettes and lock it so the outside edges remain true to the base. Let your mind fill in the details, always checking back in with your adjectives to make sure the concept is moving in the right direction. 4 With the major shapes in the thumbnails defined, choose the one that best exemplifies the feeling you’re looking for. Separate and enlarge it, turn down the Opacity of the layer, create a new layer on top of it, then start sketching over the twotone study. You can then try out different colours beneath the line work, although for this example the dress is black.