
Still fighting with the scanner, but had to do less touch-up on this one (or else maybe I am just okay with the weird way it is representing the colors. Painting clothing that is black is always a challenge and I try to avoid (as much as possible) using straight blacks (except to dull other colors). Here I used a little bit of Payne's Grey (which has a blueish tint) and Yellow Grey (which is slightly greenish). I'm painting with very high-grade Holbein & Windsor/Newton watercolors and gouache, but doing so on very low-grade cardstock. I'm much more comfortable taking chances when I don't feel like I am wasting paper, which is strange, but it's getting the job done.
The scan came out very blue. I'll keep messing with it, and again, ultimately, I'll .pdf these all nicely so that they can be downloaded and printed.
Meanwhile, I have to add that this outfit is only very vaguely era-appropriate. I wanted to keep it very simple and borrowed a little bit of the feel from 19th century Russian dress. But again, very simplified (tempted, though I was, to add frogging and shiny embroidery). He's got plain black riding boots, black leather gloves, a black merino frock coat with a long wide skirt (the interior lining is probably red silk, but we never see it), and a red sash of fine pasham.
We first meet Razi-el in a snowy forest and don't get a good look at him, but he needed something to wear and this is what he's wearing when we do get a look at him (much later), so there you have it.

This is pretty much all we see of Razi-el for a long while, so I won't be coming back to this character for some time. I tried to think up some accessories for him, but he doesn't wear a hat and the pear (Pirum) is generally the only object he carries around, so, alas, there's nothing more to add.
The "Christmas, 1859" in the title refers to the story and not the style of dress. I will have to figure out the best way to "tag" these characters as I go along. Since you are just seeing the characters and clothing here--and not the story--I'll try to provide some context where helpful, but mostly I will focus on descriptions of what they are wearing and probably do a lot of kvetching about the process.
Won't it be so much fun?
It's kind of exciting to finally be off and running!