I'm working on my first CW, a companion that's a tribute to the Pokemon Drifblim (and my beloved Drifblim plushie, Poof). I've redrawn Drifblim as a living hot air balloon species created by my friend . (I do have her permission!)

Here is the WIP of the overlay (now in the proper size): I haven't started the item art yet, because I'm not sure what the item itself should look like... that's a long balloon to fit in a small square XD

First, I wondered if there is any interest in such an item. I know Pokemon tributes are popular, but this one looks quite different from the source Pokemon. I'm not sure that anyone but me would want it!

Second, I desperately need critique on my art. I submitted the item once and was rejected because I did a terrible job ^X^; but now I have some guidelines to work on. These are the areas I need help on for the overlay art: -"Blunt/untapered lineart" - is it okay now? -"Pillow shading" - okay, I had to look up what that was, but oh boy was I guilty of it! Is any part of it still pillow shaded? -Shading in general - it doesn't look good to me. Do I need to use less contrast between the colors? The tricky part is making it show up on such a small item! Also, I need help with the shape of the shading. I looked at pictures of hot air balloons and various Subeta pets for references on where to put it, but now I'm second-guessing everything about it -X-; -"Gradient or soft shaded instead of cel-shaded" - I had actually cel-shaded it and NOT used gradients the first time, so I made sure it was super-sharp now. But like I said above, I think I might have overdone it with the contrast :( -"The artwork is coming across flat due to being undershaded and lacking other perspective cues." - is that better so far as you can tell, with the shading unfinished?

Sorry for the long post! Please offer any criticism AT ALL so I can try to get my Poof accepted! Also please feel free to ping any group/user who might be willing to help. Thank you! ^X^