@QueenCold  
Just wanted to say I love your stuff, and I’m glad you’re one of those artists that have stuck around to the end! Looking forward to see how this season inspires ya!

@QueenCold  
Omg. Sorry. sigh Ember’s not feeling good.

@QueenCold  
It works great, and thank you for explaining that.

@Ardashir  
The chin stripe signifies the wearer is an unmarried dragoness.  
I made that up some time ago and figured: why not include it?

@Daneasaur  
I figured it was paint. I wondered if it had some meaning like the bindi Hindu women have on their foreheads.

@Ardashir  
Face paint.

@QueenCold  
What is that chin-mark supposed to be, anyway?

@PrincessEmber2019  
That’s a rude way to ask for an edit.

QueenCold, I will look better if the mark was not in my chin.

@Ardashir  
Not a problem! Let me know if you have any more questions.
 
Of course most commissioners are decent people, but you want to protect yourself.  
Sometimes it is unawareness too. A good example is when people who don’t disclose enough information and then, without expecting to pay you more, either keep asking for more edits or ask for a really big edit without realizing that eats into your time, so you end up being paid much less per hour than you originally agreed to. Luckily when you explain this most people understand. I explain this beforehand for obvious reasons and the down payment ensures that I got paid something for the time I already spent, even if people decide to change their minds partway through and abandon the commission.  
At the same time a 20% down payment is low enough that it makes some of the more wary customers more comfortable taking the risk of paying a stranger on the internet in advance. I’ll honor my word, of course, but I don’t expect people to take my word for everything. Most times they don’t know me at all.
 
I don’t blame people for not always understanding the way I work. We live in an age where it’s becoming more common for people to pay for jobs rather than work. This undercuts wages, benefits and liabilities, which is why so many companies prefer outsourcing these days.  
I obviously don’t receive benefits and I am charging far less than industry standard because I don’t have student loans to pay off and I am not the primary earner of the family, but I’m not going to undersell my abilities by charging flat rates for custom projects.
 
Honesty is very important to me and it literally pays to be transparent.

@QueenCold  
Thanks for answering my question.
 
From what I’ve seen in fandom over the years a down payment is a necessity for artists working on commission.

@Daneasaur  
@Ardashir  
I always ask for a 20% down payment before I start unless I have known the commissioner and been close friends with them for some time. It’s an insurance for both myself and the commissioner. Sometimes people insist to pay upfront and I send them an invoice for the full amount. So far it’s worked out great :)
 
Edit: down payments of 50% are fine too. I don’t deliver the finished product until I’ve been paid in full, but I will show one or more WIPs, as Danesaur said.

@Ardashir  
There is a down payment before work begins and if substantial changes need to be done after the initial wip, then the price goes up accordingly. Upon a finished image, final payment is required.

@QueenCold  
Thanks for listing those prices.
 
Really foolish question: do you take payment in installments, like half up front and the rest on completion? I strongly suspect the answer is ‘No’, but I wanted to be sure.

@Daneasaur  
I do accept Paypal and I charge a rate of $15 per hour. I ask a detailed description of what you would like and then estimate how much time it should take me at the very least to complete the work. For example, if I think a picture should take me anywhere between 3 and 5 hours to complete, I charge $45 so I don’t overcharge the buyer under any circumstance. Single characters rarely go for that high a price, unless a complex background is required.  
Why don’t you tell me exactly what you’d like in a PM?

@QueenCold  
Ember is a bit difficult as she has digitigrade legs.
 
Will you be attempting any art of Ballista? What are your commission prices and do you accept paypal?

@Daneasaur  
Thanks!  
Smolder was a little easier since I had a fresh new reference for her legs and I’d drawn Jade in similar positions, but I almost started pulling out hairs over Ember

That’s some impressive posing.

@neo4812  

 
Hello, new tag.

good one

this is unintentionally sexy

slave slave

No matter how long I look, I keep seeing Egyptian… Like maybe Mesopotamian-Egyptian? X3

If Ember and Smolder became Hindus