I wanted to paint a cute imp. Now, generally imps aren't really cute. They're creatures that some people think are some kind of faerie, or a lesser demon. I think of them as demons. But everyone agrees they're dark creatures, but more mischievious than really harmful. They're shapeshifters and when in humanoid form they're usually but not always assigned a male gender, and are very small in stature. Smaller than your average human anyway. Other common shapes they might assume are that of a weasel or maybe a spider. They keep in shadows and cause general minor trouble such as moving or misplacing articles in your home, or causing stubbed toes in the dark.

They're also said to be extremely lonely and often work in pairs or mobs. Their loneliness can sometimes lead them to do a 'good deed' for the sake of earning a good and loyal friend. One of the few species of demons that some consider not really entirely evil. They can be easily tricked or misled into doing the right thing. They are also very fond of music, easily enchanted and befriended by a musician.

So my cute imp developed along several paths, frustrated me to no end. This painting actually took more than a week what with time contraints and a plaguing uncertainty of how to proceed. At one point it was bald and had horns and all black eyes. It actually looked like a very cute orc instead. But that wasn't really my goal so I went back and redid it. Now it looks not so much like an imp as maybe a cute lil' dark elf. Anyway, I do really like the way it came out, even if it isn't very impy.

Sources:
Imp: ~SweetMadness-stock
Background: =CausticStock
Chain reference help: a photo by ~macro-photo


Lost count of the hours, but this was done a little at a time over a week in Adobe Photoshop Elements.