I saw a post recently about how we outgrow our emotional coping mechanisms, likening it to a thick sweater we put on to keep ourselves warm (safe) when we were otherwise cold (less so) - but later, if and when things are hopefully warmer and safer, the sweater becomes a burden.

That gave me pause and encouraged me to reflect on how I've been trying really hard to shed mine for many years now, but it's so interwoven with many various aspects and insecurities of mine that it often feels unproductive; often cyclical in nature.

Drawing this in stream got some rather intense responses from chat, so I decided that everyone deserved to see a happier ending to such an emotional piece.

I couldn't resist being a bit more of a menace, but it's okay; I still got my treat in the end.

Firefox has a new mascot, and their name is Kit!

They're being very playful towards you, why not explore and play a little bit with them? :3

But uh.. Looks like those extensions you installed are kicking in, too.

Guess it's time to have some real fun online, huh?

Welcome to Quicktober, where I literally just come up with whatever I want day to day, then fail to follow the rule of spending no more than half an hour on each main element of the sketch; but still go as quick as I can, and keep the process to a minimum as much as possible.

An actually quick one this time, inspired by an adorably wonderful series I've been watching with my friend Melody.

One episode had Momonga, the character shown in the matching panels, acting typically bratty, and I was immediately made to think of my darling prideful Praline.

This really is her in a nutshell, but I promise that we do our best to keep her a little in check.

Welcome to Quicktober, where I literally just come up with whatever I want day to day, and force myself to spend no more than half an hour on each main element of the sketch.

Chip (my little facet) can be an absolute menace when she wants to be, and combined with her absolute mastery over military-grade puppy eyes, she knows she can have and get away with just about anything if she really wanted to.

Drawing this on stream and continuously upping the ante (heh, pupping the ante..) with the weaponized cute was the most fun I've had with doing the cute entirely on purpose.

How could you ever say no to a face like that??

Little Chili. That's it, that's the whole tweet.

Joking aside, this came about after I had a tantrum one night when some pressure became too great for me to bear, and Plush bore the brunt of it when she absolutely was not to blame for any of it.

She reassured me that I was okay, and I did my utmost to do my best and bounce back. Even so, I felt bad for subjecting her to it and given that it felt to me like a rather Chili thing for me to do at the time, I figured this was an appropriate way to apologize for my behaviour. While it's often fun to play with subtleties in my art, I do feel compelled to note that Chili's visible despondency in the first frame isn't out of reluctance, but out of an expectation that this is something we'll be punished for. More so "let's get this overwith" than "I shouldn't have to do this."

Plush stopped by in the stream I was working on this just as I finished up the first panel, and reassured me that I was forgiven, which is when I added the other two.

Celebrate your favourite puppies today, maybe even give them a treat!

I had to commemorate such a special day, in my own special way. I'm still exploring the extents to which I can and want to experience being a puppygirl, but nearly a year in, it's not felt any less right for me, and I'm so glad to have it.

A while back there was an art meme/trend going around on Bsky and I threw my hat in while secretly resolving to draw something in return for anything I received (up until I made the reveal and posted the surprise, of course).

Here's the stuff I made for the sweet folks who replied with their creations for me.

First we have the quickie busts I made for the littler sketches I got, including Socks, Angel, Fiona, Dal and Lynn.

And here are the more detailed busts I made for folks who made more detailed pieces. In order, we have Melly Moona, Melody, Rain, Pommy, Pockets, and Tagaziel.

These were a lot of fun to make, especially in return for pieces of giftart.

Lately I've gone a little overboard with drawing my pupself in all sorts of situations. This isn't a bad thing, of course, but it still happened. Especially given my experiences with expressing that side of myself lately, it makes sense that I'd be feeling myself through that lens a lot more. It's equally as comforting as it is expressive to me.

I'll start with the saddest, and work our way up in tone and vibe.

I made this at the end of a very bad night, to the extent that I drew it through teary eyes as I cried for most of the evening. It's very much the saddest I've ever drawn myself as a puppy and probably will for a while yet; even the first time I drew her, beat up and abused, she was still smiling.

For the longest time I've wanted my pupself to be more happy-go-lucky, and less burdened by my personal neuroses and tendency to overthink. Be that as it may, puppies can get sad and upset by things too, and that's okay.

This one came to me while thinking about something to make that was both easy to execute and with which I could try exploring some puppy vibes while I was at it, too.

Puppies tend to be good at asking, or rather, begging for things that they want. The past couple of weeks have certainly been coloured by this need and likewise the inability, or at least an intense reluctance, to ask for things I want. It's been a real struggle for me, but maybe I could learn something about that by striving to be more like a puppy.

Dialing the expression in just right was a fun exercise, and I went through a revision or two before settling on this one. Capturing just the tiniest hint of hope behind those big, soulful, begging eyes was essential. You wouldn't ask for things if you didn't believe deep down that you'd get it, now would you?

My friend Ru inspired this one while talking about one of dogs' favourite way to play that he called "bitey game," and it made me think about how puppyfurs might go about it.

Here I am winning a round of bitey game while playing with him. I'm especially pleased with how the muzzles' and paws' poses came out in this one.

I think this one stands on its own but I feel compelled to provide the direct inspiration for it too. I love it to bits.

Last but by no means least, a cozy little scene inspired by a slice of real life, which likewise inspired another earlier piece. I miss my Mommy, and this was my way of rekindling that lovely cozy comfort we shared during the time we were together.

I adore our expressions in this one so, so very much.

Today is Wolfenoot, a celebration of canines and kindness.

Thank you for being so kind to this canine. I hope to reward you all with many more lovely gifts to come.

For Halloween I made something for myself as a treat, cause I was needing something fun for a change. This was actually Garnet's idea, which she shared with me with the intention of commissioning it, but I liked it so much that I made it anyway. The hardest part was naturally deciding between drawing myself as a puppy in a bunny costume, or a bunny in a puppy costume.

I neglected to put this on my site originally because I figured posting it publicly right away would make it redundant, but I forgot that's kinda the point of being on 10 different sites, after all. So here it is!

I still can't get over how much I love the response of "I'm bunny" to Garnet calling me a clever girl.

Feels almost like a lifetime ago now, but even still, I hope you had a good Halloween.

After a stint of focusing on commission work a while back, I figured I'd make good on a bunch of inspiration I got hit with for puppy-related shenanigans.

here's a scene involving Garnet, who I was visiting at the time; she started a new job and we were navigating how to share the space that we both needed to work comfortably during my stay. While discussing what might happen if I tried to sneak in while her webcam was on during a meeting, this idea came to mind.

She absolutely adored it when I first showed it to her, and frankly, I love it too.

I really wanted to give it a splash of colour before calling it done, and I'm glad I did.

Here's an assortment of puppy stuff I got done over the past several weeks.

I needed a new display pic to properly capture my two sides at one go. The mix of broken and contiguous lines across the boundary between the two was fun to work with without simply duplicating all the layers that would otherwise overlap. That, and it turned out real cute.

And speaking of cute; I needed a "quick" warmup one day and decided I'd lose myself in sketching out a happy lil' wuppy who seems very excited to see you.

My girlfriend Garnet needed some cheering up a little while back, and I couldn't think of a better way to do it than puppy kisses. The two pictures might look the same, but they're not.

After a stint of focusing on commission work more recently, I figured I'd make good on a bunch of inspiration I got hit with for puppy-related shenanigans.

First up is another scene involving Garnet, who I'm currently staying at; she recently started a new job and we've been navigating how to share the space that we both need to work comfortably during my visit. While discussing what might happen if I tried to sneak in while her webcam was on during a meeting, this idea came to mind.

She absolutely adored it when I showed it to her, and frankly, I love it too.

I'll probably give it a touch of colour and format it into a mini comic page before posting it up.

At that point I was on a roll with the self-indulgence. The first was inspired by some stream-related shenanigans related to mot, Plush and Arwyn donating to my streams, when I allowed them to provide one prompt each to combine into a picture.

The second was once again inspired by Garnet and her husband Piter, this time teasing me about "leaving me in the car" while they were out somewhere. The obvious connection was pretty much inevitable. There is absolutely nothing going on behind those dinnerplate eyes. Not a single solitary thought in that fluffy noggin.