#zepie blabs

[ze-pie]

One of my more vivid memories of high school is from a project in graphic design; we had to create a font by hand and draw an accompanying image to create a fake poster for a fake production.

For my image, I decided to draw a robot girl, and I was very excited because I was allowed to work digitally (at the time I was drawing su fanart almost daily so this was nothing short of a cake walk) During my process my teacher (that I very much liked and respected) came by and commented how it was looking “very Steven Universe” and to “be careful with that.” She gave me a paused direct look with this statement to make sure I got the message.

I remember being caught off guard by the comment and unsure how to take the critique. I wasn’t even trying to emulate a Steven Universe style, though it makes sense that it being half of what I drew all the time would yield these results. I remember feeling quietly ashamed and unsure of myself, the work that I was creating, and my relationship to my favorite cartoon.

Today, when I draw, I unconsciously go out of my way to make my art look as non-StevenUniversey as I can manage. I look at my old art and “be careful with that” pops into my head without warning. I think about cringe compilations featuring steven universe fans playing ukeleles (like me and my friends did in hs) and the many rant videos, and that infamous calarts artsyle post, and this horrible horrible feeling that looking like Steven Universe was the worst possible thing for my art to be.

Being an impressionable insecure teenager isnt a unique story, and to me it kinda feels silly how I’m just now confronting this strange shame that’s cast a dark shadow on my art, my youth, and a tv show I hold closer to my heart than I’d let myself admit. I truly dont think my teacher meant the unique kind of harm or lasting seed of shame that it ended up being. Maybe I was meant to go through this period of shame + reflection + acceptance. Maybe it was worth it to get to today to write this post. To leave a love and then return to it, stronger and wiser, and ready to love again.

[ze-pie]

Ok, I'll pose an amicable rebuttal here as someone working as an independent artist professionally: separate your art from your "content."

"Art" can't be mass produced. It shouldn't be rushed. It's inherently personal, and it primarily pleases the creator before anyone else. It's the passion project you spend up to a year working on that no one really asked for except you.

"Content" is what keeps the lights on. In a world where capitalism eats away at all of us, many of us creatives want to find a way to generate our skills into a living wage, and relying on only art to get there can be a slippery slope into losing creative drive. Art and commerce are about as opposite concepts as you can get and yet we're always pressured to combine the two.

Obviously art can generate the same results that content produces, but I agree with OP that it shouldnt be defined by that. For example:

"Art" is a 10 hour painting of something im interested in. It took around 4 months on and off for me to complete. I never rushed it tho. Maybe I'll make a print of it later but I still consider it my art.

"Content" is drawing a few warmup sketches and filming progress vids for instagram reels, or it's working on new charm designs that i intend to sell online or at cons. I have deadlines to meet and schedules to maintain.

Now making content might suck sometimes lol but at least it never overtakes the part of all of it that actually makes me happy: making art for myself and no one else on my own time.

art tips

don't call what you create "content". regardless of what it is. that's the devil talking. call it art, call it writing, call it music, call it analysis, call it editing, literally just call it what it is

I was going to put other things but oh my god please just don't call yourself a "content creator". you are a person you are making art / writing / music / etc you are an artist an author a musician

you are not an Image Generator For Clicks And Views. please. allow yourself to connect with your work by naming it properly and acknowledging yourself in kind

[ze-pie]

Ok like. I know pearlina is more or less canon (at least one-sided marina according to that website) but even without unequivocal official confirmation its still so hilarious to me how EVERYONE is on the same page that theyre lesbians and married. Like, its just an assumption. No second guessing

I know not everyone ships, and theres been some drama in the past in certain circles on whether theyre just friends or closer, but MOST people can agree that the two of them are insanely close and love eachother very much. Seeing how when side order got announced IMMEDIATELY i see “oh thats pearl and marinas wedding, right” all over my timeline and across the entire off the hook fandom just speaks to the synergy of both this ship and the people that observe it, even passively.

What I’m saying is that Nintendo, its okay, just confirm Pearl and Marina’s romance, the closet is made of glass,,

[ze-pie]

Man im still shook about Peach fjdgfhdjfb i know everyone's talking about chris pratt amd like yeah, deserved, that performance was pretty painful, but honestly i did not expect for Peach of all characters to make me feel so distressed lolol

I think Anya Taylor Joy's normal speaking voice was just NOT the right choice here. I figured Peach's voice would be the easiest to get right, but i never accounted for these hoes just NOT voice acting 😭 what are we in 2013, can we please get over this celebrity voice shit? I am TIRED,,

[ze-pie]

barbie was sooooooo good 💕

[ze-pie]

Ive been watching since the beginning but joined the fandom around 2015 right before the second StevenBomb

SU fandom roll call!

It was around the big hiatus of 2016 that I became a fan of SU. And so, I’m curious … how many new fans are joining us in this even bigger hiatus of 2017?

So while we’re at it, let’s have a roll call!

Reblog this with the date that you became a fan of SU, and the date that you joined the fandom, AND the first episode you watched! I wanna know how many old fans are still around, and how many newbies we’ve got!

I’ll start. I started watching in December 2015, and joined the fandom in July 2016. My first episode was Garnet’s Universe!

[ze-pie]

Okay! I've officially made a dedicated art blog! @zepiezepie

I'm still posting pearlina stuff and other shipping/shitpost art on ze-pie, but my bigger portfolio-type pieces and most of my original art will be posted on the new account!

If you like the stuff i make, please consider giving it a follow! Thank u :>

[ze-pie]

Im thinkin about making a separate blog for my original art/portfolio pieces and keep this a personal/shippy art/fanart blog 🤔

[ze-pie]

Damn seasonal depression is real im so mad that i cant just go lay in the sun for a while to recharge 😭 Chicago, man

[ze-pie]

I'm so excited for the news of a new sk8 season you have no idea 😭 I really thought we'd be getting a movie at best

I scribbled down a bunch of my thoughts and hopes for season 2 so read on if you're interested! (Warning, very long, and half of that is bc i ramble about renga lolol)

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My god i can actually make a list of things id love to see in Season 2 and not be like "no dont do that bc then youre gonna get your hopes up that there will even be a s2" but its actually happening holy shit lol ok anyways:

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1. ARREST ADAM. IM NOT FUKN PLAYING LOL GET HIS ASS ARRESTED AND CHARGED FOR SUMTHIN JESUS LORD. Literally my only major criticism with the show is that Adam didnt go to prison by the end of the season so it HAS to fuckin happen this time. I want that red haired investigator lady to win so bad please catch his ass.

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2. Ever since this idea was planted in my head, I haven't been able to stop thinking about it, but I want the sk8 gang to travel! Like not just to a hot springs like I want them to travel and skate across Japan and even elsewhere (bonus points if we somehow get Renga in Canada), I think the change of scenery would be really interesting, especially if they went somewhere like Tokyo. I'm just a sucker for friends traveling arcs in general, and this also could go hand in hand with my next point:

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3. I think it would be interesting if "S" died out at some point this season, whether through Adam arrest (🤞) or bc of the aforementioned traveling we just dont see much of "S" this series, or if the characters simply grow out of "S" naturally (honestly the one I'd most prefer.) I think it would be another good ride home to the central theme of the show about doing things you like bc they're fun and not bc of any clout or approval ranking. 

And honestly, I think we've explored as much of "S" as we could while keeping it interesting. Not to say there shouldn't be more competing, that's like half the show lol, but i think the location of "S" will start to get a little repetitive after a while. This is why going somewhere like Tokyo would be a perfect refresh of the format, bc you can skate in new locations with different types of people than the typical underground flamboyancy of "S" (as wonderful as it is.)

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4. Matchablossom past!🍵🌸 I'd love to see it, this is definitely not the ship that receives the most of my love in the show but I do still enjoy watching them, so id love to get some nice meat to their relationship for me to keep sinking into (〃^∇^)ﾉ

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5. It was hinted that Koyomi would become a great skater in due time and I'd love to see that realized! I think she'd make a fun addition to the sk8 gang and personally I think Koyomi and Miyas personalities and snark levels would make for the funniest fucking comedy I just, I can hear their mean spirited chaotic banter from back here.

I know some people like to think they'd be wholesome friends but like,,,,, they're both little shits,, what you think you put them together and they'll just. Get along?? I mean maybe, but for me it sounds funnier if they just cant stand each others guts but are also, hilariously enough, inseparable (which maybe is too similar to matchablossoms shtick but I feel like that's more married couple bickering than anything so I feel like it'd be different enough.) Like they're both little shits but they're little shits in different fonts so they're still little shits to eachother god give it to me.

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6. ALSO LITTLE BROTHER MIYA BIG BROTHER REKI PLS ITS THE CUTEST THING IN THE WORLD TO ME I WANNA SEE MORE OF IT

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7. I also want to know more about Reki's friend that stopped skating (and Reki's past in general), and I wouldn't even mind that skate friend temporarily returning to Reki's life and giving Langa certain... complicated feelings >:)

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8. Obviously wanna know more about Langa's past as well. Did he have any family on his dad's side? How did his dad die? Are we gonna see more flashbacks/scenes where the Japanese voice actor is trying his damndest to sound like he's fluent in English? Will I have to be subject to hearing that once more? Who's to say.

(ok, wouldn't it be so cool tho if they did have full scenes where langa is speaking english, but they went and got the english voice actor to do the lines??? I feel like that would be so cool and his voice is so similar to the japanese va that it wouldn't even be jarring switching back and forth)

((i dont know anything about how voice actor laws work or if this is at all possible but a girl can dream lolol))

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9. i cant fucking believe theres a season 2 i m justbrbeshagw i cant do itmmtgus

i was gonna say i can die happy but thats a lie if i die i cant watch season 2 and it might not be out till at least late next year oh god i have to NOT DIE TILL THEN OMG ILL BE SO MAD

renga renga renga RENGA RENGAAAAA,

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OKAY actually on that topic, last note, hopes for Renga:

10. I don't want Reki and Langa to get in another big fight again like last season. Not that there was anything wrong with their s1 fight as a story device, bc I reaaally liked that conflict. It made sense with their characters and gave them both a bit of introspection on who they are as people, and who they are to eachother, and what the other truly means to them, and it ultimately brought them closer together. I just want that to stay true this season.

And I guess I shouldn't say fight, they're totally allowed to get into arguments and maybe even intense ones (as cute as their reunion was, they clearly didn't actually talk about everything that was bothering them, and I couldn't tell if that was anime being anime or teenagers being teenagers. Maybe both?)

I just don't want them to be made to break up again. Conflict between them is fine (it could even be spicy depending on the context >:3c) but I don't want it to drastically sever their connection like last time. It would be nice if it's like: "Okay, this is clearly a problem, and I am upset, but I now know that ghosting you isn't the answer, we have a true bond somewhere here, and I think we can get through this" I am not a script writer lol but you know, show a bit of growth! It would be lovely to see.

And hehe definitely self-indulgent but this point could actually be swayed for me if the situation is an explosion of jealousy and unacknowledged more-than-platonic feelings, creating a different kind of emotional tension than last conflict, where its less about self esteem issues, inadequacy and betrayal, and more of: "I might be in love with him, but I cant tell him bc I honestly don't even understand my feelings myself, and that stresses me out, and now were both stressed out and we don't know why bc were dumb teenagers who don't know how to communicate our feelings.😭"

lol obviously this^ is very dependent on of course there actually being a romantic storyline between the two, which like, actually it typing out with words as if its a possibility.... i can practically see the clown nose and wig materializing on my desk ready for me to put on lol i refuse to entertain that it's a possibility for my own sanity.

If there's anything I for sure want to see as their relationship develops, it's learning how to communicate, cause I still think there's a few things left unsaid between them (esp on Rekis part, things that Langa might like to at least be aware of?)

🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹🛹

Overall I will simply be happy just,,, seeing my boys doing things again, hanging out together, new canon adventures 🥲🥺 I'm so happy, another full season of my babies ❤💙❤💙❤💙

[ze-pie]

Ok new law i am LITERALLY no longer allowed to feel shitty about myself if i take a bad selfie because IM LOOKING AT MYSELF IN THE MIRROR RN AND I LOOK SO CUTE BUT IM LOOKING IN THE CAMERA AND I LOOK SO FUCKING DIFFERENT LIKE WHEN THEY SAY THE CAMERA ADDS TEN POUNDS THEYRE NOT FUCKING KIDDING I LOOK LIKE A GOD DAMN BALLOON IN THE PHONE BUT IM FUCKING HOT IN MY MIRROR IM TRUSTING MY MIRROR FROM NOW ON

[ze-pie]

Random but on the ppg reboot script leak i just KNEW theyd make buttercup a toxic lesbian trope bc it's just way too easy, just make their personality having sex with random women 24/7 and happily cheating on multiple girls, idk it just rubs me the wrong way maybe im too bothered but I'm just tired of seeing The Lesbian™ character thrown into these corny ass shows, especially powerpuff girls like jeez way to be predictable in the worst way possible

[ze-pie]

Currently watching Nana (finally) and this is such a good show, they do a really good job with keeping their characters consistent and showing the complexities of their inner thoughts and feelings about eachother. It's really rewarding to pick up on, you see something in a character or relationship early on that raises a mini red flag or causes you to raise an eyebrow even if on the surface level everything seems fine, only for that very trait to come back 10 or 20 episodes later and cause a painful downfall that would ordinarily come as a surprise to many when you could see it snowballing the whole time and UGH. God that's my shit. Good show

[ze-pie]

I miss the unbridled passion of creating simply because i wanted to. I was looking at my backlog and how much i just didnt care about polish and perfection because i was creating content for a show i hold so dear to my heart. I wasn't making art bc someone else would like it (well a little bit but not that much) I was really mainly doing it for myself and it made me happy, i honestly rlly miss the su fandom at its peak, craziness and drama and all.

I feel like ive lost that touch, that drive, i still love creating but i have that voice in the back of my head telling me not to do x y and z. You've got bills to pay, food to buy, you can't waste time doing something stupid and silly that's only gonna get 3 notes, it's a waste of potential exposure, you should be improving your art cause right now there's a lot of fierce competition and you can't catch up, make sure if you make something it's the best thing you've ever made and reaches a wide enough audience and will get enough notes otherwise why bother, oh and if you actually have fun that's fine too i guess, whatever.

[ze-pie]

Ive been watching a lot of old nickelodeon shows (and first of all the Dan Schneider foot thing is way more real than the examples known online, seriously we watched liked 3 episodes of icarly and counted at least 8 blatant and weird/inappropriate foot jokes, that shit is crazy to see on rewatch) but also i noticed the way the way they presented foreigners was limited to "look, they have a funny accent" "haha they cant speak english, we dont know what theyre saying so they probably just dont know how to communicate at all!!" "foreign people are so weird!!!" Its fucking creepy honestly watching the blatant American-centralized propaganda being disguised as children's comedy, and i feel like a dumb dumb for not realizing how xenophobic i actually got from watching all of this growing up 🤦‍♀️

[ze-pie]

Ok I shit on this website alot but i never realized how much of a difference your social media experience is when your follow count isnt posted for the world to see against your will. People always say follow count doesnt mean anything, but when its the first thing people see before they even see your content, it kinda is... being on twitter for a while i noticed that the higher your follow count the more frequently people follow you, even if you post absolutely nothing. I gained over 1000 followers during the months of may and june even though i literally hadnt posted a single thing since early april (i swear im not trying to flex im just trying to point out how stupid it is lol.) But because my follow count was already relatively high people started following without much second thought, granted it could also be due to algorithms and such, but i know im guilty myself of occasionally being slightly more unconsciously swayed to follow ppl after seeing their high follow count shoved in my face. Its so unhealthy i hate it

On tumblr your follow count is only viewable to you, no wearing it as a constant badge of pride or using it as a live public counter. Plus even if you post about your follow count, no one really cares that much i think. Were all a bunch of goddamn morons here. Even if youre famous on tumblr, youre still only tumblr famous, which i actually find pretty humbling lollll