Name: Unknown
Nickname: Dee
Age: ca. 10 years
Body type: Average/Skinny
Hair: Red/Brown
Eyes: Blue

Bio:
Father unknown, mother died in childbirth. 
She was taken care of from birth in a childrens home/orphanage, but as she was passed 6 years old, she was sent to a different orphanage, where the children were practically treated like slaves. After nearly a year had passed since she got there, she and several of the other children decided to escape, which ended with success, and they then lived together in a nearly abandoned warehouse, in the shabbier part of London. They made a living from stealing everything from handkerchiefs and wallets to entire crates from passing store house wagons. 

No one knew her real name, most just assumed she never got one, so everyone just called her Dee, because of the initials D.E. on the inside of the pocket watch she always carried around with her, even though it was broken. The watch was in great shape in every aspect other than the fact that it has stopped, so she would have been able to sell it for quite a lot, but held on to it because it was the first thing she ever stole. 
She was a bit of a loner, and worked best on her own. She was a top class pickpocket, and if one ever passed her on the street, one would nearly always be missing something afterwards. 
She also kept a knife with her at all times, usually hanging in the piece of leather stitched onto the leg of her pants, but if ever in need, she would have it in her hand, ready to strike, almost faster than most could blink. Having the skills of a pickpocket, and occasionally a thief, she was really sly, dexterous and when needed, a fast runner. She also knew most of the back and side streets of London, and could easily outsmart any follower. If she ever actually did get caught, she would put on her angel face and start acting, usually along the lines of "but I'm so hungry, I haven't eaten in days" or "I didn't mean to steal it".   


She wore a pair of pants that were really a couple sizes too small, but fit snugly due to the fact that she was so skinny. Her shirt was sized for a grown man, and hung loosely around her, so she had tightened a string of leather around her waist to fit it a bit better. Underneath she wore a knit-west. 
Her hair was long and unruly, so she had tied a piece of cloth around, which she had ripped off from her left shirt arm. Her pants were torn, and her shoes were worn. She also wore a pair of old, fingerless gloves. The index- and middle finger on the right glove was entirely cut off, to make it easier to lure things our of pockets, purses and bags...

 
I suppose I should tell a bit about my character. 
She's an orphan girl, about 10 years old, part of a team/group/"gang" of orphan pickpockets/thieves, something similar to the Dodger's gang in Oliver Twist, only without the adult (Fagin). They live in a nearly deserted warehouse. 
 
Okay, so last night, I was done with the shoe and the watch, and now I'm going to start on the new knife. Sorry, the dagger.
But first i'm gonna get myself some breakfast :P


Here's what I have so far:
 
I just realized I actually think this is fun. I'm not just trying to convince myself any more, I actually enjoy doing this. And it's not just the drawing part. but also the actual modelling. It took me about a year to realize it, but now I'm finally there^^
I also really like to model shoes. For some bizarre reason :P

Been making the shoe for my waif (orphan) kid, managed to kill Max twice in less than an hour while making seams and laces. And I'm getting a bit more along with splines, for the first time ever, now that I'm starting to understand the use of lines and stuff a bit better... Gotta love vertex snap. Occasionally. 
And I finally know how to use the Spacing Tool :3 Very useful for seams... ;)

Here's pretty much how far I've gotten at the shoe till now:
I'll just fix a few more things, and finish the laces (well, it's more like a piece of cloth or a leather strap tied around the top of the shoe to hold it in place - have to change the drawings too - it seams easier to make, and fits the character better, considering she's done the same thing with her hair - having a piece of cloth tied around it to make a ponytail) and I'll be about done. Frankly, I'm quite pleased with the overall shape and look (talking about the shoe again). I would make it a bit "raggy" and "well used"-looking, but that's something I'd have done with textures, and since we're not allowed to use that, I'll just skip it.

Also made some sort of knife, a really simple one, but I'm not really happy with it, so I'll just make a new one, probably something that looks more like a dagger than an ordinary pocket-knife. 


Btw, anyone know whether we have to make both shoes, or if we're just supposed to make one?
 
 
A more "refined" sketch:
Spent most of the day yesterday to find facts and texts to build up under my character, or to "base my character on". I think I've found pretty much what I need, now I just have to arrange it properly, so it will be presentable, considering I've picket up some here and some there...
 
Been playing around with my new tablet, and made some sketches for my little Dodger-girl. Actually I don't think she's much of a beggar, she just sort of looks like it. I really think she's more of a thief, considering she's a pickpocket, and part of Dodger's gang. 


Been playing a bit around with the background story for her too:
Nobody really knows her name, so everybody just calls her Dee, 'cause of the initials on her watch (which is broken. She keeps it with her 'cause it was the first thing she ever pickpocketed, so it's kind of her "treasure")


And here are some sketches:
 
I've been thinking through, and drawing a bit, and figured that I'd really like to do the Beggar Kid. She's the one that has the most personality to her, and a story, and considering the inspiration for her is the Oliver Twist story, perhaps with her as one of the other kids in Dodger's gang, I have an actual story as a base. 
 
Yay! Finally <3 Concept Art! Drawing as homework xD Love that :3
And the best part about it - Character Design <3

I've already got 3 main ideas - Viking (man, big, muscular, hairy, slight temperament), Pirate woman/Queen (of course female, corset/shirt, high boots, cutlass) and a beggar kid from the Oliver Twist time (probably girl, short pants, large grown-up shirt, thief/pickpocket)

The project states that we're supposed to design our character with at least 3 accessories, and create a 3d model of 3 of these items/accessories, one of which must be footwear (or foot if character is barefoot)

Here is what I've thought of:
Viking: Winter leather/fur boots, helmet(?), shield(?), axe/sword(?), 
Pirate: Boots, cutlass, hat(?), glove(?)
Beggar kid: Worn low (leather?) shoes, belt(?),  scarf(?), (broken) watch(?), knife(?)

The project also says that the character have to based on a text, so my "influences" are: Thorgal series (cartoon) for the Viking, Kate Sommerset, the Pirate Queen from the Phantom series (cartoon) for the Pirate woman, and of course Oliver Twist for the Beggar kid.

What would be the most interesting? What would be the most doable? 
 

I got my idea pretty fast, and it was meant to be pretty simple - the rig was supposed to pick up the ball, carry it over to a box (more like a large crate or something), put it on the edge, and shove it in (see the "so-called" blocking for better understanding). I've kept the idea all the way, but the final result is nothing like the block. Simply 'cause I started all over, and on the second attempt I didn't block...
As Mats commented, my block was more like some sort of a storyboard, thus having no timing whatsoever, and therefore creating a lot of problems later on, since I had to go back and move several keys over and over. And the animation and story in itself was unnecessary long, creating even more problems that I could have easily avoided. In the end I realized I had messed it up so badly, that I just started all over. 
First changes I made to the new scene was that I moved the box in front of the rig, and the ball closer. That way, I didn't have to make that much unnecessary animation, seeing that it was the actual lift that was the assignment. 
As I previously mentioned, I didn't block on the second attempt. I did a mostly pose-to-pose animation, and it was waaay better, both working with the animation and the actual (and final) animation. 


I wanted the rig/character to seem a bit dejected (?), it's not something it wants to do, but it kind of has to, like the guy in this video: 
Therefore the breathing at the start...
I also wanted it to sort of fall in the end, after pushing the ball over the edge, and into the box/crate. But instead of the rig falling on it's butt on the ground in the end (like in the "block"/storyboard), it falls forward, but grabs hold of the box edge, and supports itself to a standing position. 
I must say - I am most pleased, considering I made this in about 1 day :3