@kayleenartlover definitely helps to have something in the foreground. Be careful with cover too much of the mid ground area with the foreground elements though. You could have some of the mess around the boxes to make it look more ocean like but still have the closer stuff around the frame. I think the ocean of mess is a great idea.
@kayleenartlover I love the idea of ocean waves! You could also tilt the camera angle so that things are at and angle. That would help with the pirate/wave feeling.
@kayleenartlover @Griffin @kayleenartlover I agree waves at a tilted angle would definitely give this piece a great perspective.
A closeup at some details I’ve added. It’s coming along well.
I’m trying to picture what others said about making the foreground a different perspective to look like a wave. I might need an example drawn over… Or do you mean like a literal wave folding over just made of items? But wouldn’t that push the foreground to middle ground?
Also… bit of a nitpick but trying to decide how to place the broom so it maintains fun ship silhouette while matching the perspective and avoiding creating tangents like with the corner of the wall…
@kayleenartlover sorry I should have done a quick sketch to show you what I mean when I first commented! I just meant to tilt the entire picture one way, like this. Hope my messy sketch is clear enough for you to see what I mean! 
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@kirsten-mcg I’m not sure if this is a change I should make… I would also lose the bookshelf that I spent a couple hours making, and I still don’t know how to make the foreground look right so I haven’t drawn it yet.
@kayleenartlover Oh this is looking good and the tilt lends itself to more story!
If I may suggest:
I think you're off to a good start. Keep at it!
@kayleenartlover I think adding some more value contrast could help right now. It’s a very bright illustration over all which doesn’t really guide the viewers eye to focal points. I think darkening the background could bring a pleasant contrast to the image. Bright characters on a dark background is often a good approach. Right now it’s more like light characters on alight background
I’ll be adding shading, either darkening the background or middle ground more, once I finish the foreground. It’s starting to look better, but I had to change it to grey scale because I was getting distracted from making the overall shape of the piles to make it imply ocean waves. I also still need to add the shirt over the broom for a sail.
@kayleenartlover I did just a quick paint over to figure out how a darker background might look along with the clothes around the floor. 
@kayleenartlover You could just tilt the entire scene. Room, cats, background, etc! That way you wouldn't have to redraw anything and it would probably make it more dramatic. Think about using a camera and taking a picture of some kids playing pirates. You could actually tilt the camera (which would cause everything to tip) to give the illusion of rocking on the ocean waves. But really it's just a suggestion! If you like it better without the tilt, or can't figure out how to make it look right, by all means stick with your original angle. Sometimes when I get a critique, I will stick with my original idea, but then end up incorporating critique suggestions into later pieces. I think one of the most important things critiques do is help us think more critically about the art we create next time.
Top one has darker background…
I think shading the background is making it worse… Here’s it in grey scale and color on top and on the bottom I put shadow over the middle ground instead…
I’m still not sure though.
I’m so close,I think I only need to color the clothes… I’ve been using a somewhat limited color palette this far, but it’s tricky to decide what to use now for coloring the clothes. Is there any other changes I should make?
And now, I think it's finally done!
Here’s what it would look like in book page form. I don’t plan on writing anything though.
@kayleenartlover definitely helps to have something in the foreground. Be careful with cover too much of the mid ground area with the foreground elements though. You could have some of the mess around the boxes to make it look more ocean like but still have the closer stuff around the frame. I think the ocean of mess is a great idea.
