Could use some advice

[tyrano-tiggs.livejournal.com]

Final Edit - received my head in the mail today

Hi AB, looking for some advice before I escalate to a full beware.
In August, I commissioned someone for a resin base to be used in a fursuit head - the base was to be made to be fur-ready and cost me £90.
The transaction started over FB and all communication took place there. At the start, the builder kept in good contact; we had conversations regarding different aspects of building a head; she provided lots of links to supplies etc and it was generally quite friendly.

In December, I asked if she knew how long a wait I'd have left - I was hoping to have the head fully done for a convention in April but I never stated a deadline so I am to blame for that (first commission of this nature and was naive and didn't think that it would take as long as it is). She explained that a full suit had taken priority over everything due to the clients deadline and I told her that I understood and that I was in no rush (again, silly thing to say, I know).

That was the last contact I have had with the builder. I have sent PM's over FB as well as to her FA account - all have been read but none have been replied to. She provided an email contact too which I have emailed and gotten no reply there too.

I have been shown updates of my head and was told in December there was only minor details left to finish however the builder seems to have time to make new resin casts/bases/suits but not finish mine first.
She posted a few journals RE real-life drama and having very little means of communication at the present. I accepted that excuse 3 weeks ago however, as of 3 days ago, she has been uploading video streams of a new suit she is working on as well as favouriting art -If her communication is so restricted, how come she can stream videos and favourite but cannot take 30 seconds to reply to a PM. Another commissioner has also posted on her shouts asking whats happening with their commission too and there is a wall post on her FB from another person regarding commissions.

I'm not sure where to proceed from here - It's too late to file a paypal dispute and getting a refund isn't feasable if I can't even get a simple response out of her. We're both attending the same convention in 4 weeks and short of marching up to her artist-alley stall and demanding either my head or a refund, I'm at a loss of what to do.

I know I am in somepart to blame for it getting to this stage - I should have requested a deadline and been more pushy but I was naive and thought that since we were both members of the same local Cosplay group and were somewhat friends that things would much more smoothly than they have - I've learned a lesson not to be so trusting when large sums of money are involved.

Any advice would be very much appreciated

EDIT - commissioner contacted me and I will have my item within a week

BEWARE: Pirate Cashoo

[houndofloki.livejournal.com]

WHO: Pirate Cashoo

WHERE: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/pirate-cashoo
pirate-cashoo.deviantart.com
pirate-cashoo.tumblr.com
zombiebooty.tumblr.com (NSFW)

WHAT: 2 pictures. One high-res of a single character, one sketch of two characters that she later offered to upgrade to a colored sketch in apology for the wait - but I haven't seen anything on either.

WHEN: High res was October 2011



EXPLAIN: I will concede right off the bat that this situation is partly my own fault. I have a busy job, and don't tend to 'check in' with artists all that often. I paid in full up front for both of these images but went a long time without contacting her, because the 'honor system' has worked out fine for me in the past. I bought a second picture from her when the other one was a year overdue, which was stupid of me - but I honestly lost track of just how long it had really been. So it's partly on me that it has reached this point. I took way too blase an attitude to buying art online, but I've learned from this.

I had bought pictures from Cashoo successfully a couple of times in the past, and arranged to buy one of her high-res commissions when she opened them up in a journal. The price for it was $140. This was October 2011. I paid for it in full upfront.

This is where I let things go for quite a while. I bought a couple of bust images from her, and both were completed in a decent timeframe - so I wasn't too worried about the high-res at that point.

10/14/2012: I checked in with her about and she said it was nearly done. At this point, the problem she was having was something to do with a car; I'm a little fuzzy on details now. I figured the high-res was forthcoming and bought a two-character sketch from her for 90 bucks to help her out (I know. Dumb of me.)

11/12/2012: She replied to me saying she had started a sketch but lost it in some kind of computer disaster. Promised to give a sketch in 'the next few days', and said she would do it tonight except she had to pay $200 in bills tomorrow? What that has to do with sketching now, I don't even know. I kept my response positive because I was still hoping to get my picture. Journals about various personal problems holding her progress were posted in this timeframe.

12/4/2013: No sketch. She had posted one of those long whiny journals, but I wanted a specific update about my picture and sent an FA note. It was read, but not responded to.

Late December 2012: After my note on FA went ignored, I saw her post a Tumblr update about doing a stream. I unfortunately don't have screenshots of this, but I stepped into the stream and talked to her. She apologized repeatedly for still not having a sketch and said my picture was next in the queue after the one she was currently working on (which was Svarta-Perlan's, another AB entry). She offered to upgrade the sketch I bought in October 2012 to a colored sketch as an apology for the wait. Yeah, okay, fine.

January-February 2013: I sent a couple of Tumblr asks requesting updates, because that seemed to be the site she was using most regularly. Tumblr doesn't record those...but they weren't responded to, anyway.

March 12 2013: Sent another FA note asking for an update. Still unread a week later, though she has been replying to comments on DA.

As of today - I still have yet to see even a rough sketch on either image. Her story on DA comments is now that's she's facing eviction. Who knows. I honestly just hope I'll get either the commissions or a full refund at some point.

Evidence:
http://i644.photobucket.com/albums/uu161/BeckytheFox/ScreenShot2013-03-19at101808PM_zps19e70f98.png
http://i644.photobucket.com/albums/uu161/BeckytheFox/ScreenShot2013-03-19at102443PM_zps785ab745.png
http://i644.photobucket.com/albums/uu161/BeckytheFox/ScreenShot2013-03-19at101314PM_zpsc7d6342d.png

EDIT 4/1/2013
I caught up with Cashoo on Livestream. She sent me an invite to the Asana program and showed me a WIP of my high-res commission (refined sketch with lighting shaded in). So there has been progress.