Painting To Suit Character

Lots of Neopians paint their pets nowadays, with the wonderful and wacky varieties of paintbrushes available.

They have various reasons to do this - cheer up their pet with a hot new look, for instance (because going from grey to disco is a surefire way to make your pet smile - we know those grey pets are notorious for their gloomy natures!), because the owner themselves like the colour on their pets (“Oh Balthazar, wouldn’t you look ADORABLE as a baby? Yes, you would, you big strong lupe you”), the owner wants their pet to match the petpet they bought specially (“Now Lucy, you have to match your pirate Harris!”), or perhaps the pets themselves have been asking for it - your Bruce thinks he could rock a disco afro, or your Aisha wants to develop sharp Darigan spikes for the Battledome. These are all great reasons, and I’m sure there are many more. But why do I personally paint my pets? They certainly look fine enough in their red, yellow, green or blue finery, nothing wrong with that at all. However, the paintbrush colour I choose for them, that I think long and hard about, matches their CHARACTER.

And I’m sure this could catch on! Let me explain. I’d choose an Aisha (well, they are my favourite, and my majority pet) to join me on my travels, and think about their personality. Simply put - Are they mean? Darigan and mutant are possibilities. Are they good-hearted and gentle? Perhaps Faerie would work there. An occasion I can think of is that I painted Eloutious Disco-coloured, but not because he enjoys a good boogie - he’s a very extroverted, flamboyant character who loves to stand out, and in a world populated by perhaps more ‘natural’ coloured pets (or at least the default furs of red, yellow, blue and green), a bright pink-and-paisley Aisha streaking by is bound to catch the attention of his audience.

Also, I could have painted Glamatica Darigan, because of her spiteful nature, but I chose Split, because sometimes she has a SPLIT personality. There we go! Be creative with it! Let me run through some brushes with you, and give you some ideas for considering some colour/personality matches.

Tyrannian- You’d perhaps think I’d suggest this for a strong, brave pet. But have you noticed that on some pets, this colour makes them look a little ragged round the edges? The Cybunny is positively snaggle-toothed, the Poogle isn’t without its hygiene issues with that long fur, and the Mynci looks menacing. Have you considered painting a very wild, back-to-nature pet this colour? Perhaps you have a lovely neohome, but your pet prefers sleeping under the stars? Your Lupe is constantly rolling round in the mud, no matter how many grooming products you lovingly apply? To match a rough-and-ready nature, this grizzled look may very well suit an adventurous, nature-loving pet.

Snow- White, pure? Think again. Does your pet love practical jokes? The transformation to snowy-white can camouflage your pet in all number of situations - obviously, your pet can pretend to be a snowman, then fling snowballs at unsuspecting passers-by. Your pet can hide amongst the bath bubbles and make a mountain of a soggy mess for you to clean up in the bathroom. You can’t be sure if your pet is lying in too late because he/she is invisible against their snow-white bedding. Endless areas for pet hiding make this a good choice for your adorable little comedian.

Robot- For a cold, calculating pet? No longer. Perhaps this could be used for an athletic pet? With a few tinkers to your pet's new engine, it’ll be leaving other competitors in a cloud of dust on an annual Neopian sports day.

Mutant- Usually used for a mean, scary match to a mean, scary pet. But perhaps just because beauty isn’t your pet's strong-point, it doesn’t mean they’ve not got heart. Zap your golden-hearted darling mutant, and set out to show people how caring and honest mutants can be, until Pets Neopia-wide are asking for a twisted new paint job.

Pirate- Usually for the adventurous type? What about instead showing off your wealth by giving your little dear a nautical look? Pirates mean DUBLOONS, as your pet is suddenly able to sniff them out. And pirates are keen to keep hold of their mountains of treasure, so on your next hunt for that item, bring your piratey pet along, so that they can haggle for a bargain. Cheap items galore.

Christmas- For the pet who remembers goodness to man (and Neopian!) kind all year round, or for the simply fashion-conscious pet? Remember that by painting your pet Christmas, snazzy items are gained. Your Zafara has a jaunty new halo, or your Lupe a beautiful, designer Christmas coat, the envy of pets everywhere. So if your pet is always looking in the mirror, holding up the contents of your neowardrobe up to itself, consider a Christmas coat instead of perhaps that jazzy new faerie look.

Brown- Dull, right? For pets who wall themselves up inside their neohomes? No, not this time. Perhaps your pet is vastly confident, and whilst pets are walking round in shades of orange and purple, sporting all manner of wings and horns and painted claws, your pet considers itself so beautiful, it doesn’t need to ‘stand out’ in the conventional way. If you were thinking of a tropical Island paintbrush to show off your pal, why not just invest in good old brown? Never out of fashion, and for the only TRULY individual pets, anyway.

Darigan- Usually, mean pets are coated all over in a Daring Darigan Design. However, does your pet dote on you day and night? Consider if you will, Darigan instead of soft plushie. With all those extra spikes and horns, there are plenty of pegs for your pet to multitask for you - hanging bags on its back when out on a shopping extravaganza, bringing you an extra doughnutfruit on its hardy claws, and even your warmed pair of slippers on its horns!

So next time you’re thinking that your beautiful girl could do with a new faerie paintbrush to bring out their eyes, consider something like Checkered instead. If you’re thinking your brave lupe could do with a Royal update, consider Pink! What are your pet's characteristics? Pair it up with a quirky paintbrush for a fun story to tell other owners, and a truly unconventional, happy pet.