7 Ways to Rock Costume Designs for Your Original Characters

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[needsbread]

That’s it I’m creating a character that’s part of a futuristic mafia and there all going to wear bunny suits the higher you are in the mafia the more expensive your bunny suit is

[mauvecow]

There is one thing you brushed on: What mood was the charater in when they put on their outfit?

If the charater was/felt rushed when putting something like a school outfit then you could show that they didn't button their shirt right. If they just got of the gym and they are tired then maybe they put something on backwards.

Another thing you could do is mute the colors in their everyday attire to help show that they are distressed, or brighten them to show they're very happy about something. (If you do that though please mindful of how much you change the outfit; to much change can be distracting.)

It kinda ties into personality, occupation, and posing, so if you did mention somewhere in another ingore me.

[rougeakane]

Now I’m starting to wonder about my OC’s sense of fashion 😂

[mulherenascentista]

Well, Avatar is a great example of everything well done in a story.

[gregzac]

She atacc

She protecc

But most importantly...

She come bacc

[fragmentedmarrionette]

8: Color


This goes in so many directions, since color itself is so diverse and responses to them are subjective (re: my favorite color is blue, but I know someone who absolutely hates blue) but there are universal properties that can be applied to character design such as monochromatic color schemes vs complementary color schemes and warm vs cool colors to visually demonstrate a character's personality


Things like the distribution of color can greatly effect their costuming, and how it's accented with other colors. Red and purple and pink for example- look cute together but lean way too easily into making a character look like a valentine's day card or a member of the Red Hat Society, so one needs to be careful with the way these colors are used in order to make a successful character.


Color can also be used to signify allegiances or character arcs- my favorite example of this is Disney's beauty and the Beast, it's quite subtle because Belle is the only person in her village who wears blue and as the Beast's heart changes- leading to the ball room scene, he changes into a blue suit. This was also echoed in the 2017 live action movie with the character Lefou, as he too is dressed in blue when he has his change of heart- and change of sides.

And you can subvert expectations with color as well. The troupe Black is Evil, White is Good was completely obliterated in Dragon Heart (1994) with the hero Bowen dressed in black throughout the movie, while the villain Einon was clad in white.


Honestly I could go on and on about why picking the right colors go a long way toward rocking your character's costumes, but I already feel like I'm rambling so I'll just cut it off there

[coffeehousedialogue]

Even when you're not an illustrator, per se, this can still give you ideas. It is pretty much in line with any great author's philosophy: show, don't tell.

[janetai]

Two tips for costume and character design!

1. *Keep in mind the character's development as they progress through the story.* The character's design can indicate how a character changes throughout the course of the story. Whether that be perhaps their allegiance, outlook on life, parts of or even entire personalities, age, morals, and so on and so forth. For instance, a previously closed off character can wear duller and less showy or flashy clothing (like maybe a business suit, oversized clothing to hide their figure, etc), but as they open up, they start to wear more flowy and warmer colored clothing (like dresses, skirts, tank tops, etc).

2. *MAKE VARIATIONS.* A lot of times, it can be hard deciding on a design or aesthetic of costumes for your characters. What I would do is make variations of costume designs for your character(s) according to the setting of your story/world and choose which one(s) suit them best.

[mint]

Why is it telling me this will be out in Seven hours instead of not existing till 7 hours from now

[mnicorn]

Side note: If your character has an awful fashion sense then don't be afraid to have them wearing their awful fashion sense

[Cozmiczzz]

Me: literally just puts a shirt on my ocs

[MirandaJackson]

Symbolism is an interesting thing to look at when considering visuals. It is mentioned that the 20s are more characterized by boxy shapes, but boxy shapes in modern clothes can represent, for the author, a methodical behaviour. Yellow, in a different example, could be particularly common to children, representing childhood. It is a more subjective way of thinking and creating costumes, but I find it to be a quite interesting one.

[yeeeowwchh]

I make a lot of fantasy/monster/animal characters, so here is some things to help with that.


Think of their physique and body parts they have. Like a mermaid/fish character. Their clothes would probably be simple and possibly waterproof. Or maybe they wear a bathing suit underneath a jacket and shorts or something.


Body parts. Do they have fur/scales that cover certain body parts? Maybe they don't need to wear as much clothing, since some parts are already covered. What about their feet? Maybe they have hooves or paws, and don't need to wear shoes, or possibly just wear bandages over their feet. Do they have big wings? Maybe their clothes will have an open back. Do they fly? They will probably be skinny and have lighter, looser clothing that will not weigh them down. Be careful with scarves and wings, as a scarf could tie up in wings, and cause them to fall.


Anyway, that's that, hope this helps for all yall fantasy/anthro makers.

[arianamarie]

After almost a year of hiatus... I'm actually surprised to find this in my sub feed!

[emmakittycat]

You also have to keep in mind their preference (kinda talked about this but I found it important) Like if the character is used to being warmer or likes to be warmer they will most likely wear warming clothes. For example if your character came from a warmer climate and is now in a cooler climate then they're used to, they will probably wear warmer clothes then everyone else. I have a character who was raised in the underworld with all the fire and stuff. So when he moved in with his God father (pun intended) he bought himself a winter coat and just wears it all the time because it makes it feel like home to him. This won't apply to every one of your characters because humans arin't always like that but it's a fun detail.

[amethyst_cat]

Another very subtle thing: don’t just slap a random outfit on your character. Make sure the color palette of the clothing is compatible with your character’s natural color palette (skin color, hair color, eye color, etc). A lot of school uniforms tend to have less eye-catching colors because darker or more natural colors are more likely to compliment a wider range of color palettes. If an all-girls school had a primarily pink uniform, for example, it might fit thematically, but it’d look really terrible on a character with red hair.

[doodleyournoodles]

I really love the character design videos especially since I want to be a person who designs characters or storyboard artist love your Channel!😆😍💕❤

[bunnybunny]

I have been having issues coming up with official designs with my OCs, and as a result, I've been falling out with them. Thank you for this! I hope it can help. Not sure how the right-hand woman demoness and part-time bartender would dress, but we'll find out I suppose.
Thanks again!

[Braaaap.]

*why wasn’t this uploaded 5 years ago when I needed it most?*


great video btw!!

[seraphinasullivan]

Costume design gets really fun in two circumstances: when the character is relying on someone else for their clothes and when the character knows the rules of costume design.

When someone else is buying or making clothes for a character, it becomes a mesh of both personalities. Even if the providing character takes no consideration of the wants/needs of the character they're dressing, the clothes might be worn in a way that does conform to their wants/needs. When your character knows the rules, they change to suit the vibe they want to give off and every costume takes on qualities of a disguise