Help Creating an Original Character - Recoloring a Phicen Body

I decided today that I want to try and create my own figure of one of my original figures! I spent the majority of today browsing other posts on this page on how I can go about doing it but I wanted to create my own post where I can upload works in progress and perhaps get some help on my journey specifically!

Here is the character I want to try and create:






Most of the tutorials I see on here are for matching skin tones... so how would I go about making her a more unique color? And then on top of that how would I go about adding the spots and her belly area?

I was thinking either dying the entire body to try and get her base color and maybe using pastels to apply the belly portion and the spots, but I am concerned since the belly is a lighter color if it won't apply right. Alternatively I could precisely use pastels to color her body but the colors available to me are extremely limited and it may look more artificial.

For the head and feet I was probably just going to try and 3D print those pieces. I can use her cape to hide the seam where the body and neck connect. I just have to make sure I can model her face decently and try and paint it to match her body.

I'm still not quite sure about how I'm going to do her tail? Perhaps I could also 3D print that piece and just have it attached to her back somehow? I'm open to ideas!

I was thinking about using this body:

https://www.bigbadtoystore.com/Product/VariationDetails/39829

or this one:

https://www.bigbadtoystore.com/Product/VariationDetails/191004

I was trying to find a female body that has a pretty small bust. Unfortunately I can't seem to find anything smaller than this.


Here's a more realistic uncensored image of her that I actually have as a tattoo on my right shoulder
https://d.furaffinity.net/art/fr0stbitt3n/1615584664/1615584664.fr0stbitt3n_trent_tieso_-_tattoo__cropped_.jpg

Hi, check out my response to your other post, and the Painting Seamless bodies thread.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2799p45-star-wars-the-further-adventures-of-darth-maul-updated-with-part-iii-may-2021#74854

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2773-star-wars-updated-darth-maul-custom-part-v-maul-3-0-updated-may-13-2021

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t260-painting-seamless-bodies-nsfw

In short, yes, oil pastel is probably the way to go, more details in the painting thread. If you wanted a simply dull black body, TBLeague has produced some "Egyptian" goddesses in that color, and you could possibly find some of these bodies parted out. Or you could use those as a base for recoloring, although recoloring a lighter body would also work (and these are more easily available and more affordable). Some of the "Egyptian" goddesses hands and feet might be useful too. There is a new, relatively tall, relatively small-chested seamless body announced by TBLeague.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t5183-new-product-tbleague-s46-47-month-body

But it is not yet available.

GubernatorFan wrote:Hi, check out my response to your other post, and the Painting Seamless bodies thread.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2799p45-star-wars-the-further-adventures-of-darth-maul-updated-with-part-iii-may-2021#74854

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2773-star-wars-updated-darth-maul-custom-part-v-maul-3-0-updated-may-13-2021

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t260-painting-seamless-bodies-nsfw

In short, yes, oil pastel is probably the way to go, more details in the painting thread. If you wanted a simply dull black body, TBLeague has produced some "Egyptian" goddesses in that color, and you could possibly find some of these bodies parted out. Or you could use those as a base for recoloring, although recoloring a lighter body would also work (and these are more easily available and more affordable). Some of the "Egyptian" goddesses hands and feet might be useful too. There is a new, relatively tall, relatively small-chested seamless body announced by TBLeague.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t5183-new-product-tbleague-s46-47-month-body

But it is not yet available.

I looked a lot in all those threads you linked! To clarify though you colored that Maul v3 using only markers? That's impressive! And there was no overlap issues (kinda like when you overlap markers on paper it creates a darker hue)?

My concern with doing pastels is the blending and the actual technique. Do I grind them up into dust and rub them on, or apply the pasted directly to skin and "color" it? Will I be able to layer different colors on top of it (like the lighter belly color) or can I not go dark to light?

I bookmarked that new body on BBTS already and might buy it here soon. i actually bought my GF the Month figure for her birthday (made some mods to have her topless; used pastels for the nips) and its great! My concern with that body is its too dark, plus the bust is too big for my liking.

GubernatorFan wrote:Hi, check out my response to your other post, and the Painting Seamless bodies thread.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2799p45-star-wars-the-further-adventures-of-darth-maul-updated-with-part-iii-may-2021#74854

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2773-star-wars-updated-darth-maul-custom-part-v-maul-3-0-updated-may-13-2021

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t260-painting-seamless-bodies-nsfw

In short, yes, oil pastel is probably the way to go, more details in the painting thread. If you wanted a simply dull black body, TBLeague has produced some "Egyptian" goddesses in that color, and you could possibly find some of these bodies parted out. Or you could use those as a base for recoloring, although recoloring a lighter body would also work (and these are more easily available and more affordable). Some of the "Egyptian" goddesses hands and feet might be useful too. There is a new, relatively tall, relatively small-chested seamless body announced by TBLeague.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t5183-new-product-tbleague-s46-47-month-body

But it is not yet available.

I guess the advantage to using the markers is I can use those same colors on the hands and feet so there won't be much of a difference in tone.

Fr0stbit3 wrote:I guess the advantage to using the markers is I can use those same colors on the hands and feet so there won't be much of a difference in tone.

Well, one would think so, but I can tell you from experience that it's not quite so. Different materials absorb paint differently, so it might look a little different on the rubbery body and on the harder plastic parts. Moreover, the Gundam real touch markers did color the hands and feet ok, but they remained relatively easy to rub off when handling. Besides, given what you are trying to create, the hands and feet you end up using might be a very different color from the body anyway, and these markers (like acrylic paints) are not 100% opaque.

GubernatorFan wrote:

Fr0stbit3 wrote:I guess the advantage to using the markers is I can use those same colors on the hands and feet so there won't be much of a difference in tone.

Well, one would think so, but I can tell you from experience that it's not quite so. Different materials absorb paint differently, so it might look a little different on the rubbery body and on the harder plastic parts. Moreover, the Gundam real touch markers did color the hands and feet ok, but they remained relatively easy to rub off when handling. Besides, given what you are trying to create, the hands and feet you end up using might be a very different color from the body anyway, and these markers (like acrylic paints) are not 100% opaque.

Makes sense. I could always try to color match the hard plastic bits. The body is my main concern.

Fr0stbit3 wrote:Makes sense. I could always try to color match the hard plastic bits. The body is my main concern.

There are different methods of coloring the body, but for me the oil pastel remains easiest. Just give it some time and effort (or patience). You can make a reasonably close color match using acrylics (ideally mixed with some Liquitex ultra-matte medium or something like that) for the hard parts.

GubernatorFan wrote:

Fr0stbit3 wrote:Makes sense. I could always try to color match the hard plastic bits. The body is my main concern.

There are different methods of coloring the body, but for me the oil pastel remains easiest. Just give it some time and effort (or patience). You can make a reasonably close color match using acrylics (ideally mixed with some Liquitex ultra-matte medium or something like that) for the hard parts.

Alright I think I’ll go the pastel route. But I’m still wondering about the order of which I should do the colors? Should I color the entire body the medium grey first and then do the belly and spots? Or should I do the belly first since that’s the lightest and then color the body, and then the spots?

Fr0stbit3 wrote:Alright I think I’ll go the pastel route. But I’m still wondering about the order of which I should do the colors? Should I color the entire body the medium grey first and then do the belly and spots? Or should I do the belly first since that’s the lightest and then color the body, and then the spots?

I don't know that it's going to be easy, but yes, I think you go with the lightest color first (and you probably need only do the parts that will be in it), then the darker color (making sure now to leave no uncolored margin between it and the lighter color -- so maybe overlap it a little bit -- and be careful how you rub it in so that you have a reasonably smooth line at the border between the colors), then the dark (black?) spots. Those you an possibly also do with Gundam real touch marker. I say possibly, because in my experiments applying it on top of an oil-pastel-colored body I have not yet done more than just nipples. How well it works for larger areas may be different. With those, remember to soak up the extra ink/paint right after applying -- and while soaking up not to smudge; a lot of cotton q-tips will die that way.

As for the tail and skeletal structure, I'm not sure what to tell you. If you plan it right, perhaps the way to do it is to outline it with easily removable tape so that only the parts you want to cover with it are showing inside, then build it up with silicon glue with a little bit of Silc Pig white pigment mixed in. How you will do the tail is also beyond me, but if you know or learn silicon molding, presumably you can make one with wire armature to allow posing it inside. In the Tutorials section, there are even experiments (re)creating a TBLeague body from a mold.

GubernatorFan wrote:

Fr0stbit3 wrote:Alright I think I’ll go the pastel route. But I’m still wondering about the order of which I should do the colors? Should I color the entire body the medium grey first and then do the belly and spots? Or should I do the belly first since that’s the lightest and then color the body, and then the spots?

I don't know that it's going to be easy, but yes, I think you go with the lightest color first (and you probably need only do the parts that will be in it), then the darker color (making sure now to leave no uncolored margin between it and the lighter color -- so maybe overlap it a little bit -- and be careful how you rub it in so that you have a reasonably smooth line at the border between the colors), then the dark (black?) spots. Those you an possibly also do with Gundam real touch marker. I say possibly, because in my experiments applying it on top of an oil-pastel-colored body I have not yet done more than just nipples. How well it works for larger areas may be different. With those, remember to soak up the extra ink/paint right after applying -- and while soaking up not to smudge; a lot of cotton q-tips will die that way.

As for the tail and skeletal structure, I'm not sure what to tell you. If you plan it right, perhaps the way to do it is to outline it with easily removable tape so that only the parts you want to cover with it are showing inside, then build it up with silicon glue with a little bit of Silc Pig white pigment mixed in. How you will do the tail is also beyond me, but if you know or learn silicon molding, presumably you can make one with wire armature to allow posing it inside. In the Tutorials section, there are even experiments (re)creating a TBLeague body from a mold.

What do you mean by “soaking” the ink?

I was thinking for the tail just having it be a separate piece entirely. Casual power pose sort of thing and maybe utilize it as a stand for her cause know if she’s going to be bipedal she won’t be able to stand on her own

I have no other words of advice to offer other than what Ian has already offered -- he's the expert when it comes to "other than normal" skin tones, as he's done it quite a bit. I would however, suggest using acrylic paint on the hard plastic bit, like the hands, and mixing the paint as close as possible to the skin tone once you've reapplied powder to the skin -- since it will definitely have a slightly "cloudy" effect once the powder is back on. (Powder is an absolute necessity for these TPE/silicone bodies). Good luck, seems like a very cool project. I'll be curious to see how you pull of the feet.

Stryker2011 wrote:I have no other words of advice to offer other than what Ian has already offered -- he's the expert when it comes to "other than normal" skin tones, as he's done it quite a bit. I would however, suggest using acrylic paint on the hard plastic bit, like the hands, and mixing the paint as close as possible to the skin tone once you've reapplied powder to the skin -- since it will definitely have a slightly "cloudy" effect once the powder is back on. (Powder is an absolute necessity for these TPE/silicone bodies). Good luck, seems like a very cool project. I'll be curious to see how you pull of the feet.

I’m mostly just confused on the specifics of the methods. For example I’m not sure what GF means by “soaking” and I wanna make sure I have everything down before I start to avoid making potential mistakes.

I was thinking about using paint as well for the hard bits as well

Like Stryker said, acrylics are good for the hard plastic. They might still scratch, but you will be able to repaint them easily enough if necessary. And they are easier to mix in terms of getting the right matching color than oil pastels or any markers.

Why would she be unable to stand on her own if bipedal? Unless you mean the weight of the tail, she would/should come with detachable feet (and you kinda need those to use the special non-human feet for your characters) and these can stand on their own, unlike the seamless-ankled ones.

Read up on it in the Painting Seamless Bodies thread -- soaking up the extra ink on the surface when using Gundam real touch markers is needed so that the color can be absorbed successfully and "cure" (insofar as it does that fully) reasonably fast, reducing the likelihood of running of smearing all over the place. And using cotton q-tips is more precise than blotting away with a cotton ball or paper towel.

PS - paint wouldn't cure on top of the rubbery body, it would run/crawl. And if you use the trick to make it cure by blowing hot air at it with a hair dryer, it will crack and flake off later.