Need Help Addressing an Issue

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

2nd Edit: The artist uploaded her submission of the traditional piece today, and I couldn't be more pleased with it. It's absolutely PERFECT, down to the very last detail! <3 All I'm waiting for now is for the finished piece to come in the  mail. I would now like to mark this as resolved.

EDIT: I contacted her via FA's note system, and she agreed to have the commission done by Valentine's Day. I'm saving all notes until the commission is completed, just in case the deadline passes and I still do not receive the commission.

I've never posted in this community before, but I've been keeping an eye on it from time-to-time for a while now. This seems to be the best place for me to get some much needed advice on an issue that I've been having for quite some time now, so I'm hoping some of you will be able to help.

Back in June of '10, I asked a friend of mine (who's name will remain undisclosed until I can figure out what to do about the situation) to do a full color commission of my husband's character for his birthday the following month. I can't remember the exact date I asked her about the commission, but she assured me she would have it completed and sent in the mail by his birthday, which was the 2nd of July. I still haven't received the commission, and it's now almost halfway through the first month of the new year.

She's done a digital piece for me of my character and his together since then as a "freebie", because she said she was sorry for making me wait so long for the commission. At that point, I asked her if she would like to call it even, but she insisted that she still wanted to do the traditional commission. Since then, I've heard nothing about it, and all of her journals seem to be all about what a bad time she's been having at college and how stressful her life is. I want to ask her about the progress of my commission (if there's been ANY at all), but I don't want her to get upset with me for bringing it up. Her last submission was 9 days ago, and it was a traditional commission of someone else's character.

I paid her back in June of last year, so I'm not sure whether or not my Pay-Pal will still have the information stored, and I haven't really bothered her about the commission in the sense of outright asking her about it. If I do so, I'll be sure to save conversation logs, but any up until now I'm not sure if I have anymore.

Should I ask her about it, or should I consider the freebie enough and just let it go? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Comments

[kayla-la.livejournal.com]

In my eyes, you paid her for something specific when you commissioned her originally, and that's what you should get. Otherwise it's not 'complete'.

That said, you could always just ask for a refund, or because she's your friend, you have a bit more leeway to let it go assuming you enjoyed the piece she made for you. You can also compromise. Since she did make you something, AND she's your friend, you could consider a half-refund and then just telling her she can make the piece if she feels like it, but you aren't expecting it anymore and no pressure. That might very well even improve the odds of getting it. It's harder to work on something for a lot of people when they feel pressured.

It's really up to you, though. Are you happy? Are you unhappy? You did give her money for a specific product so there wouldn't be anything wrong with asking for it or a full refund. It just depends on how important it is to you.

You also might want to try to allow yourself more than roughly a month to receive a piece for a strict deadline like that from now on. Deadlines are pressure, and it's where many artists fail to deliver. That's not your fault, but the longer you give them, the better your odds are of actually getting your piece.

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

I've definitely made it a rule since then to give an artist a certain amount of time to complete a commission. It usually depends on the artist's general turnover rate and their circumstances. I understand things come up from time to time where things like commissions get set on the back burner, which is fine with me as long as I'm notified and kept updated.

As far as being satisfied, not really. I mean, I wanted something specific for my husband. On the other hand, I also appreciate the fact that she was even bothered to offer compensation at all, even if it wasn't what I asked for.

I'll most likely end up noting her and asking her if she has any intention on completing the commission at all and if she does, I'll ask for an approximate time I can expect the work to be completed in.

[ocelotish]

I think the fundamental issue here is whether you want to treat her as an artist, a friend, or both. As an artist she should give you your product or a refund. As a friend you might want to just write it off. You might talk to her about getting a partial refund that you'll pay her back upon completion or something like that (e.g. I gave you $50, but it's not done, can I have $25 back? If you finish it, I'll send the $25 over again). You need to decide what's best for you and whether or not you're happy.

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

I just sent her a note asking if I could have it by Valentine's Day. That way she has another entire month to work on it, and it would be a nice gift for the hubby. I wanted to give her some more time, but I also wanted to remind her that I'm still expecting it without coming off as a raging rabid animal. Since she IS my friend, I wanted to be a little more courteous than I would generally be toward other people.

She's a really good friend, so I wanted to send her a little nudge as a reminder. I'm not mad at her or anything, I just would like to be notified of a little progress here and there is all. :3

[ocelotish]

I think that's a very good plan of action. :)

[silverfalln.livejournal.com]

Just for future reference, your PayPal should have -all- of your payment history for the length of time you've had the account. :)

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

I just learned that from someone else. I don't use my PayPal too often, so I sometimes get lost with navigating it, much less knowing about how far back it stores transactions. Thank you so much for the information though, I'll go bring up the information and see when I sent payment. :3

[shukivengeance.livejournal.com]

Talk to her about it. In situations like this having lines of communication open are key. Waiting around and quietly watching her journals will just lead to you both getting the wrong idea.

I don't quite understand how she was able to do the couple freebie piece instead of the original 1 char pic as I'd assume it would be more complicated. idk, that strikes me as bizarre. But yeah, a polite little nudge wouldn't hurt.

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm not entirely sure WHY she did that, other than the fact that what she gave me was a digital piece instead of the original commission, which was for traditional.

I sent her a note earlier, so I'll wait and see what happens as far as that goes. I talked to her about it a while back, but I haven't mentioned it since then because I assumed she would work on it when she got more supplies for it (markers, etc.).

[uozlulu.livejournal.com]

Your silence kind of gives her the impression that you're okay with how she's handling it. Since you're friends she might have taken a more lax approach to time management with your commission. You don't have to bombard her or anything, but just poke her about it and maybe make the offer she could just give you a refund instead.

Some people don't realize commissions from friends should be treated equally as they would any other commission.

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

I sent her a note yesterday, and she hasn't responded yet. FA indicates that she hasn't even read it yet, so it may be a while before I hear from her again. I really hope that's not the case though.

[uozlulu.livejournal.com]

Sometimes FA notes can be faulty. If you've noticed she's been on FA and hasn't opened the note, you might want to contact her through another means.

[puritikoneko.livejournal.com]

I can attempt to get her e-mail, but she hasn't been on messenger in a while either, so I'm not sure if she's not in a position to use a computer, or she's changed her contact information. I'll check her profile and see if she's updated any of her contact info. Thanks for the advice! :D