Costume design: A question on colors.

I'm usually fairly decent with color combinations; but this new venture is throwing me for a loop, here. Purple and orange is a combination that I would associate with the setting sun... but what color would you put with it other than black (which is a shade, anywho)? I'm finding this one a toughie to answer. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Maybe a pale red or pink, to represent those days when there's a red sky at night?

Either that, or simply a paler shade of orange or purple?

I had tried red, and didn't much care for it... pink, though... Something like this?http://img391.imageshack.us/img391/4...0090828082.png


I think that's getting somewhere, at least.

I'm not a terribly picky person about costumes, but that one is.. um.. ew.

Have you tried using pieces that you can blend? I have a sunset-themed character that has pale yellow, orange and purple on various blends and it worked out pretty well.

I just went with black, in the end. There really aren't too many 'natural' pieces that can be blended together, I've found. Not many that I like, anyway.

Fair enough!

How's this for an alternate direction? http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/504...0090828091.png

Something still feels... off. I can't quite put my finger on what, however.

Did you think of trying out that outfit with Pastel Colors, with the Belt the color that you gave it, in that picture you put in your posting to this thread?

I know you said you didn't want to use legacy pieces but here's an example of the kind of sunset blend I was talking about.

Wo-hey! Sun, I love that costume design as a representation of the setting sun. It really has a very powerful theme when viewed in context. If I would go with anything, something of that nature would probably be it.

Serevus, I know you like a busier look, but I have to say that you're overdoing it the amount of colours you're using. The latter version of the costume is just far too busy to my eyes. Your costume pieces are so very detailed and with four colours spread around the whole costume, it's just hugely distracting. I am sorry to say this, but I can't agree with that design at all.

Personally, if it were me, I'd kill the purple altogether and replace it with black (or kill the black and replace it with purple). A pure black dress is quite stylish, and it does well enough representing the night. I'm not sure I'd have chosen a jacket at all, but since you want to keep it, I'd at least suggest going with the Butler variant. Or is that the butler variant?

It also seems you picked the Bridal top, but not the Bridal skirt. How come? Those two mesh well together, even if you don't give them Bridal patterns, and I suspect they'd enhance the look of a black skirt/top combo. I'm actually not sure you really need that belt, either. Yes, it makes things look a little more detailed, but it both kills the flow of the top and bottom (which is already hampered by the top being largely hidden) and makes the costume a little more busy than I think it needs to be. Detail is cool, but sometimes it can cost you style.

In fact, if you go with a black, belt-less dress, you can actually use the extended Bridal top, the one with the collar and chest net. That would give you a bit more of an over/under look by emphasising the to underneath the jacket. As they are right now, they feel like a zillion layers of the same suit, whereas if you can manage to visually differentiate top layers from bottom layer, it might actually click a little better.

Just as a thought experiment, if you go with pure black boots and gloves (without the golden bats) and a black skirt/top combo and restrict your orange and gold to just the suit jacket, you may be able to create an interesting duality concept that's actually be easier to parse at a glance and seem a bit more stylish. If that isn't an option, might I suggest making the dress black and the boots/gloves combo in the same orange/gold colour scheme? That way you can go the other way and tie the whole costume but the dress together, and then let it serve as contrast and base.

Basically, I'm operating off the standpoint that a costume ought to be detailed enough to be interesting, but not so detailed that it cannot be easily comprehended, because the eye tends to gloss over things that appear to be just an incomprehensible collection of colours. It is through defining shape and concepts visually that you get the eye to stop and the brain to think "Hold on! I think I know what this is. I need a closer look."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Purple and yellow, baby, all the way. With black racing stripes.



...I'm soooo pretty.



Freedom Force version!

...Man, I have that Champions character sheet around here somewhere...

Edit: Fixed.


Well, if it makes you feel any better; the versions I posted were only a couple of a few dozen. I did have some that used less colors, but wound up feeling too.. bright.. to me.









As examples.

As a whole, I'm pretty happy with the outfit. I suppose one person's definition of 'busy' is going to vary from another's... personally, this feels as if it's 'weighted' right, to me. It isn't 'too bare' - a dress with nothing over it (Which I am happy to use for alternate slots, but not for this particular design) - but yet it's not too 'loaded', either - like the old Bolero was pushing. I still feel as though there's something missing with the shoulders, however.

At this point, I'm quite ready to simply pin it on the lack of options we have in the 'natural' department that actually look halfway decent. It's becoming clear that I'm not going to be able to create the effect I want.

Also, the main reason I don't use the bridal skirt with the bridal top? You can color the bridal skirt's design - but not the bridal top. Even if I were to go with one solid color for both, that still bugs me to the point that using them together feels like a wasted opportunity.

P.S: I really like The Pulveriser's design. He really is 'pretty'.

P.P.S: I don't know. Maybe after almost four years, I've just run myself completely dry on 'natural' outfit ideas. I seem to have all sorts of dresses and suits and shirt/pants pairings in all sorts of combinations already; some of which have begun to resemble one another in all ways but colour. Maybe I should throw some of those out for ideas? I really do appreciate all the help, here, too. I'm just not really being 'struck' yet by anything in particular I suppose.

Update: I've taken a second look at a lot of these suggestions; and as a result, I've stepped back for a moment to re-evaluate the concept and take another approach from the basics on up.



This is what I'm tinkering with now.

Explore using the washed out or very dark or the pastel versions of the the colors. If you use several colors and they're all the same vibrancy, brightness, and saturation... it looks a bit like a box of crayons.

Hmnh. I may have to play with some monitor settings, then. SOme of that comes out as indistinguishable from black; but any more brightness and the brights become far too bright.

Wow, I thought purple+orange=eyebleed but that's actually pretty good.

I'd make the gloves and stockings orange, but that's just me.

Dark green.

I like all of the versions of the outfit you see posted in this thread, but, if you use mainly dark colors with dark skin, that just doesn't seem right to me. See, I found that dark colors show up better if the character has a lighter skin color as contrast, so why not try a lighter skin color on the character with the final outfit look and colors you decided to go with? You don't need a really light brown skin color, but try using a slightly lighter brown skin color than you're using right now, and see what you get. You just might like the look you get!