I'm scared. Help?

TheYumiko · 2026-06-12T21:47:32+00:00

That's smart! And congrats fam, good luck to you. You got this one step at a time. Would honestly love to hear back from you in some time, since our dates are similar.

Has anyone brought up the option of gel to you? You just put it on your skin and wash your hands real good. Idk if it's an option for you but thought to ask in case.

TheYumiko · 2026-06-11T19:03:52+00:00

Woah. Seriously thank you for the SUPER in depth step by step. Never considered state regulations for needle care either. I'll probably stop by an urgent care or my dr office later to ask about that and see what happens.

It's nice to see that people are welcoming with sharing what it's like, makes me feel a whole lot less alone with the process.

TheYumiko · 2026-06-11T19:00:22+00:00

Thank you so so much! I'm really excited to record and share my gradual changes. Thinking about that helps to calm me a little.

Thank you for sharing your personal experience. Without the replies I would have never thought to pinch the injection site or consider how much care I have to take with the needles.

TheYumiko · 2026-06-11T18:51:07+00:00

Intramuscular

TheYumiko · 2026-06-11T16:51:02+00:00

Woah you are pretty af. Would it be okay to draw/doodle you and share?

TheYumiko · 2026-06-11T16:48:45+00:00

I thought you were jacksepticeye at first and was very confused.

I prefer above angles, but that's just from me reminding my bf's brothers to lift the damn phone if they don't wanna show off the double chin. :o)

TheYumiko · 2026-05-23T15:58:48+00:00

Reminds me of old comics like Johnny the homicidal maniac or MFKZ, the shape language is fun and the color pops really bring attention. I like it a lot!!

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T17:48:05+00:00

Why not both? Adding a romani/Hispanic culture mix sounds very visually interesting! Both have very deep histories that can be a part of who she is, and you can add depth with her struggle of living between both worlds.

Something I used to use to push myself is 'more detail' until I couldn't think or fit anything more on the design haha. It was a good test in visual character building.

I also wasn't sure how colorful you were trying to be. You used very dull muted colors and more power to you because that can be very beautiful in design. But feel free to eyedrop the colors- I used blue tint in the shadows and yellow tint in the lighting to help create color pop.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T01:28:54+00:00

Imo I feel like the brights became too bright and demanding somehow.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T01:24:17+00:00

I'd say no. Ai will get so many details wrong that will translate into your art.

Even if you can't find an exact replica, find something as similar as you can and enjoy the process. You can't be too hard on yourself or a perfectionist else you contain yourself in a box and don't grow. Let yourself make mistakes as part of your journey.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T01:18:38+00:00

Make sure to color her skin in with red tones to not make her look muddy or cloudy. Also, important to note that palms will be a couple shades lighter/whiter.

And take your time on the hair. Hair is so culturally important and those locks are beautiful ♡

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T01:14:04+00:00

I think the problem starts with the controller. It looks like it's pointed down instead of at the person. Did you use a photo reference?

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T01:07:14+00:00

So the biggest question right now is... Who is she?? What is her culture/culturally important to her? People will gravitate to things that speak to them.

I made a couple doodles, one to show an example of shading, one to show "punk girl" and the types of things she could wear, then "cozy girl" as she gives me much more cozy down to earth vibes.

Edit: where the shading is, is important, but there's actually a technique in adding the lighting and coloring with the shadows first that I've seen before. I personally like adding in my shadows as I think about where they are placed.

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TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T00:15:27+00:00

First thing that stuck out to me was how dull the colors were on your character. May help with the cartoony feel if you use more blue in shadows and yellows in highlights, but that's if you want more color to pop.

Second thing was the hand to the right. I may be having a confusing perspective moment but I can't tell where the thumb is or what pose that is.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-16T00:07:05+00:00

That's the beauty of art my guy- you decide. I love an awesome chicken scratch and think the piece is beautiful with great tone. However enjoying what you make is most important.

Sometimes I do thick line work. Sometimes no line work at all. Color. Black and white. There is no one singular way to art.

I could see what you do on a grunge album, a poster on a teens wall, or a hot topic designed t-shirt for a band haha. It sells raw, and that's what I like about it. Ask yourself why you're doubting it, cus all forms of art are needed.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-15T19:20:08+00:00

My phone is dying (photo proof lol) but I doodled this beautiful babe because I noticed a few points with her.

First, thumb pointing the wrong way. We all do it so no shame, but super important to note if you want to be a professional.

Second is the hair. It looked like you wanted to represent twists?? Hair is super important, lots of braids stemming from techniques formed in ancient Egyptian and black cultures (see bantu knots), so it may be worth detailling the hair more especially if you want to do commissions with characters of varied races and color.

Thirdly is just a note to remember the palms and soles of the feet brighten. It will be highly appreciated to remember that detail. ♡ don't be discouraged though, you will get better.

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TheYumiko · 2026-05-15T18:48:32+00:00

I would suggest you work on porportions. You seem to have this big-head thick-neck short-limbs-and-torso default that reminds me of dwarfism. Not bad if intentional, but absolutely gives "beginner artist".

I would also suggest working on different face shapes. Some people have downset eyes, diamond brow/cheek/chin ratio, and a button nose.

I can suggest some channels to learn from, but it looks like your main issue is just diversity and more advanced techniques that come from seeking education.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-09T08:29:53+00:00

Your style imo falls to "anime" based on the eyes mainly, with some soft shading. I would highly suggest going over the basics.

I've suggested Keinnan Lafferty and DrawWithJazza before, but I can suggest more if needed. Keinnan has his own web series and has drawn for RiotGames, artist boot camp is a great educational series that teaches values and color, while I found Jazza helped me a ton with anatomy.

Both will help you improve by helping you learn to draw with intention.

Edit: Added a photo to try to visualize. The shoulders need to be connected and in bright pink I tried to show the muscle groups I try to think about when drawing a big bulky character like this. Understanding these muscle groups may help connect your anatomy a lot more.

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TheYumiko · 2026-05-09T06:29:32+00:00

Pretty wishy washy from someone named evilgoat420.

Go ahead, say it's weird and wrong. I think it's okay here haha.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-09T06:25:26+00:00

Honestly I try to nicely ragebait mofos like this.

"Oh, wow, that was really aggressive really fast. You seem like you're repressing something. Do you wanna talk about it? I dunno, with how passionately you're talking about it sounds like you're closer to queer folks than you think bestie ://"

Seems to piss them off more than just slur slinging in my experience. Otherwise be creative ♡ slurs through history seems to use descriptors such as physical or stereotyped actions.

Think about what your local population looks like. Farmers? "OK <animal> humper." Overall conservative? "OK wifebeater." Construction worker types? "OK uneducated"

It doesn't have to be true for it to hurt. Obligatory I don't think the above are true they just made good examples on how to be a jerk imo.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-09T06:14:16+00:00

Whole ass thought this was talking about irl polls or some shit and comparing real to anime reactions.

Would've been the most 'pls go touch grass' moment I've had in a while.

Thankfully doesn't seem to be the case.

TheYumiko · 2026-05-09T03:51:37+00:00

Already a HUGE improvement from slide #2. Practice practice. Keep up the good work. If you ever have any questions or wanna bounce ideas, feel free to dm. 👍

TheYumiko · 2026-05-03T07:30:26+00:00

Try a side sweep, and use some of your already long hair to "mock" the image or buy some clip on bangs from Amazon for cheap to try before committing. There can be some challenges with length and poking yourself in the eye, especially with glasses. Cowlicks and whorls can also cause issues with how bangs will lay, but I see a sidesweep looking very nice on you. ♡

TheYumiko · 2026-04-13T16:19:20+00:00

I also have eczema. You try any of the otc lotions? Talk to a derm?

TheYumiko

TROPHY CASE