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https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/959501.html WHERE: http://shacklefunk.tumblr.com/ WHAT: Digital reference sheet of my character for 100USD WHEN: Sent out the comission request through their comission form back at the beginning of march (I don't have the exact date for this) and got a confirmation email on the 5th or march saying they accepted my comission. After a bit of trouble due to google wallet and different currencies (I'm in the UK so I couldn't send any USD, my partner in the US had to send it but I discussed all that with shacklefunk through email) I paid for the comission around the 7/8th of march. I checked back in if they got the payment on the 16th and they confirmed it the next day. I've managed to contact them a few times since then to ask about the status and on the 10th of May they informed me that they sent me a refund since it has been taking so long and they'd send me my finished comission soon. That was also the last time I've heard from them. EXPLAIN: I managed to grab a slot for a reference sheet when they opened up for just three slots of comissions back at the beginning of march. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/0zd5mo0xhhndhx4/1.jpg?dl=0 Everything went well and we communicated through email, I had some trouble using google wallet since I've never used it before and didn't know I couldn't change the currency. I informed them about this and we worked out a solution. My partner in the US sent the money for it and I made sure to have it sent out as quickly as possible. After I sent out the money I checked back in with them if they had received it. In their reply they said they'd send me the finished picture that day or the next. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/7gujszpqw8y5wim/2.jpg?dl=0 After not having heard back from the again for about a week I sent them another email asking about the comission status. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/v36wxttkirxj57t/3.jpg?dl=0 I still didn't hear back from them and was starting to become quite anxious since it was a large amount of money and I've had some really bad experiences with some comissions before so I sent them another two emails to check on the status of my comission. I tried not to send them too soon after each other since I didn't want to annoy them. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/t2by66donulev1t/4.jpg?dl=0 After not hearing back from them again I tried reaching out to them through the tumblr messaging system instead since they were actively posting there. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/byjgoczepxdn6io/5.jpg?dl=0 I also made a post and tagged them in it to ask them to reply to any of my messages. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/yumr7awje8u1yqe/4_5.jpg?dl=0 That finally got them to reply to me, saying they'd send me the finished pic later that day. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/0xw184kjp20iuye/6.jpg?dl=0 I thanked them for it but then didn't hear anything from them for another few days so I decided to send them another message. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/56d5lwiihskcird/7.jpg?dl=0 Over a week later I got a reply saying they've sent me a refund since it had been taking so long and that they'd send me the finished picture soon (?). I didn't see this message until a few days later but then thanked them for the refund. That was the last time I've heard from them. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/6593cczq7p0yfwh/8.jpg?dl=0 https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/15rwo9q6ypjqp8m/9.jpg?dl=0 (My partner did receive the refund and sent it to me later on) https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/ytlfkeced602omz/10.jpg?dl=0 After that I've tried to contact them numerous times through email, tumblr asks, the direct messaging system and posts (with quite some time between them) but never got any reply. I haven't seen anything of my comission at any point and even though they've said back in march that the pic was done (and they just have to send it to me) the only answer I have now is that they've never actually done the comission. I don't know what to do about this anymore since they don't reply to any of my messages at all.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/959184.html WHO: swizzlestix WHERE: in FA, his account is http://www.furaffinity.net/user/swizzlestix/ WHAT: digital art WHEN: 20 March 2014 EXPLAIN: He receive the money and he don't want to do it and ignore my messages. PROOF: I paid to Swizzlestix $80 for a pic on 28 May 2013. I waited until 20 March 2014, then i cancelled it because he didnt continue to do it, and i tell him to return my money. He gave me the runaround until 1 August 2014, i decided to give him one opportunity to do it. I waited until 15 December 2014, that day i decided to cancel it at all. Up to today Im waiting my money and he dont replay my messages. Only I see is he stole me $80. Here you see we chating about the commission: I dont have skype conversation. Here is the proof of the payment: Here I post screenshots of the messages with him: Here I tried to contact him by FA: But he never send my money. Following 2 screenshots I tried to contact him by email, without replay: And more tryings by skype (i only have 1 screenshot): (Wednesday, 06 january 2016) And much more messages on twitter and FA and IB and weasyl without reply. UPDATED: He returned my money 30th June 2017.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/958083.html WHO: Ignri on FA WHERE: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/ignri/ WHAT: Digital art. $180 commission with alternate versions and additional background through my moving fundraiser. WHEN: June 14th (6/14/17), and ongoing EXPLAIN: User commissioned me for a commission through my moving fundraiser. After they approved the sketch, they decided to get a partial refund to buy a similar commission elsewhere to “save money.” After the conversation, I told them I would be giving them their refund in 2-3 business days after the money transferred back into my account from my bank, but they filed a dispute against the invoice and refused to let me properly refund them for the commission when the funds became available. The user approached me wanting to get a commission through my moving fundraiser with an alternate version and a background added to the piece. He sent in an order form with all of his information for the commission, and I reviewed it and quoted him the price of the commission on June 14. He agreed to the price and paid it same-day. FA note commission quote and agreement: https://www.dropbox.com/s/scda3kskug1yisl/AB_Ingri_01.png?dl=0 Paid invoice: https://www.dropbox.com/s/k7h6brggzw59aqw/AB_Ingri_003.jpg?dl=0 Commissioner notifying me of paid invoice: https://www.dropbox.com/s/e1c3bv6ci9ofecy/AB_Ignri_02.png?dl=0 Because of a bigger log of commissions I’ve gotten through the fundraiser, I was able to get the sketches done for him to review the next week. The sketches were done and sent to the commissioner on June 20. He responded positively to the work, so I was confident to continue working on the commission to completion within the next couple days. Sketches completed and delivered: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ykdw77beap7zfy4/com_Weavile2_Ignri_v1.jpg?dl=0 - NSFW https://www.dropbox.com/s/ca3qq5pos1bdtvl/com_Weavile2_Ignri_v2.jpg?dl=0 - NSFW Positive response to receiving the sketches: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wg1cv7nae5tu3fx/AB_Ignri_03.png?dl=0 The next morning on June 21 I received another note from the commissioner stating that he wanted me to put a hold on his commission, as he was waiting to hear back from another artist that was doing a similar piece for him and he was considering requesting a partial refund from me to “save some money.” I responded explaining I couldn’t hold the commission, as the commissions through the fundraiser were meant for the fundraiser only (all fundraiser commissions had freebies for the fundraiser ONLY) and it was going to be ending at the end of the month. I asked him in the same response to let me know quickly whether or not he wanted the refund, as I would need to make time to transfer that money back into my PayPal from my bank immediately for him. His note: https://www.dropbox.com/s/8w5oe7r9w5cchtr/AB_Ignri_04.png?dl=0 My response with two of his questions: https://www.dropbox.com/s/nhgpv85hscs9bu8/Screen Shot 2017-06-22 at 3.07.48 PM.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/jb47h7vncmz73n8/AB_Ignri_05.png?dl=0 This led to a series of notes of him asking me questions regarding the commission, and me responding to those questions as concisely and clearly as possible while asking again if he wanted the refund. I explained to him that the partial refund total would be $140, where the original first version sketch would be $25, and the alternative second version would be $15, totalling $40. I also explained that I wouldn’t be able to continue the commission later, because on top of moving at the end of the month I’m starting a new full time job and having a backlog of commissions wouldn’t be timely or ideal for my schedule. I started becoming uncomfortable with the conversation, and thinking back to his original reason for the refund that I found to be rather skeevy, I decided to explain that I would be cancelling the commission and refunding him for his partial refund he told me he was already considering. FA note chain: 1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/lt3ikfpt6u51yxr/AB_Ignri_06.png?dl=0 2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/q0tb67fj7ek3r69/AB_Ignri_07.png?dl=0 3. https://www.dropbox.com/s/t7jo3thortzcjxg/AB_Ignri_08.png?dl=0 The refund being transferred to PayPal from my bank: https://www.dropbox.com/s/63j36vp3i0zi8vs/TRANSFERFROMBANK.png?dl=0 He responded in defense to having his commission cancelled and refunded (linked above as number 3 under the FA note chain). I responded to this by noting him the completed sketch files that were finished for his commission that his $40 expense paid for, and that I would note him as soon as the transfer for his refund completed and the money was sent back to him on PayPal. After some time, he responded to me in defense once again. His note: https://www.dropbox.com/s/lfq407aao4qhizq/AB_Ignri_09.png?dl=0 I responded to his note clearing the air of why he was refunded and my stance on the situation, and that I no longer wished to continue this topic of conversation and the only notice he would get from me was when his refund was available and that I transferred the money back to him. My response: https://www.dropbox.com/s/rqk5a1ht5hqs1p4/AB_Ignri_10.png?dl=0 He had read it, but never responded to my note. On June 22nd, I came home to find over $100 in the red in my PayPal account and an unresolved dispute issued by the commissioner, stating it was a precaution for “just in case.” My girlfriend sent me money to get me out of the red. Dispute and bank transfer: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9pa0dywv1t25jpk/AB_INGRI_PAYPAL_02.png?dl=0 I contacted the commissioner on FA regarding the dispute. (At the time I referred to it as a chargeback, as I was mistaken. I realized after the fact this wasn’t a chargeback, but a filed dispute with the commissioner. I got confused since the funds had been taken out of my balance and assumed the taken funds = chargeback.) I explained that because he filed it, all the funds for the FULL amount of the commission ($180) were immediately taken from my account, and that wasn’t the agreed upon refund total of $140. I further explained that, because of the dispute, he would not be receiving his refund when it arrived from my bank because he wasn’t entitled to the full $180 amount. My note regarding the dispute: https://www.dropbox.com/s/crm79s1m8ynlo6u/AB_Ignri_11.png?dl=0 Instead of speaking to me directly, I found that the commissioner was using PayPal’s Resolution Center to relay information, so I chose to respond there. Eventually after a brief back-and-forth, he stopped using the Resolution Center and replied to my note on FA. First Resolution Center conversation: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3gcregue1qj2x2r/AB_Ingri_PAYPAL_01.jpg?dl=0 I tried to work with him in resolving the case one-on-one, despite the nature of his replies. I had gotten the refund earlier than expected and explained that I was readily available to issue him his partial refund when the claim was canceled, as I couldn’t refund the agreed partial $140 amount through the invoice if the claim was still open. It was forcing me to refund the full $180 amount. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem like he was willing to work with me. I couldn’t trust that the commissioner would return $40 to me if I gave him the full amount of $180. Conversation about the dispute (I mistakenly referred to it as a chargeback at the time): https://www.dropbox.com/s/edbs1jf05jrwyt1/chargebacknotes.jpg?dl=0 I updated the Resolution Center messages stating I was ready to refund the commissioner once the dispute was canceled. PayPal Resolution Center conversation: https://www.dropbox.com/s/fsagu2pumaqss2z/PayPalResolutionContinued.jpg?dl=0 (The website footer was blocking a portion of the messages, so I had to get snapshots of the comments from my phone and put them to the side of the covered messages.) He never read my last response, so I sent him one final note to give him a chance to comply in the morning (June 23): https://www.dropbox.com/s/hbpv3gmfyvz4tig/finalchargebacknote.jpg?dl=0 On the morning of June 23, the commissioner hadn’t read or responded to any of my notes, so I contacted PayPal over the phone about the matter to see what should be done. The commissioner didn’t seem to want to take the partial refund anymore and seemed to want a full refund (as suggested in this chain of notes https://www.dropbox.com/s/edbs1jf05jrwyt1/chargebacknotes.jpg?dl=0 ). The representative reviewed all of my evidence and information right then and there over the phone, and decided to escalate the dispute as a claim right away on my behalf due to the commissioner’s behavior after I explained the issue with the refund situation. Though I wish it didn’t have to come to that, I did what I was advised to do by the representative and submitted the same evidence to the claim regarding the payment - me canceling the invoice, me stating the agreed-to terms of the partial refund amount and when the refund would be delivered, me delivering the sketches/work done prior to canceling the commission, my notice that the refund was available to the commissioner and him not complying or allowing me to refund him. Basically, every single note exchanged between myself and the commissioner. The representative stated the commissioner could either cancel the claim to accept the $140 refund now, or continue the claim and have to wait up to 30 days for PayPal to review the claim and it would be out of my hands until the investigation was finished and the claim is closed by PayPal. I had hoped he would decide to cancel the claim so that he could receive his refund immediately. He later read my note, but never responded. I looked back at the dispute and found that he had decided to continue the claim for PayPal to review: https://www.dropbox.com/s/dzfciwch5ou0ka8/underreview.jpg?dl=0 I finally did get a response later in the evening, and I responded to let him know of the situation as it stands now: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9wsgn3wuq93spy5/paypalclaimexplain.jpg?dl=0 In hindsight, I believe I was rather defensive myself in my response to his note explaining why I was refunding him. A similar (but much less severe) case happened with this same commissioner in early 2016, which guided my decisions to cancel his commission and my response. I also know now it would have been best to leave the funds in my PayPal account for just such a situation as this. I had been transferring all the funds received from commissions for the fundraiser as soon as the commissioners had approved their sketches, as I was completing these commissions within 1-2 days after the sketches were approved. My thinking on transferring the funds this way was to make sure they were there during the duration of the fundraiser and so that I could organize the funds in preparation for signing a lease and putting down the deposit and first month’s rent on a new home. I’m honestly not sure what to do at this point other than to just… wait? I ultimately only want to be able to give him his $140 partial refund as soon as possible. I’ve been wanting to block him, but I know it would be inappropriate to do so as he’s still - despite this situation - completely entitled to his refund, and I don’t want to cut him off entirely due to that reason. PROOF: Chain of FA notes in order from when the sketches were originally delivered before the commission cancellation to the final note sent to the commissioner regarding the reason for his refund: https://www.dropbox.com/s/fqnxuigtd39b69f/notechain.jpg?dl=0 Chain of FA notes in order regarding the dispute: https://www.dropbox.com/s/edbs1jf05jrwyt1/chargebacknotes.jpg?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/9wsgn3wuq93spy5/paypalclaimexplain.jpg?dl=0 Quote agreement and paid invoice: https://www.dropbox.com/s/scda3kskug1yisl/AB_Ingri_01.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/k7h6brggzw59aqw/AB_Ingri_003.jpg?dl=0 Artwork finished before the cancellation of the commission and delivered to the commissioner: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ykdw77beap7zfy4/com_Weavile2_Ignri_v1.jpg?dl=0 - NSFW https://www.dropbox.com/s/ca3qq5pos1bdtvl/com_Weavile2_Ignri_v2.jpg?dl=0 - NSFW Dispute with refund transfer and full Resolution Center conversation: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9pa0dywv1t25jpk/AB_INGRI_PAYPAL_02.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/fsagu2pumaqss2z/PayPalResolutionContinued.jpg?dl=0 UPDATE: I had called PayPal and spoke to a representative about the case, and they told me there was nothing more I could do on my end until the claim was closed, or PayPal contacted me via e-mail if they needed any more information. This evening (June 28), I received this e-mail from PayPal: https://www.dropbox.com/s/pg8dwwonrc66xi6/claimemail.jpg?dl=0 I responded to the claim: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ug92hs7046qlhec/claimupdate.jpg?dl=0 I received this e-mail in response: https://www.dropbox.com/s/vedz5or60tbav1e/claimemail2.jpg?dl=0 Hopefully the refund is accepted, he can receive his refund and the claim can be closed. UPDATE 2: I received another e-mail response that the commissioner agreed to close the claim by accepting the partial refund of $140, so the claim was closed in my favor. I've since notified the commissioner that the refund was delivered to him and blocked him. E-mails: 1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/43o1q5fzf9428hu/closedclaimemail1.jpg?dl=0 2. https://www.dropbox.com/s/un6qlp07fc4b78o/closedclaimemail2.jpg?dl=0 FA Note: https://www.dropbox.com/s/efoq411k83k6ayz/closedclaimnote.jpg?dl=0 Hopefully this experience helps others who've experienced similar situations with commissioners, and can see how the process worked for me so it gives some insight on what to expect in case an event like this happens with someone else. PayPal was nothing but pleasant with me and had an absolute willingness to work with me on the matter.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/956264.html WHO: Remix Angel Dragon / Nightwolf Costumes WHERE: Facebook –business page apparently deleted; tags/links to business page are broken, did most business through personal page FurAffinity - http://www.furaffinity.net/user/nightwolfcostumes (business, has been cleared out and no submissions are in gallery) Furry Network https://beta.furrynetwork.com/nightwolf/ Twitter https://twitter.com/remix_dragon WHAT: Full digitigrade fursuit valued at over $1800 USD , fleece hat valued at $25 WHEN: Dec. 2014 (when first payment was sent) to present (suit was paid in full May 2015) Read below the cut EXPLAIN: I first commissioned Remix for a fleece hat of my Dutch Angel Dragon character back in September 2014. In December that same year she opened for fullsuit commissions so once again, after seeing her previous work decided to commission her. It was agreed upon that the fleece hat I had previously ordered would be sent along with the suit once it was done (however, I had never seen any shots of a WIP or even a finished hat). We agreed on a payment plan of 25% each month until the suit was paid off. January 2015 I sent her a payment of $450 USD(via Friends and Family to avoid the conversion fee, I was told -strike one on me) then mailed a DTD, a pair of shoes and a hand tracing. As soon as the next month rolled around I was messaged for the next round of payments, but I had to adult (to put it simply) and told her they may have to wait, in which I was then told if I didn’t pay I’d lose my commission spot but that she also wasn’t going to do that. I was able to pay her toward the end of February when things ironed out. Paid her again April 2015 and asked about a possible completion date of Anthrocon 2015. Was told she would start working in May after the last payment was sent. The last payment was sent in May 2015, and work began. We talked back and forth about furs and measurements. It was revealed that the suit would not be completed for AC ’15 but I told her I was fine waiting. September rolls around and we’re still waiting on fur. No other WIPs, such as foam work, were shown. She also asked to keep our conversations between her business page and myself instead of her personal one, but this transition never happened and we continued talking for another year on her personal page. Communication stopped Nov. 2015. After that I’d heard nothing from her again until April 2016. In the meantime she was posting other suit work and finished costumes, as well as sharing excitement over having a character of hers made by a popular maker. April 26 I am finally shown my first WIP picture: the handpaws. In May 2016 I received another WIP photo of the tail. After that I was told she couldn’t finish the bodysuit because my DTD had somehow fallen apart and was full of holes, thus requiring me to send and make another one. I didn’t hear anything for a couple months while the artist went to Eurofurence, despite seeing her post a redo of her own personal suit as well as more work. I messaged them August 20th to ask for updates and was told they were still settling in from the con and wanted another week. I reconfirmed sending a new DTD and was promised extras because of the wait. September 2016 I am notified that they received the DTD, but still no new WIPs. Finally, in October 2016 they send me an invite link to a telegram chat they had created to keep all their customers informed. This is the last time we spoke over Facebook messenger. After the move to Telegram I no longer received any updates regarding my suit, but the artist continued to show off work on other suits, her own suit being made by a popular maker and mention things going on in her home life. She mentions she will have four more hands in the studio to help her with suit work. November she posts another finished head and mentions she will change my sculpt to match that one- keep in mind I have yet to even see any WIP shots of a head at this point. Halfway through November she posts more suit updates but no mention of mine, just alludes that everything they have been working on will be shipped out. There's talk of having everything shipped in time for Christmas, yet still no mention of my commission. Updates in January are sporadic, she's posting that she's sick and disappears for days at a time or even a week. January 23rd she tells us things have gotten worse since she worked instead of bedrest so she's stopping for a while. February she lets us know more about her health, and because of this she is stopping all work, and no refunds are going to be given to anyone. She calls in another person to speak on her behalf and again states there will be no refunds, and to sympathize with her as it is a very difficult time for her, we have options, take them or leave them. I stated my case to this new person, first in the chat then in PM, explaining that while I understand the severity of the situation I can’t just walk away from that kind of money, especially where no other WIPs had been sent since May so I couldn’t even be sure the suit was that close to being finished. I even offered a partials refund of $1200 to cover the material costs and labor already put in and her “spokesperson” stated no, no refunds at all, and “this is the risk you take when commissioning”. They finally do agree on a $1200 refund, as a payment plan, and that they would ship me the parts finished and the remaining fur that I could then take to another maker. I was told I would get a track and trace (tracking number) when it shipped, and the first refund payment was due to start in April 2017. Towards the end of February I reached out to this person again for an update and was told they'd get back to me. I haven't heard from them since. It is now nearing May 2017, and I haven’t received a tracking number, my package, or even a cent of a refund payment. Inquiries to Remix herself are met with “I don’t have the money to refund you, I am ill,” and when asked about the package I am told her father shipped it and she would get it from him as soon as she could. I never have, and my messages are now going on ignored. The Telegram group for her business is now shut down and any business pages relating to Nightwolf Costumes are now wiped clean. Meanwhile, Remix posts actively on Twitter about her upcoming fursuit from a large maker, which as of this writing has been finished and is being shipped to her. She is also very active in a telegram chat for Dutch Angel Dragons, that I am also part of. I warned her about writing an artist’s beware if I wasn’t given the tracking number, and I have yet to get a response from her other than “I’m ill”, so here we go. I know I have a slim to none chance of ever seeing my full refund back, or even the fur. I know I shouldn’t have sent the money without an invoice, or without ticking Goods and Services. I learned the hard way, and I’m hoping others don’t make the same mistake I did. I'm posting this to not only warn people about what happens when invoices and paper trails aren't made, but to also stay away from this person, even if they get back in the business. PROOF: All aforementioned and linked screenshots. ADDING: At the beginning of May Remix reached out to me and asked for my email and phone number – she was referring me to a third party to get this resolved as soon as possible. As of this writing I have heard nothing from her or this third party. I reached out to her May 14th asking if she’d heard anything from that third party and I have heard nothing since. 5/26/2017-ADDING MORE: A rather lengthy response from the maker: here here here here here here here here here here here here I've also been called out on Twitter by Skypro herself, my name isn't used but it's passive agressive enough that I can figure out it;s about me. Note that not once in this entire beware have I ever said I'm insisting Remix finish building my suit. All I've asked for is my refund and the supplies to take my commission to a different maker. Proof is here. 5/27/2017 Woke up this morning to a messge from Remix, with photo proof she has shipped two boxes to me, and a refund via Paypal of $1,080 ($120 was witheld to pay for shipping). I had tried to be reasonable and suggest a payment plan again to make it easier on her but she refunded the full amount. I'd consider this mostly resolved, once I get the boxes in the mail and find what she sent is as she described (all the work she was able to finish, plus the remainder of the materials) I'd say this could be completely resolved. 6/8/17 I came home from work to find that two boxes had been delivered, but they required a signature to be turned over to me (they had been delivered at 9 am, I didn't get home till 6 and I live alone). I was away all weekend so I was only able to pick them up today. Frankly, I'm disappointed. I was told I would be getting handpaws, a tail, feetpaws, and a half sewn bodysuit, plus my fleece hat and materials to finish the suit. Instead I got no hat, handpaws that barely fit my hands despite the hand tracing I sent her, a pair of foamed feetpaws with only one showing the carving process, a tail that isn't even backed and closed up (basically unwearable), and a barely even sewn bodysuit, many pieces still have pins holding them together. I also received both DTDs back (one was cut up to make the fur patterns) and almost all the fur used to make her (I don't have the brown or the green used in the tail). I'm disappointed, largely because I was led to believe more work had been done than this when I agreed to a partial refund but also because any quotes to try to get this finished are going to be through the roof, there's still so much work to do.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/954122.html WHO: Joshain Lucarian WHERE: https://www.facebook.com/joshain.lucarian WHAT: Laminated headshot Badge w/lanyard, Tail badge, and badge clips. WHEN: Commissioned on September 8th, 2016 and still on going. EXPLAIN: I had commissioned Joshain back on September 8th 2016. Although they are very nice and I am a VERY patient person I am very unsatisfied with the updates I recieved. I believe I got one picture showing me the draft of the tail badge I ordered. (I ordered laminated headshot, tail badge, badge clips, lanyard.http://sta.sh/024y1yhi0v75 Please note in the screenshots a friend paid for me. Unfortunely, they paid through paypal friends and family. http://sta.sh/0a27gtna27m) Other than the one WIP picture to my knowledge I recieved nothing else. I would ask for updates every few weeks, (I lost our earlier messages on my other account - due to a Facebook sweep) and even then it was hard to get in contact with them due to their messages not working. http://sta.sh/01g74e4wxrs9 - September 18th, 2016, They had informed me they were beginning their commissions again as they had taken a break. This message had been sent to both this account and the other I was more active on at the time - I had answered on my lost account which is why there is no response here. (Started on last image ) February 15, 2017, I had poked him again since it was a while since I had last heard from him. He told me he had messaged me asking for my address but my account was down. Since they were ready to be shipped I had asked to see them, he told me he wasn't able to send them at that moment and will later but so far hasn't. http://sta.sh/01wzylghjlda / http://sta.sh/019ei49rbdfo - He took down my name and address to remind themselves to send it. http://sta.sh/02ajnw8rm5jw - By February 26th, I had yet to recieve anything in the mail so messaged him again asking, he hadn't as a friend had his sketchbook. After that, I had left him alone. (Same image) March 11th, I asked him when I should expect my items and that was when he told me he had already sent it out through regular mail that Tuesday. He let me know he'd keep an eye out on it, in case it was sent back to him. http://sta.sh/0woep2tb6el - March 19th, I still had yet to get anything in the mail so once again shot them a message, neither of us had gotten anything in the mail. http://sta.sh/028kricc326c - March 23rd, 24th, 29th and April 3rd, I've sent him messages only to be ignored by him. Aside from him telling me he mailed I have no way to prove it as I did not receive a tracking number or other information. So far, I haven't received a thing. I've gotten art from Germany and it didn't take this long. I've tried for the past few days to resolve this by refund or anything really. I have had to resorted to posting to their wall and commenting on posts they've made to get their attention. So far my comments have been deleted and unanswered. So, I've been tagging them in statuses to get them to respond. Their facebook chat log show them online and active often. http://sta.sh/02aakq50ik7c / http://sta.sh/04svxu7c2hl / http://sta.sh/0a8edb27udr / http://sta.sh/0220haaevn1v / http://sta.sh/0xhk7cmxy2w - All the attempts I've made to get in contact with him, the last time I've heard from him was April 19th only to be told he was busy and he would message me back. But, of course he never did. //Also, the beware I speak about was a facebook group I had been apart of. A friend of mine recommended here to me, we are both hoping it helps. On one of my statuses a friend of his came to defend him, http://sta.sh/026jljohd3j7 / http://sta.sh/09m9icukx6j / http://sta.sh/021xhr09zsas - They stated that if their friend was doing this there had to be a reason. So far, I don't see a reason as everything had been going well until they supposedly mailed out my items. PROOF: All images placed in one album - http://sta.sh/21jca6tqdai5?edit=1 At this point, I have to assume they're blatantly ignoring me and I won't be seeing anything from this transaction. If anyone has any ideas on what I can do, that would be great. Thank you for your time and have a good day.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/949564.html WHO: purqleguy WHERE: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/purqleguy WHAT: Fursuit head, one time payment. WHEN: April of 2016 was when I bought the head, the deadline was supposed to be July 2016. At the time of writing this (3/24/17) it has been almost a full year past the deadline, and he will not respond to my emails asking about the tracking number of the package he told me he shipped (he said he shipped it a month ago.) PROOF: Emails: http://imgur.com/a/txDnh Paypal transaction: http://imgur.com/x5G4jo5 I don't remember why I sent it in two parts, but it was sent on the same day as you can see. EXPLAIN: Long story so I put it under the cut In early 2016 I had plans to go to Youmacon with a friend that year. So I was on the hunt for a fursuit head commission that I could wear to the con. A big problem I was running into was that at the time I was 17 and a lot of people didn't accept fursuit commissions from minors. I was turning 18 next month, and was hoping I could use that to hold a spot with someone. I found a commission ad for purqleguy on furaffinity, that he was selling cheap heads as an emergency money maker. I like helping people out, they were cheap and I liked his work, so I bought one. (Initial emails: http://imgur.com/onQQ1kU http://imgur.com/v2yLQUO (a big chunk of the convo has been cut out here, since it was mostly just talk of what material I wanted the horns to be made out of and isn't relevent to my case.) The initial agreement was I wanted it completed by early July. He told me that was doable, and he thought he could have it done even earlier than that. (Email: http://imgur.com/8Ca1JUy ) I got one update ten days after the payment (April 30th) showing me the completed face of the foam base. ( http://imgur.com/0LsBJAh ) After that the only updates I got were from me emailing him to ask. ( Email, note the date, continuing to talk about this in the next paragraph: http://imgur.com/vXC831l ) At the very begining of July, I sent him an email, hoping to confirm that he would have it finished by my deadline. He did not send me photos, but he told me he hadn't begun furring it. Keep in mind, I had not heard from him in a month, and seeing as he sent no photos and said he was sewing the fur pieces, I am to assume he had not made any progress on my head since I last contacted him. He promised to send photos the following day, he did not. His excuse was he went on a mountain trip, (for over a month?) and that's why he wasn't able to contact me. I didn't get on him about this but he should have told me he was going to be away and would not be able to update me. I told him as long as I got it by October then I would be fine with not meeting my July deadline. A few weeks later, I contacted him again, asking if he could send some images of the fur pieces he supposedly cut so I knew he wasn't lying. (Emails: http://imgur.com/jrmTg8d ) He did not reply until early the next month (August) with update pictures. Once again, he told me that a huge thing came up he couldn't work on my suit. He did not tell me that this was happening, this is the second time he had to pause on my suit because of life events without telling me. At this time I told him I was extending the deadline, as I had cancelled my Youmacon trip. (Email: http://imgur.com/8w63Gwg ) For a little bit after that, he did start updating me regularly, and then suddenly stopped without warning. Again. (Emails he sent me, I didn't screenshot the emails themself since it wasn't really much relevent to my case. Just some progress photos and comments on them. These are mostly to prove the dates and that he sent them. http://imgur.com/Z0k4iNL ) He stopped sending me emails until late December, I asked him for an update because the last he checked with me he told me he was almost done. (Email: http://imgur.com/nRJNrrI ) He told me he was going to put in the piercings and then he'd ship it off to me. I did not get any correspondance until February. I sent another email asking for an update, and his exact respond was "[your head] has been packed up for a while now!". He had my head packed up, I'm estimating for at least a month, and he did not ship it off to me. He told me he shipped it February 23rd. (This is the last email he has sent to me, so there won't be any more embedded in this post: http://imgur.com/fvTwOBD ) It has been a full month since he told me he shipped it (I am writing this on March 24th), and I have not recieved the head. He did not give me a tracking number, he did not give me an official confirmation he shipped it. On the 22nd he told me he was going to ship it out the following day, he did not confirm he shipped it but I was hoping he did. I don't know where to fit this into my story here, but it should also be mentioned some updates he didn't even send to me. I had to dig up his instagram account and looked at some photos he had posted to there (ones he didn't send me). I have sent 2 emails at this point asking for a tracking number, in the 2nd I said if he didn't give me a tracking number I was demanding a full refund. I was willing to give this maker a little bit of leeway since he told me he was a minor (didn't give me an exact age, I was guessing 16-17), but this is unacceptable. Do not buy from this artist until maybe he learns his lesson and gives some better customer service. Until then I'm hoping to get that refund I'm demanding and am going to a more high-profile maker with some good reviews. UPDATE; After having to hunt down this guy's tumblr to send him a message asking what was up I FINALLY recieved the head. And the condition is terrible. Here's a photo of the head, it looks fine from the outside but the construction is horrendous. http://imgur.com/Y1NGstB From the outside, notice; no piercings. My character has a nosering and two ear piercings. I even TOLD the maker how he could make the piercings, and he said he couldn't find green paint and I said he could cover it in fleece if he had to. I was very lenient with that because I know green spray paint exists online, but at this point I was tired of fighting with him so I was letting him do whatever he wanted. He didn't even do that, he just put no piercings in at all. From the construction; god where do I even start? I'm guessing he used matrice's head making method, but he did not ventilate the head AT ALL. The mouth is open and that's about it. The foam piece between the head base and the muzzle wasn't cut out, as from my understanding is standard for foam heads, and I had to cut it out myself. He was expecting me to get all my ventilation from the eyes and slightly open mouth, in an all black foam head. The horns don't look anything like I wanted them too, I gave him a link to an etsy store (I believe it was DVC) who had resin ram horns that looked how I wanted but he said he didn't want to use them. There isn't even ridge lines (I'm not sure what the lines on ram horns are called, sorry) on the horns. It's super easy to embrodier something like that on, he didn't even bother. The pink hair piece is tiny, and isn't even pinned down in anyway. If I move too much it flips up. My character I asked some artistic liberties to be taken since my actual fursona has his hair covering his eyes, but I need to see so I asked to make it a little smaller.but not THAT small! The jaw looked like it was about to rip off when I got it, and I had to put some more hot glue in it as I was paranoid it would fall off. And the neck mane has foam under it to make it stand up, which isn't that bad in itself, except he didn't cover the bottom with fabric or more fur, the foam is on display whenever I move my head. I will admit the eyes could've been a little bit tricky to work with, since I asked for slit pupil goat eyes, but the vision isn't very good. The pupils aren't even placed where they would be over my actual eyes, and they're pretty thin. I waited almost a year for a horribly made head. I am not happy. I basically wasted 300$, since I don't want to talk to this guy anymore to get a refund. I'm going to a more reputable maker to get a new head since I'm in the market for a bodysuit anyway.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/947383.html FINAL EDIT: So after posting the last update, a few things have happened. My claim was never responded to, however the note I sent to them a week earlier warning of the chargeback was (see their response here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xvaik3o7szvka0r/Inkeyu Response.png?dl=0 ) I was hoping that true to their word, they would refund me there and then, so gave them my email and ignored the fact I found them to be rude (whilst I appreciate being busy, if you run commissions through a site you have an obligation to at least inform them once in a while on where they stand). They never got back in contact nor did they refund me. As of today (29th March 2017) Paypal have ruled in my favour as they never got in contact with Paypal, proof of the dispute resolution is here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/gdzagfydino29w1/Screenshot_2017-03-29_at_18.51.04.png?dl=0 I will now be blocking the seller on FA, and consider the matter resolved. Edit: I've removed the IG account, and as of yet, there is no response to my chargeback threat. I also can not find any more of my notes asking them for updates (as I regularly clean my mailboxes, if I find any or receive a reply or issue the chargeback, I will keep you updated.) I've also included evidence that my chargeback has not been opened, as well as that my Feb 6th note was read. Edit 2: They never responded to the chargeback note (or opened it) so have included evidence of the paypal claim (I escalated straight to them), they have until the 27th to respond to paypal, as of today (21st of March) there is still no conversation between them and the seller as it still says "awaiting response" on the claim. First off, forgive me if this is incorrect in any way, I'm new here and am incredibly anxious about posting and didn't really want for it to get this way but I feel I've been patient enough after 4 months of minimal contact and I have now issued a warning about a chargeback. Please note I wouldn't have been this patient if it wasn't for the fact this person seemed to be in dire need when I commissioned them. WHO: Inkeyu of FA also known as Karma Kolors / KarmaManyBlood WHERE: FA: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/inkeyu/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarmaManyblood Etsy:https://www.etsy.com/shop/KarmasKolors?ref=pr_shop_more -The latter links seem dead however WHAT: Mini character in a bottle pendant. PROOF: - Initial discussion: https://www.dropbox.com/s/x6euqpv14nqgkgt/Initial_Discussion edited.jpg?dl=0 - Proof of purchase: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ebbmxgyoubn8byo/Proof_of_payment edited.jpg?dl=0 - Us discussing details: https://www.dropbox.com/s/8rojbr59x49g5qs/Discussing Pendant (1).png?dl=0 and https://www.dropbox.com/s/hpwe9vm50u5wzrp/Discussing Pendant (2).png?dl=0 and https://www.dropbox.com/s/11rikcsntduqrkb/Discussing Pendant (3).png?dl=0 - One of several attempts to get in touch: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wk96n03skt54oq0/Feb 6th Contact Attempt.png?dl=0 - Evidence that screencap has been read: https://www.dropbox.com/s/01denkbf162xk7b/Previously_read_note edited.jpg?dl=0 - I have screencaps of me talking to another customer (which I can add if needed) - Me threatening a chargeback: https://www.dropbox.com/s/8us4e8s8kvpku1w/Inkeyu chargeback warning.png?dl=0 Chargeback currently unread (Thursday 16th March, 8.45GMT): https://www.dropbox.com/s/5th9d5bcvh5ktko/Chargeback_unread edited.jpg?dl=0 Paypal claim (still awaiting reply, 21st March, 22.54GMT): https://www.dropbox.com/s/6bn8cncsfav55t2/Chargeback.jpg?dl=0 WHEN: December 2nd 2016 (given her 48hr warning of a chargeback March 15th 2017) EXPLAIN: I came across this individual in an FALAH (FA Lend a Hand) ad saying she was in a dire situation and needed funds, so was initially going to do a half and half trade of cash and writing for one of these pendants. I got paid around then, so instead decided to pay them the full asking price of $25 after some discussion (see "initial discussion" above) since I figured they'd appreciate it more. They asked for payment, which I sent on December 2nd 2016 (see "proof of purchase"). They were initially chatty (see links under "discussing details") and in good contact for a fair few weeks. Around six weeks in, I sent them a polite message to ask for progress, which was responded to by them saying they were busy as their situation was even more dire (I could only find their journal asking for help, and will link this if needed). I did some boosting online in an attempt to help them on my Twitter in the hope they would get to my piece faster, and left them be for another couple of weeks. I then attempted to contact them again (and several times since, like in the Feb 6th screenshot "one of several attempts to get in touch") and noticed that my notes were getting ignored (see "evidence read"). I would contact approximately once a fortnight, and every time the note was opened but never replied to. By this time I was beginning to feel put out, so decided to contact the customer ahead of me in the queue. They explained that Inkeyu worked in the same facility as them, and was under a lot of work pressure, but was going to tell them to respond to me and keep me in the loop (can link this if needed). This was around the end of February and I've still had no contact. I feel crap for doing it, but I'm finally at a point where I am a little suspicious and a little bit dejected. I've issued a 48hr warning before I file a chargeback (see "chargeback") which has been currently unread (see "chargeback unread"). I feel like I've tried to help someone in need and it's backfired on me, and now I fear I'm taking money from the mouth of someone who really needs it even though I don't want to lose that money myself. Chargeback warning issued on March 15th at 20.08GMT and I will update as and when needed.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/946679.html WHO: TealStreaks, AKA CandyAppleKisses/MajesticRoar/pinkustardust/TorvaNox/HarlequinDevil, and possibly other names WHERE: http://tealstreaks.deviantart.com/ & http://www.furaffinity.net/user/TorvaNox WHAT: 18+ Digital Art, Screencaps follow below. https://www.dropbox.com/s/8agli3jmh3vuvnt/Original Note Dates.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/9yid0qpscv7jkb3/First Note Screenshot.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/h3bkew97f67oi4d/YCH Commission Submission.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/6lwq9zxavxic0wi/Second Note Full Convo.PNG?dl=0 (NSFW) https://www.dropbox.com/s/fqqyfbcs6h5fqa2/pinkustardust FA Account Note.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/qef5ynwpf5hv5mq/PayPal email July 14 2012.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/vp6m003l2846i4e/DeviantART Notes.PNG?dl=0 (NSFW) https://www.dropbox.com/s/8fk8vpuo5drmv7x/DeviantART Notes2.PNG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/j2eft57dokyheu0/DeviantART Notes3.PNG?dl=0 WHEN: Around May 9th, 2012 for the first one, July 14th, 2012 for the second. Re-established contact around January 21st, 2016. All dates are shown in the screencaps above as well. PROOF: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1p3pqghdpbbdmnp/AAC-pN2f7LeWyjggsC5J0coea?dl=0 (Contains all previously linked content, 2 items within are considered NSFW) EXPLAIN: I had originally purchased a My Little Pony-themed YCH Commission from this artist for $10. Sadly, I do not have a PayPal or e-mail screencap for it, due to most of my transactions before 2014 not being visible on my account for some reason, and it is likely that I deleted the e-mail of this particular purchase from my inbox, as I had cleared out a lot of spam e-mails a few years back. I do in fact still have a screenshot from my inbox for the second transaction, however, also linked above. (https://www.dropbox.com/s/qef5ynwpf5hv5mq/PayPal%20email%20July%2014%202012.PNG?dl=0) I had been willing to remain patient, and in fact, had forgotten about them after a while, and rediscovered them while looking through my notes on FurAffinity in October of 2015, while looking for details in regards to another, unrelated commission. I had contacted her on her pinkustardust account on FurAffinity, having been redirected through a link to her new account on her MajesticRoar account, about them, and she requested that I contact her via deviantART (as shown here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/fqqyfbcs6h5fqa2/pinkustardust FA Account Note.PNG?dl=0), which I did. (Warning, NSFW: https://www.dropbox.com/s/vp6m003l2846i4e/DeviantART Notes.PNG?dl=0) I had initially simply requested that the second pic be changed, since I had recently come into ownership of a new character, and wanted that character featured in the image instead. However, after some consideration, and a little bit of a financial issue caused by my bank, I decided to instead request a refund for both pieces, to which she, somewhat rudely replied that it is not her problem, and that she doesn't force anyone to commission her, to which I replied, rather cordially, providing screencaps via dropbox links, that my commissions were both from 2012, and that I have been on her queue for quite some time, with no show of progress for either of them. Surely she couldn't have commissions waiting THAT long, could she? Her response was that she did, over 3 years at that point. I found that rather hard to believe, and questioned her about it, to which she gave another somewhat rude response, pictured above. Several hours later, however, she provided a very rough sketch of the second requested image, featuring the newer character, pictured here: (Warning, NSFW: http://sta.sh/0270p6e73p0u ) Over 3 years, and all I've received so far is a very messy sketch. However, it WAS progress, so, perhaps a bit too generously, I half-heartedly apologized, and, in order to simplify things, requested that the YCH image be dropped, and instead just have them put towards upgrading the pic, so as to get a better-quality image, and also because by that point, I was no longer into the whole My Little Pony fad, to which she agreed, as can be seen in the second note dump. (https://www.dropbox.com/s/8fk8vpuo5drmv7x/DeviantART%20Notes2.PNG?dl=0) About a full year later, with no signs of progress, I decided to inquire again, as shown here here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/j2eft57dokyheu0/DeviantART Notes3.PNG?dl=0 I had been seething at this point, but masked my anger and pretended to sympathize. Fastforward to March 3rd, 2017. After another year of no contact or updates, I had noticed that TealStreaks was doing a NSFW livestream, (https://www.dropbox.com/s/3uks7gl5xfg4d23/DeviantART%20Journals.PNG?dl=0) something she's done quite a few of, as well as opened commissions, and art trades a few times, as seen in the above screenshots. Feeling like taking a gamble, I attempted to join the stream, but was denied entry twice. Feeling frustrated, and feeling that this was motivated in part by not wanting to do the work I've been waiting on for almost 5 years at this point, since the stream journal specifically requested that you enter with your username, I posted a comment asking why, to which she responded with this: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jdrffad9ggv1htu/Semi-Rude Response.PNG?dl=0 And after I joined the stream, I bore witness to this conversation, before she ended the stream: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v3jr3myh0pmki5g/TealStreaks Talking Shit.PNG?dl=0 She not only insulted me there, but the entirety of the FurAffinity community through that conversation with whom I assume is her significant other. That, for me, was the final straw. As you can see, I had a comment ready to post in response to that. The stream ended shortly before I could post it, but I collected the conversation through multiple screencaps and saved it to link here. I didn't want the pic finished for fap material, as she seems to think, but for the principle of getting what you pay for, and finishing what you start, something she's clearly incapable of doing, based off my experiences with her. At this point, I don't care if the pic gets done or not anymore. If it does, great, she's earned the money I gave her almost 5 freaking years ago. If not, then it shows just how TealStreaks (or whatever name she'll be going by after this goes up, I don't doubt she'll change her username to try to escape the backlash) really is. I only hope that nobody else gets screwed over by her like I did. It's far too late for me to take this up with PayPal, and it's not a huge amount of money to me now, anyway, but it's about the principle of the matter. I paid her for work, and she didn't deliver. I advise anyone who finds TealStreaks to avoid commissioning her at all costs. Update 3/16/17: I have recently received contact from TealStreaks, who has apologized for her actions and attitude towards me, shown in the following linked notes. (https://www.dropbox.com/s/0t96dl45047o20d/TealStreaks%20Apology.PNG?dl=0 & https://www.dropbox.com/s/gkquiib8y15gm6x/TealStreaks Apology2.PNG?dl=0) In addition, she has provided a full refund for both commissions (screencap here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/1lqrr4rzjcd3whp/PayPal Refund March 16 2017.PNG?dl=0), and has stated intent to complete the commissioned image right away, as an additional apology. At this point, with the image pending, I shall consider this Beware resolved. Update 3/17/17: At about 7:18 PM EST, TealStreaks streamed work on the pic. She has also informed me of some rather nasty notes she has received related to this. I would appreciate it if this stopped. For one thing, it is strictly against AB's TOS, and for another, the situation is already resolved, so there's no need to do such a thing. I will be updating with the link when the image is finished and posted, but please, cease the notes to TealStreaks. It's not, nor was it ever needed, OR wanted on my end. Update #2: 3/17/17: As of about 8:53 PM EST, I have a WIP of the pic. (Warning NSFW: http://sta.sh/01e4t9n3ghkl) Work is expected to continue on it tomorrow, barring unexpected circumstances cropping up. Final Update: 3/19/17: The pic has been finished. Everything is resolved. (Warning NSFW: https://www.dropbox.com/s/w52bx6qv74rxp30/heart_by_tealstreaks-db2ruef.png?dl=0) I will likely clear the screenshots out of my Dropbox within a few weeks, as there is no need for the screens any longer.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/944483.html WHO: Cuttleb0ne WHERE: twitter.com/cuttleb0ne WHAT: A plantigrade fullbody fursuit WHEN: Quote sent 12/28/15 Down payment sent 01/13/16 PROOF: Proof of all current payment Only wip I've ever recieved EXPLAIN: Cuttlebone quoted me $2,500 for a fursuit of my saber character with a payment plan of a 30% down payment and the remaining 70% due on completion. I was very excited for this commission so I sent the down payment on the 13th and told him that my only deadline was this coming MFF in December, expecting that this would be plenty of time to get things done. For a while things were going smoothly, I sent my DTD and some extra payments because I was nervous about making sure I could pay him all off on time, since I wasn't quite sure when he would be complete. I would ask for updates periodically, as there hadn't been any progress on the suit other than him sending me a picture of fur samples in June. He suddenly stopped responding to my inquiries from September to November link . When I finally got an update (no progress) I told him I didn't mind if just a partial were done by MFF, trying not to cause stress. He did not respond again until the weekend of MFF, telling me he had no progress, but was going to give me a schedule of when the parts would be done, hoping to finish the suit before the end of the year, I never got that schedule link . I asked for another update on January 12th and got no response, noticing that he was active on twitter I got a little flustered and sent a message saying that I was tired of having to fish for updates and that if he didn't want to do business with me anymore to let me know and we would talk about refunding. We agreed to continue the commission , but I stated that I would need weekly updates even if no progress had been made. He complied for about a week until I got no response from Jan 23rd to Feb 12th link and I had to threaten an AB and Paypal chargeback to get him to respond. I have currently been waiting since the 18th for a reply from him link . In conclusion, do not commission this maker if you don't want to have to threaten an AB to get a response. UPDATE 02/28 After letting him know about this AB and a dispute on one of my older payments (since it was the last day I could do it), along with firmly asking for a refund when I had previously asked him to decide whether he wanted to refund or continue, he replied and apologized for the unpleasant experience I had. He said he was unable to work on the suit due to not having access to materials. I confronted him about some suspicions I had that he was making premade suits, and he confirmed, stating that they were to refund other customers (and myself now). Currently I am waiting for a payment plan for the refund.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/944093.html WHO: Mew / Xionica (fursuit character name) WHERE: https://www.furaffinity.net/user/mew | https://www.furaffinity.net/user/xionica/ WHAT: Fursuit partial (being resold) - fursuit shown on their Xionica page. WHEN: Around March / April 2016 is when I first paid on it. July 9th was my last payment. PROOF: Everything is chronologically placed in my dropbox but I'll also post the links chronologically through the explanation as well. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/7obu4yppo7mpeoc/AABEqW-37KC12Re0dkVVD1eDa?dl=0 Proof that Mew and Xionica are the same person: https://www.dropbox.com/s/r09u3mcg7kz3df4/proofxionica1.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/5qcv6ag4prt7ssy/proofxionica1-2.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/od0mn2v4b0gwu4t/proofxionica2.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/8w0zjqsaksgoeh6/proofxionica3.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/4glw9wo9b0zb8bp/proofxionica4.png?dl=0 She sent me art of the character that wasn't even posted on Xionica's account. She said that's where the fursuit was hosted and that she would sell account, char art, and the FurAffinity profile along with purchase. This proof shows that I made payments on it and that it was to her paypal she specified: https://www.dropbox.com/s/bvs314m94rqpr26/proof1.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/ya9g567bal6x32x/proof2.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/zffc0bfpv3o68x1/proof3.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/n5yz7egwakzzfu2/proof4.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/gbdp8rktycbmpot/proof8.png?dl=0 - This was my final payment. EXPLAIN: I was scammed out of 107$ on a fursuit partial, being sold to me by Mew The story behind this: Originally I agreed to buy this fursuit partial from this person that I considered a friend because I wanted to help them out with bills + the design was VERY well detailed for only 500$ + extra art included. You can see the fursuit in question on her Xionica account. This was back before I had a job, having no means to pay for this fursuit but Mew told me I could do it if I just posted commissions / adopts / etc and eventually it would pile up to equal 500$. Every payment for the commissions was sent directly to Mew through her paypal email. It was to avoid paying a double fee for paypal. She was very adamant about making sure I paid her buyer's fee for her which is against Paypal's TOS but I thought since she was my friend it was okay. Because of this, most of my payments are either small increments of 5-20$ or were sent directly via commissioners to avoid taking so much out of fees. In total, from my actual paypal, I only sent her 9$ from my own account. This is an image showing she was calculating the fees she was receiving from my payments into the total purchase: https://www.dropbox.com/s/p7ubkcyszn826tx/proof7.png?dl=0 - "I'll let you know your total once I see the fees" That's when all the shit started happening in my life. Lots of my adopts and commissions wouldn't sell, highschool graduation, college, then medical stuff and I lost my job 2-3 months after being hired so now I'm disabled. But I always kept her updated to let her know what was happening and that I was just going through a rough patch in my life. https://www.dropbox.com/s/723gvbl09uhnjhg/proof9.png?dl=0 - as we were friends and I was helping her out because she needed money for bills, I thought she would understand. But then she sent me a message on Skype, January 30th of this year - saying it had been a YEAR since I paid.. which was a flat out lie, the last payment was 7 months ago on the proof images of 107$. https://www.dropbox.com/s/7oahsay2cmjxg9v/proof11.png?dl=0 She sent that to my skype probably knowing I was having skype issues because I talked about it often via statuses and I hadn't been online in forever (and MIA due to medical stuff) because I just couldn't sign on. At least 2 months of inactivity via my new skype. Plus she added my new skype from my status that told people my old skype wasn't working. https://www.dropbox.com/s/gtwae9im4w4dnx7/proof10.png?dl=0 She didn't bother to message me on FA or Toyhou.se or try to get into contact with me, choosing the most convenient way for her not to get a response. About 4 days after that message, I remembered about the partial and contacted her on Toyhou.se to let her know I was still interested. https://www.dropbox.com/s/1a0wd49julhef9w/proof12.png?dl=0 I asked if she had discord. It was obvious I didn't see her skype message at this time. Instead of telling me THERE about the fact that she wanted to resell the fursuit, she just curtly said "No, I do not." And tried to cut off all communication. https://www.dropbox.com/s/g627j3bphjymkq9/proof13.png?dl=0 She never responded to my second note where I said I would try to get skype working and that I really wanted to discuss the fursuit payment. https://www.dropbox.com/s/qof5t18qf9g42ex/proof14.png?dl=0 She read it but never responded. https://www.dropbox.com/s/0e0ik0yrtzta7ed/readnote2.png?dl=0 So I finally got Skype working today and what do you know? I stumble upon the message. https://www.dropbox.com/s/z2runvyncuqyqw6/proof15.png?dl=0 So I responded asking her to refund my 107$ payment if she was going to resell the fursuit, since I'm not getting my product. NO WHERE in our conversations was a deadline mentioned where I had to pay in full by, no downpayment agreed to.. it was just one friend slowly inching towards their goal to help another friend and to buy a fursuit. And guess what? SHE UNFRIENDS ME ON SKYPE 30 MIN LATER, as you can see by the "messaging disabled" on the bottom of that screencap. Perplexed, I messaged her on FA, telling her that I WILL force refund the payments or sue her over this matter. You can't just take 107$ of my money and run off with it. https://www.dropbox.com/s/qmcmv7y636wl81k/proof16.png?dl=0 I also suggested that if she didn't have the money to pay, she could trade me a character I saw on her Toyhou.se that would be worth the price (plus she was selling it anyways) and I could come to an agreement after that, because it was some form of product. She read that never responded, has been active uploading art so I'm done. https://www.dropbox.com/s/2a8pdbnvrtjiuhd/readnote1.png?dl=0 So after this TL;DR.. Mew is a scammer. She took 107$ of my money that was put down for a fursuit, and she ran off with it. She refuses to respond to me so it's clear I have to take this matter into my own hands with the public. I'm gonna post this in hopes that she'll never be able to scam anyone else out of their money again and so that maybe, just maybe she'll give me back my money or gives me something of equal value.. because I don't think this will settle well with a paypal dispute, even with the proof images from skype because all the money was sent directly from my commission / adopt buyers.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/943772.html WHO: Miss Kitty's Custom Commissions on FB WHERE: https://www.facebook.com/scarykittenincorporated/ + their personal FB WHAT: 2 digital pieces for $20 WHEN: Aug 21st 2015 - current PROOF: https://gyazo.com/812ea7cf305d5ba62095ca8a97e35bb6 - initial commission request https://gyazo.com/a914d9eabbfc4e277314c5425b500675 - I was still admin of a FB group at this point, I guess the GFM is unrelated but IDK? https://gyazo.com/447de3058f93728c3bed8508007ee092 - End of 2015, still no arts. https://gyazo.com/0979ef74a606627369ebbb2328046507 - I think that’s pretty self explanitory… Hasn’t looked at my messages or replied. EXPLAIN: I think the caps tell the story. I don’t think there’s really anything to add here. My patience has cost me money. x.x I’m also not the only person with this problem but I’m only speaking for myself.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/943223.html WHO: MintyMudi (twitter), MudiCommissions (twitter), Mixeddisaster (FA, relatively inactive) WHERE: Twitter DMs, @MintyMudi WHAT: An adopt purchase, turned into a traditional badge trade. WHEN: August 9, 2016 – Present Day PROOF: Here's an Imgur album, but I will link appropriate images accordingly: http://imgur.com/a/JN1yv EXPLAIN: On August 9th, 2016, I posted several characters for sale, and MintyMudi expressed interest in one of them. I was asking $20, and they offered $15 and a small doodle, which I accepted. They sent me the $15 promptly. http://i.imgur.com/q7shtqO.png http://i.imgur.com/QAwRZvM.png ETA: Minty has come to me with an apology and acknowledged their behavior following my previous communication with them. This shows a willingness to improve and admit fault, and I'm pleased that they did so. http://imgur.com/nzOJQvu September rolls around, and I remembered that they owed me a doodle, so on the 3rd I inquired about the status of that. They told me they’d been busy working, and they’d get to it that week. They offered to do a traditional badge, and having liked the style of the badges they were doing, that interested me. However I didn’t feel like it would be a fair exchange for just $5 worth so I offered to do a badge for them as well and we could turn it into a full blown badge trade. They agreed, and we chatted briefly about characters (I omitted this from the screenshots, it’s irrelevant info), and I completed my half very shortly afterwards. Usually, I send off my badges right away, but having experienced a trade gone awry earlier that summer, I decided to hold on to it until they had completed their half. http://i.imgur.com/35KjtAF.png September 19th arrives, and they ask me the name of my character. I told them, and they replied that they would do it on their day off the next day (would have been Sept 21). I missed the reply until the next day, the 22nd, and told them that there was no rush. I assumed they had been busy since they didn’t have it done by then. http://i.imgur.com/YK6yGi0.png October 26th rolls around, and they came to me asking if they could make the badge Christmas themed, to provide examples for MFF badges. I’m not really one for holiday themed things, so I declined and said I’d prefer a neutral theme. They then asked if they could put a snowflake background on it, so I told them again that I did not want that kind of theme. This kind of rubbed me the wrong way, so if my replies look a little short then that’s why. They finished the badge that day, and showed me pictures of it. http://i.imgur.com/YK6yGi0.png http://i.imgur.com/NFUgzSL.png It slipped my mind for a little while, but mid-November I realized that they hadn’t asked me for my shipping address. I realized that the timing would be pretty poor due to Thanksgiving, then MFF (which I knew they were attending based on their previous inquiries), and then Christmas, so I waited until after all that passed to ask about it. I asked if they needed my shipping address, on January 13th. They told me that they were in the process of moving, but they would try to send it out beforehand. After giving them my address, I told them I would ship mine out after I received their half of the trade. http://i.imgur.com/ndgzQxP.png So, February 1st rolls around and I ask them again, if they’d had the chance to mail it. At this point I was getting pretty frustrated, because it doesn’t take much to put a stamp on an envelope and put it in the mailbox. http://i.imgur.com/zUnctqw.png A week passes, and on Feb 8th they messaged me to let me know that they would be mailing my badge out the next week. I was pleased that they had taken the initiative to update me, as it usually was me asking for progress. http://i.imgur.com/eiGOmHr.png After the next week passes, I ask on Feb 14th if they had the chance to ship the badge out or not. I let them know at this time that I am frustrated with the transaction, and give them the option of just cancelling the trade since I had refrained from sending out my half until I got theirs. They told me that they had shipped it out that morning, which immediately sent up a red flag. It was awfully convenient that they had put it in the mailbox the day that I asked about it. I decided to give them the benefit of a doubt, though privately I was planning on checking out what the timestamp on the envelope said when it arrived. I didn’t intend on doing anything about it, just mostly to confirm my suspicions. http://i.imgur.com/eiGOmHr.png http://i.imgur.com/2TIbX01.png Today, 2ish days later, Feb 17th in my time zone but not quite 3 whole days later, they DM’d me again letting me know that the mailman apparently hadn’t picked up the mail. For 2 days. Now obviously I don’t have any proof of them being dishonest, but I had a bad feeling about it in the first place, so this was just the final straw. I told them that it felt suspicious, and I was very frustrated. At this point I tell them that I’ll be writing up a beware, and that I don’t wish to speak to them unless it’s confirmation of shipping the badge. http://i.imgur.com/2TIbX01.png http://i.imgur.com/lMk2rCP.png As the screenshots show, they then proceed to tell me that I’ve been rude and hurtful, along with some comments that are very guilt trip-y. Included in my screenshots are some subtweets about the whole situation. http://i.imgur.com/lMk2rCP.png http://i.imgur.com/yv3dZkP.png They don’t admit to anything and either situation is equally as likely imo, but regardless of whether they put the badge in their mailbox or not, it’s still been since August of last year. So I feel like this beware is justified. I get that “real life” happens, but it takes so little time to send an envelope in the mail that it quickly becomes an invalid excuse. I would probably have been more patient if it had been something that required boxing up or packaging, but this is such a simple thing that I just ran out of patience. As soon as I receive my badge, I will be shipping out theirs. But at this point I’m not sure when that will be. So that being said, be careful when dealing with MintyMudi. They are unreliable, unprofessional, and I do not recommend it. As soon as I have received the badge, I will update this post and ship out my half. UPDATE: I have received the badge on the mail. regardless of the reasoning behind it not being shipped when they said they would ship it, I consider the transaction resolved. However, there are issues with cutting of the lamination that is fairly sloppy that I pointed out to them. ( http://imgur.com/lgiVQCT, http://imgur.com/WACmX6f, http://imgur.com/suBW6gz, http://imgur.com/zzHp25K, http://imgur.com/OKXFwlW )If this were a commission, I would request it be redone and fixed, but since it's just a trade I don't want to bother with it. They also have yet to own up to their behavior and outbursts, and I don't think they will. So resolved, yes. But still be wary of working with this individual. I would not recommend it until they improve their attitude and work ethic. Update: Minty has come to me with an apology and acknowledged their behavior following my previous communication with them. This shows a willingness to improve and admit fault, and I'm pleased that they did so. http://imgur.com/nzOJQvu

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/942680.html WHO: Victoria10717 known as "FurFancyCostumes" on Furaffinity WHERE: Links to their Furaffinity accounts http://www.furaffinity.net/user/victoria10717/ http://www.furaffinity.net/user/furfancycostumes WHAT: Fursuit handpaws, feetpaws, bodysuit with tail attached (fursuit items) WHEN: First agreed upon commission on the 16th of March 2016, it was also agreed upon that said items would be delivered to me by June 17th 2016, this is still ongoing however and they have not started the commission as I am writing this 16 February 2017, I finally worked up the courage to ask for a refund 2 months ago PROOF: Proof can be found here: http://imgur.com/a/RAgOm Proof is in the form of screenshots of conversations I have had with the maker EXPLAIN: This all started after I purchased a fursuit head off the fursuit auction site "furbuy" from someone who bought it from the maker. I decided I wanted to upgrade it to a partial so I reached out to the maker as I needed it done for a specific date which I wouldn't be able to finish the parts by due to life circumstances, this was my only reason for commissioning the maker at the time so I'd have the partial to wear to an upcoming convention. The maker agreed and assured me it would be there in time for the convention http://imgur.com/rCI396A so I went through with the commission and paid. http://imgur.com/HZDcMjl I know artists don't like being bombarded with questions from commissioners so I gave them space and just assumed that they would work on it. Time passed and I hadn't seen any progress at all so I contacted them and they told me it was fine and will be done. I contacted them again 2 weeks before the date they assured me they'd have it completed by (as shipping from the USA to Australia takes 2 weeks) and by this point I knew they wouldn't have it done in time, which I was upset about but I let it slide. Time continued to pass and I was getting more stressed and worried about the commission, I was constantly given sob stories for why the commission wasn't worked on (moving house, relatives dying etc.), which I gave her more time because of, however I was noticing too that she was working on commissions that were paid off after mine. It became difficult to get into contact with the maker as they began ignoring my messages, I tried switching over to email on numerous occasions which were ignored completely, whereas with notes I would receive occasional replies. Late September to early October I messaged her asking what was going on and she told me that she was working and making great progress and I started seeing a lot of work from her that she was doing on others commissions suits and I became confident that soon she'd do my commission as she was posting progress as well with her assuring me my suit would be worked on soon http://imgur.com/rrnAKmd so I decided to add a bodysuit to the commission as they also assured me it wouldn't slow my commission but be done with it. Time continued to pass and more and more I noticed other commissions being done over mine and when I tried contacting the maker I was ignored. Eventually I decided I was putting too much time into this and it was making me too stressed so I wanted to put an end to it and as they had breached the agreement many times I believed I was entitled to a full refund and all they responded with was to follow their "trello" http://imgur.com/oT70pkB to try and get me to no longer ask for a refund. On other occasions I had told them they hadn't made a slot for me on trello which they ignored so even looking at that list, I had no idea where I was on it or if my commission was even being considered in her queue Then the maker proceeded to provide excuses and reasons as to why they couldn't or hadn't worked on the commission http://imgur.com/AZ7StD9 then claiming that I hadn't paid it off before others she had placed ahead of me, this continued for a little longer with conversation difficult as they continued to ignore my messages http://imgur.com/OhKbuo8 Finally I was able to get them to agree to send a refund and at this point I was so over it I didn't care about the 35% anymore, so I waited. I hadn't heard anything in over a month later after them claiming they'd send the refund that never came. So I proceeded with the Paypal claim, in order to actually receive a refund. I called PayPal customer service and explained the situation to someone there who told me that I was entitled to a full refund as they hadn't made a proper effort to work on the commission, regardless of what their TOS stated they had broken the agreement. That's when they finally replied however I still am yet to receive a refund from them as they claim they "don't have the money to refund".

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/940141.html WHO: Piranha.Petting.Zoo on Instagram | Karkass on Furry Amino WHERE: https://www.instagram.com/piranha.petting.zoo/ (set to Private now) & Furry Amino WHAT: Piranha.Petting.Zoo/Karkass has been has been tracing/altering my art for her Commissions and Trades on Instagram and Furry Amino. WHEN: 10/14/2016 – First post of stolen art on Instagram 01/25/2017 – I was first notified about her. 01/27/2017 – She finished removing my art and set her Instagram to private so only followers can view. PROOF: So sorry there are a lot of links to evidence, she used roughly 23 pieces of my art as either commissions, trades or claimed them as her own. I’ll be as concise and organized as I can. I did my best to censor the proper information but please let me know if I missed anything! *Please note at this time she has removed all of my art and made her Instagram private so I’ll be including screenshot links. I hope this will suffice.* Their Instagram Gallery at the time I first checked (my art is circled in red) Direct Link to their Commission Information that uses some of my altered work as examples Screenshot in case they pull link access to it Theirs | Mine(NSFW) Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs 1 & Theirs 2 | Mine 1 & Mine 2 Theirs | Mine Theirs 1 & Theirs 2 | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs 1 & Theirs 2 | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs 1 & Theirs 2 | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs | Mine Theirs 1 & Theirs 2 | Mine Their post with my art in their Commission Que on Furry Amino | Mine My Messages to Piranha.Petting.Zoo: 1st @ 7:25 PM CST 01/25/2017 2nd around 9:00 PM CST 01/25/2017 EXPLAIN: A kind user on Twitter brought it to my attention on Wednesday, 01/25/2017, that the user Piranha.Petting.Zoo on Instagram was using my art for her commissions and trades. As seen above she has altered numerous pieces of my art for her commissions, trades, and a couple personal pieces for herself. Even further, her Commission Information, that was previously linked on her Instagram, uses my altered art as her Feral Fully Body, Headshot, Bust and Anthro Full Body commission examples. There is also a post up on her Instagram where she talks about at least some of what she's made in commissions. Given I did not see much if any art that was possibly her own work, I doubt the money she's talking about having earned was done 100% through her own talent. LINK I will say, initially I wasn’t sure if I should try and post a Beware or not. After I collected evidence I decided to message her directly to ask her to remove my art immediately and stop using it for her commissions and trades. I felt maybe if we could resolve it privately it’d be for the better. She never responded to my messages directly, but while I was working on collecting direct links to her posted art I noticed I started to run into “Page Not Found” errors. Upon refreshing her gallery I noticed she had removed a little over half of the images in question. I felt this was possibly a good sign, since she started removing them within about 15-30 minutes of my first message to her. A little over half of the images in question were removed quickly, but for some reason she stopped with a few remaining. I figured I’d give her some additional time to get them removed, I didn't want to get too aggressive with her if I could avoid it, and who knows maybe she couldn't finish removing it all right then. In the meantime I started to see if I could find her anywhere else to make sure she wasn’t just removing the art from Instagram, but continuing to keep it up elsewhere. I asked a friend to see if he could locate her on Furry Amino, since the user who brought her to my attention had also mentioned she had originally been doing commissions and trades there (this was prior to seeing her comment about what she was making on commissions there). My friend had an account on the app already, so I asked if he could just double check for me to be safe. He was indeed able to locate her on the app, and informed me of some posts she had there which prompted me to sign up so I could check for myself. She is on Furry Amino under the username Karkass, and it seems she made a post there about 15-30 minutes after I had sent my first message as well. LINK Her comment about current commissioners made me curious to check her Queue, and she does appear to have at least 2 commissions listed currently. One of which may be using another piece of mine. LINK It was at this point I started to feel Karkass was not necessarily removing the art because she truly felt she had done wrong, but only because she'd been caught. Especially given she still seemed intent on finishing these last commissions with "the same style". So I sent one last message to her on Instagram that evening asking her to please have the remainder of my art removed from her Instagram and Furry Amino by the next evening (Thursday 01/26/2017), and to cancel and refund any commissions she’s currently working on that use my art. She did finally finish removing my art from her Instagram on Friday (01/27/2017). Unfortunately, the piece in her Queue on Furry Amino remains up at the moment, so she has yet to honor that part of my request. Her post on Furry Amino that Friday further eroded my confidence in the sincerity of her actions. LINK It was after that last post, followed the next day by her locking down her Instagram to private for followers only, that I decided to go ahead and try posting a Beware. Her behavior through all of this really makes me worry she’s not truly intent on stopping what she’s doing. I could be wrong! She may legitimately be looking to revamp her style through her own talent and not by using my art or anyone else’s. I hope that's what she's doing, but I’m concerned she may now just be looking for someone else’s art to use, and/or she may continue to use mine. I really don’t know. I hope my concerns are for naught. However, I wouldn’t want this to happen to anyone else, nor would I want her to continue to scam her commissioners and those artists putting in their precious time and hard work on art trades with her when all she’s doing is altering other artists’ work. This is a beware to artists and commissioners alike to be heads up in regards to Piranha.Petting.Zoo aka Karkass. She has used my art for her commissions and trades, and she may continue to use mine and/or other artists’ art in the future.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/939896.html Who: Vani / VanillaKitsune / @ashketchumsays / stripesandteeth Where: Twitter When: Commissioned them June 15th, 2016 I commissioned Vani on their Twitter back in June when they were taking a lot of sketch commissions there. I bought two sketches and received initial passes pretty quickly, but since then it’s been very difficult to get in contact with them much less get an update. Break down of events and screen caps below cut. All screen caps are in the Dropbox folder below, and are numbered to be chronological, except for the proof of payment which is the first document. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/gnsxt1by8i2dmvk/AAAON_cgjDhnjltT0I8dFCHma?dl=0 June: -6/15/16: I DMed Vani on Twitter like their post said to do, and gave them references and paid promptly. I paid for two 11x14 sketch with shipping, but was later asked to pay for shipping again. -6/26/16: I received preliminary sketches that were very rough and I approved them. I was excited to see progress so soon and was told they’d be finished promptly. -6/29/16: A few days later I received a long DM from Vani saying that they would be attending AX and couldn’t finish the sketches before then. As an artist that sells at cons, I understood and told them not to worry. Afterwards I didn’t hear anything until August. August: -8/14/16: I DMed Vani to check in and ask how the sketches were going and again received a long DM, explaining that things were rough but on an upswing. I trusted they’d work on commissions when they were able and left them to it until November when I saw they were going to MFF. November: -11/28/16: I DMed Vani again after I saw they were going to MFF and tabling there as well. I asked if I could pick up my sketches at the con and they said they would have them ready for me. I ended up not being able to get away from my table the entire weekend and messaged them when I got home. December: -12/5/16: I DMed Vani again apologizing that I couldn’t get to their table to pick up my sketches. At this point, I have not seen the finished sketches and have no reason to believe that the sketches have actually been completed and would have even been available for pickup. Vani tells me they can mail my sketches, and asked me to send $6. I promptly paid, completely forgetting that I had already paid for shipping initially. -12/30/16: Vani posts a 10 page google document explaining their year and the struggles they’ve been through. I read the whole thing, and only gathered that they were stressed from taking too many commissions in between moving a lot and having financial struggles. They clearly state that they can’t deal with the stress of being contacted by customers, which admittedly upset me. January: -1/7/17: At this point unaware of their post, I DM Vani one last time asking if they had mailed the sketches. I didn’t receive a response, so I publicly tweeted at them. -1/11/17: I tweeted asking if they had shipped the sketches, received a reply from a random third party directing me to the 10 page manifesto. After reading the whole thing I e-mailed Vani like they requested and tried to pick up where we left off on Twitter. -1/25/17: No response to my e-mail, so I send another asking if they had received it. At this point I am not expecting a reply. Speaking as an artist, I have been through similar situations that Vani has gone through. I’ve been in very tight spots financially and been forced to move and scramble to find housing. I honestly don’t mind waiting for artwork so long as the artist is able to clearly communicate delays and issues just as I would with my customers. Vani very clearly can’t handle custom work but continues to take more and put themselves into this situation. They are now putting the blame of their anxieties and shortcomings on their customers who are simply asking when they can expect their artwork. I’m incredibly disappointed and honestly even if I were to receive a refund or the finished artwork I couldn’t in good conscience recommend anyone work with Vani.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/939315.html Where https://inkbunny.net/Lando What 60$ commission. I commissioned once before, took a month more or less, so as it was the same style as the first one, I thought may the same or two would do. When 23th june 2016 Proofs Skype deleted the first month of june, but here is the log from july to now. https://d.pr/pvFM https://d.pr/hLs1 https://d.pr/1FY5 https://d.pr/XoMN https://www.dropbox.com/s/2ang7hikop5m0p6/img1.png?dl=0 That's the last thing I know from him. Payment: https://www.dropbox.com/s/8i72d6rev8nm88x/img2.png?dl=0 Further details: So, last year, I commissioned Lando, from InkBunny, a pic from our munks, like a grey and white sketchy style that he does very well. It just took like a month or so to get finished. So, more or less after half year I tried to commission him again. I asked if he was taking commissions that time, and said me yes. So I payed him the amount he asked, more or less the same as the first comm (60$). Said it would take the same time, may a bit more, because he never drew rocket raccoon, I thought it was ok, we all want very good draws. But since then, I only started to have comments like "soon", "the next draw is your comming", and so, as you can see in the pics. I also know that I can be a bit impatient, basically because he WAS my fav artist, but looks he didn't get bothered at all, all the contrary. Once he said me real life things were happening, and I understood that, but since then he told that now could focus on the commission, but only the last pic of the conversation is the last I know from him. He just passed me some sketches from rocket he was practicing and the very initial idea of the commission. Nothing else. So, as you can suppose, I'm disappointed with who was my favorite artist, who I got friendly chats on skype, and now, I just get ignored and scammed. I don't know what else I can do. I tried to make in paypal a petition of "asking money" from him, like a refund, last week just to make contact with him, but as always, no response from him. Also mention that in his account of IB has activity.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/938581.html WHO: Dauxycheeks on Furaffinity but also goes by Xashy on Deviantart/Dao on IMVU WHERE: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/dauxycheeks/ WHAT: Digital art. I got this piece with a friend in March of 2015. It was through text dialogue that was agreed that we would get the piece together. I then sent my friend my part of the money, & she sent it to the artist, at the time, the artist & I were also friends so she knew of this arrangement. WHEN: In March of 2015 PROOF: My friend & I discussing getting the piece & confirming sending payment (x) (x) (I’ve crossed certain things out for privacy reasons) Me asking the friend if Dauxy has started working on our piece yet(x) The statement from my Paypal of me sending the money to my friend(x) EXPLAIN: On March 27th, 2015 Dauxy put up a journal that she was taking $25 tentacle wing-its(x). A friend of mine, who is friends with Dauxy, messaged me via Skype & asked if I would like to get a couple piece together with 1 of her characters, after talking for a bit we then decided to get a three way piece instead. I agreed, & wired her $25(As in, I sent my friend the money & then she sent Dauxy the full amount in one payment). In August of the same year, Dauxy & I had a falling out, & our friendship ended but we were still on civil terms. (we could still have professional conversations as artist & commissioner.) I still had one other commission with her at this point as well that was finished in what I consider a decent amount of time. Something else I want to interject, at one point in September of 2015, my friend Skyped me & asked if she had paid for my slot or if I had. When I asked her why she asking this she told me that Dauxy had asked her & she didn’t remember(x). This overall unsettled me a bit & made me feel a bit anxious. So a year & a couple months goes by, & I decide I want a refund. I message Dauxy & ask for a said refund in June 2016 (x). Fast forward again to November 2016, & I message her again just asking for an update on said refund. She informs she had forgotten about me, & she would pay me next week.(x) Next week rolls around, & it becomes the evening so I shoot her another note asking for an update(x). The next day rolls around with no response so I shoot her another note. I got a response on the following Sunday early in the morning, her telling me the reason she had not responded was she had emergency stomach surgery the previous week & her entire paycheck had been devoted to that. She was waiting on some money from IMVU so that she could give me my refund & asked for my Paypal email(x). I waited a week before shooting her yet another note & asking for a ETA. She saw it, & yet again did not reply. It’s at this time I started to become irritated with the whole thing. She posted a journal saying she would take care of her refunds after the holidays when Christmas was taken care of, which was understandable. January 2nd, I noticed she had gotten a commision, even though she’d claimed she had no money to refund me. I sent her a note, expressing my frustration with the situation. She saw the message, & once again, did not respond.(x) I sent her another, sharing my frustration with being ignored & waited until the next day, where I found she blocked me.(x) At this point I was seething & unsure what to do. I would like to take a moment here to say I did make a post that I feel like was childish & reactionary, & since been taken down. I was really upset by the whole situation but never the less it doesn’t excuse what I said, & if Dauxy is reading this, I’m sorry that I lashed out. She made a journal coming back at what I said to her which I sent to her on Skype to confront her where she called me a ‘fatass’ (x) (x), & then blocked me there as well. I then noticed she added this to her profile after she had blocked me (x). I don’t recommend ever commissioning this person. My main frustration wasn’t even money at this point, I couldn’t care less. It was the fact I was being treated like such dirt by an artist that I once considered a friend & who had already done something before that had really hurt me. EDIT 2/11/17 Dauxy posted this journal that was sent to me by a couple friends. Tried to post this comment But I'm still blocked. So I am unsure if she meant me or not. To be honest, this gave me some hope that this issue would be resolved & I could maybe move past this, because to be honest I really hate giving negative reviews. It leaves nad energy between me & the other party. I want this to end well. But that hope faded when I saw I was still blocked. I obviously don't have any other known means of contacting her(To my knowledge.). I still haven't been contacted by Dauxy(If there isn't an update below this, assume I still haven't.) about a refund or a formal apology. EDIT 2/15/17 Dauxy noted me. She apologized for lashing out, informed me she was a couple dollars short of my refund & to keep an eye on my Paypal. I sent her a note back accepting her apology, apologizing again, & also saying I hope this can be seen as a clean slate. (x) Shortly after the full amount has been refunded as of today. I consider this beware resolved.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/937553.html WHO: xbeansrepublicx, Bean, king beano beano, _Selshocktattoo_, beanscraftsforever WHERE: https://www.instagram.com/xbeansrepublicx/ WHAT: 1 Full colour single character commission WHEN: Commissioned artist on Sept 20th 2016. After a lot of back and forth, asked for a refund on Dec. 7th 2016. Opened a Paypal Claim Dec 22 2016. Refunded by Paypal on Jan 2 2017. PROOF: WARNING FOR CRUDE LANGUAGE BY ARTIST http://imgur.com/ek3mvk7 http://imgur.com/KHztYU7 Here are the DMs about the commission's beginning and leading up to my requesting a refund. http://imgur.com/MT2bgUA http://imgur.com/2jYQQG5 While I was waiting for my commission, they posted these two rants, which made me nervous. http://imgur.com/t8fty7t "No Refunds" When I commissioned them, they didn't link me to a TOS (or have one posted), then they posted this and alarm bells went off. http://imgur.com/IEG3Zje "Packages Damaged" Artist says packages were damaged, doesn't answer if one was mine or provide photos. While I understand things can go wrong in the mail, I'm skeptical of this circumstance, as she never provided proof even when I asked. http://imgur.com/wn0jvbG The rest is pretty much summed up in this email. http://imgur.com/LtJTaH5 "No more commissions ever" After agreeing to refund me, they post this. http://imgur.com/1jx5yCL http://imgur.com/6xwZeMS I message them through paypal directly, and when they don't respond I escalate to a claim. I am issued a refund by Paypal, not the artist. EXPLAIN: Mostly covered in the "proof" section. I commissioned Beano, they started the piece, but never showed me the finished version. I asked for a scan and tracking number, they didn't provide either. They said they received the packages back to their address damaged. I asked for photos and they did not provide them. I never saw the commission completed. I asked for a refund, they agreed but did not issue it. I had to open a dispute with paypal in order to get my money back. It's concerning because Instagram is so easy to switch usernames and dodge customers. They don't appear to use any other site so it would be easy to change their handle, but there's nothing I can do but post about this one. 😕

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/936264.html WHO: Wormskin On Furaffinity WHERE: https://www.furaffinity.net/user/wormskin/ WHAT: Commission Type Was Half Body Digital Art WHEN: May 1st, 2016 - Present day PROOF: https://i.gyazo.com/53bec47615ad2cadfeabbbbc466e8d63.png https://i.gyazo.com/f581a688565103e79797eb5aee01805b.png https://i.gyazo.com/9bd2c423cb4dc5a5059378e5e4263533.png EXPLAIN: It started off when I saw his artwork on the front page of FA, I loved their art style and wanted to get a commission from them. after contacting the artist and explaining to them what I wanted (look at the above screenshots) they sent me an email and I paid for it. 7 months later and I haven't heard from this person, I even sent them a note asking about the art but it was never opened. https://i.gyazo.com/fe3dfcf3df83946ff0046e5946000ca4.png https://i.gyazo.com/caf3d8457586c0ba030c72ea8908210c.png https://i.gyazo.com/3d0c608b7a7fbcf142e88b8382a2018e.png I really don't know what to do at this point, I'm out of $41and the artist has seemed to just drop off the face of the earth. if ANYONE has any info on this person please note me on FA.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/933659.html WHO: Greycat Rademenes WHERE: http://greycat-rademenes.deviantart.com/ (DA), https://www.furaffinity.net/user/greycatr (FA) -> Both NSFW WHAT: A 2 character color picture for $90 WHEN: 12/11/2015 (payment) -> 3/16/2016 (last contact) -> Present Day PROOF: (Identifiers and explicit adult details have been redacted to the best of my abilities) Details of my Commission: http://sta.sh/013r1r3pado7 Payment of Commission: https://sta.sh/01tcxdl753ud Last Contact: http://sta.sh/04oyr12l9g5 EXPLAIN: On 12/11/2015, I paid for a 2 character color commission from Greycat Rademenes. I patiently waited for the picture to be completed, so I send him a DA note on 3/16/2016 asking about the status of my commission. He responded in a timely manner, but then a while later, he never responded when I asked him about my commission. I tried his Yahoo! E-mail, G-mail, FA notes, DA notes and some DA shouts, but he never responded to them. I don't want to believe he's ignoring me, but he hasn't given me anything to suggest otherwise. I've had no problems with him in the past, but this is something I've never encountered with him before. I really hope that he did not get too bogged down with his other non-art commitments (work, school, other people's commissions). Again, he hasn't given me anything to suggest otherwise. I only want my picture to be completed. I'm only posting this because of the total lack of communication on his part. All I need is a simple, one sentence response about my commission from him. I only ask reasonable requests like that to be done. UPDATE 1 (11/21/2016): After a few DeviantArt notes, I finally got a response from Greycat. He did not forget about my picture, but it would've been nice if I could see it firsthand to confirm the claim that he did work on my picture I commissioned nearly a year ago. Partly, but not yet fully resolved. Greycat's response: https://sta.sh/01rs8uyx2kii UPDATE 2 (11/22/2016): After 2 Tolstoy-length DA notes, Greycat is currently working on my commission mentioned above. My commission is NSFW, so it cannot be shown here. A bit more resolved than last time, but still not yet fully resolved. Greycat working on my pic: http://sta.sh/01cwjziz8i0 UPDATE 3 (11/27/2016): After another note, he has finished my picture and sent a copy of it to my email. Again, NSFW commission, so it cannot be shown here. I can consider this issue fully resolved, but I wish Greycat would keep in touch more often so a fiasco like this won't happen again.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/929598.html WHO: Worms & Bones WHERE: Homepage: http://www.wormsandbones.com/ Deviantart: http://wormsandbones.deviantart.com/ WHAT: $600 CAD for a one-of-a-kind art doll based on a werewolf character of mine. WHEN: So arrangements for this commission first started back around late September, 2014, but confirmation happened in November 2015. Details were exchanged from February-March 2015. I paid in two installments. The first installment was March 10, 2015. References were provided on March 21. The second installment was paid on April 8, 2015. Provided below are screen shots of all the email exchanges we've had. What's important to note here is that I've had to email them sometimes two or three times in order to get a response, though to their credit they did always eventually respond. I sent the emails a week, sometimes two weeks, apart (in between months of waiting) as I was trying not to be worrisome. But conversely, I was becoming worried about the lack of communication. The first email I sent asking for an update was on June 3, 2015 with a followup on the 10th. I sent another inquiry on August 15, followed by another follow up on the 29th. I received a reply the following day. This pattern continues for some time, with me checking in every two to three or four months. I was unclear as to how long a commission was actually going to take as no where in their TOS does it state that they can take a year or longer to complete and at no point in the email exchange did they offer an ETA. I eventually became too anxious at their lack of communication and finally sent an email stating as such on December 7th basically expressing this anxiety and the concern over how long it was taking as I had received my previous customs from them in 2-5 months. I assumed that a commission to take maybe 8-9 in between customs and whatever else, especially since Worms & Bones have previously provided great customer care and a superior product. As requested, they did provide me with a rundown on events that was happening/had happened over the past few months to explain why it was taking so long. Up to this point I had only received one WIP (on Sept 1). I received a second Dec. 7, which was included in the response email I got after my inquiry about the length of time it was taking. Needless to say, communication hasn't really improved. It's still taking a week or more for them to respond to my emails. I've received only 3 WIPs emails. I last requested on update on Sept. 13 as well as a possible ETA. Their response was pretty much the same as their last update - still waiting on their caster and were going fur shopping since they didn't have the right kind. It is now Oct. 11 and I haven't heard anything else. Although I just recently noticed they have put up a warning in the Contact section of their website that they maybe slow to respond. So at least they tell you that now. PROOF: November 30-December 1, 2014 - First discussion of taking on the commission. Feb. 27, 2015 - Worms & Bones confirms that they can take on the commission. March 21 - More Details Exchanged. This screenshot also shows me confirming that I paid the invoice. March 10 - First installment paid. March 21 - Details Finalized. April 8 - They sent me the 2nd Invoice. April 8 - Final installment paid. June 3 and June 12- First inquiry emails sent. This screenshot shows their response on the 12. Aug 15, 29, 30 - Second inquiry email sent. This screenshot shows the exchange for that month. Sept. 1 - First WIP. They emailed ME this time. I was sure things were going to be moving forward finally but two months later... November 23 - 3rd Inquiry. Dec. 7th - 3rd Inquiry follow up. This shows the exchange between the two of us during that time. I should point out that their responses are professional and friendly, and they do acknowledge that their commissions take a long time to complete (like, over-a-year-long, I suppose) - information I really wish I had known beforehand. They also provided a 2nd WIP. Dec. 7th - My response to that last email (Couldn't fit all of it on the same screenshot.) Feb 10, 17 2016 - 4th inquiry sent about a detail on the WIPs. So far, so good with their response here. I was pleased that they just responded even if they didn't have a WIP to show me. April 23rd, May 5 - 5th inquiry. This screenshot shows the exchange from that time period. Also 3rd and last visual WIP. July 17, 20 - 6th inquiry and their response. Sept. 13, 19 2016 - Asked for another update and a possible ETA, but no mention of it in their response. I have yet to hear anything about more about the furs and today is Oct. 11. EXPLAIN: I really hesitated to post this beware because Worms & Bones have never been rude to me and do eventually reply to my emails, but their basic customer service could use some improvement. This Beware is mostly in regards to that. So, perhaps it was the fact that I received their customs pretty quickly, and that the previous transactions had been pretty straight forward and the exchange pretty quick. And perhaps that I had mentioned in at least two earlier emails that I would "wait forever" (though I seriously didn't think I'd be waiting for over a year for it). And maybe it feels like I've been waiting longer than I have because details were first set in 2014. I tend to wait a week or more before sending followup emails because I'm aware that people have lives and they apparently make customs for a living. Which brings me to the other part of my complaint; in between all these emails, with very little WIPs to show on my $600 commission, they've produced many more customs for other customers as well as literal armfuls of customs for sale at conventions and at least three personal projects. All of which you can see on their tumblr. Let me just say here that I am NOT upset that they've got personal projects but it's just that on top of all the other work they've done for other customers - even potential customers that haven't even paid them money yet - and I haven't even seen what my werewolf's feet look like with the dew claws attached and it's been over a year. I also don't think I should feel awful every time I send off an email asking them for an update. I feel like I'm harassing them every time I do. Furthermore, there is no mention on their website at how long commissions can take. The only thing it is mentioned is that they seldom accept commissions but no reason as to why. Which I guess isn't important, usually, but if it's a super long wait time, then I think it should be mentioned. So whether or not I receive my doll any time soon, I still think people should be aware of how long it will take to receive their product. At least they do now have a notice in their Contact Me section of their website stating that they are slow to respond to emails. They did not have this notice when I first commissioned them and I'm not sure when it appeared. I also want to point out that, and I'm sure it's easy to see in the screen shots, that they have been nothing but polite when we have communicated and I genuinely believe that they aren't doing this on purpose. I suppose this Beware is more a warning about the lack of information these artists provide regarding the process of their services, at least in regards to commissions. So if you get a custom from them, you probably don't have to worry about this happening to you, but beware if you ever manage to score a commission. Considering it's been almost a month since they went fur shopping, I'm really starting to doubt I'm going to get what I paid for. UPDATE: Worms and Bones has finished the commission, and although I have not received it physically yet, given their previous track record of successfully shipping out items, I have no doubts I will get it eventually. I deem this resolved! UPDATE: I have Autumn firmly in hand. As usual the quality is wonderful and it's very satisfying to finally have it here. As mentioned above, Worms & Bones are overall pretty good to work with. It's mostly just their communication skills that could use some improvement. And be prepared for a long wait - especially if you're commissioning them!

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/928784.html WHO: Sugar and Spice Costumes / SugarNSpiceCostumes / Kittencheshire WHERE: http://www.sugarnspicecostumes.com/ , http://sugarnspicecostumes.tumblr.com , http://www.furaffinity.net/user/sugarnspicecostumes/ WHAT: Artistic Liberty Fursuit, won in auction on FurBuy in late 2013. Proof of Purchase: [Payment Pic 1, 2] WHEN/EXPLAIN: The original due date was around April 2014. I had been a bit late in getting a DTD to them, so I was not pushy at first. They also had some convention orders to address, so it wasn’t until a full year after the initial purchase that I reached out via email. [Email 1] After this came the drought of absolutely no contact. I started looking at their various webpages for other emails and began CC’ing those in with the hopes that that one of them would restart some contact. [Email 2] As one can see, my efforts were not successful. I received advice from a few people to post here or to try reaching out to the makers through Twitter. I attempted the latter and managed to get in contact. [Twitter Post 1] My hopes at this point were rather high, so I went and asked for communication details and an update as to where things were. [Twitter Post 2] However, I found more of the same: no contact for nearly another two months with no end in sight on a commission I paid in full nearly three years ago. I feel as though I have been kind and cordial in my attempted interactions. I feel as though I’ve been a decent customer, but I don’t feel as though I’ve been treated as one. And I have no idea what to do at this point. UPDATE: 2017/09/07 Back in February, I went through my usual endeavor to gain contact. This time, I decided to be far more direct in my statements and chose FA as my route. Well, it's now September, and the message was never even opened! [The Message] Over the summer, I noticed more people getting vocal about this issue, leaving little shouts on their page along the lines of, "Hey, I've been waiting since XXXX" <-- Insert year here. Woo, I'm not alone! Again, I took the opportunity, having waited without an answer to my message from February. Their response is what you see linked below. They closed their FA, claiming abuse. Now, I looked at their Trello and saw that the suit was still in the queue, and it was slated for an August completion. I decided to wait. August is over, so here's what I have to say. [The Response] SnS, I'm not the abuser. I'm the victim. At this point, you've essentially stolen from me. I have literally no power here. FurBuy can't do anything. We're well past PayPal's period of influence, so all I have left is to complain--and complain loud enough until maybe you listen, or until somebody listens who might be able to help me. I paid you promptly in 2013. I sent you everything you asked for, and after four damn years, it is my right as a customer to pursue this problem! I am the one who has been abused here. You have abused my trust, my patience, and my health. UPDATE 2: 2018/11/1 In January of 2018, I did manage to get in contact with SugarNSpice through an email that actually works. I've put my email chain in here again to prove a few points. First, my message had an emotional element. This has been a stressful thing for me other the years, could we please bring it home. I've had so many questions that have just gone unanswered. Second, the response just seems flat. No sincerity at all here. It's been five freakin' years. And there is another promise to have the queue cleared out by June. [2018 Email] The next image shows that once again this time frame has slid. It also shows that I am still being dragged through the queue. I just don't understand how many iterations of action-->excuse-->timeshift can be taken before there are real consequences. [2018 Queue] See you all in another year when I update again.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/928484.html Who: iceman1984 Where: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/iceman1984/ https://www.patreon.com/trn http://o-trn.tumblr.com/ What: Digital art with an animated version for $60. He says it’ll be done in 2-3 months after payment is sent, but I have yet to see the pic done. When: Spot claimed on May 15, 2016; payment sent on June 14 Proof: Please note that the artist is Japanese, which means that English isn’t his first language. My comment in the commission journal, in which I claimed a spot (in case it gets deleted), as well as asking him to give me time to get money in on June (to which he agree) His PM to me (I've censored out his PayPal address; read from down) My payment confirmation to him (read from down) PayPal reciept My PM to him asking about progress since payment, as well as his reply (read from down) My PM to him asking for the sketch stage (no response, despite being read) My comment on his new commission opening journal on Sep. 23, suggesting that he needs to stop taking on more new commissions (in case it gets deleted) My PM to him asking for a refund (again, no reply) Explain: May 15: Iceman opened up for commissions, and so I claimed a spot and told him what I wanted. I also told that I’ll be getting money in on June, and he agree with me. June 14: I told him that money finally arrived and I paid him $60 for the pic + an animated version. August 23: A few months past, and I sent him a PM asking for progress on my art, as well as mentioning that my name wasn’t on his current queue (despite being on the queue on his journal from May 15). He responded the next day, saying that he apologized and the his queue doesn’t have all paid commissioners’ names on it. So I gave him the benefit of a doubt and more time. I’ve also noticed that, for the past few months since I claimed a commission spot from him, he made at least several new journals opening for new commission batches to make a quick buck, and many new commission spots got taken like hotcakes by other people. That raised a red flag for me as taking new commissions while still having tons of other commissions on your plate is never really a good idea. September 21: I approached him, asking for the sketch stage of my commission. It was read, but never replied to, despite him posting art in his gallery. September 23: To no one’s surprise, Iceman has made a new journal offering commissions. So I commented on it, politely advising him that he should consider slowing down on taking new commissions and start finishing several owed commission on his plate first before taking on more. Surprisingly, he accepted my advice. September 26: 3 days afterwards, I've decided that I don't need the art anymore as I haven't seen any WIP for months. So I PMed him again that I would like a full refund at this point. I haven't heard from him, despite him reading my message (and he hasn't even issued a refund yet, as of now). If he doesn't answer, let alone refund, me for days, I'll have no choice but to file a PayPal dispute. Honestly, I don't see why he's now ignoring my PMs asking for commission progress and refunds. I wasn't being mean to him or anything; I just wanna know what my commission status is coming along. I'll update as soon as I finally get a response from him. - In conclusion, I wouldn’t recommend commissioning Iceman unless he gets his act together and actually finish all the current commissions that he owes to dozens of people, including me. He’s making a bad move by piling up far more commissions than he can handle at this point. But on the plus side, at least he accepted my honest advice about not taking on anymore commissions due to his huge backlog. Update September 27: He finally replied back and said he just started the work so he couldn't do the refund. WIP (NSFW) I approve the sketch and told him to keep at the pic. So here's hoping! Update September 28: I meant to do this, but I've messaged him again, explaining that it's unfair on his part to deny refunds and that he could've at least do a partial refund after doing the sketch. I do hope he takes my advice to heart when he responds. Final update September 30: He finally got the commission completed. And the results are just as I ordered. I'll consider this issue resolved.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/927372.html WHO: Moneychan/Flamedragonkitten WHERE: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/moneychan (Main account- Disabled) EDIT: Re-enabled for now. http://www.furaffinity.net/user/flamedragonkitten/ ('Owed Artwork account' Barely used and contact was mainly through main account) WHAT: 1,000$ 6 page, ych comic. WHEN: Started on 03/11/2015 and is still ongoing. PROOF: Posted down below. EXPLAIN: March 11th-16th, 2015 I saw Moneychan was doing a really nice 'Strip gamer YCH', the quality of the piece was a ladder auction and she has wrote what the tiers were in another journal. (Which has since been deleted) The highest tier was full coloured and set at an auto-buy of 1,000$. She stated in the description if the bidding went over 500 she would take payment plans. I won with a bid of 600$ (I'm not 100% sure but I believe the tier was flat coloured sketch) and she responded telling me to note her with refs and such. I sent her a note with character references and my Paypal and discussed a payment plan with her. She told me she would send me two invoices and I could pay half now and send the other half within the 2 month limit. I sent her my first half (300$) and she confirmed receiving it. Original ych with bids and description: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/15964028/ (nsfw) Following notes: https://gyazo.com/0792305ae5e0028aed2a63eafb7f348f https://gyazo.com/577d39a02c062e7a86f0a1880e495b24 April 2nd, 2015 After discussing it with my partner at the time I decided I really wanted to get the highest tier of quality so I noted her asking if she would be okay with sending me another invoice so I could have the highest quality. After some confusion with the invoices she sent another invoice and I paid it. (400$) Following notes: https://gyazo.com/e4c2358a938de11e2cdf7a9711e7cf95 https://gyazo.com/6778bbcf0ff9515a78955be79dc0657d https://gyazo.com/67500cb11b2d4f4f512b563a45026dec https://gyazo.com/61b3dbb654c5c4a2f596dc8e994c360d April 30th, 2015 I paid the last invoice (300$) and she replied telling me she would start on it soon along with her other comic. Note: https://gyazo.com/22d3426cf14b5dbce30e59d32e402d96 March 28th-30th, 2015 I sent her a note to her 'owed artwork' account because I thought she would want to speak on that one asking when she would be working on my commission. It went unread despite being active and she was also active on her main account so I thought I would note her there as well. She replied telling me that she would start on it when she got a chance and that there we're two comics ahead of me as well. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/a044a80060fdf66dc14276156c2d356f https://gyazo.com/62ed06459bdb46e7c138a4778a2dbf06 I don't have the dates for this as not only is her account disabled but I think the journals were deleted anyways but not too long after our conversations she had posted a journal saying that due to not being able to pay for her internet bill she wouldn't have it for a few months and wouldn't be on until fall. October 5th, 2015 I didn't see her active online again until around October but in September my partner at the time and I had a 'falling out' and we're no longer together and I didn't want to have my character in a comic with his anymore. I noted her asking if she could change the male character to my pet's sona and explained the situation to her. She replied telling me that she was sorry about what had happened and told me she was already into the flat colouring stage (I hadn't received any WIPs or news that she was even working on it) and that to change the character would take longer. I told her that I didn't mind waiting and that I would really like for her to change the character. She replied telling me that she appreciated my patience and would do it. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/86a5f2513886b5957b641539e8b799ff https://gyazo.com/8b57800096120c51c91a825c6ff7bdf5 January 26th, 2016 I didn't hear from her at all but saw that she had been taking commissions, posting owed artwork (a comic included) and doing personal artwork over the last few months so I decided to note her on her 'owed artwork' account as she was most active on that one, asking if she had had any updates and that I was in no rush since she had to redraw the male character but just wanted to check in. She responded saying that 'the comic commissions are the last things on her to-do list' and that she had 5 comics in total to complete. Last time I had spoke to she had told me she had only two ahead of mine and as I said above she had already posted a comic since then so I asked her about that. She responded saying 'it is two, yours and another commissioner' and that the others we're from another strip auction and that she was including her own personal comic as one. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/64a476f33e402e70788d9de528a261c3 https://gyazo.com/1e6119253cd562296907b39bde33f21c March 30th-31st, 2016 She sent me a note saying that she was working on my comic and was asking about if I had any png's for my (now) mates fursona's tattoo's. I replied to her telling her that I didn't and in a second note asked if she had any WIPs (I assumed she would have since I would think tattoo's would be in the colouring phase) and after sending that one my mate had mentioned that it would be okay for her to just trace over his tattoos so I sent her a third one telling her that as well. She told me that she was nervous about sending out WIPs but she would try to clean them up a bit and send them out as 'she's made me wait so long.' I responded to her telling her I was looking forward to seeing them. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/fd42978fac50e923e2a5bb3ed7980aab https://gyazo.com/24b9a91e43d4b8087ae96e0f6cedcb6e https://gyazo.com/d7377360c7c9758f78b7d5159fa9e1d5 https://gyazo.com/3087c8b0622c0676b0118b4e1d08093b https://gyazo.com/72c6a1ea0f8043bd4cb57a4f9560e851 April 17th, 2016 I had disabled my page for a few days due to drama and while it was disabled she had posted a journal saying she would be sending out WIPs to commissioners. When I enabled it I sent her a message checking in to see if she tried noting me. She responded saying that it was fine and that she just wanted to note me to tell me she would be clean sketching and line-arting the comic tomorrow. I told her that if she had any WIPs she wanted to send I would love to see them but if not it would be fine. She replied 'kk' and never sent me anything. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/6693ce191fd42b4e0279b2fc287cd37a https://gyazo.com/6ed6a6dee6a4e070fd355d36ab64fd58 July 17th, 2016 I hadn't heard from her in three months and was starting to get worried. I noted her telling her I needed some sort of physical update as it had been over a year since I commissioned it and three months since I last heard from her. She responded saying that she was sorry and didn't really have any physical proof besides sketches that she had 'barely started on'and that she was finishing all the pinup commissions she had taken and finishing someone else's commission who was ahead of me. Her priority now was mine and Lil-Maj's comic but she was lacking motivation and that they had been just sitting on Sai 'waiting to be done' and asked me if I still wanted to see the sketches. I told her that I would even if they we're just sketches. She replied with a Dropbox link leading to the first two comic pages very roughly sketched and the second one wasn't even done being sketched out. I was honestly shocking as I was expecting her to at least had all of the pages sketched out as she had not only told me that she was all the way up to colour before I changed the second character but told me she was up to lining even after the character change. I bit my tongue and tried to ignore the fact that she had been lying to me and just told her about how I had a new reference sheet that was in the works that was clearer than my previous one and sent it to her in case she needed it to help with sketching. We talked back and forth about my fursona's markings a bit before this conversation had ended. Following notes: https://gyazo.com/11e66ad2ceec40ff12675bdac13a91d8 https://gyazo.com/4fc089157fab581f735066a2cdba839e Sketches she sent me: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/fxxlgs4zgltt3ab/AAC1WO-fMkCUVgR_u9KBB5cda?dl=0 (Nsfw? They don't show any genitals but there are breast outlines and such) September 19th, 2016 I was updating my commissions list when I decided to go to her profile to ask for an update and to my horror her page had been disabled. I had to dig through my notes to find her other account's name which is still enabled. She hasn't uploaded anything on it since April and last favourited something a month ago. I sent her a note telling her that I was upset that she had disabled her account and that I had to dig to find her other one as she hadn't left any contact information otherwise and told her about all the red flags she was setting off. I told her that I either wanted my commission done by October 31st (my birthday) or a refund as this is getting ridiculous. Note: https://gyazo.com/41e4e36c0eb71490448b667e7305cdf6 It's now September, 21st and the note has been read but unanswered. I'm honestly very upset about this as this is a large sum of money that I may not get back. I have no idea what to do. Edit: I publicly tweeted them as they do not have dm's enabled. "I am once again trying to get into contact with you over the 1,000$ commission I am owed. Please message me on my fa asap." I also messaged them on DA saying... "I saw that you read my note and haven't responded and have been active on here as well as twitter so I will message you again here. Please respond with how to plan to correct this as I've been more than fair about it." Here's hoping. Edit 2: She responded to me on twitter saying that 'she hadn't been on fa since she disabled it back in June' and that she would Dm me. She dm'd me saying she was sorry about how long she was taking but she was busy with her fulltime job and was trying to finish commissions as quick as possible. I stood my ground and told her that Fa showed she read my message and that I know she is working but I will have to still set a deadline. She understood but asked me to delete my public tweet to avoid drama. I gave her my deadline and deleted the tweet and told her I would be capping it. Tweet: https://gyazo.com/156138889e14a71f73f52b8e4ba052d5 Messages: https://gyazo.com/33c2175eae24792b48d48259712f3094 I now realize I probably shouldn't have told her about the capping but I was quite aggravated that she claimed she hadn't been on fa when my note had been read. I guess I will have another update by the deadline to whether or not this is resolved. Edit 3. I caught her streaming on the 20th and she did personal work for a good while, I came back in a few hours later and saw she was working on the second panel of the comic but she had replaced the hand drawn panel of the video game with a screenshot from a video game. I told her that it rubbed me the wrong way seeing as I paid for every single one of those panels and she replied saying that 'she was only trying to make the comic get done faster but she would redraw it. I later saw her screenshotting a panel from another video game. (Not sure if she was doing it for the comic or something else) She did most of the page but left out my characters wings, horns and piercings so I noted her about it on fa. She told me she was going to do those last. Her using the game shot for the panel: https://gyazo.com/071c1ac06d04897bd94dfa04600b7dbd Her screenshotting a different game: https://gyazo.com/7f940db691e291196d5a0c11bcb1f51e Note: https://gyazo.com/cffbefa443fb8755f42007363fe9d286 It's now the 1st of November and as you can guess, she hasn't done it. I saw that she was streaming last night right before I was going to bed but it was my birthday so I was too tired to drag myself back to my computer to see if she was doing it and just assumed that if she was finishing it I would have woken up to a note from her or something. I'm honestly aggravated to hell and back so I noted her as nicely as I could possibly managed and went to go leave her another tweet to find out -surprise surprise- She blocked me on Twitter and has now set her Tweet to private. My mate -aggravated as well- has since tweeted at her and will not be removing these tweets. Note: https://gyazo.com/6359520d46bf1800b6efb8df6739cc6b Mate's tweets: https://gyazo.com/16954559715fc8c9b84c8b778cfb8529 Final edit: I woke up to a response from her and recieved the finished comic. The lineart looks rushed and the detail isn't the same as the example she gave for the Autobuy option but I'm lucky to have received the piece at all at this point. She also threw in a free coloured sketch Response: https://gyazo.com/572da8cd4d2ac06f991780536b56523e Comic: (Nsfw) http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601732/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601741/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601753/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601762/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601786/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/21601808/ Example of what the quality should have been: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/15498244/ (Nsfw) But anyways I'd like to say this is resolved.

https://artists-beware.livejournal.com/925839.html EDIT 11/2/2016: Received both sketches in the mail this past Monday as well as one of the WIPs that was not chosen to be completed. With a lot of poking and prodding, I can happily say this entry is now resolved. EDIT 10/22/2016: Received the second sketch this week! They actually ended up redoing the WIP of the second, doing two different versions which was super cool http://sta.sh/01937bqah6te http://sta.sh/0t3usskymsy (and will be getting the wips sent to me along with the finished sketches). So here's the finished product! http://sta.sh/0vujuwdnoqh It turned out absolutely fantastic, and I honestly couldn't be happier with the result. I was also told that the sketches would be shipped out sometime this week. Waking up today, I got notified that both sketches and all the WIPs have been shipped and was provided with a tracking number. Once I post another update receiving the sketches, I'll ask for this post to be marked as resolved. - EDIT 10/7/2016: I'm assuming the artist knew about the dispute automatically closing on the 4th if it was not issued to a claim. So in spite of that, they did complete one sketch on Monday ( http://sta.sh/017w66edr8e2 ). I have to say, it turned out really beautiful, and makes me super pumped to see how the next one turns out too. They added a bit of extra detail to it too, to make up for all this trouble, which was nice, although since then I have not heard anything back about the second one. Not only that but I only received a photo of the sketch..no high res scan (though I wasnt expecting one as I did pay for the physical copies to be mailed to me as well). I don't know..I'll send another message asking for an update this weekend..but I'm really hoping they don't decide to just..ditch now, considering the dispute is now closed and I can never reopen it again if I don't receive the second sketch or the physical copies of both. We'll see...but I'll continue to keep you all posted. - EDIT 9/14/2016: Issued a dispute over PayPal. Artist immediately contacted me via Twitter and has agreed upon a completion date, that being towards the end of the month. (https://www.dropbox.com/s/if8mxpaqzt3horm/Screen%20Shot%202016-09-14%20at%206.47.48%20PM.png?dl=0 ) If I do not receive an update, refund, or the artwork itself, I will be getting PayPal involved by filing a claim. - EDIT 9/12/2016: Added some examples of what the finished sketches SHOULD look like to dropbox! WHO: Vani / AshKetchumSays WHERE: Twitter WHAT: Traditional Portrat Sketches ($86.50USD Total) WHEN: Initial Conversation: Began June 4th 2016 Payment Agreed Upon & Sent: June 14th 2016 Received first pass/WIP of commission: June 25th 2016 Signs of Trouble Began: July 21st 2016 PROOF: All messages are through twitter, stamped with appropriate dates, PayPal info as well-> https://www.dropbox.com/sh/oeaqa7f60h04n7k/AAAwREd1IFwb0rshXCNV3uPEa?dl=0 What my finished commission SHOULD look like -> https://www.dropbox.com/s/yypupu1d604gljn/Ck7aZUzUUAE2odg.jpg?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/084xnnkgzv0optk/CkH1H4HUUAEEWTv.jpg?dl=0 Explain: First of all, I am an artist myself who does freelancing, and normally I wouldn't make reports on other artists as I am a very reasonable person when commissioning other artists as I understand how stressful the process can be and how long it can take. But anyway! Always been a fan of Vani's work, and seeing that they were offering sketches for a good price got me super excited to finally order something featuring my characters. June: Communication started off really well! I knew they were taking a lot of commissions, so I honestly wasn't worried about how long they'd take, as I am a very patient person. An agreement for the final paymet was made, and commission progress began. Within a couple weeks, I received WIPs. They DEFINITELY didn't seem as good as her previous sketched portraits she was doing..I could tell they were likely feeling burnt out, but I didn't bother judging too hard as they are just WIPs. Still looking forward to the final pieces. July: Towards the end of June she gave me a good long update about how they'll be busy prepping to sell at a convention, therefore making a delay on the sketches. Completely fine with that, as I had seen the roughs so I knew they'd get done in no time..or so I thought. Sent in an update of a reference for one of my characters...no response whatsoever, even though they were/are on twitter quite frequently. If you check their twitter account, this was also around the time their troubles rose and they began taking on more commissions, creating adoptables and selling them, trying to earn more money and moving old commissions, including mine, back in their queue. August: Tried contacting them again for an update. Finally got a response; a lengthy one at that, which I honestly don't care about. I just want to know a time estimate for completion. This was when their housing troubles and whatever else were brought to me personally, though I already sort of knew about based on their twitter posts. I come back rather short, as my frustration began kicking in, knowing they clearly have time to work on my commissions, but is yet, focusing on others, new orders at that, in order to make quick money. I bring up the option of a refund (partial, considering they did have WIPs completed), because at this point I'm doubting itll ever get done and I'd rather give my money to an artist more reliable and professional, despite how talented Vani is. No means for refund at given time, so we agree that the following week she'll have them done, and once again, I remain patient with them. September: At this point I'm just fed up and frustrated. Way past the date we agreed for completion, so I ask for a refund. Comes back saying they're completely unable to, yet, oh look! In one of the screenshots I provide, they just received money from a recent auction, but yet, still can't refund me my portion of payment for the pieces I commissioned from them (no idea how much the Auto Buy went for in the auction, clearly a lot more then the previous bid though). At this point I stop replying. I'm not getting my money back, my art will not be completed. If it's done, it'll be a miracle, but for now, I HIGHLY recommend NOT commissioning this artist until they smarten up, sorts out their financial situations and develop a better professional attitude when doing business with clients such as myself. I've spoke with other friends who have commissioned them and they're also waiting on art from them (though at a much longer wait period than myself) and they're equally frustrated. I'm just completely disappointed in this whole situation, and definitely don't want others going through this with her as well. I'm fine waiting long periods of time for art, but when I see her posting more art, adoptables, commissioning openings, etc, its like a big slap in the face to those still waiting on art from them.