Product was listed by seller in multiple "dealers den" chatrooms on the app Telegram. The product is a fursuit/costume head base made of upholstery foam primarily. I was interested in the product and contacted the seller with inquiries. I asked them "can you tell me more about it?" [image 1], and was only told the price, location of product for shipping costs, permissions with the product, and other materials provided.
This product was to be purchased from the seller, I would fix it up and make it into a character, and resell it once the product is completed. This was understood by the seller, as we had discussions about my permissions with the base and the character it was to be made into.
Upon arrival, the product was not only crammed into a box that was too small [image 2; showing the size of the product and the box itself], but it also reeked of cigarette smoke. Upon confrontation, the seller confirmed that their mother smokes in the house [image 3]. I cannot clean or sell a product that has been this exposed to cigarette smoke- it is a hazard. There was an attempt to clean it before I contacted the seller with my complaint, which included drier sheets on the interior, and spray cleaner on the exterior. Nothing seemed to help.
Seller also explained that they can only "do 20% nonrefundable on any refund"/"u will only get an 80% refund," but this was not provided in a Terms of Service beforehand (on Telegram or Paypal) and was not discussed whatsoever. I did not feel comfortable following through with this offer, since it was given once I brought up a refund, and it is even less than what it originally sold for.
During our conversation, I also discovered that the seller is using a Paypal account that is not in her name [image 4].
I am providing buyer with a tracking number for the returned product.
As of April 22nd, Jaime claims to have re-sold the fursuit head base that is not even in her possession yet[images 5 & 6] (not until an expected April 25th). Jaime managed to advertise that it comes from a smoke-friendly home [image 7], HOWEVER, Jaime refuses to do so in other ads [image 8]. Overall, extremely unprofessional, rude, and does not seem to care about the safety of their customers.
Original ad:
My friend inquiring about it, and then forwarding it to me:
Zeska Roo/Daze Otterson had made a post on his account saying he needed money, so he discounted his fursuit prices (post was deleted, so I do not have a screenshot of that).
I was wanting some indoor paws because I really enjoy the aesthetics of them. I commented on the post and we took it to PMs.
Here we are hashing out details of what I wanted.
He states that they don't do invoices. It off set me since I just comissioned someone who did do invoices, but I know each artist is different, so I didn't pay any attention to it.
Proof of payment
I ask if he has a queue of any sort, he claims he is working on a trello. After a month and some days, he gives me a -sorta- deadline, so I don't bother him for a while.
November 6th, he asks if anyone is wanting to get a fursuit.
I contact him on November 26th, I message and get no reply or even left on read, so I ask for a refund. He sends his friend [redacted] to speak to me (screenshots ahead has his face blocked out because he's not guilty in this and I feel uncomfortable with having his face in this)
So I go to telegram to talk to Zeska/Daze (last 4 of number is blocked out)
He has posted again on FB saying he's no longer on post block as seen in the screenshot below (but I didn't see it till some days after since I had unfollowed him)
So after radio silence, I messaged on Telegram (seen in screenshot 9) and after a little more silence, I messaged on Facebook (screenshot 6)
Here, he is seen still posting on Facebook after my message on Telegram.
And here he is seen still posting after my message on FB.
I have since forced a refund as seen in the screenshot below. I don't know if others have had this issue, so that is why this is under Artist Caution.
Back on June 27, 2019 I commissioned Nakooma for a predesigned fursuit head, the cost of the head was $200 and the extra $5 was for any Paypal fees (later on I gifted them $20 due to them saying in a post on their profile that they really needed it after someone forced a refund, I dont really care about the $20 they can keep it). From June to October I was given excuse after excuse as to why there were delays. Last I received any messages back from them was October 17, 2019 where they had promised progress pictures, which I never was sent.
Since November 20, 2019 to now I have messaged them with no answer, during this time I know they were talking with ppl on their Furry amino (which is now deleted) and had completed a couple commissions that were started after taking mine.
Nakooma said they started working on the fursuit head but I'm not sure if this is true due to no progress pictures ever being sent.
Neither my bank or Paypal can help me due to me taking to long to getting around to the issue and only suggestion I got were to "directly contact merchant for a refund", I had life stuff going on that distracted me from getting to this sooner though I wish I could get my money back it's much more important to warn ppl to stay away.
Nakooma supposedly had life stuff going on back before June through November (last I heard) from what they told me but if there was too much going on they should've just declined the commission instead of taking mine to then complete other commissions and then completely ghost me.
By now I have already left the DM I was in with them guessing that they'll never respond or they would never give my money back even if they did see my messages. I just wanna put this all behind me but make others aware.
Last year at the end of March, my friend and I decided to get a commission from xBlueAshesx. I commissioned her before and had some problems with her, however, I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and give her a second chance. I commissioned a 2 character NSFW lined illustration. xBlueAshesx and I discussed the details on March 28th, 2019 and I paid on the same day. About a month went by before I asked her for an update. She claimed that my piece was on her queue for that week and I should expect an update soon, however, I never received one. I messaged her again on July 8th, 2019 and asked for another update, but she never responded despite reading the note. Finally, on July 30th, 2019, I asked for a refund. Her TOS states that the art can take up to 15 weeks to be completed, it had been 17 weeks before I asked for the refund. She finally responded to me and agreed to the refund. She's still very active on FA. She usually posts 1-2 times a week, however, I have a hard time getting her to respond to me. She only responds to me when I talk about doing a chargeback.
Sorry for the length. This has been going on for a long time and I wanted to include as much as I could as proof of her poor communication skills and lack of professionalism. TLDR at the end.
Payment:
Agreeing to take the commission:
My response and payment information. Beginning of email included as proof of payment:
Confirmation that the payment was received:
My first update request:
My second update request a few months later. The note was read but she never responded. I can tell that the note was read because there would be a yellow envelope icon next to the note subject if it was unread (Legend included in the screenshot as proof. An example of an unread note will be included at the end of this beware):
Here she's agreeing to the refund:
I messaged her again about the refund after she posted a journal about having enough money to give refunds. The journal she posted about the refunds has been deleted. She never responded:
I asked for an update on the refund earlier this year. Again, she never responded:
At this point, I had gotten tired of not receiving a response so I tried to set a deadline for the refund. 7 months had gone by but I still hadn't received the refund nor an update. Her TOS state that the refund could take up to 6 months. She never responded:
She finally responded when I talked about doing a chargeback. As previously stated, she didn't respond to any of my other notes:
My response to that:
She didn't respond again. So I messaged her again. She was active on both March 2nd and 3rd:
She didn't respond until March 4th when I told her that I could see that she was reading my notes. Along with mentioning taking my money back:
I sent her my email and amount. I can include that message if needed. She never sent the refund so I messaged her again. "Bruh" was not an appropriate answer to a commissioner who's been waiting for a refund for 8 months:
I waited another month before messaging her again in hopes that she'd send the refund. I messaged her 2 days ago, but she hasn't bothered opening the message, despite being active and posting art to her gallery. You can see the yellow envelope, showing that she hasn't read it:
Proof that she was active yesterday. She posted several things on the 21st:
The part of her TOS that talks about refunds and TAT (turn around time):
TLDR; Long story short, this has been going on for over a year. She's still very active, but refuses to give me my money back.
Again, i'm sorry this is so long, but i'm so tired of this. I honestly don't thing i'll ever get a refund. I hope you're all safe during this crazy time! Thank you for reading. Let me know if I should add anything else or if there's anything I can do 😞
I thought I got a steal.
3 Months ago I purchased two commissions from this artist at the same time. The transaction was paid for and done the same day in the same receipt.
I made multiple attempts to receive the work and never did. Was just led on time after time while watching their queues fill with more and more work they were somehow producing and still getting paid for by other people.
On month 3 I messaged for a refund and was told to search through the SCRAPS on their FA, link them to the two I want that AREN'T the originals I paid for, link them my reference again, and they would finish it in a week.
At this point I am making this because they flood FA with YCHs but have been finishing commissions of favorites firstly. Others like me go without ours for months even with reminders.
https://cdn.artistsbeware.info/monthly_2020_04/Screenshot_20200423-062625.png.d87535b97f84221e11158d2e3e8f14d5.png
05.03.20: No refund has come.
In April I made a twitter post about looking for an artist who had commissions open and LilDogMeat replied to my tweet. I decided to commission them because their art looked cute and was in my price range.
They originally said they would have a sketch for me by that Saturday and never had anything to show. In my experience with other artists I've always had to wait a bit but they always delivered so I didn't choose to message LilDogMeat about it until some time later.
They claimed issues with their laptop and I was fine with waiting. This was my mistake as the window for a refund through paypal has long passed. I have waited a year for this commission with LilDogMeat no longer being responsive (likely moved on to a new Twitter? They aren't active anymore).
On September 1st 2019. I commissioned ArtsyPosy on twitter to draw a badge of my soon to be suit, Wad the cat. They first contacted me on August 31st 2019, and we discussed the details of my badge. I sent payment via PayPal, and I sent them a screenshot of the receipt. They also confirmed my payment. I set no specific due date because they said they were busy, but they said it could be done around mid-late September.
The next day on September 2nd, I messaged them because the reference I sent them needed a small change. I decided to change the colour of his feet to black, so when fursuiting, his paws would not be dirty (originally white). I sent an updated reference, and they confirmed the changes, promising to even make a note on their monitor to not forget. They had not started my commission at this point.
I sent messages throughout the 17th of September. We chatted together about how my suit progress was going, and things seemed okay. They were saying they were working on other art, though and were busy doing other things. I didn’t care because it was only mid September.
They stopped messaging until the 27th.
They told me on September 27th that the commission would be done by October 19th 2019. It’s a little later than planned, but it wasn’t unreasonable. They then went silent again, and they posted they weren’t feeling the best. I felt bad, but I also wanted to keep contact, so I sent some wholesome dog memes to keep communication going. I sent messages in October and November.
On December 24th, 2019, they finally replied, but they still had no update for me. I was just relieved to hear from them, but I was suspecting something was amiss. They said they’d give me a work in progress photo, but none came. They also said that I hadn’t paid. I sent them the screenshot of the PayPal receipt I messaged to them the moment I first paid.
They then told me that they mistakenly had me on their waitlist still.
They then told me they’d just be starting my commission.
On January 3rd 2020, they messaged me asking what colour I’d like the background to be. I had specified white before, so I clarified that. They said I would have the piece the following Sunday. They verified this on January 7th 2020.
Then they cut off communication again.
On March 9th 2020, they finally messaged me again.
They said I’d have my art by at least that Thursday. They told me because of the wait, I’d receive a free sketch as well. I was excited, but I did not receive the art.
They did not message me until March 31st 2020.
They said their WiFi went out.
I told them I had waited quite a while, and I hoped to see the badge soon (this is digital by the way: they didn’t have to print/laminate/mail anything to me). They responded by saying the virus was stressing them out, and I understand that, but this was supposedly finished a while ago. They also said that my change (the clarified feet paw colour change from September 2nd 2019) and the sketch (given to me for waiting so long) was causing them to delay further.
At this point, I had enough and was very honest with them saying,
“I would much rather have the original art first… I hope this is understandable. We already clarified the change 3 months ago, and the change was made the day after I ordered the commission (September 1st changed September 2nd). I know this does make it trickier, and I do apologise, but this information was told a while ago. I’m nervous about waiting more months when the artwork is already completed for a sketch. I just want to be very open about how I feel about that.”
They responded with saying they acknowledged my delays, but they said they’d send my art with the chibi anyway that next Thursday. They said they couldn’t send updates or the final piece because their rabbit had chewed their charging cord.
It’s been another 2 weeks and they have not emailed/messaged me the images. It is now April 15th 2020, and it was supposed to be done before October.
At this point, my opinion cannot be swayed even if I ever end up receiving the art. Their management and customer service is poor, providing dozens of deadlines and providing many excuses. I am beyond tired, and I advise that potential clients exercise caution when ordering art from ArtsyPosy.
I will try to see if I can ever get my art to post and update this experience
Last year in October I contacted this artist for a two-character commission with scenery, and since then, I have not received any works-in-progress or anything. I've occasionally noted her to ask for updates regarding my piece, and this was the last reply I received from her:
I did not receive an update January 11, and while I have sent additional Notes since then asking for updates, she read my notes, but didn't reply to them:
However, she constantly posts YCHs and is very active on FurAffinity:
I just don't like the feeling I'm being ignored, and I'm not being rude, or anything.
I commissioned Glowner back in 2019 for some NSFW commission art and haven't been getting the promised product at all.
Sadly a lot of chat history is not available anymore since the Discord Server this was originally on has been deleted and I saw no need saving anything as I had no reason to distrust the artist, as I was still fairly new to commissioning and not knowing that taking safety proof would be a good idea. I did not contact them for a long time until I saw them posting some art or generally talking on Twitter, which continued after I contacted them on Discord for my refund.
I contacted them somewhat regularly to avoid a block due to being too pushy, but still am waiting on any update. Instead they continued posting elsewhere, as on Discord and Twitter.
I frankly feel like I am being ghosted/neglected and I feel I will not be repaid. I am still being owed 200 bucks.
I ordered 4 commissions from Artararam before where the commissions were drawn semi professionally without any major problems and everything that I complained in pre-release versions were fixed in the final version of the art pieces. Everything quite normal for a NFSW artist like her. Artararam was never the fastest artist when it comes to draw commissions, the progress was slow, but steady. I usually give artists a period of 1 month before I contact them and ask for updates as this is a reasonable period where a change could be done with the artwork without putting too much stress on the artists.
I commissioned Artararam with 2 NSFW art commissions:
July, 28th 2019, 1 character (for 40 USD), payment sent July, 29th 2019 to her PayPal address
August, 14th 2019, 2 characters (for 90 USD), payment sent the same day to her PayPal address
Total: 130 USD
I received 2 WIP snapshots of the 1st commission from Artararam as requested at September, 27th and September, 28th. The lineart of commission 1 is done, with a few adjustments and a sketch from me showing what looks wrong because the Artararam is not very good in English.
I send her a note at FA at November, 1st 2019 asking if she was able to continue to draw my commissions and I noticed that my note at FA was unread for a long time. Artararam posted a journal at her FA account a few days later (November, 6th 2019). My faith in this artist is a little bit lost.
I waited 3 months and contacted them at their Telegram account at January, 19th and January, 20th 2020 and got a very generic answer that "I'll send you all the process I have today or tomorrow morning!". Nothing happened after this date, she didn't answered over Telegram for nearly 3 months from now.
I would accept the following solutions:
Fully completed, delivered artwork for both commissions
Partial or full refund for commission 1 and full refund for commission 2
PS: I struggled a lot before I decided to post here, after I've spoken with other guys that commissioned her. I think her journal sounds reasonable. I'm aware that she is treated by the law of Russia as a homosexual artist, I understand why she escaped from Russia to Ukraine. I can't understand why she wasn't able to get the Ukrainian citizenship before she left Russia and why she doesn't stopped to accept commissions and finish the accepted commissions first. I don't want to destroy her NSFW artist career, but she shows a very unprofessional behavior that I can't really tolerate.
~Ashnu
Attachments:
Proof commission 1:
Proof commission 2:
Notes from Artararam for commission 1:
FA Journal:
Telegram conversation:
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