Christina Santa Claus

This picture really popped out at me. The colors are so bright! Hah, well. I'm not going to procrastinate anymore. Time for a critique!

Okay. Let's go by layer. THE BACKGROUND! I really like this background. It's very beautiful! You can obviously tell that you are looking at the Northern Lights and the shining starts that come through give it a bit of depth. Nice job on that.

Next I'll go to the actual girl. Anatomy. There are a few awkward things about her that I can see. First, her hand. Her first two fingers go down too far compared to her other fingers. I see that you may have been trying to show some of the lines on her hand, but that would be more effectively done with shading. The rest of the hand is very good and well drawn. Nest we have the issue of her face. Her forehead is much too far back on her face as compared to the lower portion of her face. Does that make sense? If it doesn't here's just a quick reference I found on here [link] . One other thing about her face would be her eye shape. Her eye is drawn from a full front view when it should be, how would you say it, slimmer. I guess you could look at the previous reference if I'm not making sense.

Then there's her clothers. i really, REALLY love the folds and wrinkles you drew on her hat and jacket, etc. The only thing i'd say would be to try to add more texture. I think a kind of velvety feel would be great for this picture. Just a suggestion. The ribbon around her wrist is lovely. My issue with it is the fluf on her hat (not so much the collar). It seems a bit weird and senseless. The random fuzz jutting out makes it look maybe uneven, like part of it has been shaved. It's a little awkward. <img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/a/a…" width="19" height="19" alt="" title="Sweating a little..."/> you should either just get rid of it alltogether, or draw more in. I'd also outline it in a color not as dark as black. Everything else looks lovely!

One thing I missed in anatomy. Her hair looks really nice. try making it a bit more smoothe-- like the shading in that hat. (I am IN LOVE with that hat ^^)

Lastly there is lines and shading. For the line art I'd say just to try doing more colors other than black. Variety is good. <img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/b/b…" width="15" height="15" alt="" title=" (Big Grin)"/><img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/b/b…" width="15" height="15" alt="" title=" (Big Grin)"/> Which brings me to my final point. Shading and contrast. All of the shading on this I love. Try making your light source more apparant. And then there is the point that I ALWAYS have something to say about. Highlights. This is an amazing thing. It just needs more shiny!! I must just be addicted to shiny things or something, but i always think there should be something sparkling. Like in her eye! I love that part because of the shiny. It makes me happy inside. Do more of that.XD

Now I know I have bagged on you a lot but it's just cuz I'm more picky than the average person! Plus you're up to a certain level where you can start working on more and more advanced techniques. And don't forget I love most of the things you have! The background, the eyes, The ribbon ESPECIALLY and HER HAT. I LOVE her hat. It just makes me happy inside whenever I look at it. <3

I REALLY hope i wasn't too hard on you. I'm kind of a picky little prick. Just tell me if I go too far! And, a word of advice I always say. Remember! Practice makes perfect~ ^^

(btw sorry for such a long critique. It appears I may have gotten a little bit carried away <img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/a/a…" width="19" height="19" alt="" title="Sweating a little..."/>)