Following up from my last post, here are more doodles experimenting with Princess Ball’s hair.

It was actually my sister who suggested offhandedly that I try Ball with a braid. I kind of like the look, but at the same time I think I still prefer her original hair.

Part of the reason for that is because having the long hair provides Ball, who is composed primarily of round shapes, some nice straight lines that provide a bit of interest. It’s a nice break to see some straight lines against her curved form, which makes her original hair seem more ‘right’ for her design. In the same vein, I think that the long, free flowing hair seems more ‘Princess-y’, it seems to fit her personality more.

I think I’d have to have a walk-cycle of Ball done up to try and explore her hair a bit more, see if I can have the long flowing hair work, or if it would be too hard to animate.

Side note: In the bottom right corner there’s a doodle of Ball’s boyfriend, Cotton. Cotton’s practicing his juggling skills in the hopes that he’ll be able to perform on stage with Ball one day. The way I imagine it, Ball isn’t technically a Princess, it’s more of a stage name. Her Mother and Father are the ‘King’ and ‘Queen’ of the circus, namely they’re the performers that everyone comes to the circus to see, so they’re treated by royalty by the other members of the circus.

Cotton’s a mime, and thus doesn’t talk much, but he listens very well to Ball and is utterly devoted to her. Ball has a twin sister named Candy who’s a tightrope walker in the circus. I’m still trying to figure out Cotton’s design, though I know I want him to be tall, have curly hair and a red button nose to provide a nice opposite to ball, but aside from that he’s still sort of up in the air. He’s yet another character that is for the moment simply stuck in my head waiting to be completed.