Moda oda radosti is an art, fashion and book blog whose aim is to celebrate all things beautiful. Focused on sustainable fashion, art and travel, this blog aims to find joy in everyday things.
Metallic Dress in Biograd na Moru: Friday Fashion Illustration
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Hello dear readers and fellow bloggers! In this post, I'll share a new fashion illustration with you. I've made this illustration in the morning, so it's as fresh as it can be. This fashion illustration is a mixed media one. To create this fashion illustration, I have mostly used watercolour pencils, but I also added some gold glitter acrylic paint at the end. The reason for this is that the dress I pained is a metallic dress with this golden shine, so mixing the media made sense, but more about that later. The outfit I illustrated is actually a wedding guest outfit I wore back in April when I attended my cousin's wedding in a seaside Croatian town named Biograd na Moru. If we would translate the name of this Croatian seaside city to English, it'd be- A White City By the Sea. This is actually a historical town, even if it is quite small. It is located near Pirovac, Zadar, Šibenik and Krka National Park.
So, what shall this post be about? As you perhaps can assume, it will be a mix of art, destination and fashion talk. I will write about art, fashion, travel, tradition and history. I will walk you through the making of this particular fashion illustration and say a few things about art in generally. Moreover, I'll basically discuss this outfit and the location through the lenses of sustainable outfit and sustainable travel. Speaking of the location, there will be some talk of history and tradition. That's about it! Scroll down, so we can get into it!
a collage (left fashion illustration /left photograph reference)
Let's start with the art part of this post, that is the illustration in the question. Below I have prepared a little gif showing you the art process. As you can see below (but also above if you check the collage), I have drawn this fashion illustration using a reference photograph. The reference photograph was taken by my husband in front of Illyria, one of the hotels in Biograd na Moru. I'm wearing a metallic dress, black tights and stilettoes, and that's what I illustrated. I didn't really plan anything before setting to illustrating this. By that I mean that I wasn't attempting a certain style or trying something new. I suppose the best way to describe my process is to say that I freestyled this one. I didn't really think of what kind of effect and I was trying to achieve or trying something new. I set to illustrating without thinking much.
The process of making a fashion illustration can differ depending on what kind of medium you're working with, what art tools you are using and so on. For this illustration, I worked with watercolour pencils (Steadler brand, not sponsored) on mixed media paper from my sketchbook (Royal Talens, not sponsored). There is more than one way to approach using watercolour pencils. You can use them on their own and just draw with them like with regular coloured pencils. You don't even have to add water, you can just leave it as it is. I rarely do that, usually I add water. By adding more water, you're making it more soft, by adding less more defined. You can also create your own watercolour palette with watercolour pencils just by drawing on a spare piece of paper (or the paper you're using). Anyway, I already talk about all of this in my last post, so feel free to check that one. The making of the fashion illustration gif is coming right up. I slowed down the gif to 60 seconds because some of my readers complained of my gifs giving them a headache. I can slow it down a little more if that helps, but if gifts in general bother you, just scroll down past the next gif.
A Painting GIF showing the art process of making a fashion illustration
For this illustration, I drew the general outline and then I added more details. I'm not sure how much time it actually took me, about an hour, I'd say. I did not exactly time myself, you know. Within that hour, probably as much as half an hour was spend on preparing the supplies, washing the brushes and taking photographs of the process itself. I also made videos of the process. I mean art takes time. Prepping to do art takes time, too. Cleaning your work station when you're done with your art projects takes time as well. Everything takes time.
I drew the general outline with a brown watercolour pencils. After that I switched to a black watercolour pencils to fill in the hair and the dress. I used black for the oversized sunglasses as well. I misplaced this pair and I miss it dearly. I'm almost as blind as a rat in bright sunshine. I don't know what it is but some day that very dark or very light eyes struggle the most with bright light. My eyes are a very dark brown and I always had this problem. Anyhow, the colours I was using were not completely accurate, but I wasn't exactly going for realism in this illustration, so I didn't care. The framed painting you can see in the background is not the original (I wish). More about that some other time.
When it comes to skin, I mostly used brown, orange and a light yellow. There isn't a pink in this set, and while purple would work as an undertone, I was afraid it would be to dark because the reference photograph for light. In the reference photograph, I'm standing in the bright sun, at around one pm, so obviously my skin tone is a bit washed out. I have an olive complexion, but it bright sunshine it won't come off as such. Still, I don't run away from bright light when it comes to photography. I mean every kind of light has its cons and pros, but that's a discussion for another day.
As I said, I wasn't going for realism, but I still wanted the colours to make sense in the context of the reference photograph. When it came to the pose, I didn't copy it exactly either. I went for a more neutral pose as opposed to the one where I was almost taking a step forward in the reference. The legs are a bit closer together in the illustration then they are in the reference photograph. The position of the arms is about the same as in the reference, one hand is slightly lower but I might change that up some day....or leave it as it is. Basically, the body position is similar but not exactly the same. The head position is a bit different. There are small difference because I didn't try to copy the pose exactly, I took it more as a general inspiration.
What I did try to capture was the shape of the dress. This dress has a V cut and it is basically a sort of a wrap dress. Wrap dresses are known to be flattering. What about this one? It is a very flattering dress. It would look good on me even when I lost weight. It pays off to have this kind of dress in one's closet. As I was working on the drawing, I kept adding black lines, trying to capture that wrinkles of the dress. Most clothes will have wrinkles and folds, and I try to capture that in my illustrations. Wrap dresses have more texture folds due to their cut, so I paid attention to that while drawing. I also added some yellow and purple to the dress I illustrated. This dress is actually a metallic one, so it has a metallic gold shine to it. In is not exactly black, when looked at from afar it looks more bronze because of the metallic gold shine. I did not feel like working on the details too much. Once I was happy with the general look of the illustrated outfit, I started adding the background.
More posts with illustrations made with watercolour pencils:
I wasn't sure whether I want to add the background or not, and in the end I settled for adding background shades of sorts. I captured the shade that was with me, and the contrast with the yellow sun. I didn't illustrate the hotel behind me, Instead I just went in with some dark blue. After that, I started applying water. I made some mistakes along the way, but I managed to correct them in time. This is not a big illustration, the format is A4, and the illustration does not take that much space on it. So, I didn't have much space for the face details.
All in all, it is not a very detailed illustration. I tried to keep some things true to the original reference. For example, I wore tights with this dress. That is why I coloured the legs with orange first, and glazed it with black later. You can glaze over watercolour pencils easily. They basically stick to the paper when they dry. They do not mix like regular watercolour. You can mix the colours but only while they are wet. Once they are dry, watercolour pencils do not mix. However, this actually makes glazing with paint easier. What is glazing with paint? It is basically applying a lighter, often almost transparent layer of paint. It is done on a completely dried surface, so it is not colour mixing but rather applying another layer of paint over a dry layer of paint. It can be used for a variety of reasons. In this case I used it to create the illusion of tights, that is of warm undertone under the black paint.
Below I have placed the making of the fashion illustration sketch in four steps, even if it really not finished in the last one because I haven't applied water to be background. I also did not apply the black for the tights in the last collage. Still, it is an almost finished version. However, I missed one key ingredient. What was that, you might ask?
The making of a fashion illustration in four steps
As I was close to finishing this fashion illustration, I remembered that I have some gold glitter acrylic paint. Basically, I have this tube of transparent gold glitter acrylic paint (no name, it cost an euro in local TEDi shop). So, I used that to create the metallic gold shine to this dress.
I have also made some videos of the process, so if you're more of a video person, you can check out these two YouTube Shorts. The first video is the video showing the process of making the illustration.
The second video is just a final look of the illustration plus me talking about the illustration:
A little mixed media moment. Personally, I like mixed media. Sometimes it can be fun to mix the media. Watercolour pencils in themselves are a sort of mixed media. I have used many things to paint in the past. Of course, you can create anything using any art medium. However, sometimes combing different art tools will give you a desired result more quickly. Creating mixed art media can be enriching in many ways. It can be a way of utilizing all of our art supplies and not wasting anything. It can feel like a short cut to a desired result. When it came to this one, I won't lie- adding the gold paint felt a but like cheating. After all, I didn't create this effect the hard way, by working for it by preplanning the places where I could create the illusion of the metallic fabric. Instead I just added gold glitter almost as an afterthought. Well, in all honestly, it was an afterthought. Upon finishing this illustration, I remembered I had gold glitter paint, and I could use it, so I did. It did feel like a short cut, but I also felt fun.
Art can be so exhausting, I really think it is important to just have fun sometimes, you know? Surprise yourself! Not limit yourself to doing everything the same way or sticking to the same rules. Try to make your life easier something. Exploit an art tip or an art hack if you can.
I'm not saying that we should not be critical. Believe me, I'm critical. I wouldn't be getting better if I wasn't. Not that I'm always getting better or being critical in the right way. It is hard to avoid mistakes in life. I do pay attention and I think about different things I should have done. However, it is so easy for this thinking to turn into something overly negative. You paint something realistic and feel it's not artistic enough. You paint something artistic and feel it's not realistic enough. You mute your colours and feel like your painting lack life, you use saturated colours and feel you're done to far. I mean if you're looking at things that way, that's not exactly constructive criticism.
I'm trying to find a balance between overly positive and overly negative in regards to my work. It is important to consider different factors. Not just in art, but in life. Finding a balance isn't easy. I guess it is because it requires us to actually use our heads and that takes effort. Our mind has this tendency to go on autopilot. Have you noticed that? Thinking calmly, critically and while taking everything into consideration? Not an easy task for sure.
More creative and mixed media art ideas- let's talk about sustainability.
Sustainability in art can mean many things. For me sustainability in general has to do with the way we treat one another and this world, it's about mindful and grateful for what we have. What is more mindful than art? Great art has infinite value in itself. Any kind of art has value in itself. Consumerism and art are usually not words that are used together. Art is the antithesis to consumerism.
Still, there are ways for art to be even more sustainable. For example, we can use recycled materials to make art or to do fashion projects. I have done this many times in the past! There are eight examples of below, follow the links and check them out....
Do you like fashion illustration? Have you tried it yourself? Do you know any fashion illustrators? What kind of illustrations do you like? Do you have a favourite illustrator?
If you happen to like fashion illustration, there is a lot of it on my blog. You can sort of follow my journey as an artist on my blog. Here are some fashion illustration links ( I have more than a 200 published posts on my blog, and most of them feature more than one illustration so the number is probably close to 1000) :
Shall we now talk about the outfit? Sustainable fashion files and all that? Yes, I did shop my closet for this wedding guest outfit. Croatian weddings in general are very formal in terms of attire. You're expected to dress up. There are always exceptions of course, and some might want to do a small wedding but generally speaking a wedding in Croatia is a very formal and social affair. I'll talk a bit more about it later, this is just to give you a general idea of the dress code.
While shopping my closet, I was looking for something formal, but also flowy because I wanted to dance the night away. I felt like wearing something that will be both dressy and comfortable. So, I settled for this dress that I have worn to many weddings. How many? Maybe half a dozen. In fact if you browse my blog, you'll find out just that.
I wore this stilettoes for much of the day, but in the afternoon, I changed into black kitten heels so I can walk and dance more easily. I do love these stilettoes and I often wear them with this dress.
Let's break down this outfit, shall we?
The metallic gold dress (old, I bought it in an outlet shop in Međugorje and it cost me 2.5 euros):
Now, when we have talked the fashion talk, we can talk the location talk as well. Below you can see the view from the hotel we spent the day night. The hotel was booked by my cousin, and she also works for this hotel. She's some kind of environmental engineer. I'm not sure exactly what she does, but she works for this hotel. The hotel room was lovely. We had a nice breakfast there. I would consider staying there, although generally I prefer private accommodation to hotels. It's just my personal preference. I've always preferred renting from private individuals.
This is not my first visit to this area. My father is from this part of Dalmatia, and so is his side of family, many of whom still live here. Often I visit this area when I'm invited to family gatherings, sacrament celebrations of all kinds (including the weddings). This time it was my cousin, and not too long ago, it was her father. I remember her father's wedding like it was yesterday! Those of you who follow my blog have already had the opportunity to see some of my travel post, from this area, but for those who are new, here are the links:
During my first documented visit on my blog, I wrote that this is a great place to spend one's vacation and I stand by that. Apart from its history and culture, Biograd na Moru is known for its beautiful beaches and delicious cuisine. There are many wonderful restaurants there. The prices even seemed a bit lower than in other parts of Croatia. Of course, the prices differ year to year and a place to place. Still, on overall they seem to be more on the affordable side in Biograd na Moru. Our stay in 2021 was quite short, so we tried only two of them but we enjoyed our dinning experience there. You can find more information about this touristic city on its official site Biograd na Moru.
We visited Biograd na Moru in 2021 with the purpose of meeting my family members. My husband and I spent three lovely days in Biograd na Moru. We actually managed to do a lot of social things, visiting a number of my family members, so it was an active vacation. We did a lot of walking too. The sea was a bit too fresh for my husband, but for me it was just perfect. I took a short swim at one of the lovely beaches there. In this post from 2021, I showed you around Biograd na Moru, what I wore for our walks as well as share a few pics from our apartment.
In this post, I showed you beach outfits from my 2021 visit to Biograd na Moru. This year I won't be sharing beach outfits, as I visited Biograd na Moru in April. Maybe I will visit it again this Summer and then I might share that.
The view from the hotel we stay in Biograd na Moru
One of things that always amazes me about Dalmatia are the views: the islands, the coasts, the mountains, the sea....I could never get tired of it. If you visit Dalmatian rivera, you'll know what I'm talking about. The sea views here are something else.
Where is Biograd na Moru located? In immediate vicinity of Zadar city. Finding it is easy as it is a seaside town, situated along the the main road Zadar - Split. I mean you cannot miss it if you tried. It could be said that Biograd na Moru is one of the central points of this part of Dalmatian riviera. This part of riviera consists of charming little places and villages such as: Petar na Moru, Turanj, Sv. Filip i Jakov, Pakoštane and Drage. There is definitely a lot to see and experience here. I would also recommend Sv. Filip i Jakov, a small seaside place that is just as charming (and where I also have relatives). Both Biograd na Moru and the surrounding area provide excellent opportunities for sea related activities, sports and sailing. In fact, this place is simply ideal for nautical tourism and sailing. Moreover, there are three national parks in Vicinity of Biograd na Moru: Paklenica, Kornati Archipelago and Krka. If you like national parks, this is a place for you.
What does the tourist board have to say about this place? They emphasize that the season starts of at first of May , highlight gastro event in June and the street music festival. On the official Biograd site, they also talk about the rich cultural heritage. The tourist board also emphasizes the history of Biograd na Moru, and that is certainly an interesting history! Not many small towns can boost with such an interesting history. Biograd na Moru was a royal Croatian town back in the day. It was the official seat to Croatian kinds and bishops for some time in the middle ages! Here is a link to the official tourist site: https://www.discover-biograd.com/en *
Below you can see me in front of the church of Saint Anastasia (sveta Stošija in Dalmatian dialect). The church dates back to the eighteen century. This saint is the official protector of Biograd na Moru. I don't know if you can see, but at this point in the day, I switched my stiletto heels for black kitten heels. Like all the items in this post, these heels are old. I have worn them to bits!
This parish church of Saint Anastasia is really beautiful. I liked it a lot. Saint Anastasia is one of those saints that are venerated in almost all Cristian traditions, that is all Christian traditions that approve of saint worship. Saint Anastasia is a really popular saint in Dalmatia. I remember seeing painting devoted to her in some of the old church I visited as a child in Dalmatia. I was always drawn to these paintings as she looked very serene. As with most saints, Anastasia's life is shrouded in mystery. Little is reliable known about Anastasia personal life, and she is believed to be killed in Diocletian's prosecutions.
Anyhow, this historical church certainly catches the eye. What else to see in Biograd na Moru? The tourist board also recommends historical churches of Saint Rocco and Saint Anthony as well as a number of monuments. We did see quite a few interesting statues and monuments while we wondered around.
We enjoyed our stay, even though I was feeling quite tired. This year was quite challenging for me, with a lot of moves and what not. Still, I was happy I managed to attend this wedding. Sometimes you just have to push through, you know.
A monument to a local priest who was beloved by local people hence the monument
Do you want to explore more of Dalmatia? I published hundreds of posts about Dalmatia (a region in Croatia), but here is a selection of 11 posts showing different places in Dalmatia.
I'm officially on my vacation, and honestly I kind of hate it. I'm trying to squeeze everything I want to do in a short span of time, and I end up feeling stressed a lot. I spend most of my time making art, and it feels like having two full time jobs. I thought making this fashion illustration will give me a nice rest from my art projects, but it didn't happen because my mind just keeps working. Sometimes there is no magical change of perspective you can employ to make yourself feel better. I have a lot of art projects on my mind and I'm feeling exhausted. There's nothing to do there, but endure it. Maybe I should just take a day to do nothing. I might do that. However, not today. Today I have a lot of work to do. Vacation time is a busy time when you're creative. I mean, I'm not complaining, because nobody is forcing me to be creative. I'm just saying it is hard!
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