Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Strappy Shoes -- New Mesh!

So, I've finally made a mesh -- my first, in fact. I decided to try shoes. Somehow, that seemed to be the way to go at the time.

They are fully recolourable with TWO channels and have silver buckles on the outer side (which are non-recolourable). The preset is a dark (nearly pure black) suede. In CTU, it looked all texturized, but not so much in CAS. I didn't go back and change it because A) the lupus monster makes me very tired and B) I trust in your ability to recolor in CASt. (Be proud.)

Here is a fully body screen cap of the preset:


And here is a side closeup of the preset, so you can see the height of the heel and platform: 


And here is what they look like with a different pattern (and with some color):


I think they look better recoloured now that I look at them some more.

Important Info


There are TWO issues I see with these. Most of you will not think they're a big deal. These are superficial issues and do not effect the way the shoes work -- just the way they look. But, I am going to go ahead and put this out there, so nobody can say I didn't warn them. 


Issue #1




When you rotate the shoes to this *exact* angle, you can see that there is a little fleshy area. It's only in that spot, and it's only on that particular shoe. I've tried changing the mesh, I've tried changing the texture. I honestly can't figure that spot out. At other angles, and particularly *while you're playing the game*, it's not noticeable.

Issue #2





I can't get the encircled seems to be flush; no matter what, they won't line up. I suspect it's something to do with the texture. Maybe there needs to be more curvature in the way the foot curves? I'm not sure. I tried to fix it, but it looked goofier. BUT, unless you're going to be staring an inordinate amount of time at the inner sides of your Sim's feet, then you're probably not gonna notice.

AND ANOTHER THING....

I had to change the specular image to get the thicker straps to look right. However, I made it a bit matte. They will look very monochromatic with the preset. You can make them to look less flat by playing around with color to your liking. (See my recoloured image.) But, keep in mind, that I did intend these heels be one color (or one pattern) even though they've got two recolourable channels.

ALL THAT SAID...

Download them HERE


(P.S. The dress my model is wearing is by Rusty Nail.)

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Work-in-Progress: Stencils on Tees

So, my current WIP is putting stencils on tees. As I mentioned before, I am new at the whole creating custom content thing, so I'm learning from the ground up. Right now, stencils.

I made some stencils to use. They looked fine in GIMP, but they look off in-game. The images are more narrow than they're meant to be, the words are kind of pixelated and have some unknown white stuff around them that, while I can't see it at all in GIMP, is definitely there in CAS.


The other issue I'm grappling with, I will own, is completely my fault. I cannot figure out how to change the presets of the shirts. Like that picture, before I fixed it in CAST was like...that purple shirt with the weird diagonal pattern. (You know what I'm talking about.) Ideally, I want to change the patterns of the shirts that the stencil is on, so by default, the presets work better with the pattern. I like the shape of the shirt, etc, but that purple pattern is so vile, it really detracts from any kind of stencil.

So, I'mma keep working on how to fix it. Feel free to shout out any suggestions.

Tribal Tattoo Pack #2: 6 New 'Ambitions' Tattoos

I am back with more tattoos. 

Like the previous set, these are 'Ambitions' tattoos. You MUST have Ambitions OR a post-Ambitions game patch to use them. 

These tattoos only have ONE recolorable channel: the forth. I explain how coloring the tattoos works in this older post.  Read it if you just asked yourself: "Which one is the fourth channel?" Also, each tattoo comes with THREE preset colors: black, red, and blue. 

The Tattoos


Tribal skull w/feathers. (Both red and black color settings are featured.)

Is it a heart? Is it fruit? (It's both.)

Tribal broken heart.

Random tribal design.

Tribal!ghost.

Download the set HERE

Monday, July 18, 2011

Help Request: I need help colorizing

Okay, so I've tried to colorize my tattoos and I'm still not having luck. I'm following the step-by-step instructions of this tutorial by CmarNYC and I'm using CmarNCY's Tattooinator utility. I'm using GIMP, as in the tutorial. 

But something isn't happening when I go to preview my tattoo presets in Tattooinator. First of all, it keeps showing the tattoos in black no matter what presets I use. And the tattoos show up in black in the game too, and they won't recolor in CAS. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I've gone over the tutorial several times. 

Anyone have any advice?

5 Tribal Tattoos


This is my first ever CC upload. I've learned to make Ambitions tattoos. (At least, I hope I have. They DO work in my game.) They are not recolourable at the moment; I wanted to colorize them, but they turned out black and white, so I'm gonna have to read the tutorial again AND post an update if I do actually colorize them. But they are perfectly functional as solid color black tattoos. (Again, I tested them in my game.)

And without further ado...


dragons in a heart shape

fierce!dragon

tribal armband
(looks best scaled large)

tribal cross

two tribal flowers
(don't they look like best friends?)

DOWNLOAD HERE

P.S. If you have any suggestions about how to make this content (or the sample pics) better, PLEASE let me know. Also, let me know if you run into any problems. Or if you just like them. =)

Important UPDATE


Okay, I had some problems with the last tattoo upload. Colorzing problems, to be exact. I have basically fixed the problem. And now each tattoo has ONE recolorable channel. The problem, it seems, is between Tattooinator and my computer. For some reason Tattooinator doesn't pay attention to the channels I deselect. Thus, when you go into CAS, ALL FOUR color channels show up, even though only one is recolorable -- the fourth recolorable channel, the tiny one. For simplicity's sake, I've drawn a yellow circle around the ONLY channel that works.


So, it is fixed, if you think about it. The tattoos are now colored in the way they were initially meant to be. Just ignore the extra channels behind the curtain (that don't work and are pointless).

See?

The tattoo is now purple!

In short, please download the updated files HERE

Welcome!

Welcome to my humble little Sims 3 CC blog. I am a very new creator. (Like seriously, my first CC upload will be my very first upload EVER for Sims 3 CC.)

With that in mind, if you have any suggestions about my blog, whether it's layout or something to do with my content, drop me a message. I want to improve and the only way to do that is constructive criticism. If you don't like something, tell me why and how I can make it better. Otherwise, your opinion of dislike is useless and will be deleted. (And, of course, if you think it's good -- tell me! I need the encouragement.)

Sharing Policy


The main rule is: NEVER EVER EVER EVER claim my stuff as your own. Seriously. I'll know if you do. 

Other than that, feel free to link to my blog whenever and wherever you want. Feel free to use my content in any screen caps or whatever. HOWEVER, if you want to include my content with your download (like for a Sim or something), please link to my blog post instead of uploading it directly from your computer. If you're unsure about any of this, message me with your questions.

Trading Links


I'm perfectly willing to trade links with other Sim bloggers and site owners. If you want your blog/site linked on mine, all I ask is that you link back. I will, however, screen your site for content beforehand. I'm not a total snob nor do I have anal standards, but if I wouldn't use your content in my game, then I'm not going to link to it on my site.

And aside of all this serious nonsense, have fun and enjoy!