It's the longest month in the longest year.

We prepare, cover our furniture in dust sheets and hibernate in warm beds. some of us have warm beds. but we're still creatures inside.

Here's a thread about making this. Appreciated if you might share; It took me about two weeks.

My idea was to try to combine the feeling of Tove Jansson's earlier ink drawings with the cartoon style from the '90s animations.

I forgot which episode this is from, sorry! maybe someone can identify it please?

I wanted warm colours for the background — because it's indoors — and then cooler coolers for the figures.
I think the idea here would have worked, if I'd have kept it this simple.

These are shadows that show your past.
long like the winter and thin like the cold.

Tove Jansson's compositions are incredible.

She rarely uses symmetry, and always manages to find such good balance between things without something being distracting.

I tried so hard to find a way to have the shadows asymmetrical, but I couldn't. I hope she doesn't mind.

*jazz hands*

Thanks to @kefimochi for drawing the hands!

Go check out her stuff, her drawings with light are absolutely gorgeous.

I ended up overwhelmed by all the brown and orange.
and then with the shadows in black, it was too commercial halloween, and not enough nature.

I changed to the cooler yellow and deep blue you see in the end.

friendship ended with [saturated colours]
now [desaturated colours] is my best friend

"Frighten me if you can," he thought happily. "I'm wise to you now. You're no worse than anything else when one gets to know you. Now you won't be able to pull my leg anymore."

And the winder danced him all along the snowy shore,
until he stumbled across the snowed-up landing stage and plowed his nose through a snowdrift. When he looked up, he saw a faint, warm light. It was the window of the bathing house.

"Oh, I'm saved," Moomintroll said to himself, a little crestfallen. "It's a pity that exciting things always stop happening when you're not afraid of them anymore and would like to have a little fun.”

― Tove Jansson, Moominland Midwinter