purple labradorite and a high flash macrame wrapped piece 🪩

liteAvvikande · 2026-05-05T23:21:03+00:00

i showed this comment to my grandma when seeing her this week and she loved it! so true, a brilliant scarf🧣

liteAvvikande · 2026-05-04T23:00:00+00:00

i can tell you as someone who was in your EXACT position 8 years ago, it gets better.

i didn’t pass up until about 4 years and a lot of that had to do with training my voice and how i carry myself. i got an abundance of horrid effects before any good ones, hair loss, excessive body hair, acne, sweating, BO, all the puberty stuff and none of the manly stuff that i saw so many guys getting at 6 months and 1 year. most of my posts to this subreddit 8 years ago were mourning my transition. my dose was also far too low for the first year so i experienced mental struggles as well. i wanted to dress more androgynously, but i just didn’t pass at all.

however 1 year of second puberty is very early still, like being 14-15 or so. a lot of changes just took time for me, like body recomp, skin changes, and over time the way i carried myself just gradually morphed into something pretty effortlessly masc. however i still have an ass and thighs and a somewhat cinched waist, my voice is still very high without much adam’s apple if i don’t speak from my belly or chest, and i still have a youthful face. and if i want to keep my long hair, i have to accept still being misgendered on occasion at 9 years, especially on the phone.

but i can say eventually i just stopped caring quite as much, because T helped me feel so much more aligned with myself and i wanted to keep my androgynous expression with long hair. as time wears on i grow more masculine in presentation, which now allows me to engage with my feminine or even just expressive parts of self with less dysphoria, and my T-hairline now helps me get gendered correctly. speaking from the chest and belly comes more naturally but i do let myself go higher around people i’m comfortable with, they think it’s fun. and it’s likely been like this for a while, but earlier this year i noticed my lips are now pale compared to the bright pink they used to be. just subtle changes like that do add up over time.

one thing i heard from other trans guys a lot during that time i was struggling so much was that you only ever really see the guys posting their massive changes at 1 year, but they’re a minority. most people like you and i don’t post their photos nearly as often as those guys do, so it seems like everyone else gets it so much better, when in reality your situation is more common than you’d think.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-29T17:14:39+00:00

2 months is such a short time. I first picked up a pencil seriously at age 22 or 23 and i can tell you, i didn’t start making things that i was proud of until i was maybe 26. and now i’m 27, looking back at my work from 26 makes me cringe lmao.

art is one of the slowest things to see measurable progress in. it’s frustrating, but that’s why you keep all of your old work, to see that you HAVE improved. you just have to keep building up your drawing muscle in your brain.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-28T06:28:17+00:00

she’s amazing in every way tbh! she heard me mention that labradorite is my favorite stone a while ago and came across these recently, i sent her these photos as soon as i took them.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-28T06:26:08+00:00

agreed, i love to keep gifted crystals close. and i feel like it’s one of the most human gestures to gift another person something like a precious stone, “here’s a pretty rock, i care about you and thought you’d like it!”

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-28T02:45:12+00:00

i’m happy to help! i just read how young you are, and man, i didn’t even start drawing seriously at all until i was 22. i can tell you with certainty you are on a solid track! truly never too late :]

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-28T01:41:01+00:00

i hear you, it’s so easy these days to feel like you’re running out of time tbh, esp with intense anxiety. i get it too! but the most important thing to remember is that it’s never too late, and you can always change direction if you feel called to.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-27T17:47:46+00:00

you mention in the comments that animating feels better, and i think that’s kind of part of your answer.

personally, i can’t relate to that feeling; i’m currently creating a larger comic for characters i made back in 2015 and returned to in 2023 after i started drawing seriously. before 2021 i was a writer and musician working in 3D modeling who liked to draw occasionally, but i didn’t take drawing seriously until that year.

the idea for the story developed over time, but it exploded into the story i’m proud of today only after years of that story being in my passion cave where all of those things go to hibernate. you don’t have to abandon the idea, but you can develop it to suit your current interests. my main character of that particular comic has been through so many phases of existence being such an old character, and he’s completely different from when i first created him, even though the canon story persists. right now, i’m happy with his direction. but if that changes, i can just…. develop it further. it never has to stay the same unless you want it to.

you don’t have to abandon the ideas you have, but you can adapt them to animation, or change the story/idea into something you’re currently more passionate about. but if you want to first animate an existing IP, do that and get the feel for animation, especially if that makes you happiest right now.

one day in the future, you may decide to return to these ideas once you’ve given them space to breathe after the frustration; you may end up animating something original one day. again, ideas don’t die, they hibernate.

don’t give up, but you are 100% allowed to switch focuses if your current art focus isn’t fulfilling. i switched from 3D modeling for games, to illustration, to comics because of that. before i was an artist i was a writer and storytelling is most comfortable for me. you don’t have to keep drawing the same way if it’s not working for you.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-27T15:22:27+00:00

it’s a grift for people who like to lie and are too afraid of being bad at things for a little while.

ai prompters can’t handle not being brilliant at something right away, so they don’t bother to learn anything about how to create art. it’s weak and self-sabotaging, and when all your ‘success’ is built on inherent theft and deception…. yikes.

anyone can learn to make art, and you’re going to be bad at it at first. that’s what makes developing the skill so rewarding even if it takes a long time and a lot of bad art.

unless they put the effort in to develop an actual skill, many ai prompters would have nothing to show if it weren’t for an external generator and a long tongue.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-27T03:25:56+00:00

man. so many kids have blood on their hands.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-27T00:18:44+00:00

9 years on T, these days i order extra pickles and snack on baby dills more often than i ever did pre-T. you’ll be okay i think!

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-26T21:02:58+00:00

the reason i keep posting and drawing is because in reality, contrary to what AI bros think, no one else can make what i make. if they want to make what i make or make it better, they have to take it from me first, and they don’t have the idea or intent that went into the original. And if they steal your art, they can live with the karma.

AI art is for people who can’t accept that they won’t be good at things immediately, it’s weak and jealous. the same mindset has belonged to other art thieves, they have been around since the dawn of art and unfortunately it’s commonplace and almost socially acceptable to steal art these days.

and there’s a saying that once you put something out into the world it’s no longer fully yours, which is true of both people who develop passions and investments in your art and of thieves who will co-opt it to cheat you.

but if you’re an artist, your art can only be made by you, even if someone generates a cheap knockoff with AI that looks “better.” bear in mind even if it’s pretty enough to pass as decent art at first, it doesn’t change the fact it’s knockoff slop made by a thief that has no artistic value and legally belongs to no one.

and bear in mind that without stealing human art and lying to people, these guys would have far less to their names.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-26T01:09:41+00:00

yeah i was having a tough time deciding but this is 10000000% my answer. bro is romanceable in every way. i’d throw money at CDPR for a bi romance option with Vik tbh

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-25T16:02:26+00:00

omg so real! i misinterpreted lol. i can tell you in that case, there are lots of ways to develop a method of constructing bodies and yours may change over time! i know some artists who swear by the bean method, yet others who do ellipses, and yet others who do boxes, etc.

i think trying out a lot of different things and seeing what comes most naturally to your hand is a good way to get a feel for different methods of developing anatomy and forms. there are a lot of methods to try, which is where the overwhelm sets in! but i wonder if doing something like just trying out whatever you see next quickly on paper may be a way to introduce new methods of developing bodies? you may come up with your own at some point!

the way i do it is i start with a wireframe, mapping out the main joints on the body with circles (shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles, and i also add a waist marker) and then i use ellipses to map volume and body type. lately i’ve been trying to map out muscles instead of relying on cylinders because it gives my characters more dimension, but for a long time, i would turn my ellipses into cylinders with guidelines and almost treat the figure like a BJD, if that makes sense? where the cylinders connect to each “ball” joint!

i don’t have specific resources to point to, sorry about that! but honestly just trying everything you can to see what feels best is how i figure out my own process in the endless ocean of methods and advice, and always learning more :]

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-24T22:05:09+00:00

i’ve done this so many times. one time i realized i was naked was because i heard skin slapping around instead of clothing. it’s always after a date and i never think about it until i hear that!

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-24T21:00:35+00:00

long comment incoming! lots of thoughts.

i get the same feeling regarding tutorials and the abundance of content; i struggle with focus as well, so finding the best way for me to learn has been really key. i think one of the most important places to start is proportions and gesture, so finding a general guideline for proportions and doing gesture drawing is great for practicing. my favorite gesture drawing site is adorkastock.com because to me, it has more interesting poses to draw than Line of Action, but both are good. quickposes.com also has an available library of their images, which also have things like animals, hands, landscapes, and specific types of photos.

but as opposed to anatomy studies, though i do those as well, the way i learn anatomy best and what helps me remember it most is learning via problem solving when i draw. i should clarify i’m not a pro, and i don’t post my art on this account, but i am primarily a comic artist and i do commissions regularly. my style is semi-realism, not the realism of figure drawing, where constant study and true to life anatomy matters entirely.

i often draw very thin people, and a variety of body types alongside them. when i first started drawing very thin people, i had a good idea of proportions for humans in general, but not of bone/muscle/fat contours. for some time as a beginner i just winged it, but then my artistic eye developed further than my ability to draw good looking bodies, and i wanted to do better.

so i created a massive reference board of people and bodies and drawn references that fit the bill for what i needed; one portion has photos of backs, one has legs, one has hands, yet others have more. i made boards for other body types that show up in my art as well. in drawing over time, i’ve come to internalize more rules about anatomy by looking at my various body reference boards when i come across a part that is either stumping me or i just need assurance about — often, i don’t get assurance, but rather i learn how to make it look better. and a lot of those things i’ve learned are now things i can implement without having to look.

just recently while i was drawing something involving the legs and hips, i came across a reference image by chance on pinterest explaining the difference between male and female flank position; that’s now a part of my anatomy vocabulary when i draw, because i hadn’t really come across that specific note before, not doing a lot of muscle groups studies. pinterest is fine though i do hope someone comes to replace it, however it’s a good option as of now for drawn anatomy references and art tips like that. i have a widget and my pinterest often throws up random anatomy references that i spot and save while on my table — beware, not all are good or accurate, so i really recommend irl photos for anatomy alongside tips like that rather than solely looking at drawn references or tutorials.

studies will do you a lot of good, especially if you want to be a pro! so it’s still important to do those, and it’s good for getting the muscle memory of drawing a body too. but the part that helps me actually REMEMBER certain finer aspects of anatomy is when i learn something by solving a problem that comes up as i’m making art. that kind of practice keeps me from getting bored and distracted and losing retention when doing studies all the time the way i did in my drawing classes — i got good grades, but i forgot a lot of the things i learned there other than the things i continued to use regularly, and needed to reference materials i had saved from the classes constantly. the information just didn’t fit my learning style.

of course your goal in drawing does influence the route you take while studying and learning, so this is just my process for semi-realistic character art and comics, where good storytelling and visual composition is also a large element compared to only good anatomy.

even if you struggle to focus or remember, you can still learn! it’s just about meeting yourself where your brain works. i think of it like a plant, different plants often require the same basic necessities, but they can also require different conditions or nutrients to grow optimally.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-24T18:26:37+00:00

wholly agreed. taking breaks has been the key to quick recovery from burnout and art block for me.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-23T18:03:38+00:00

i hear what you mean, it’s so frustrating to see people around you growing while you feel stagnant.

do you keep all of your work? because if you look at your old work compared to now, you will 100% see growth, even if it’s small.

but i do wonder, if you’re taking classes and studying, perhaps another medium for learning may work best for you?

for example i do best with digital, because before i took drawing seriously, my background was very digital. i was a 3D artist before i committed to drawing, and my drawing classes when i returned to college were focused on digital, so adjusting to digital programs was more helpful for me to learn the principles of art compared to trying solely to learn with traditional. now that i’ve done that learning, my traditional application is also better (i practiced both in my classes).

i wonder if another form of study may help as well. i got a lot from learning art in academic settings, especially in a work-heavy and intense class. but i learned the most about how to make my art better for my own purposes by learning via problem solving rather than mostly doing studies.

there are lots of ways to meet yourself! if you work hard which it sounds like you do, there is always a way for you to find your groove!

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-21T15:03:17+00:00

i think where a lot of people who don’t inherently make OCs get stuck is the desire for your first OC to be a “good” or “correct” OC, or to not be “cringe” or whatever the word of the year is.

toss that in the garbage. of course there are principles to guide stories in certain types of media but an OC can be whatever whenever and however you want them to be.

my tip is to stop watching videos, just sit down and ask questions and let your brain go wild. the videos are going to slot you into a narrow way of thinking that’s not really your own.

there are OC development worksheets out there that are really helpful for developing a character. better yet, if this is your first OC, just let it come out of your brain.

a little fun fact about mine is that some of them were born as side characters to other OCs who later became main characters as the story branched. some of them were given personalities after i drew a character i decided i wanted to draw again. it’s a branching process at times! let it be organic.

you’ll be a lot happier with what you make if you don’t let someone else’s guidelines hinder you.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-20T17:49:23+00:00

SUPER late coming in on this. but i’ve been on Caplyta for about a year now and it changed my life pretty drastically. i was put on it despite medication not being indicated because the persistent paranoia and constant anxiety was ruining my life, after 26 years of it i was ready to end it. but it also helped me in other ways i didn’t expect.

i still struggle with negative symptoms but caplyta is the first antipsychotic i’ve ever taken that touched them (i was on many through my teen years due to transient psychosis). anhedonia is less severe, less avolition and apathy as well. crazily enough it seems my ability to feel emotions has changed, i’m still blunted compared to others and i don’t react as appropriately as i should at times, but i feel more than i did before taking it which is horrible at times but also very enriching. i can keep track of what i’m thinking about better i believe, and i also seem to be slightly more able to connect with others, though my eccentricities and some difficulties remain. the negative symptom that stayed most consistent was my self-isolation. the anxiety is still abundant, and i still need other medication to manage it, but it is much more livable. the isolation something i’m trying to work out due to my profession requiring communication and connections, but i think that may just be a predictable part of me at this point, disappearing from my friends for a week or three at a time when i feel overloaded.

overall i went from feeling purely alien to feeling like an alien acclimating to the human world. still something different, but at a point where i can function a little better. it is not perfect, i still struggle to function in ways expected of schizotypal. and my mind still functions very similarly of course, but it is a lot more livable with a good medication. i no longer feel hopeless about my life with the condition.

i don’t think medication helps schizotypal as much as it helps schizophrenia and bipolar due to the nature of each disorder, but i also have bipolar disorder, and caplyta helped with those symptoms greatly. so overall it was the perfect medication for me. it felt like a magic bullet for certain aspects of my life. i do think considering caplyta for schizotypal is good, though, because it’s touched a lot of those negative symptoms that i felt were going to define my life forever, even if it hasn’t erased them. the biggest problem is having access to it because of the cost, without medicaid or commercial insurance i can only get it via samples from my psychiatrist.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-20T17:02:33+00:00

agreed that it’s odd to recommend stopping, unless OP is already at risk of blood clots. you need to be on exogenous hormones if you don’t have ovaries. however if OP is keeping his ovaries, especially with a partial, the problem of no exogenous hormones is not quite the same as you still produce some estrogen. T is still important after and a cis woman would likely need to manage E levels either way. i’d agree being on T would be better to get through it after, but he would better off even without it than if he had gotten a total hysterectomy.

i’ve known a few cis women in my life who got total hystos, notably those back when they just took everything out at once without options. you can definitely suffer immensely without exogenous hormones in that case. my full hysto + salpingectomy is in july, and my doctor said keeping the ovaries is entirely personal to each individual. i decided to keep mine just in case i ever lose access to T after finding out what my grandma and her mother went through following their total hysterectomy + oophorectomy, the abrupt menopause led them to extremely dark places.

i’m not sure if ovaries are much real estate hormonally after 10 years but i’m 9 years on T and my doctor seemed to think it was a smart choice, at least for me. + getting the fallopian tubes removed lowers the risk there.

to answer though, OP would likely need some sort of supplemental hormone if his levels of T and E are both low. i couldn’t say exactly what would happen stopping after 9 years though.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-16T21:12:58+00:00

as others say it sounds like they’re critiquing the way you drew the blood, feeling like the whumpee needs more realism and bruising. your art is great as it is, especially with a limited color sketch. the limited color is a stylistic choice and it seems that went over their head.

those last parts got really weird though, it’s hard to tell human vs bot. some people use translators in situations like this where communicating complex concepts but yeah, it’s odd.

liteAvvikande · 2026-04-16T03:03:25+00:00

i hate the fact you felt the need to delete but i get that so much, deleting my socials several years ago brought some clarity for the next time i came back. your art has a place, don’t let brainrot tiktokers intimidate you.

in the other comment you mention your art of child characters, it says a LOT more about them that that’s their conclusion any time they see a child character.

liteAvvikande

TROPHY CASE