Hi @Kaela-McCoy, wonderful feedback and greatly appreciated!
Perhaps it’s difficult to see easily, but the male is more red and the female is more pink; however, I’ll explore further and look forward to resubmitting.
Thanks!
For me, they are both nice, and almost look like they belong as a set- sort of like a short comic panel. 
They both imply different stories, and would probably be appealing to people based off their mood. The second one does pack a little more of a punch and is probably marketable to a larger audience.
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I like the idea of having two characters interacting but the balloon is quite distracting. It might just be the colour. Could it be a moon balloon or something maybe? Like, the lady loves looking at the moon and so the guy has got her a balloon of the moon so she can take it wherever she goes 
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@Jeremy-Ross I like the second one better because there's more going on but as others have said already, you can probably develop a better story? I'm not the most experienced or best critiquer tho 
However there is a podcast on developing your concept/idea. It probably was from last year in August or September. It really made me think a lot more about the concept. It's a good one to listen to! The podcast came about after the judges noted so many similar concepts for one of the summer contests. I think it was summer vacation gone wrong so they followed up with that podcast. You can also watch the summer vacation gone wrong critique arena , might be good to watch that first IF you have time. The Judges are big on concept so it's worth spending time on.
Hi @TessaW, As always, thank you for your candid feedback! I like my original idea the best of the ladybug enjoying the moon in solitude.
Hi @Coley, you are correct! I remember that episode and agree that a good story is king! Appreciate the feedback too! It’s crazy how the balloon robs the attention!
@Kaela-McCoy, here’s an attempt at heart-shaped balloons, but I’m still drawn to the original. Go figure...
I tried different color variations and saturation and thought this shade of blue was less distracting.
Nevertheless, all the feedback and voting is much appreciated! This community is really great!
@Jeremy-Ross I think if you just go with your original #2 and just put a heart on the balloon it would get the message across. Cute idea.
@KaraDaniel I agree!
Yes, there is much more inherent storytelling in the image with 2 bugs. I agree the new blue heart balloons are a bit too much. Simple, tiny shapes contrasting with the lovely texture of the leaves and the gorgeous simplicity of the moon might be your best bet. I think your instinct regarding value and saturation for the color of the balloon is right, though--it may not necessarily be the right hue and scale, but you've done a wonderful job of indicating texture and shape simply and clearly and in keeping with the organic sketchiness of the rest of the image. Lovely work!
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Hi @Coreyartus, well said! Thank you so much for your feedback and candid opinion.
I really like the second one, maybe if you tried just a single small heart balloon instead of a bunch? Or the ladybug has a balloon and flowers? Or it's an "it's a boy" balloon? 
I kinda liked the simplicity of a single balloon but I agree both options are a little ambiguous storywise.
@Kaela-McCoy, here’s an attempt at heart-shaped balloons, but I’m still drawn to the original. Go figure...
I tried different color variations and saturation and thought this shade of blue was less distracting.
Nevertheless, all the feedback and voting is much appreciated! This community is really great!
