Shopping Has anyone ever commissioned Aridede_faceup

Aridede is @mx_95 on this forum

 

Ooo I’ve definitely seen her on DoA posting her doll face-ups I haven’t commissioned her (although I would love too) but I have commissioned an artist from IG and was scammed and managed to get my doll head back. I was really lucky tho and I did learn a few things before I look to commission someone from IG:

-Be sure to note if they do faceups regularly and if they post to their gallery regularly (either IG or FB, other social media places).
-Read all comments on some of the posted works. When I sent my head, I failed to read the warnings some people have posted . Another person had sent their head to be worked on- she also got her head back but almost a year later and from constant communication.
-If they do not require payment AFTER they finish faceup, skip them and look for another artist. You can’t open a dispute with like PayPal or anything once you send your doll I didn’t realize until after I sent my head

Anyway tho, I got my head back because there was an error with the address I sent it too and it just stayed at China Post for 6 months. The only money I lost was the shipping so I was really lucky to get my head back . I sent it for another artist more reputable thru IG tho and got it back

 

Lol I sent my doll to Pauli after I got it back from the scammer Pauli is really a good artist and lovely to work with I think she would be able to do your fantasy in one go- plus she has the boldness like Aridede, but Aridede has the darker, thicker line work IMO They both have such gorgeous faceup styles I got my head back in about 3 months I believe (I sent it during a holiday months tho) I wasn’t in a hurry to get my head back. I don’t have my doll complete tho, waiting on body , but she posted my doll on her IG- it’s the WS Arttong Dolce head

 

I've met her in person, and she's a wonderful and sweet gal!

However, maybe it's because I'm a faceup artist myself, I have to say the start of your thread rubbed me a little bit the wrong way Actual scamming, artists running off with heads, is incredibly rare. Artists are aware of the trust people need to have in us, especially since BJDs are actually very unique in that regard because it requires people to send their belongings to work on vs only money. While some artists can be slow or maybe not deliver work you had hoped for, it is usually the worst that happens. Asking about an artist and in the same sentence basically insinuating they are a potential scammer in the making because someone else did something wrong is just...I don't know. Maybe it's because I know how people can be like. Give it three months and you'll have someone go "Oh I heard Aridede is a scammer" because they vaguely remember your thread. Seen it a million times happen already, and it's super hard to clear up things like that.
So next time maybe just say "Has anyone ever commissioned X? I haven't commissioned before and I'm interested in it, anyone can share their experiences?".

Regarding your other question: most artists are not willing to work on other artists' work. Also artists usually don't appreciate it when someone else works on top of their work. I certainly don't enjoy either of it. The former is stressful, since some steps once they have been done are annoying to work around. Additional sealing can also lighten up already painted details and so on. The latter, I don't want someone to potentially destroy my hard work or my vision. And for both artists, it is annoying in regards to credit as well.
Ask yourself, if you commission someone for a painting...do you think they'd appreciate it if you afterwards ask another person to paint on top of it? And do you think a lot of artists would want to even do that? Faceups are no different in that regard, the doll is the canvas and the paintjob is the artwork.
So it's better to commission an artist for the full work. That way it's less of a hassle for everyone involved.

A lot of artists take upfront payment though, so it might be hard to find someone that doesn't. In most art circles it's common partial payment is at least made at the beginning.
I personally years ago did not take it upfront, until I had customers that changed their minds mid-commission (because they rather wanted to buy a new doll than pay for a customization I had already started) OR because they suddenly couldn't pay me once I was done. Latter ended with me having someone's doll lying around at my place like a hostage And some had the nerve then to say I could just wipe it before shipping, as if my time and materials hadn't been wasted already. From then on on I always took payment beforehand.
Some also require it to purchase materials (sealants are expensive), or because it's their day job.

 

Yes I agree, most do take payment upfront which I think is a good idea- makes a record of exchange plus you aren’t wasting the artists time or making excuse why you don’t have the money. I was surprised this person wanted payment afterward which I was not used to before (and agreed to it stupidly ) but lesson learned And wow you got to meet Aridede?! That’s pretty cool, I’d love to meet faceup artist or just to watch them work You meet her at a bid convention?

 

Aridede is a reputable faceup artist with a long list of happy clients and an extensive gallery of past commissions available on her instagram. A little bit of research goes a long way in this hobby, especially in terms of finding out if someone is reputable or not.

 

Or

I don't really understand which side you're on? First you say not to commission artists who take payment upfront, and that the artist that scammed you did exactly that.
Now you say taking upfront is a good idea, and that the artists you commissioned didn't do that and wanted payment after finishing?

Also I did not meet Aridede on a convention. I visited Poland with a friend to meet other BJD collectors/friends there, and Aridede was introduced to us by one of them.

It's sadly not uncommon, especially in other art circles. That's why with digital art artists often only send tiny WIP files or scaled down finished images before the payment was made, or they request full payment after the first sketch is done etc.
With dolls it's a bit less common, because...well, the artists has your doll hostage. Most people don't have the nerve then not to pay even though work has been finished, but it still happens.
I know one artists that had a commission for several years because the customer suddenly stopped talking to them even though they were alive and well. Customers can be crazy.

And you might not be offended, but as you stated yourself it's not because it's nothing to be offended about...you're just unable to stand up for yourself. That's also not uncommon in artists, but the ones that do stand up for themselves have pride and joy in their work. As such, they wish to be treated with respect and the understanding that even if it's "just" a faceup, that is still their art to them.
And as it is, faceup artists are often not treated well or respected anyway. They breath life into a naked canvas, make it into your character vs something many others already own etc., and yet they are paid very little (in comparison to many other doll artists) and often just seen as some kind of painting machine. So many people depend on them to enjoy this hobby and bring their ideas to life, I wish they would realize what they lose out on when nobody wants to paint their dolls anymore.

Regarding your first reply, shit happens.
No need to be overly wordy about it. Some people just tend to be like that when they're anxious or excited

 

All art, whether it's doll customizing or traditional painting, sculpting, etc. takes a lot of time and practice to develop skills in, regardless of someone's natural skill level. Most people get into doll customizing and faceups because they can't find dolls that match their ideas, and because it's fun.
You can see people working on faceups on youtube and some people stream on twitch. Twitch as a platform is made for streaming, so if you want to watch livestreams, that's going to be a better place to look than instagram, which is built more for sharing photos and shorter videos.

 

No i never said not to commission artists who take payment upfront. I said to look for another artist if the one you want DOES NOT take payments upfront. The scammer didn't want payment until after they finished my doll. I only agreed to this scammer because I wasn't as experienced when looking for someone to commision. Now I know better and I will never commission someone to faceup my doll with out paying first. Less risk.

Aww i hope you get to go to a convention some day I went to my first one by myself back in 2015 I think (Pacific Northwest BJD convention) but I'm the same way as you, very shy and not as communicative. But I learend there are alot of people like that too and many of them are understanding and know where you're coming from

And if you have more questions, keep asking! Don't be afraid if you sound rude, how would you learn otherwise? You sound like a nice and genuine person though, I think it would be natural for you to recover from a bad impression I agree, livestream of a convention would be pretty fun. Someday I'd like to go to a big convention somewhere in Asia or Europe. I've seen some of those European doll conventions in photos and they have some really creative dolls o my!

 

Totally - I too look for feedback/ reviews but it gets too exhausting to try and re-evaluate a decision over and over again without action. And its even worse if you spent all that time evaluating a decision that it forces you to miss out. I find if you create a contingency for any identifiable circumstance/event on a decision you're about to make, it can ease your mind a little about the choice you make

 

Hello everyone, I'm late to the party here, haha My handle here is different since account on DoA was created loooong time ago when I only dreamed about dolls! And since then I really don't mind having this nickname here, since most of my activity is on Instagram anyway. Just to clear this!!

@Ara - thank you so much for all your imput here as a faceup artist, by the way your work is delightful and also everything you said here in this thread was really nicely worded! (Also, this might not be needed but we haven't meet in person since I haven't been to any doll meet/convention yet, I basically started around pandemic time but I'm very curious who did you meet then, hehe ) Anyway, thank you for educating on that topic here, I feel like you understand me as another artist.

First of all thank you so so much everyone who complimented my work! This made my day! Especially @Forever We Are Young , the amount of kindness you gave me by complimenting my faceups is out of Eath, thank you As I said to you in other comments, I'm not offended at all but it's good to learn that we all still should be careful with words anyway. That's lesson learned for me too : D About the blocking - or not - as I said I might've block you by accident, taking your account as spam account or just simply Instagram acted and I will ask for your handle privately to make sure of that. As @Ara said, most faceup artists won't feel comfortable with having their faceups "finished" by other person and I'm sadly one of them - but if you're intrested in something less complicated like you can see in my portfolio, don't hesitate to ask. It's just really hard to say if the other artist will keep my own work in good shape and untouched or for example paint over and I won't really feel connected anymore with the result, etc... If you consider Pauli, she's also an amazing artist, she will be most likely able do much more designs than me!

Another thing is, if you see many posts by some artist, positive comments etc - just see they're active, I think they're good, even if they take money upfront! Just be careful, in the end asking here also isn't a bad idea So you did good! I'm glad you get to know some things that are worth to remember from other doll people here : D

I'm so sorry for all of people scammed, I can't even imagine the amount of stress when waiting for the doll to be back T.T

 

Wait wait wait, someone back then told me you were the gal that lead us through Wroclaw back when we visited AyuAna in 2019???
Or am I mixing up my Poles here right now? Oh nooo, how shameful...whoops. Disregard what I said

But I'm glad to hear the rest of my post was helpful

 

O wow Aridede I'm totally fan-girling, I love looking at all of your faceups- its a real feast for the eyes And yay @Forever We Are Young looks like it was just a small misunderstanding - it all worked out at the end

 

I’m going to try for a slot

 

I’ve commissioned Aridede three times and highly recommend. ✨ Shipping overseas for a faceup is a bit stressful but totally worth it. I plan on sending four more dolls to her even.

these are my heads even:
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wow so many gorgeous dolls, I been staring at them for awhile on her IG!!! And you got 4 more for her!!! Did you have her decide the faceup or did you provide a description of what you wanted? I really love the eyemakeup of your custom house and the black lips on your Luts and Volks boys. Please share when you get your other dolls done up

I sent my doll to Aridede a few weeks ago, shipping been slow going (can't be helped ofc) but I'm super excited how she'll paint my Supia Esther Really want to get another doll just so I can have another faceup by her XD

 

Aw shucks I’m honored you like my dolls so much.

I’m usually pretty vague. Like my F-57 and Uranus I told her colors, facial marking ideas, and the mood I wanted for the dolls. My Diez though I just sent her pictures of my OC that I draw in a very gothic style and just let her loose.

I’ve lucked out that Aridede has a style I just really like so I feel like I don’t need to be too specific.


She’s got such a good style, somewhere between make-up and traditional art that I adore. Some of the line art is so detailed I can’t even see it in person (my vision is terrible).

I look forward to seeing what she’ll do with your Esther!

 

Recieved my Esther a few days ago from Aridede Fantastic and awesome transaction- very nice and lovely person to communicate with and very professional and prompt Looking at my upcoming dolls for another commission request lol