Zim Gekko, and commissions.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

At FWA a few weeks ago, I happen to come across Zim Gekko in the Artist Alley, I liked her work, and hey her badges were only $15, so I asked her about doing a badger for me, she said ok, took down my info, etc. I paid her my money, she told me to give her two hours and it would be done. I walk away, happy, with the transaction so far. Well, I actually give her three or fours hours before checking back in AA, which she was not in, I happen to pass her in the hall, and she says...."I had to take a break, I will be back in either tonight or in the morning" I say OK that's fine, and go about my business.

I checked in AA through the evening, just because me and my mate liked to look at the different art, but she was never in there, which was fine. So we checked back again in the morning (again just to look around, and yea, I was excited to get the badge) I find her there, in AA (still had a sign up for commissions, which , (plays a role later) she tells me that the badge is done, its in her room, and she will get someone to bring it down, Ok Great! So I check back a little later on, and she's no where to be found. Eventually, my mate see's her in the hall, and ask about it, and now there is an issue with the laminate (Though previously I had been told it was already done), ok so I say ok, and go on. I have been extremely patient about this whole thing, even telling my mate not to worry about it, that I will get my badge, etc.

I did not actually speak to her any more that day, but I did see her come down the hallway with a badge, laminated, and everything, but she did not stop to speak to me, or update me or anything. Sunday comes around, and she was never in AA, at least after 10:30 am. That's fine, I will find her on-line after the con, and see about getting my badge (though I was disappointed at not getting a new badge at FWA this year, I had another issue with another artist, that's been worked out). I get home on Monday after the con, and I have to google her name, as she did provide me with any contact info at all, so I find her FA account, and its linked to her new FA account. I drop a shout on the page, and say hey you did a badge for me, I never got to pick t up. She responds back the next day and says, oh yea its all ready, what's your addy, i can mail it to you. I provide her with my mailing address, and ask if I could get a scan, just to see it. Well, that was Tuesday, the 19th, I never got any response back after that, no scan, nothing. So 5 days ago I put another shout on her page, asking is she is going to respond to my messages. No response, So I posted a LJ entry in the FWA group about some left behind items in our room, and also a note there about how I hadn't gotten my badge, and no response from Zim. I will fully admit by this point I was a bit annoyed, and maybe impatient. Fact is I was told 2 hours, and it was strectching into week 2. So a day goes by no reponse whatsover, So I post one more shout on the FA page, asking if she mailed it, or if there was a problem, etc.

Well, now I get a response to my LJ post in FWA, form Zim, and it was rather mocking, and sarcastic. You can go read it for yourself. Now, at this point, I do believe I have a right to be annoyed, and even upset. So I respond back not nicely, and it all goes downhill from there. So now, no only do I still not have a badge, its now the 28th. The artist will not respond to me anymore, she will not provide a scan (proof she even did the badge), a date in which she mailed, nothing. She has however, taken the time to post about me in Artist Beware. Throwing out lies, and accusations of harrasment, she has let her friend post horrible things about me, calling me names, "blacklisting" me with other artist. But yet she cannot even answer to my complaints. Yes, I have some bad things too, but not until provoked. Yes two weeks may not be that long to wait for art, but when I was given a time frame of two hours, two weeks is a long time, especially with no apology, and in fact, quite the oppsite. She has come up with many different reasons as if to why the badge was not done, or hasn't arrived, ranging from the laminate issue, to her being sick (which for the record I was never told that she was sick, not feeling well, or that she could not complete the badge, for any reason), to its mailed, its not her problem any more. If the badge could not be completed, for whatever reason, I would have gladly taken my money back. If it is done, scan it, prove it, tell me a day in which is was mailed, something. Lastly, I am not writing this to start another flame war, to trash talk anyone. It is my side of the story, written calmly, coolly, and as objective as I can be on the subject.

Xposted to my own LJ, and Artist-Beware.

Edit:: The link to the FWA entry is as follows,

http://community.livejournal.com/furryweekend/188867.html

And I don't know how to 'edit' properly, call me simple I guess.

Comments

[lashiec.livejournal.com]

Please, for the love of God, format this post. I'll happily read both sides of this story then.

[taasla.livejournal.com]

Wall of text puts people off of reading.

[cassu-bean.livejournal.com]

You may want to give us a link to FWA or something since most people aren't going to look for it themselves.

[samiitiger.livejournal.com]

You forget that artists have lives, too...

And for the love of $DEITY, format your bloody statement!

[tealizard.livejournal.com]

2 weeks for a badge isn't horrible. In the post she did make, she wasn't 'calling you names', and nobody has said horrible things about you, simply that you are an extremely impatient person to work with.

I have heard of Zim-Gekko before, as a very good person to work with. I'd call this the exception not the rule. What you need to do, if you are going to pester someone about a badge so often, is send notes, etc. Not post publically on a page, especially over $15 dollars.

Honestly, I'm kind of leading towards her side, KNOWING ALREADY that she is a great person to work with as an artist, and knowing that she has in the past had nothing but good things said about her AS an artist. I don't doubt that someone with as much experience with selling badges, etc, would be far more better about the situation, as she said in her own post. This reads to me like a "revenge" posting? D: Sorry.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

Its not revenge, its jsut my side. Honestly thats it. I don't think Zim is a bad person, I loved her art. I think she's trying to make me out to be the bad guy, jsut to cover her reputation. I mean I can't prove 100% that she made up stuff or lied, jsut cause its my word against hers.

And yes, people were calling me an asshole, a tool, a drama queen, those are negative things.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

I am full aware, and actually, despite the way it looks, an understanding person. The problem is there was a total lack of communication, and I believe that was on her.

[theblackdragon.livejournal.com]

Yeah, i think if i'd been told 'it'll be two hours' and it turned into more than two weeks with not even a scan to prove it was done in the first place, I'd be willing to start bringing things up in a public forum as well. sounds like this was a mess on both sides, to be honest.

edit: good god, the maturity on both sides here is staggering. bravo, guys. :/

[tealizard.livejournal.com]

You mean you can't provide screenshots of the conversation explicitly where she 'lied'? :/

Yes, but they are things everyone calls everyone else, every day. Not horrible. Mean, but not horrible. Hell I'd say, for what the post was, they were descriptive/

[banrai.livejournal.com]

hear-fuckin'-hear. Zim is a great artist to work with, I myself have done several things with her. This post screams nothing but 'Waaaah I was called out and I'm butt-hurt'.

Well said, none the less.

[monstersexual.livejournal.com]

Well, I dont think the issue here is how long it took. I think 2 weeks is pretty understandable/standard for a commission.

The problem here is her not being up front and honest.
-If she was sick, she should have told you.
-If she *KNEW* it would take more than two hours, she should have said something a long the lines of "it may take up to THIS long, is that okay?"
-Instead of making up a bunch of excuses, she should have been HONEST.
-She should have provided you with contact info

I think she's being very unprofessional and seemingly only caring about the cash, not the customer.

THOUGH I STRONGLY recommend NOT leaving user page shouts from now on. It makes the artist feel attacked and then they automatically defend themselves and get frustrated and everything get's nasty.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

well without citing many different things....for one, she said in her last post that I said being sick was not an excuse....I never said that, I said she never told me she was sick, tha I would have completly understood this. I mean, had she said anything really, I would have understood, its the lack of communication. Example, she said she mailed the badge, but not when, like should I expect it? should I check with the postal service to see if its lost? She won't provide a scan, etc...

[banrai.livejournal.com]

After seeing the back-and-forth between the two of you, starting from your VERY rude post on the FWA community, to Zim's coming back being sick with who knows what (that, by the way, MOST of the people at FWA caught), I can only say one thing.

CRY A RIVER, BUILD A BRIDGE, AND GET OVER IT.

Your wall of text is nothing but a bunch of 'waaah waaaah waaaah waaaaaaaaaaah' because you were being completely unreasonable that someone was SICK. And, funny you keep going on that it's been two weeks now, despite the fact that if I recall correctly, Zim said she's already mailed your stupid badge.

Get a life, crawl back into your parents basement, and ffs don't ever try to commission me, cause you'll get a nice laugh in the face.

[tealizard.livejournal.com]

Yes, but if you sent these through FA notes system, they are still in the system and you could easily provide proof.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

yea, I have elearned that.And honestly I am somewhat new to FA, I didn't think leaving a user page shout was a breach of conduct. Also, I made the public LJ post, to maybe show some urgency.... I dunno. It was never my intention to attack the artist, etc. I felt attacked after her response, so I said some bad things, but not until I was provoked.

[monstersexual.livejournal.com]

Well, she never TOLD the commissioner she was sick. That's one of the problems the commissioner had.

Not to mention, it says specifically in the rules of this community no flaming, and you're being quite rude. There's no need to start tossing insults around, jesus.

[khirmoonclaw.livejournal.com]

The badge was done, I'm the one that pulled up a badger reference on my computer while she was working on it for you. She stayed in the room alot of the weekend.. She was really sick dude believe me when I say this. And she still tried to finish all the badges she could. She did not expect to get sick, It happened and she did her best getting people there artwork, I helped out earlier in the weekend by laminating stuff for so she would not have to keep running back and forth and already not feeling well.

My badge was not finished as well because of running out of laminate.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

Ok, well obviously you cant comprehend text. I never said anything about her being sick, she never said she was sick until like a week after. And my post is my response, andm y side of the story. Don't like it take it with the mods. She said she mailed it, but when? Its still not here, its been over a week since it was supposedly mailed. I was never as rude to her as she has been to me.

[monstersexual.livejournal.com]

Well it's best to stay calm in these situations because you dont want the artist to start to dislike you and then NEVER get your commission done.

So maybe you can try to make amends or something, but I do think the whole thing is fishy. :/

ESPECIALLY no scan. It takes 5 minutes to scan and upload something :/ I mean, all she had to do to "get you off her back" was do that.
Yes, artists have lives but they also have paying customers that they should treat with respect and patience.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

ok, wells he has not given any proof the badge was done. please, understand, I do not doubt she was sick, and had she told me this, or something at the con, in the datys afterwards, etc, I would have completly understood. I mean, I gave her my address on the 18th, to have the completed badge mailed. If she mailed last week, it should have been here by now, if not, maybe she should check with the service she used to mail it, but I don't anything....

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

per the rules of this group, I am not going to link to someone else's account. But someone else has I believe, a few comments down. I have nothing to hide...

[tealizard.livejournal.com]

Nobody sees the private messages. You would have to upload SCREENSHOTS of them.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

Ok, well I am not that computer savvy....really...im not. But the prvate messages consist of my address...that's it. She never responded back to them, wait, I take that back, she did respond to one, but that was after the Lj incident. I can try to figure how to do all this...

[tealizard.livejournal.com]

Then why are you saying that she was giving you all these 'lies', if there were no responses at all? You're making shit up here as you go along.

[completly-naked.livejournal.com]

I fully admit I can be a bitch, to put it lightly, but 99% of the time, that doesn't happen unless I am provoked.