TOP CUSTOMIZER ROUND 1- VOTING NOW- ONE DAY ONLY!!

[Saja]

Well seeing were also allowed to vote, I went with Gotbunny, for the same thing, The detail in her pony and her paragraph! great work everyone tho, was great to see them all!

[Dee_Kary]

Great first assignment everyone! They are all so inspiring and beautiful!!

[enchantress41580]

Just so ya'll don't think I'm some sort of Simon Cowell or anything, lol,  I was very happy with all entries and loved seeing what you all came up with. It sounds like an easy assignment, but when it comes down to it, how does one really express themselves? That's a toughie. So kudos to you all and lovely ponies all around!! Can't wait to see what everyone comes up with for round 2!

[Kazzellin]

Wow, there's quite a few here! *raises eyebrows* Many of these I like, some of them I don't.

Kalavista's is very demure; the colors work wonderfully together, and the pony overall gives a sence of elegance. My only complaints about her are that the hair is not styled (but then, a lot of these ponies have that same thing going, so~ *shrugs*), and the earrings technically aren't in her ears. Being the jeweler that I am, I would prefer to have earrings actually be in the ear; these are attatched to the temple area. On the other hand, I've never tried giving a pony earrings, so who am I to say how difficult it is to get them into the plastic? The ears are pretty much solid plastic.

Sarahlacewing's custom is very cute - the little wolf cubs are adorable - however, given the background color she used, it's very difficult to determine the colors used for the paint splatter without reading the description. To me, the red used looks more brown. Also, if these are her favorite colors, why aren't they also in the hair? (And again, the hair is unstyled, but I've already said many of them have this affliction, so meh.)

Assassin_kitty ... Really, my only critique of your pony is that it fails to capitvate my interest because we've seen you make ponies list this many, many times. I understand how it captures "you," and the colors are wonderfully vibrant, the kawaii bird is of course cute, but ... if we put this pony with a lot of your other customs, I don't feel that it would stand out. Then again, I'm not sure whether this whole contest is about stepping out of your comfort zone of not; not at this stage, anyway.

Saja's custom is... Busy, I think describes the issue I have with it. There are a lot of animals here (and all of them explained, which is nice, though I'm not quite sure what O/H stands for; the H is probably Husband, but this is mainly me being clueless. )... Actually, no. My main issue is the balance of colors. Granted that the pony's base color is pastel, and she has the spots of color on her hooves, and tracings of gray and brown/black in her hair, but you have a lot of bright, bold colors in her hair, and darker, natural tones on the pony itself. This kind of makes it lack cohesion, in a way. Granted the crimping is nice, and the animals are quite well done, but there's not enough balance between the colors. If you designed a kitchen with the hair colors in the floor, walls, and cabinets, then had black and white appliances and a black or butcherblock countertop, they wouldn't fit either. You need to bring those spots of darkness into the rest of the room using picture frames, drawer pulls and the faucet, or they become the focal point instead of the colors you've done the rest of the room is, or the whole of the room itself. Not quite a perfect anology, but I hope you get the ghist.

Ambar_Jul ... The pony is very pretty, the wings are a neat switch form the usual butterfly and bird wings, and I like how you've added some traditional work - culture has a very big forming of who we are, after all - but for you to not call yourself an artist just because you may not have any technical classes under your belt is insulting yourself. You may not know why you added the orange, but it does go with the traditional art you've chosen. And painted with gradients better then I feel I could do myself, I might add. Which makes me wonder... Something I won't ask. Right. Moving on...

Tsukikakushi - Yes, life is fluid, and people can change from one day to the next, even one hour to the next. Alas, this pony doesn't really do anything for me. Black dots and swirling shapes; there's change in the implied movement, but aside from your philosophy on life, neither this pony nor your description tell a lot. Did you select the red for the hair to represent fire, and the change it brings? Is it one of your favorite colors? Why just black? If you're gonig to talk about change, I would expect the colors to do some changing also, instead of just dancing.

Sanadaookami - Okay. The dress is nicely done - very cute - and the colors are interesting, though I'm sure I'm not the only one who has noticed that these are very close to the colors for Red Roses; including the poofy hair. How are these colors significant to you?

Icy_Gypsy - I love the cutie you gave this pony. Painting lines and musical notes certainly matches you. What I question is the hair color selection and the lack of defining lines around her eyes. Yes, the colors in the hair are darker jewel tones, but I feel you went too dark. I know some people don't like using defining lines - there are many wonderful eyes done without them. Those eyes use more gradients and blend the colors together, though, even if they're not using a black pupil, like your pony here. Combine the two tone eyes with the angle they're set at - the pony looking at her cutie - and it reminds me of being glanced at by an evil clown.

Gotbunny: I love what you've done here. The description - why you chose both the generation and pose that you did, the reason for the little bunnies and organized chaos that can be a paint mess. The little footprints your bunny boys leave on you (and perhaps the carpeting), to paint brush in your mouth and the way the paint spilled on your back subtly changes color. I feel this pony fits, and fits very well. You get my vote.

I hope I wasn't too critical in my criticism; hurt feelings is never my goal. I tend to be less erm... candid? when I am up late, though, and it's quite past my bedtime where I am. And since my commentary is most likely going to annoy someone (prepare for backlash! Mayday, mayday!).... Yeah. *flees*

[Saja]

O/H means otherhalf. But you guessed that anyhow.
And I enjoyed reading your critisisms! your points have been noted! 

[murbella64]

Well guys, lucky you...my computer fried over the weekend and this is the first time I could check in:(  Forgot to unplug the computer, so this is me at work saying I won't be able to check in still for another few more days until we get ours replaced.  Alas, I worked hard on her and she is a gift, so the pics will be up on my DA in a while, just not until we get everything squared away.  Good luck to everyone.  I wish I could see all your lovely work, but there's only explorer 6 at work and it is being very problematic.

[enchantress41580]

Contestants please check your pm's.

[Sarahlacewing]

This was a fun first assignment.  I think they all came out really beautiful.  Sanadaookami I particularly like that skirt you made. Looks gorgeous on her.

[WaePonies]

Wow xD these are soo awesome <3


Assassin_kitty I totally love your pony <3 shes so happy looking and reminds me of my best friend <3 Shed totally love her

xoxo

[enchantress41580]

the contestants made a vote and majority agreed to allow Murbella64 back in the competition. There will be no elimination this round, however the votes will be kept in the event of a tie- the votes from this round will be added to the tie votes as a tie-breaker. Starting Round 2- all contestants must meet the deadline- no exceptions (unless in hospital or death in family).

[Sanadaookami]

Sanadaookami - Okay. The dress is nicely done - very cute - and the colors are interesting, though I'm sure I'm not the only one who has noticed that these are very close to the colors for Red Roses; including the poofy hair. How are these colors significant to you?

My right up was a bit short- originally I had explained every thing however when trying to send it in I kept losing everything due to the area servers being busy. After about 10 failed attempts and with one a few min to the deadline I was just trying to get something in. Also typing lengthy paragraphs one handed is not fun :/ So hear is some of what you missed
I originally picked 3 of my favorite colors for her- Light mint green, baby blue and pink. Her eyes got the blue because I use baby blue circle lenses all the time so her eyes look a lot like mine
I wanted her to be in a dress because I work as a dress maker and I never ever go out in anything but my creations. Her dress is a tinny version of one I'm working on for myself, all the little bits are scraps form mine and this is when I traded out her body color from Mint green to yellow because the green just wasn't sitting right with the red of her dress.
I also dye about 1/4 of my hair to be a gradient white to hot pink just like hers and I love-love-love big curly hair~ I did perfume puff hair because its my favorite and I wont lye it was easier for me to do one handed- I found traditional re-rooting imposable with my arm still in a sling. Instead it was applied as if I was making a new wig for one of my ball joint dolls.
My dresses really are one of the biggest parts of my life and I know not many people hear know about that so I decided to focus on it for this girl

[tikibirds]

Oh wow....I loved them all 
I'm just gonna pick my top 3 and say why I pick them

But my 3 favs are:

Assasin Kitty - loved the wild colors and the cute birdie. Since you are known for the cyber ponies and the assignment was "you" = I think it was a good choice.

Sanadaookami - Love the victorian dress idea

Gotbunny- very different from other entries and loved the overall design.

[Griffin]

Amazing entries, everyone! I'm finally able to make some comments on all the ponies, a few days after the voting.

Lets' start with my favourite; I voted for Sarahlacewing. I think her custom is not only nice to look at but also works on many levels, it's a great combination of favourite things (surface level) as well as details symbolizing deeper aspects of her personality and things that are important to her. Even before reading the paragraph I found the colour scheme and the splattering interesting, and I love that this pony represents the many sides of Sarah - the pony collector/the custom artist and the loving mother, without neglecting her personal interests and characteristics. My only critique concerns the aesthetic side of the design - I'd like the wolf cubs to be a bit larger, at the moment they're kind of hard to see and don't draw the viewer's eye, the pony is kind of missing a focal point and the overall design isn't as balanced as it could be. Nevertheless, it's a pretty pony and like I said, my favourite as a representative custom.

The rest in the order of the entries listed in the OP:

Kalavista: (I loved your mention of the custom pony fragrance. ) The pony is very pretty, the silver swirls are gorgeous and the overall design is balanced, and for everyone who's familiar with your work, it screams 'Kalavista'. However, I feel it only scratches the surface level - it's a nice representation of your work as a custom artist, but that's about it. It features your favourite things and it works perfectly as a signature pony kind of, something you could use to market your work (although it only shows a fracture of your talent!), but I would've loved to see some kind of deeper symbolism added in with the basic likes such as favourite colours.

Assassin_Kitty: Some of the comments I gave to Kala apply here, too. The pony is lovely and it's a good representative of your custom pony work, but if I hadn't read your description I would've thought it only another of your cyber ponies (which I do love!). The description helps in providing some deeper meanings for the cyber look and the bright colours which is great, and I love that you managed to incorporate your name in the symbol choice. All in all, it's a great custom but I wish you had gone deeper somehow, even if for a few additional details that had a more special meaning to you in one way or another.

Saja: Wow, that's a bright coloured pony! There's so much going on, but that only makes her name more fitting, she's full of life like a jungle. You managed to bring well together your love for animals and bright colours (and ponies, since they're all about bright and happy colours ^^), as well as include your closest family members. I love that this pony is like a portrait of your family, while being a cute animal themed pony for a non-informed viewer. You did a great painting job on the animals but, in my opinion, their realistic style and colours clash a bit with the pink and the bright rainbow colours of her hair. Not too much to make them look out of place, but maybe another body colour, or a slightly more cartoony or naivistic style on the animals would've helped in tying it together without losing the bright and happy look of the pony.

Ambar_Jul: She's a beauty! The fly wings were such a great and original idea, I guess most people who dream of flying would pick bird or angel wings to symbolize that wish. You said you didn't know why you added orange in her hair, but I think it adds to the idea of an "explosive" temper symbolised by the flames. Adding a bit of your culture was also a great idea, judging by your custom work I get the feeling that the Mexican culture is a big source of inspiration for you, even when it's not as clearly present as in some your customs, the "mood" is there... it's hard to explain! Anyway, the reason I didn't vote for this one was that even though she gives us a glimpse of who you are, I think you, too, played it a bit on the safe side.

Gotbunny: This would've been my second choice. Like Sarahlacewing, you managed to capture both surface levels and deeper meanings and make it into a coherent design that's also very interesting to look at. (Or maybe I just have a thing for splatters...? :'D ) What I really like is that even your bait choice has a meaning, or meanings. The bunnies are adorable and I love that they can be taken literally as a representation of your love for bunnies, and they also symbolise your children. The UV hair is a nice touch, a little detail in addition to the more meaningful aspects. I really don't have any suggestions for improvement or a particular reason as to why I didn't pick this one... in the end it was pretty much a question of personal preference and Sarah's pony just spoke to me more.

Tsukikakushi: I have to second Kazzellin here. The pony is pretty and I get the idea of constant change captured in the motion of the design, but in addition to the stylized symbols I'd like to see more of things that actually represent you - not only in the roles you mentioned but also who you are as an individual; what are your passions, your likes, what are you like? Many others I criticized for remaining at the surface level; here I feel it's the opposite. I can see there's symbolic meanings going on in the black swirls but I can only make some guesses as to what they mean, the whole pony remains pretty mysterious. Maybe that was on purpose, maybe it wasn't. In any case I would like the custom to be a little easier for the viewer to interpret, how else can s/he tell it's supposed to represent you?

Sanadaookami: She's a cutie! While I personally find the colour combination a bit odd (I'd prefer red + yellow without the pinks, or yellow + pinks without the red), the pony would look great even without any deeper meanings attached. I like that you chose the dress to be the focal point since the lolita/Victorian fashion and dress making is so important for you, and the fact that it's a copy of one you're actually making for yourself makes it even better. Does the pony have a painted symbol under the dress? If not, I think adding one would also add to this custom as a representative of yourself; I like that you focused on one of the major things in your life and incorporated your favourite colours, but adding a symbol that would introduce another interest or something would've made this pony even better.

Ice_Gypsy: I think this pony would work well as a persona. The hair colours are beautiful! I like the symbol a lot, it really does capture your love for music and painting, and the swirly pattern is a lovely personal touch. Also the colourful symbol and the multicolour hair represent your love for colours well, while the white body helps to prevent the design from becoming too busy. However, I'll have to repeat myself again: I would love to see more. Music, visual arts, colours - they're all quite general interests and I feel there's potential for going deeper and being a bit more specific in showing who you are, as an individual. But like I said, she does represent your interests and would make a great persona since the design is well balanced and pleasing to the eye.


Phew, that took me a while. I hope my comments don't make anyone disappointed or discouraged. It's not that I think I could do better myself, lol. It's always so easy to make comments like this retrospectively and easy to ask for more - I do understand that trying to put too much on one pony would easily make the design look crowded and incoherent. And I don't think it was stated in the original assignment that you should avoid playing it safe...? Since that was what I criticised in some of your customs. Anyway, despite my critique I do think they're all lovely ponies, and I can see the personal touch in each and every one of them. Great job! Looking forward to the next round. ^^

[Sarahlacewing]

Thank you for your comments! That's actually makes a lot of sense to me about finding a balance while maintaining an interesting focal point to draw the eyes along the pony.  I will definitely think about this in my next custom.  ^^

[Ambar]

thanks so much everyone for your comments, all of us in this competition we will take into account
I must say that I loved my partners entries, so see you in the next round