Me: Let's convey how she's a strong, cool-headed character, but also make her cute, y'know? Yet not too cute, because she's the 'cool' type, so she doesn't try to be too cute on purpose, so if she is in a situation where she's being cute, we should make her somewhat reluctant to do it. Does that make sense?
My Artist: I... I think so!
Result:
... Anyway that's how we came up with our avatar.