Yesterday and today I spent some time working on "Sneaky Peek #3", which several people are VERY interested in seeing completed. First, let me describe the progress thusly:
*I initially stopped working on it because I couldn't get the mouth right. Plus, I wanted to be sure about how I did all the fabric wrinkles in his half-off clothes. Sometimes, the best way to cure artistic problems is to put it off to one side and work on other stuff until you get the skills to go back to it.
*I think the first real step will be to redraw it onto a smoother, harder surface. You get really fine, sharp lines on smooth paper and I really, really like detail. Not to mention, thinner lines are much closer to doing art without lines altogether. I don't think I will go quite that far, but I do want to increase the appeal of what I do.
*I may also enlarge it, which will make details easier to render sharply. I've been studying the works of Hugh Ferris
hughferriss.deviantart.com/art…;, whose work is absolutely mind-blowingly gorgeous. His facial anatomy is not quite spot on, but everything else rocks my world! I highly recommend downloading the full version of the early pages and then looking at them blown up to gigantic size. There is a lot to be learned about how he did such incredible images. And one of those things is tiny lines.
*From there, I may hit another stopping point. I'm really good at inking and detail, but I am CRAP at digital coloring. This is an area that I need to understand a whole lot better, and if this image comes out like I think it will, it will deserve the very best color job I can throw at it.
It may take me awhile, but I never utterly give up on a piece once I start it. That's why I don't have a "Scraps" section. Every drawing is a stepping stone to the next better one, and even old stepping stones can be reshaped to build something useful.
Now, as for the clothes on InuYasha's back...
I did a bit of reading up on the subject of kimonos and the fabrics used in them and so forth so that I could come to some conclusions about what he wears and how he wears it.
Here's what we know:
1. According to one of the movies, InuYasha's father gave the fire rat coat to Izayoi to protect her from the fire while he fought with the man who had fallen for her.
2. We see in manga Chapter 14 "Mu Onna" or "Nothing Woman", that even as a very young child, he is wearing the very same coat as he does now. Does this mean that the coat can change with him as he ages?
3. The coat is said to be made of the "fur of the fire rat", which means that it is not an earthly fabric like silk or cotton, which is what kimonos were usually made of. We don't, however, know exactly what a fire rat is, nor how big it is. Knowing how large it is would tell me how long the hair fibers are and that would tell me what kind of fabric could be woven from it. Also, it's not described as having been woven from the "fur of fire rats", but rather the "fur of THE fire rat". That does tell me that the fire rat is a very large magical creature, especially if it only took one rat to make his coat.
4. To date, I have not found many references to fire rats except to quote this webpage (
www.usbridalguide.com/special/…) Quote: "Fire adds a bit of spontaneity and vigor to the already spirited Rat. These Rats like change and travel and are eager to start new projects or to take trips to exotic places. Fire Rats are likely to change their occupations and residences more often than most, and essentially shun any kind of routine. They can be anxious and impulsive, but their zest for life is quite irresistible, and they have the Rat's ability to along so well with others. Compared to other Rats, Fire Rats are likely to be more charitable, autonomous, and energetic and the least self-controlled."
That description sounds rather like our boy InuYasha doesn't it?
5. InuYasha has had his coat ripped to smithereenies a gazillion times and yet, within a short time, it seems to mend itself. No one is ever seen sewing it back together. I have concluded that one of the reasons fire rat fur was used to make the coat was that it not only was very resistant to burning or cutting, but that when worn by someone like InuYasha and powered by his own youkai energy, it can remake or mend itself; an ability that was given to it when it was initially made. The only time it would not be able to mend itself would be for the following reason:
6. In the manga chapter 81 "The Light in the Belly", InuYasha sees that his clothing is starting to come apart in the stomach acids. This is because his powers have left him during the new moon. Once his powers leave him, the coat loses its powers of protection and self-mending and becomes susceptible to destruction.
7. Under nearly every aggressive circumstance, his clothing is normally able to repel fire, acid, and some sword cuts.
8. It does not, however, repel water, and can get utterly soaked through.
9. Neither his coat (more correctly referred to as a "houri"), nor his pants (or rather "hakama"), are standard designs. They are instead, modified versions of clothing often worn by Shinto priests or priestesses.
10. His houri is NOT a kimono. Houri are made by modifying a kimono into a coat. Women can also wear houri, and in fact, shrine priestesses are said to wear them, though not in the same way that InuYasha does. He wears his clothes in a non-standard way.
11. In keeping with tradition, his sleeves are probably open full width at the wrists, and there is no pouchlike area within them. Stitching the sleeve closed to make a place to carry things seems to be most commonly a thing women did. Men preferred to keep things in their obi at their waist.
12. His under-kimono is probably a simple linen affair that is of indeterminate length. If one goes by the manga only, that kimono, (cream in color) would likely be of ankle length since his hakama is drawn with a very low crotch. (Caveat: I have not actually studied this aspect, and so can't say that the crotch of his hakama was always drawn low...) However, in the anime, his hakama is treated a lot more like pants or trousers and so his kimono is more likely to be knee-length. Wearing a full-length kimono in a divided hakama could cause unsightly bunching of fabric and so sometimes a shorter kimono was used. For myself, I'm going with knee-length, simply because InuYasha is a fighter and a grappler, and he would not put up with his clothing being distracting or uncomfortable during a fight.
13. Unlike traditional hakama, InuYasha's are gathered at the ankles. This may be because he is more "arboreal" (tree-dwelling), where wide, open leg coverings might snag on branches and otherwise hinder swift movements. Also, since he spends all his time outside, it would limit things like cold air rushing up to chill the nethers, and may even provide some additional warmth. These are probably the same reasons his houri is tucked in.
14. He's been known to carry things in his houri rather than in his sleeves. Anything he's ever been seen carrying is usually kept in the flap of his houri that is folded over his chest.
15. His most basic garment is probably the very traditional fundoshi: a very long strip of cloth that is carefully wound about the privates and the waist in a prescribed set of steps. For more information on fundoshi, go to this link: (
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundoshi)
16. One other houri note: It takes time for the fabric to repair itself. Sometimes days. InuYasha himself will heal from even the most grave of wounds within about three days.
All in all, there are a number of things to keep in mind when writing about InuYasha, including the very clothing on his back. As far as I have been able to discern, he only owns four items of clothing and two of them are non-magical in nature.
His houri and hakama are made of magical fur, not silk. Fur would most likely yield a thicker, sturdier, warmer fabric than the gossamer silk threads. This would explain why, in the anime, the fabric, when flapping as he runs, sounds so much heavier and thicker than silk. His clothes can still be smooth to the touch and even shiny, but I don't think they are lightweight in material like silk would be.
Here is a Wikipedia link to more info regarding kimonos and related wear: (
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiyoku_)
Well, that's enough nattering for the moment. I needed a break from cleaning in one room that I let get way too messy. But now it's time to get back to it. It's not going to go away unless I take a shovel to it....
Next time I post should be some art!
ML :grin:
