OC Mane Styles?

[StarEater 24]

How do you come up with the mane styles for your ocs? I might need some pointers. I apologize that this is so short.

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,161]

@@StarEater

 

Just letting you know I moved this to the OC section of Creative Resources where you should get the appropriate answer for your question.

[Akari of Duskshire 581]

@@StarEater,

 

I take a look at personality, profession, and other similar things.  For example, my OC Fantasy Moon isn't particularly sociable and says little, if at all, so I gave her a style that has her mane covering half her face.  My other OC, Stormcloud, is normally relaxed and amicable, so she ties her mane very loosely.  But when things get serious, she ties it back into a tight ponytail.

 

Generally, personality can be an excellent thing to look into when it comes to choosing appearances.  Heck, you could do so to defy the normal expectations of someone with a certain appearance!  Like a tomboyish character with long, flowing hair that's normally used for more feminine characters?

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 41,350]

@@StarEater,

 

I take a look at personality, profession, and other similar things.  For example, my OC Fantasy Moon isn't particularly sociable and says little, if at all, so I gave her a style that has her mane covering half her face.  My other OC, Stormcloud, is normally relaxed and amicable, so she ties her mane very loosely.  But when things get serious, she ties it back into a tight ponytail.

 

Generally, personality can be an excellent thing to look into when it comes to choosing appearances.  Heck, you could do so to defy the normal expectations of someone with a certain appearance!  Like a tomboyish character with long, flowing hair that's normally used for more feminine characters?

This is an excellent post. This is how I would do it. I don't really make OC's, I only made my Ponysona to represent me and that is how I decided his mane style (plus it is mostly like Button Mash in that regard) but going by how you are making the personality of a character, that is a great basis to go with when determining appearance. ^__^ Something that matches the character overall and how they are.  

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

If your OC is your ponysona, then basing the OC's mane on your own hair is always a good start. If you're really stuck, then use the ponymaker for ideas but please please please, don't choose Vinyl Scratch's mane! Sorry, but there are a lot of OC ponies with that manestyle.

[AmberDust 1,118]

I like to have mane-styles reflect the character's personality, like what they do in the show. For example, Twilight is very smart and organized, so her mane has a lot of straight, even edges to reflect her perfectionism. Rarity is dramatic and classy, so her mane is big and glamorous. Pinkie Pie is bubbly and has a very all-over-the-place feel to her, so her mane is equally messy and full of visual energy. Rainbow Dash is an athlete and bit of a tomboy, so her mane is short and unkempt. AJ is also something of a tomboy, but also a hard worker who does a lot of menial labour, so her hair is tied to keep it out of the way. Flutttershy is shy and quiet, so her mane is long and hides her face like a shroud. Also, the sweeping, soft style reflects her own non-confrontational and calm demeanour.

 

Hopefully that was helpful. In short, all this means that manestyles are designed not only to reflect a character's personality, but also other aspects of their life including their profession and their social status.

 

 

My OC Amber was originally a ponysona, so she simply adopted my style, but my later OCs had their mane styes chosen based on their personality and the overall "look" I wanted them to have.

Edited September 29, 2015 by AmberDust

[StarEater 24]

@Pripyat Pony,

Sorry it took so long for me to reply. I generally won't even go near the ponymaker in the first place.. Unless I'm drawing and can't get poses right..

 

@AmberDust,

Sorry it took me so long to reply. Ahh, that actually does help thank you! I knew those things about their manes but it never really clicked for some reason! hah

[Tao 7,584]

I play around  a lot on mane styles and see how it looks and how it fits into the pony oc,  also think on how it might move when they move in your head and such little details.   Do they use their mane to hide their eyes if sad or embarrassed?    Maybe to highlight how they look and stuff?   Is it up in short cut given they are a high energy type or long and flowing in a more easy way type?  Lots of things can go into a mane,  than you have to think on the tail to match....

[Ikarasu 7]

i just gave my oc the same hair style i had, went from 'emo' to spiked up, to 'nathan drake' esq, then it turned into Prompto hair from FFXV

[Starlet Harmony 128]

Well, there are a couple of ways! If you are artistically inclined, you can just take a base and literally start drawing and see where you end up! When creating new OC's , thats what I usually do. I pick a few colors and start drawing swirls and voila, there is the hairstyle! (after I clean it up a bit) haha. Or, for beginners, this is a great way to design an OC... http://generalzoi.deviantart.com/art/Pony-Creator-Full-Version-254295904when I was designing my very first OC, Starlet Harmony, I used this to pick her colors and general hairstyle. This is what she looked like...

 

 

Then, two years later, after tweaking her, I finally made her exactly how I want her!

 

 

As you can see, she really looks nothing like her original design haha! The key is to keep tweaking until its exactly how you want it... Starlet went through SO many hairstyle before I landed on one that I really liked.