Artist Alley Thread: Race to AB edition

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In the short amount of time I've been in artist alley I've had more experiences to get a bingo than the 3 years as a BJD owner.

My Bonus was they actually came back and bought something

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What do you guys think of "functional" stickers for planners or name tags? Also, can large acrylic charms function as a baggage tag without snapping off?

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>>8695478
I like them! Personally I don't use planners/agendas but I love the concept of useful stationery.

I will try and make stickers like these ones. It helps a bit when you actually post photos of how can you use them.

ps:I did a poll tho, asking if people use their stickers and almost everyone just buy and never use them.

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>>8695400
Bonus was the <$10 discount. It was a volunteer buying a sticker sheet ($3) and they wanted to know if they could have it free for being a volunteer. (This was a shithole of a con and I was 105% done with it).

>>8695068
Yep, I do sell some tf2 stuff, though less than I used to in recent years!

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>>8695400
Bonuses: Wanting a discount on two $1 buttons, wanting to buy them both for $1.50. Breaking a $100 bill on Friday morning, thankfully I had a shitton of change. A customer coming back later and actually buying something.

Hey is anyone doing or planning on doing a GO for custom printed sketchbooks?

Forgot to reply to these before the thread died.

>>8692240
I guess it's a relief to know there's nothing horribly wrong with it. Still a bummer though - I actually didn't sell a single one.

>>8692884
It was Metrocon. There's plenty of video game stuff in the AA at Metro, but you're right about the older audiences being more about that. It seems like Metrocon's audience is getting younger and younger every year, and I'm not the only one who's noticing it.

>>8694487
No store yet, sorry! My tumblr is artbygrim though.

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really surprised I didn't get the whole board...

Soo I know this has come up a couple times but has anyone else had a ton of trouble advertising themselves? I post on tumblr, instagram, sometimes advertise in the AX group and AANI group on FB, tag my pics with like 20 tags, and post relatively frequently, and I still only get like 10 likes/post and one sale per month on my Etsy. While I have a lot of room for improvement, I know for sure I am not a shit artist, and I'm just getting really discouraged because I still have ~10 followers for my accounts...Just wondering if anyone else has the same experience? It's not that I'm drawing for attention or anything but....it's just nice to have my work appreciated, haha.

>>8695933

It takes time. I'm in the same boat as you now with one or two sales a month, only a few likes on most posts, a few followers. I started just this June.

Slowly I'm getting more publicity and sales/commissions. I think starting out shitty is just part of learning the trade. The first things I put up on my shop were utter shit, they have still not sold. I do plushies and the ones I'm talking about are badly constructed, from a show/concept no one with money is interested in, or both. Slowly I'm making my stuff better and figuring out what will probably sell or at least draw traffic. And slowly I'm getting more followers (I went from 10 to 12 today! Amazing).

For getting attention you have to realize that most people do not look through tags, and if they do they don't do it regularly. They find stuff to follow through OTHER people. My posts that have gotten a good amount of notes were because they were reblogged by popular cosplay/plush/fandom blogs. That's what caused me to look around and see if there were blogs looking for people to promo and I found a plushie blog that would & that's how I got those two followers today.

Also, popularity does not actually increase sales when starting out. Yeah if you have a cult following or are REALLY popular as a person I'm sure sales increase when you post. But not one of my sales so far has been from a tumblr post that got 100+ notes (I know because I put discount codes on all of them and no one's ever used a code) they've all been from people searching through Etsy or google.

That's pretty much all I have to share but, know that you're not alone & even one sale a month is better than some accounts I see on Etsy.

>>8696207

Basically what I'm trying to say is keep going & improving and try and make friends with fandom/other related blogs to your stuff looking for content.

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I've been thinking about selling at one of my local cons for a while now and I've started making charms. I quite like how it came out but I'm not 100% sure if it's good enough for anyone to consider buying. I'd really appreciate some feedback.

>>8696374
I really like it.

>>8696374
it's not bad it's also AOT so it should sell

>>8696374
I think AOT fans would love it!

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>>8696374
His legs look quite long/large compared to his upper body especially for a charm and the eyes look dead and somewhat crosseyed. It's a nice style though.

>>8696401
I like it, seconding what >>8696404 said. I think you should thin out his raised arm too a little - The wrist has no definition

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>friend asks if I can watch her table so she can run back to the hotel room
>sure anon take all the time you need
>almost shed tears of joy when she finally gets back

this is all just from the short time she was gone

Anyone here have experience selling at Kamicon in AL? I submitted a portfolio on a whim and just got an acceptance e-mail. I'd be driving there from coastal GA so I'm trying to gauge if it's worth it.

>>8696475

I sold at Kamicon a few years back, and it was a pretty good con. I haven't been in a few years so I don't know what the venue is like where they stick the artists now ( last time they had just moved venues and stuck all of us in like... the back. Past all the panels and dealer's room. Luckily we were decently close to traffic but some folks i didn't even know where there until I was leaving.)

As far as stuff to sell stickers sold really well for me and commissions.

Hey just wondering, what's your experience of what kind of style (with prints) sells the best? I've done AA stuff for couple of years now, and my prints have always been digital paintings and I've never had any trouble selling them, but I since I like to try different things and challenge myself, I've lately got into drawing more with lineart and I may make prints using that technique if I end up drawing anything I like enough for it. I know that the basic guideline is "what looks good and is popular, sells" but I just got curious when thinking about this matter (if all the other factors are the same; source's popularity, the skill level of the artist etc, and it's just down to linearted and colored vs. full painted picture etc.).

>>8695400
It's upsetting that since i've started working at AA's, I have filled every square of the bingo at least three times.

How was Youmacon?
Worth going to?

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Hi! I'd like to start selling charms and I made first sample, but... I guess I'm not sure about style. I usually paint over lines so I'm not used to linearts and I suck at them : / What do you think of it? Should I continue this style/change sth? Thanks!

>>8697263
Your coloring is fine but the jaw/mouth area is definitely looking weird. Simplify the mouth, maybe, and don't make the jaw so angular. And, this is a preference, but I would add some indication of a nose. Just a small shadow would be enough.

>>8695667
>>8695625
>tf2
what cons are you planning on going to? I'm in need of more tf2 stuff

>>8697273
Thank you! I appreciate every concrit. I tried to see into other artists' charms and I realised the shadows are simplified, lineart is thicker but I didn't like an idea of copying someone else's style. I will try to fix his face.

>>8697263
It's really weird for the face to be so detailed yet have no nose at all for sure

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and she wants to know why no one will buy her comics...

>>8697279
I usually just attend Sacanime and Fanime, I haven't got the funds to travel too far sadly. I do have an online shop that I plan to put more tf2 stuff on though.

>>8697451
darn. neither of those cons are anywhere near me. would you mind linking your online shop? (Or if you don't want to post it here, I can give you my email and you can email me)

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>>8697426

Kek incoming salt on fb from people who aren't able to get a table from AX still. Didn't even know today was another reg day open to primary artists from 2015 ONLY.

>>8695410
If you are the seller I told to I would come back, I'm so sorry but an old lady (was it your mother?) was blocking the interesting part of your boot and completely ignored me so I wandered around and came back but at least I bought something big.

>>8695410
>>8695815
If one of you is the seller I told to I would come back, I'm so sorry but an old lady (was it your mother?) was blocking the interesting part of your boot and completely ignored me so I wandered around and came back but at least I bought something big.

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>>8697263
His head appears disconnected from his body as he has no neck and the jaw/cheek amplifies that. Other than that it's a nice style. Your lineart is very thin so a border might be nice but I couldn't really add that since you included the Photoshop transparent background. Messy edit sorry.

Otakon artists:

http://consumerist.com/2015/11/02/company-faces-718k-fine-for-blocking-wifi-at-baltimore-convention-center/

Anyone have trouble with the wifi there before? Did it affect your sales?

>>8697263
The face being so normally proportional and detailed with no nose on a chibi body is kind of freaking me out. I'm not used to seeing smallish eyes and mouths with so much going on for chibi characters.

>>8697263
The reason people are calling the face freaky is because it's so over-rendered for its proportions and style. It's like those animate objects with human mouths and eyes photoshopped on. Plus I'm not sure where the head is attached to the body, considering how far the jaw goes back.

>>8697457
It's Jasbutts.Storenvy.com
Tf2 stuff in my shop is kinda sparse at the moment, but I do want to at least work on some new stickers.

>>8697539
I love you

Considering making a Storenvy in time for Christmas. How do you guys usually price stuff online vs at cons? It's pretty easy to sell stuff for a higher price at cons, because of impulse buys, but I make a lot of smaller stuff and I don't know if I'd have to price it down to make it worth selling online.

>>8697263
the technical art here is very nice (bar the facial issues pointed out by other anons already) but imo the colouring is kind of muddy/desaturated and i'm not sure how well that would translate to a charm - which I typically see as small, cute, bright things rather than serious character work

as a general thread query,
are laminated keychains still sellable? My country only has a few cons and most of the artist alleys (bar one specific art con) are quite small, i've only seen acrylic charms at one table who's artist travels a lot for cons. At the same time laminated keychains seem to have dropped out of style and I barely see them anymore.

>>8699728
I tend to keep my items priced the same on listings as they are in person. I usually add an extra buck or two in the shipping fee and call it "shipping and handling" to cover online transaction fees, shipping supplies, etc. I wouldn't want someone to buy a $30 item from me at a convention and then see it on my e-store for $25 because I think that looks bad.

Are there any products in particular that anyone does that just has difficulty moving or selling? I've been sitting on the same MLP phone charms for almost 4 years and I'm just ready to attach them to bracelets and make earrings just to get rid of them, since people don't use cell phone charms much these days. I'd hate to make new stuff and just sit on it for eons. Whereas much of what I usually make sells quickly.

I was thinking about besides buttons and keychains/charms, maybe getting some of jimi agency's products done with some popular characters or some general lolita/jfashion stuff.

>>8700281
>charm
>cellphone charm
Uhh what's the difference? The strap? You can add a dustplug, since people use those new phones nowadays.

>>8698474
Anon...I'm so confused. I don't understand the JotaroxKakyoin corndog button. I haven't finished reading SDC, but I don't recall anything from the anime that involved corndogs.

>>8700293
I don't even know. I have dust plugs, but people pass them up saying they can't use them. I suggest, hey, I have dustplugs! You can use them on your DS! They can also make great zipper pulls and all these other options, but most people don't seem interested. I've tried dropping the price a little and they're still not moving. If I'm lucky, I'll sell five at a con. The last one I sold none.

>>8700345
Oh it's not actually from anything in the story haha. It was a dumb drawing I did on twitter and I made some buttons of it as a joke last con. I just put them up for fun, surprisingly they've been a popular item.

>>8696374

I would buy this now if it was available

>>8700281
That's strange to hear, since MLP was so popular a few years ago. At this point, it's popularity has died down so it's probably best to phase them out unless you're going to sell at MLP cons.

For me, I've barely sold my prints of Syndra from LoL, even after selling at LoL events. My other LoL prints do well- I suppose it's because they're of more popular characters.

>>8696404
That looks so much better, thank you!
I was unsure if I should've added shine to his eyes because of his character but I think it looks way more appealing.

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>>8700577
You could experiment with different highlights to make it look less cutesey. Other than that you could try different opacities.

>1 is original edit
>2 I removed the upper highlights and darkened the pupil
>3 lowered the opacity of the upper highlights and pupil

>>8695400
Is there something bad about saying "were you at ___ con?" because I'm not an artist alley artist, but I've asked this before to an artist I see alot in my area because I was surprised he wasn't at another big con in the area.
Same with taking business cards and not looking. I've been a culprit a few times because I won't have the money at the time, but I glance at the art and if I like the style or work then I'll take one. There hasn't been a business card I have that I've either thrown away or not utilized and at least looked at their websites/liked their fb page/followed their tumblr. Unless we're talking like not even looking at the art and just taking a business card, I guess I can understand.

>>8700775
Usually when people are like "Were you at __ con?" It sounds like they are confusing you for another artist when you say 'no' which is pretty annoying if it happens all the time because even after "no" they try the "are you sure? I am pretty sure I own -item that you do not carry-"

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and yet the girl doesn't look like she's a social outcast which seems pretty common with this shit, so just...why. Or how.

>>8695400
There should be a "Attendance far less than what was promised".

>"We are expected 1,000 to 2,000 people!"
then after the convention, they announce only 900 people attended. Main reason I bought the table was because I was promised over 1,000 people.

Fanime is opening AA apps this Friday.

Did anyone here table at Anime Boston last year? I got my application in like two minutes after they went up, but since this is my first time with them, I'm curious as to how long it takes for the first round of acceptance emails to go out.

>>8700997
They generally send them out within a month, expect mid-late november.

Last year they filled up in under 1:30 though so good luck.

>>8701115
You mean a minute and a half? Shitting Christ. Well, here's hoping that only needing 3 feet of space improves my chances.

>>8700949
Disgusting

When do you think it's a good opportunity to make certain shows merchandise? When anime is airing, when it's finished? I'm planning to do OPM stickers not sure if people are too hype about it now (I've seen only fujoshi being nuts for Genos)

>>8700995
I'm applying for the first time this year, I'm pretty confident in my stuff but it's still nerve wracking. Anybody got any advice? I read the info they had for last year so I know it's judicial and they require a portfolio.

>>8701442
I think airing is totally fine, if not optimal. I know a lot of people that are crazy about One Punch right now so I think there's plenty of hype.

Fanime just posted some updates on their forum and this is amazing
"D.) Pixel art reproduced with fusible beads, such as Perler beads, will not be allowed unless they are original work and not a gamesprite."

Finally about damn time an AA banned this shit.

>>8701578
Top fucking kek. Let the butthurt begin.

>>8701580

When will it hit AANI i wonder

>>8701578
I always hated perler bead stuff, it looks cheap

>>8701578
Does anyone actually buy perler bead stuff anyway?

>>8701735
normies LOVE perler bead shit i have no idea why.

>>8701735
A friend bought a necklace with perler bead panties. I thought it was cute. I would have bought a perler shimapan if he had any. At least it was different than the thousands of game sprites and stuff.

>>8701735
It really depends. The only thing I like is when the use them to make boxes and stuff, I bought a coin bank that was a little minecraft block.

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>>8701735
I only like them if they're original items or if they get creative with them and make somewhat useful things like pic-related. If it's just a sprite from a game not even attached to anything I don't even look at it. To be honest though if I ever really wanted something that wasn't an original character / design I would just take a mental picture and go buy my own beads. It's literally a craft for elementary school children.

>>8701442
When it's airing or shortly after the season has finished should be fine. I sell umaru hoods on etsy and they've been selling pretty well, I've sold 17 of them and the listing has only been up for a few weeks now.

>>8695400
This card seems depressing. I was really considering making a little business. Is it really so bad?

I mean I know its work and making things is not so easy, but just seems like it would be better than working retail or something.

>>8701578
GOOD now to await delicious tears on AANI

>>8701735
lots of people who don't really understand what it is and just see it as a cool item do. I always see perler tables full of people trying to buy stuff.

>>8702027
Cons are just stressful experiences with a lot of weird people so a lot of things can happen. You're going to get stuff like this whenever you're dealing with people. The stuff in the OP isn't even that bad, don't let it put you off.

Thinking of applying for Fanime or even PMX for 2017, but how are sales normally at those cons? I've only ever been to AX so I'm not sure how traffic is at "smaller scale" cons lol. I don't have much internet exposure, and am an ~okay~ artist (I swear I'm not too terrible though)...anyone with similar specs care to share experiences/how sales went?

>>8702322
>The stuff in the OP isn't even that bad
This. You have no idea what can actually happen. That's not meant to scare you off it's a lot of fun and it can be profitable.

>>8702027
You do understand working a con booth is still in the retail category right? Both have annoying/rude customers and their fair share of other pros and cons, but it's really how you look at it. Everything in the cards won't happen to you at your first show, but over time you'll see.

That's why every artist you see in AA at the midday point look exhausted/pissed.

>>8703000
PMX AA this year was shit, but if you're holding off until 2017, wait to see how 2016 goes.

A bunch of artists hardly broke even this year and there was no phone service in the room they were shunted into.

>>8703000
Fanime is consistently good, and even though it's smaller than AX, I'd hardly consider it a "smaller scale" con especially in terms of AA. Artists at Fanime can do just as well as, if not better than AX because the alley is smaller and traffic distribution is more even. If you hit jackpot with AX and get a prime location, you're good, but of course if you get stuck in assland, you'll just do okay or not well at all.

PMX is one of those tiny local cons that's only worth it if you're super local. I was unlucky and struck out massively this year, but I haven't heard great things about PMX in past years anyway. AA head is an idiot and it's about what you can expect from a super local con.

Looks like Fanime's AA info is updated. https://apps.fanime.com/2016/artistinfo/

Glad their window for applications is a week now, but still pissed about the table selection stuff. Is it me, or did the price go up again?

>>8702322
Worked in a store before, nothing on that card even comes close to as horrible, I guess the thread just makes it seem like that is all that happens.

>>8703241
It is not the same as big box retail, which is more what I was referring too. Though the term retail would imply a supply chain. And now you see all my degree was ever worth, shit should be refundable.

>>8703407
went up $50 and same table selection system haha

What are you guys most interested in when shopping at an artist alley besides prints? I'm trying to think of cute things to make. I can sew and I'm open to making small crafts (jewelry, bags, etc.), but I'm no good at drawing.

I'm one of those people who only goes for charms and prints, so I would say if you can make little charms out of polymer clay that would be cool (though probably very time consuming and not worth it). If you're not featuring your drawings, then I think useful things are a safe bet. I would go for a cute coin pouch or something, though hair clips would be cute too (just not the stereotypical cloth bow, though, cause really...anyone can pinterest that shit up in no time)

So I'm trying to submit for Fanime AA and despite it being said it'll be open for a week, they're already closed off applications?

>>8704295
WHOHA holy shit nevermind I thought it said November. Fuck me, ignore this.I'm so sorry.

>>8704083
Oops LOL I forgot to tag your post, but see my answer right below it..

>>8704083
I always look for interesting designs and quality stuff. Especially trinkets like bottles, hairclips, etc. I really hate the cheap skeleton hands and ugly pixel necklaces.

>>8704083

If you're doing 3D stuff I really like cute 'adoptable creatures' sort of things. Especially if they're small and relatively cheap.

Like you could make a ball out of fake fur, give it cute/funny face, and call it... Idk, a 'monster hatchling' and I'll eat that shit right up.

>>8700281
If you go to the same conventions, regulars to the con are probably tired of seeing them. Put them up on Storenvy or Etsy.

>>8700981
The difference between 900 and 1,000 really isn't much. The cons I go to get 10k+ attendance.
Do you just have an attraction to small cons or are they the only ones in your area?

>>8701442
OPM is pretty big right now, and not just with the fujos (although I have seen an alarming amount of Saitama/Genos porn).
Just make small things or a really nice print, to test the waters with an anime that's freshly airing.

>>8704676
** I didn't mean for the second reply to come off as rude, I'm sorry if it did.
My point was that you should set your sights higher, if attendance is that much of a concern.

>>8704083
I buy and make jewelry and accessories. I also draw but my table is pretty much jewelry at this point. I'm trying to expand more into 2d art and offer more fanart related things at different conventions where it allows it.

With accessories and jewelry, realize that they are at most shows, a dime a dozen. Focus on producing high quality items and have great presentation. It will make your work stand out in the sea of bought and assembled pieces that you'll find in a lot of AA's.

>>8704083
i'm more like to buy something that has a practical use than a keychain. Maybe a little weird for an artist alley, but if someone made a cute themed cutlery/lunchbox set or waterbottles or something like that i would snap it up in a heart beat.

just please don't do food polymer clay charms with :3 face and pink blush.

do any of you guys have etsys?

>>8704764
>https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ESQ-1h4IRUivbGNaxJFxXyDU1lSv26xTmMdH0sDX7sU/edit?usp=sharing

sorry if this is a stupid question but how can someone be a better customer or not come off as super obnoxious when buying from a booth? I totally understand not doing anything on the chart,

but recently I saw an artist I really liked at a con and I bought a couple of pins from her about 5-7 minutes later I realized I really liked her stuff and went back to just buy all the pins she had of a series . She got kind of mad and was huffing and puffing and generally treating me like a nuisance and made me wait while she helped people after me before I could pay.

I'm kind of a socially anxious sperglord so it put me off a bit.

Is it bothersome if someone buys all of a certain item. I can understand it may be a bit annoying for others but isn't the money the same?

she had a sign on her table for discount if you bought a certain number but she didn't give it to me, but I wasn't mad because I really like the stuff and it was a fair price already.

I'm really sorry if I was an asshole but I really wanted the stuff for an ita bag.

>>8705058
To be honest, she sounds like the one with a stick up her ass. Unless you were crowding her table or did something rude like put food on her table, then she shouldn't have treated you like a nuisance.

>>8705063
I don't think I was, she did ask me why I didn't just buy them all the first time but I didn't have a bag to carry them in.

I just want to make sure I have the proper etiquette because I really appreciate what you guys do and I wouldn't want to have a bad experience with an artist I want to support.

sorry for the personal drama

>>8705073
I agree with the other anon, this artist sounds like an asshole lmao. I personally feel bad if a customer buys a few things from a set and comes back later for the rest, so I try and give them a discount if they're generally nice or excited about the merch. It might have gone over this artist's head to give you the discount if there were a ton of people at her table but damn. As long as you weren't crowding her table from new customers or being rude, I don't see why she'd be in such a mood. Sorry you had that experience.

>>8705058
How was she acting when you made the first purchase? And how long was it until you went back? An artist should feel happy that someone actually comes back to buy more products because they like them so she sounds pretty shitty for acting that way. It can be a stressful situation so she could have been reacting to things badly.
If you bought a lot of stock of a particular series/character then maybe she felt like others would be disappointed by there being none left if they had expressed interest in the time you had been away from the table. But that seems silly since it's still a sale. You shouldn't have to be worrying about customer etiquette, most people would be ecstatic for someone to come and buy a lot.

>>8705073
she sounds like a bitch, good artist or no. any artist i know would be overjoyed if someone liked their stuff enough to come back and make more purchases. It wouldn't matter to me if the same person bought all my stock of a certain thing, unless I suspected they might be trying to resell it (only if they bought like 10+)

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So fellow artist alley seagulls, I need some help. Just recently I've bought a brand new button maker, and I want to start making buttons to sell at cons. I live in Australia, so there's not really a huge market for things that aren't plain old posters.

I've been out of manga and anime for a few years while studying, so all the prints I've done (and have sold) have been the classic ones like Sailor Moon and Ghibli. My questions are:

1. What sort of things do people usually buy on pins? (I.e. Logos, symbols relating to shows, chibis etc)
2. What's the 'in' thing at the moment, or what are subjects on pins that would definitely sell?
3. What do you guys think about people (like myself) who ask these sort of questions but don't keep in touch with the latest stuff?

Personally I was going to make some Steven Universe and One Punch Man merch, but fads change so fast from when I was into anime a few years back, I don't know anymore. It feels like Naruto, Bleach and FMA had really long life spans, but now even huge shows like SnK don't seem to have as much longevity. Thoughts?

>>8705266
>1. What sort of things do people usually buy on pins? (I.e. Logos, symbols relating to shows, chibis etc)

I feel like chibis or phrases sell pretty well. Phrases are a little annoying because theyr'e just words on a pin and every other pin seller has them, but they're consistently good sellers. Chibis, especially of a series, are popular because people can just get their favorites, or try to collect a bunch. You can also just do bust shots or headshots. Go with something that shrinks well and isn't too complicated, because visual comprehension is key for smaller items.

>2. What's the 'in' thing at the moment, or what are subjects on pins that would definitely sell?
Probably things like sword boys, steven universe, fuckin.. i duno.. monster musume...

>3. What do you guys think about people (like myself) who ask these sort of questions but don't keep in touch with the latest stuff?
To be honest, it's pretty annoying and I know I'm not helping the problem by answering this. Like it's not that hard to hop onto a social media site and see what's trending or what people are talking about. It also lowkey annoys me when people look for series that'll "sell well" instead of just doing what they like. I get that making money is a main objective,but if you just wanted to make money, there are honestly more lucrative venues for that. AA is an interesting mix of fandom and money, so I always like to see a little more of that fandom component, since that's what makes the AA interesting and fun.

Plus, you said you were into Sailor Moon and Ghibli, both of which are still and always have been huge sellers, so why bother with a bandwagon fandom?

>>8705303
Thanks for answering my questions, Tim. I always really appreciate when someone takes the time to give me honest answers.

Tbh I've been having a table at AA's for a few years now, and I've always drawn art for the sake of art, or because I really like a series. Trouble is that Australian cons seem super basic, so unless something is being super hyped, it doesn't sell. I end up feeling discouraged that I've put tons of time and effort and passion into drawings that I like, and meanwhile nothing sells because it's not the 'in' thing. I've been going on Tumblr recently to see what's hyping, but some of these fandoms I just can't get into, or all the people on there seem to be massive sperglords.

I guess I'm trying to broaden my art horizons and get people at least attracted to my table with familiar stuff?

>>8704676
The difference between 1,500 and 900 is kinda big though.
2,000 is a medium sized con, so that is more what I was expected when they said 1,000 to 2,000 people.

Also.. Unless you live in California, conventions with 10k+ attendance is very rare, so i'm going to attend any convention I can..

AWA and Momo-con are the only conventions within 500 miles of me that have 10k+ attendance.

>>8705058
Tbh, I've only ever been a customer, but even if I was an artist I would be totally happy if someone came back to buy more. I mean, sucks that other people didn't get it but what is the point if you're not willing to sell? And as a customer, I've done the same thing as you have and the seller was always (or at least pretended to be? lol) happy to greet me because that means I liked their work. These were at AX, too, so it's not like they didn't have hundreds of other customers.

>>8705058
That artist was just being a shit, anon. Don't worry about it.

I actually love it when people do repeat visits to my table and will even give them little freebies like a sticker or a button. That sucks that happened to you.

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Hey, looking for some opinions. Designing some acrylic charms and can't decide whether to outline the "glowing" part or not. Right now I'm leaning towards not.

>>8706217
i prefer the glowing outline, but the facial features in proportion to the size of her head look off.

>>8706217
I like the first one more.
Not an expert, just a monkey.

>>8706227
Too big or too small?

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>>8706217
The face and skull shape is quite strange so I think it might be good to add some more hair to frame her face better. As of now there's too much space. And even with perspective her hair appears too flat on the left side so I would add more to that as well. I edited her jaw/chin/neck a little bit and rotated/moved some facial features so there's a bit more balance in the face.
Regarding the the lines I think I prefer the second but so far people like the first. I'm not sure how popular extra borders are on charms but I included some as well to show how it might look if you did or didn't line the glowing parts.

Any stories of your worst AA neighbors? Here's one of my recent ones, not sure if it's common for you guys but I have never experienced a more obnoxious table:

>Anime California
>Sitting near generic tumblr booth. Had stuff of Nightvale, SU, FNAF, Youtube people, etc
>Everything starts ok, artist just a little too upbeat
>Gets loud as the day progresses
>Gets super loud wtf
>Look over, realize she's having a raffle or some shit
>Yelling and blocking of walkway continues
>Proceeds to rap for the people crowding around her booth wat
>Feels like a carnival show
>Tables closer to her seem miserable, their stuff gets blocked by the crowd
>Hear she does this every con she goes to

>>8706369
>nightvale

Shoulda sicced the fandom on their ass. The creators of Nightvale prohibit the sales of fanworks.

I've had neighbors like that before. I'm never really sure how to deal with them. Usually they suck, so I just sit and am silently satisfied by their abysmal sales, but what if they're actually raking in cash? What then? Do we try to outyell them?

>>8706265
too small, 3rd on the bottom row of >>8706332
looks better, though i'd personally scale the eyes up slightly.

>>8706369

I had a girl aggressively try and ride off my sales (she wasn't doing well - her work was kind of under the level of most artists selling there) by yelling at customers who bought something of mine that it would look cute with x product of hers. Told her to stop several times politely since our tables weren't in any way associated. She stopped, and then 'accidentally' tore one of my display prints while walking back to her table (that had hand-applied gold trim and detail). I was pretty pissed, but con staff was useless and pretty much told me to suck it up.

>>8706375
Oh shit I didn't know that (not a follower). I recently checked out their tumblr (still remembered it since I was so put off by her attitude lol) and I guess she pissed off people by selling Homestuck and Undertale stuff too, but brushing it off as "commissions". But yeah, in that second situation, I think I would pretty much try to distract customers away from her and be a general dick back.

>>8706386
That sounds frustrating, sorry it happened to you. These are the times those enclosed table setups are so useful. Completely blocks off the neighbors to the sides of you so your table is its own thing.

>>8706390
I think the person you were talking about was also at Comikaze? One of my friends said that they were doing raffles and blocking the entire aisle and also doing "commissions" of Undertale and other things but they were basically laser woodcuts of the official images so it wasn't actually a one-off commission.

>>8706369
tinymushroom

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Here's my recent zap order I mentioned reviewing from the last AA thread! Overall, I'd say I'm super pleased with the turn out and I'm pretty sure I'll just be doing my business with zap for double sided charms when I have the cash to burn. Apologies for the low res photos - I just put this together right now and I've been out all day.

You can see in the top images that my recent orders are on the left side and my older charms are on the right. The new charms are using the 2" clear double sided template and the old are 1.5" clear single sided charms. I optimized the space and my new charms are approx. 2.25" so I'm happy with the size!

Overall I felt like the printers did an extremely crisp job. I noticed in my old 1.5" charms that there was a grainy/pixelated quality to the the art work and that it cheapened the look of the charm itself. My new charms are very colorful and almost an exact match to the CMYK file I sent in. If anything, the skin on Side A of my Steven Universe charm is a little lighter than Side B. Side B is closer to the colors I put in, but the difference is very minimal and I am upset at all. I also tried doing some transparency effects in Cookie Cat's helmet, but now I realize I should use a darker blue for it to be more noticeable. Otherwise, I'd say the charms came out beautifully. I did a glossy texture for the charms and I say it gives it a very fine and finished look compared to the charms I ordered before.

TL;DR I'm really digging the new printers at zap. I definitely will be doing some more charms with them when I have more money to spend, but I'll be pursuing Vograce for the rest of my charm orders. I hope that was helpful? If anyone wants better pics or has any specific questions about my charms I'd be happy to elaborate some more!

>>8706548
Do you have any pics of your Vograce charms?

>>8706369
>Friday, guy next to us is a no-show until like 4. He stays at the booth for about 2 hours, leaves for the day. People come looking for him until closing at 10.
>Saturday he's there at opening. Apparently he has a very large, socially inept fanbase
>Most of them are just standing in front of his table playing 3DS, knocking over everyone's displays with their giant backpacks
>For every one person that buys something there's about 10 who just want to watch him draw/stand there
>They don't move, even when staff comes over
>They're so bad that he can't stand them either and leaves his booth constantly
>He asks a random 15 year old con goer if she'll watches table in exchange for a print
>She says yes, he hands her his cash (it's in a convenience store bag) and bolts
>This kid runs his booth for about 3 hours, excitedly telling everyone who comes over that the artist ditched and she's just a random 15 year old >She gets bored and ends up with all her friends behind the booth
>After a lot of complaints from my table and the artists on the other side the staff finally finds him and tells him he has to stay put
>On Sunday his fans wreck his display, our display, and the other artist's display numerous times and just stare at you when you tell them to move
>The staff had to herd them out
>At the end of the con he bought like $50 worth of stuff from all the artists affected and apologized profusely, even helped us break down.

>>8706446
A friend told me about her too, just stolen sprite art recut on demand. She tried to defend herself like this on tumblr but isn't that the same as saying you will print a screen shot of a game for someone if they ask? It's even worse than selling fanart because she's straight up ripping the sprite art. She also had home stuck keychains too.

>>8706332
>>8706386
Thanks guys! That does look better, I'd been staring at it so long I didn't pick up on my mistakes.

>>8706757
That all sounds so weird.
It's really good that the guy was apologetic and understanding of all the trouble he has caused, but he really needs to get a grip and pluck up the confidence to organise his fans better.

>>8706548
Awesome, thanks for the review!! Your charms look great! I may consider using Zap for clears now :)
Which material/option do you usually use for Vograce? I got some samples of their clears and while they were decent they also had slight white edges and graininess like Zap did, which kind of put me off. On the other hand, their epoxy printing is really nice so I'm hoping they can improve.

>>8706656
I don't mean to intrude, but I just got my Vograce charms in a week or so ago so I have pics, if you want! They're not clear charms, though.

>>8706757
....He just gave his cash to some random 15 y.o??? and asked her to run the booth?? Does he care at all about his merch/money? lol damn

nice of him to do that at the end, though.

>>8707087
Just kidding, looked at my Vograce samples again and the printing is actually really nice! Actually was stupid of me to compare the epoxys to the acrylics because they're literally the same...lol. They sent me 2 samples; I'm assuming one is a bit older because it has a grainier quality? The other looks a lot smoother.

But wow, this makes the decision hard haha. Vograce has been good to me.

> mfw I have Vograce open in one tab but I'm too chicken to message them

What is the price of international shipping? I'm thinking of getting samples so I can see how they look in person, but I'm not sure if it's worth it. Would it be better to send in my own stuff to get samples of those? Don't they have a 100 pcs MOQ?

>>8706989
>>8707094
Just handed the money over and sauntered off! Weirdly enough, he said he's a student in fine arts and does anime fan art to pay his bills. He seemed kind of ashamed of his work... I couldn't figure him out. He was a nice guy all in all, but we're asking to not be placed by him this year.

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>>8706656
Not yet! I haven't put in an order just yet but I plan on ordering roughly around 100 or so charms in december. I can take pics of the Vograce charms I've bought before though from cons if you're interested in that.

>>8707087
Thanks so much! I was a little disappointed with my order earlier this year, but I was willing to try again when i saw my friend's quality with zap for her summer cons. I'm glad I tried again and I would rec them to anyone! In terms of your question, I haven't ordered my charms yet but I have been lurking the AA threads on cgl for months and collecting info on vograce lmao. Pic related, this was posted some months back around summer cons. The Vograce charms I purchased from other artists are really clean! The art doesn't look grainy at all and I'm pretty sure they used the epoxy option with the vendor. I have two other ref images anons posted a while back comparing the acrylic vs. epoxy printing with Vograce if you'd like me to repost those, anon!

>>8707390
please do!

>>8707373
kinda curious about who it is

>>8707087
I would love to see them! Thank you!

Could you also say what options you chose for them?

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I need to take a better photo when I can but here's from my latest order from vograce. They started using extra white on my charms do the color is vivid on both sides.

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Also they're printing on colored acrylic and they look pretty nice.

>>8708033
dat honk is p cute senpai

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>>8708029
Wow these came out so nice! I noticed in previous vograce clear charms, they weren't able to get the spaces made in between overlapping designs to be clear so there was a white spot. But it looks like they've managed to get around that when I look at clear spaces in your charm. This is really rad, thank you for sharing!!

>>8707741
Here is another reference I saved a while back on the acrylic vs. epoxy choices with Vograce. The longer I look at it, the more I think this might have been the help images Vograce shares with customers... I could be wrong though. I might have saved some more pics so I'll share them if I find them!

>>8708033
Is this your art?

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>>8707928
Here they are! Hopefully you can kind of see the printing quality. I chose double acrylic+double side epoxy+double side printing, cause I felt like it was the sturdiest and had the nicest finish.

>>8708033
These are super freaking cute anon, if you ever sell any online I would grab Honkers in a heartbeat!

>>8708285
Those aren't the Kaori above is.

The Love Live charms are what vograce have been using for free samples so you can request one of them on a random material for free.

>MFW I want Kotori but I keep getting Rin as a sample... ;;

>>8708456
I've been doing their sandwich board charms for a while. Does it cost terribly more to do the direct printing on the acrylic instead?

consumer question time
say im walking through aa, casually looking at booths, and one catches my eye.
I look at some of their wares, but dont really see anything i feel like buying, or i see something, but im not sure if ill want to spend my money on something else.
If the person starts up conversation while im there, what do i tell them if im not really interested in buying without being an asshole? ie 'ill come back later'? just say im browsing or... what?

>>8708476
Walk away. If they're starting conversation by asking you if you like anything then say you're still browsing. You're not being an asshole by saying you're not interested though. Sellers should be giving people time to look at the products so I doubt you'll get into awkward situations where you have to make an excuse, unless they're too forward. Just be honest.

>>8708476
a. either they started up a conversation on some neutral topic, i.e "how are you?" "enjoying the con?" and you reply politely and then smile and carry on wandering the alley if you're not buying anything.
b. they started a conversation based off your interest in their product, i.e "Do you like X series?" "Pretty cute, huh?". be polite, compliment them on whatever caught your attention. if they're pushing their sales pitch on you just tactfully mention why you're not buying - don't have cash at the moment, like x series but not enough to buy merch of it, you're just having a look around the artist alley but aren't sure if you'll buy anything today, etc etc

>>8708476
>>8708483
small additional note: the only time this would be awkward is if you ran into a first time artist desperate for sales. no reasonable person is gonna be mad or even annoyed that someone dared look at their stock but didn't buy anything. out of every 5-10 people that walk by and glance/inspect a stall, maybe 1 or 2 will make a purchase.

>>8708476
I feel like people over think these situations too much and end up saying unnecessary things. Unless i'm asking you specifically to buy something, don't tell me you're low on money or don't have cash or whatever. I'm just saying hello. If you walk into a grocery store and staff says hello, what do you say? Certainly not OH IT'S ONLY FRIDAY I DON"T HAVE ANY CASH, right?

Just say hello back. If someone asks if you need help just say no thanks just looking. You can even say i really like your work and take a card, but don't try to to think of of weird excuses like i'll com back later i have no cash right now~~~

That being said if an artist does outright ask HEY ARE YOU BUYING SOMETHING for no reason you can feel free to just walk the fuck away or tell them to shove off.

What about when you ask the price of something and it's too expensive for what you're looking to spend?

I usually answer "ok thanks", but artists look so sad...

>>8708607
Just say, "Okay, thank you very much." take a business card and move along.

Honestly, I price my stuff for the amount of time and effort that went into it (accessories). So if it's an item I put a lot of time into, I'm going to price it higher. I understand it's not what people are looking to pay, but someone else will purchase it later on. Or they may decide they want the item later on when they have more money and buy it online. No biggie here.

>>8707742
I feel like it's an ecchi artist, judging by the description of his fans

>>8701578
Just curious but why doesn't anyone like perler bead pixel art? Is it because it's uncreative and exact copies of a literal game sprite?

>>8708607
Try to prevent this in the first place by looking for price signs... (just from someone who prices out literally everything but still get this)

But if for whatever reason you are unable to find the price tag (Man i'm just saying like 99% of the time it's actually there), just saying okay thank you and a genuine smile is totally fine. As long as you don't say it with a tone of "woah what??" or sarcastically or whatever there's not much you can do and most artists don't really care.

>>8707390
Yo I remember you working on those Yowamushi chibis, you're art's really improved since the early summer. Good job, anon!!

Kind of an off topic question, but I'm curious. Outside of anime cons, how many of you guys like to sell at/attend things like indie comic expos and stuff? I like my anime merch but I also like getting zines and screen printed prints. I always find really cool old school stuff that I like in neat art styles and the prints are always super high quality.

>>8708700
I do! I have some super nice screen printed things that I framed, like this super low key Pokemon S.S. Anne print on this really nice paper. One time I found a SMT Nocturne print and I bought it right away, and chatted with the guy at the table. Apparently he was sharing with his two friends and had the least amount of sales, but was super stoked that I came just for his print considering he was just selling some obscure game stuff. I also tend to get into better conversations at things like SPX, idk, I just find people are a bit older and more socially aware at indie comic things.

>>8708685
Pretty much. It's cheap, doesn't take a lot of skill, and copying game sprites isn't creative.
For me, a lot of it is really boring and I don't know how to display it.

>>8708607
You could ask if they have anything cheaper. Some artists might hate you asking that, idk, but I almost always have cheaper stuff hidden away if the table is full.

>>8708685
It's the same thing as a person just tracing official art and selling a print of their trace, I don't understand why any cons allow it at all. It's just pixel art theft.

>>8708696
Oh no, I'm not the artist who drew the yowapeda charms!! I was lurking the AA threads at the time they posted this so I just saved and resposted it for people in case they hadn't seen it yet. But I think you're conplimenting my art (sorry if I'm wrong) so I will say thank you! hahaha

>>8706369
What part of the alley were you in? I sold at AniCali too and I didn't see anything like that

>>8708429
Do you have an online store? I love your style!

>please tell me you have a Murasakibara

>>8708029
What size are they? I'm glad they manage to get rid of the horrid white border.

>>8709237
am I the only person who actually likes the white borders on charms

>>8709372
I think it heavily depends on the style of charm

>>8708685
Yes. It's tracing with beads and no one gets creative with it, they just crank out copied sprites and half the time they're selling them flat and as is with no way to even display them.

>>8701442
Please OPM stuff available online!! I actually think Saitama is pretty cool.....everyone is really cool but also strange and interesting to me. Hero association stuff would be cool to wear and have, i think

>>8709203
Thanks! I do, it's dreamatelier.etsy.com. Unfortunately it's a little pathetic looking right now cause I have very few items up D:

And yes! I do have a Murasakibara :)

sort of related to perler bead stuff just being recreation of original art....at a recent con I went to, someone was selling League of Legends splash arts recreated in oil paint. I asked a staff member about it after and apparently it was allowed because it was 'one of a kind' (????). Am I wrong for thinking this kind of stuff shouldn't be allowed? I realize there's a technical skill aspect involved but it's not just copying....

>>8695400
So a Marvel cease and desist sting at NYCC was rumored to happen this year, has anyone experienced this from Funimation or the likes before at cons?

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2015/09/29/is-a-crackdown-coming-on-unlicensed-marvel-and-star-wars-prints-at-nycc/

Has anyone used Vistaprint for business cards? I don't have a ton of experience with other printers, but they're cheaper than, say, Moo.

>>8710033
I have ordered from both, and they are both great.

>>8710033
My friends have used Vistaprint and they're pretty nice. I personally use Moo because I like their paper quality and finish, but I only use them for my professional business cards since they are pricey.

So Fanime posted their judging rubric... 2 days after anyone serious about getting in had already submitted. Looking at it now, do you think you'll get in?

http://apps.fanime.com/2016/artistinfo/AA%202016%20Rubric%20%E2%80%93%C2%A0Public%20Copy.pdf

>>8710111
I'm kind of confident. I think if I just keep anime/vg fandoms in and cut back on comics stuff, I'll be ok.

insert snide remark about pissbabies whining about the stringent criteria. Jfc get good you little pissants and deal with the fact that this isn't weenie hut jr's anymore

>>8708468
It does cost more but it's still the cheapest around. I would advise against doing it if you're doing charms smaller than 2 inches because the border is noticeable larger. Stick to zap/inkit/chillypig for small charms.

>>8709237
These are 3-3.5 inch charms for keychains and itabags. They charged about 1.30 each for 150 double sided charms (different designs) +shipping

>>8710129
How are the clasps?

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>>8710145
Clasp are my favorite accessory. If you want you can just buy keyrings and add them on for a multiuse charms.

>>8710118
I think most of the criticism is actually coming from the fact that they released that criteria days after their applications have been up and people have already submitted portfolios. When it comes to juried shows, tailoring your portfolio to match what they expect is key so... they definitely dropped the ball there.

>>8710164
That's a smart idea! Even since itabag fever, I've been super interested in getting these types of clasps for my charms. Thanks for the picture!

>>8710111
I haven't submitted yet since I was busy over the weekend but the rubric was kind of what I expected it to look like. With what I was planning on submitting anyways I wouldn't change my portfolio contents, maybe just feature more big anime titles upfront.

>>8709954
I can see the staff's point.. if League splash art didn't look like that already. It already has that painted-look, so yeah, that's just copying. Now if it was some flat-anime art recreated with oil, I'd probably buy it.
There's a dealer in my area that sells mirrored-League splash art on posters and mousepads and shit. I have no idea how he gets away with it.

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>>8707390
This is me actually, and I do actually have some recent vograce photos if anyone wanted to see, but I think that Digit's examples are pretty clear and show them well!

(Thank you for the comment about my art! I've still been experimenting so it's changed a little since then but I think they've turned into something nice)

Attached pic is from my most recent Vograce order and is one of their doublesided clears. It's from before Coco was offering the extra white so in person you can see a little bit through it if you're close.

Another thing I'd say about the clears is that while they're great and the quality has gone up a lot I think they might chip a bit easily?

I had a bum Eggsy(small burned looking bit in the corner) that I kept for myself and put on my bag, but he's chipped a little bit in some places. I'm not sure what steps could be made to prevent that since I don't know the manufacturing process but I can also provide photos if anyone is curious about it.

>>8710111
Probably, but I wish they posted earlier so i could have arranged my images differently. They asked for direct image links and now i can't change the images i submitted A+

>>8710400
Your art's really improved, good job!
What did you do for the charms to chip?

So I'm pretty new to drawing (my blog and store have been up for 4 months) but I just can't seem to get any exposure. I'm just really lost. How do you even get noticed by other people? Whenever I try to befriend other artists, they always ignore my messages... Is tabling at a con the only way to promote yourself? I get so depressed sometimes because i get 0 notes on most of my art.

>>8710664
It could be the quality of your art. Post examples?

>>8710664
wow, this is exactly the same as my situation. Worry not, you're not alone! I think my art is pretty decent but...sigh

>>8710400
Ah, I remember seeing this on AANI I think! This is honestly such a cute charm.

Does Vograce offer the lil acrylic stars too or do you put those on yourself?

8710664

Thank, anon! My art is decent too, or at least the ones I'm selling are. Sigh... I just can't help wondering how the popular artists became popular in the first place besides good art, because I see some great artists who are not popular at all...

>8710664

Thank, anon! My art is decent too, or at least the ones I'm selling are. Sigh... I just can't help wondering how the popular artists became popular in the first place besides good art, because I see some great artists who are not popular at all...

>>8709372
White border/colored border in general when it comes to paper sandwiched in acrylic looks cute, but with clear, imo, they look bad. As bad as you save a png file with a lot of artifacts in the border.

>>8710129
Thanks! I will try to reprint some charms I made before, but the center came out white.

>>8710400
I wonder if Vograce can add epoxy to the bare print side if you ask them. I believe the add it just to the acrylic side.

>>8710767
You can tell how someone got popular very easily. Either it's from fandom(s), working on a popular project or they make resources for others, or they simple have very appealing art (usually cute) and produce a lot of consistent content. Posting once or twice a month doesn't cut it. There's almost never a mystery situation you can't replicate if you aren't opposite to just working in fandom or whatever.

>>8710664
Honestly, you need to get people hyped up for your art. This usually means jumping in on upcoming fandoms/popular fandoms and drawing fanart for it. You get a following, and then can do other stuff you're interested in, and gain more followers. Tumblr is probably the best thing for this, twitter coming in second. Sorry anon, but you're gonna have to pander.

>>8710664#

I have a question. I understand that you have to draw popular stuff in the beginning to gain followers...but do people even check tags? God, how do you even get people to check your art? :(

>>8710912
Yes people do check tags, but if you're using shitty tags or using them wrong they won't see it.

>>8710912
Blogs dedicated to certain fandoms/interests will check tags and reblog your art if they think it's high quality. And then their followers will reblog it if they also like it.

That's how any of my posts get popular.

>>8710912

I just put the name of the fandom and the characterin the tags. That should be enough, right? Then i guess my art is not good at all becuase i see simple rough sketches getting tons of notes :(

>>8710912
It also depends on the time that you post, cause in popular tags things get pushed back really fast. I had to start posting at times when I knew Americans would be checking.

Also it's luck as well. I had like, six followers then one day a popular blog in that fandom reblogged a post of mine and the next day I had like, over a hundred followers. Before that I would get like, max 12 notes and even though I thought I was ok I was like, maybe my art just isn't good enough, but it just ended up being luck (and me posting at bad times).

You could also try doing a secret santa event (usually people follow the blog for them and they usually reblog every gift) or submitting to a blog that reblogs certain pairings or fandoms?

>>8710549
Thank you! I'm still working on aspects of it, but I'm happy how it's going!
All I did for it to chip was put it on my backpack. I just take it with me when going out or to work, but I don't rough it up or anything so I think it's just from bouncing around next to another charm I have clipped there.

>>8710725
Thanks! I put on the little embellishments myself. I know that they'd probably sell just as well without them, but I think it looks nice, and I get excited if I've found extra small parts that compliment the main part.

>>8710770
I definitely want to ask Coco about that next time, because it would add a nice bit of security to the art.

>>8710912

Omg anon, you are too kind!!! Your advice is so on point. Thank you so much!! I'll definitely take your advice to heart and keep trying! Just wow! Thank you!

A question about selling in the artist alley...

Would selling cosplay and maybe Lolita outfit(handmade) be okay? I mean how well do you it could it workout?

>>8711156
I mean, I can see accesories doing well, for cosplay and lolita, but the problem with full outfits is someone may love your stuff but you don't have their size.

>>8710400
I ordered some sample clear charms from vograce and the printing comes off like a scratch off lotto card if you take a key to it. Not good if someones gonna have it rubbing up against keys in their pocket.

Seriously we got like 5 different samples made and stress tested them all and they all got destroyed pretty easily. Sad, I was really wanting to go with them. I'd post pics but I threw em all in the trash before I thought to do so. I'll just stick to the old school opaque charms with epoxy for now.

>>8711156
I don't know how much you know about Lolita Fashion, but if you don't know much about it then don't do it until you've researched the fashion. I'm only saying this because there are some people who slap a bunch of clashing colors/patterns/and bad cheap lace together and call it Lolita and then wonder why Lolita's aren't purchasing from them.

Study trending colorways/themes and offer a variety of sizes. Use nice fabrics, pay careful attention to detail. Selling Lolita in AA is doable, but it just takes a lot of work. It's better to start off with accessories.

>>8711029
Honestly, maybe it's not that good. That's fine. I spent a long time gaining maybe one follower a week. My drawings were pretty shitty, but I drew Homestuck at the height of its popularity, so there was always an audience. As I drew more and more, I got better and better, and got more and more popular.

Whether you want to improve your art or you just want to be popular, the solution is the same. Draw a ton, post it all, tag it all. You'll get fans by simply putting your art out there as often as possible, and you'll get better at drawing by drawing every day.

>>8711156
I see people all the time who have lots of lolita skirts and things of that nature but never sell them. Most lolitas buy their dresses elsewhere, either from established brands, taobao shops, or well-established indie brands but buy accessories elsewhere. I know I buy a lot of mine in artist allies.

Like >>8711299 said, anyone can make a random headdress with dollar bin lace and random Joann's cupcake fabric. It's not going to sell to anyone who is really into the fashion. However, making high quality items like headbows, wristcuffs, and jewelry with nice details and popular themes/colors will probably sell like hotcakes, IF the convention you are at has a higher lolita population. Otherwise you get "I really like lolita but it's so expensive" and they don't buy anything at all. I sell a lot of things targeted toward lolita, however I also make a ton of stuff your usual con crowd would love and I do pretty well.

>>8711299
My sister is a lolita, I've done most research for her, and seen some lolita disasters. I'm still on the thought process about, I have and I idea of them to be nice but simple not to many (or too loud) prints. If I continue with the idea of course.

>8711387
>8711168
I see what you mean. And I'll be sure to keep it in mind. I'll do more research about it. Maybe, if I go through with it, I'll do a very small experiment with the cosplay and/or lolita(if it seems worth it).

>Thank you for your help.

>>8711293
Haven't had that problem yet but it's good to know for a heads up.

I think it's the matted coating that they're using. Zap's matted comes off even when you accidentally drop the charm but their glosses are studier.

Going to order an epoxy sample next order and get back with you guys.

>>8711483
The epoxy's quite nice and pretty sturdy I think, only thing is that it's pretty susceptible to dents and stuff.

Has anyone done pony cons before? I'm really out of touch with the community these days and I've recently been catching up. Do they typically just commission their ponysona or whatever? I'm not sure what would be popular and I feel like mane 6 is just so overdone...

>>8711757
I've done one and it was incredibly hard to sell anything, because a lot of people had either no money or were saving all their money for waaaaay expensive plushies. Plus there are so many popular background characters it's hard to know who exactly you should focus on, and since everyone is there for Pony and every other artist and vendor is selling Pony you're competing with every. single. other. person. no matter what you make. Unless you specialize in those super pricey show-accurate plush or you're already well known for pony art I don't recommend it.

>>8711762
That is really unfortunate. I only signed up because it's local, so all I'm paying for is table space. And I haven't made pony stuff in years. Well, here's hoping I at least break even then since I don't specialize in either of those things.

>>8711414
I say avoid prints altogether unless it's a simple pattern like polka dots or gingham.

Lolita's want things to match their coord and compliment the rest of the outfit. Joann's prints do not match Angelic Pretty prints etc and will look clashy, but a nice solid color would do well (look at the AP mook, Kera mags, Lolita fashion groups on FB) etc the girls aren't wearing prints on top of prints.

Even if Joann's fabric prints are cute, it's just kind of a waste. Create something solid so it's more versatile in the buyer's closet. Or choose very simple prints. One's with stars, or just cherries, etc (sorry if I sound confusing here!)

To tie in a theme you could add a cute matching charm to the end of a bow or wrist cuffs. You could dye cotton lace to achieve a variety of colorful lace wrist cuffs etc. There is a lot of fun things you could do with Lolita accessories it just takes a lot of research. Ask your sister and her friends to be your focus group before you make a ton of items.

I hope that helps when you start choosing your materials and designing your products.

>>8712410
Ah yes, That's what I meant I'll probably just use plain fabric.

I actually have a fabric row near my area, i could get quality fabric for lower price.

But Yes, I'll do more research and get help from my sister and her friends too.

And I didn't think about dying cotton, but that is good to know. Thank you for you help.

does anyone have any examples of the new acrylic standees used as whiteboards/signs? It's hard to google "acrylic standee" and actually find what I'm looking for

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>>8713030
Gotchu, senpai

Here's one I did through getmeds. It's a bit small for substantial whiteboard use, but it works kinda (part of that is probably my weak design skills, though- if you design it with more space, you could write more on it).

Daiso has really fine tip dry erase markers you can use. The ink in expos is stronger, but even their fine tip markers are a bit fat to write on standees with

I think this one was like. 8x15 cm (like 6" tall). There are definitely bigger ones out there, which are probably good for making white boards out of.

>>8713172
Ugh, that pic rotation. Thanks, 4chan.

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>>8713030
These are the ones I ordered with Getmeds. This was the smaller of the two versions, it's around 3-4 inches in height. I only had a really fat marker on hand, you might be able to procure some finer ones.

>>8713172
>>8713251
these look great, thanks guys. Their twitter has lots of examples. So is this just another middleman person/group like JiMi essentially?

So how does taking your merchandise and display racks to an out of state artist alley work? Do you just put everything in a trunk and take them on the plane with you or somehow ship them to the hotel in advance? Sorry, i'm totally new at this.

Not strictly aa related, but art related regardless; do any of you have any experience related to Patreon? I've considered making one for a while now, but I'm not sure if it would be recommended for me at least yet. I have rather okay follower amount for that (at least I think it is?) in tumblr since I've almost reached my 10K milestone, but then again I don't think I have that many really passionate followers who would pledge me monthly income.. and I really don't want to end up into a situation where I make like 2$ in two weeks but I'm still obligated to make all that work Patreon requires, which leads me to my next question; since it requires so much work, do people actually keep it up along their daily work or get their income solely from there?
TLDR; Do you have a Patreon account and if so, how did it work for you? How big "fanbase" did you have when making one, and how you manage the time it consumes?

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I've been making these necklaces, not the most original thing in the world.

But I was planning on trying to sell them at an upcoming con, and I was wondering if you guys think $6 would be a good price?

Or what would be a good price for them.

>>8715041
That's including the chain that will be on them too

>>8715041

I think $6 is good, I mean if I was into necklaces I'd pick something like that up for $6.

>>8714050
you could do either (or send it to a friend in the area) although you run less risk of it all getting lost or delayed if you just take it with you.

>>8714370
it's genuinely extremely difficult to make patreon your 'only job', even with a dedicated fanbase, since its so easy to scam the system, payments dont actually go through, its hard convincing people to pledge in general.
Myself and several of my friends previously had patreons: we all more or less mutually decided the effort and stress of producing unique content for patrons as well as incentive to continue pledges was too much on top of having to also pursue other work (as none of us made enough from Patreon to have it as a sole income). At the time of creating my patreon I had around 15k~ followers on tumblr and a decent following on deviantart, instagram, facebook etc.
I personally found it much more fufilling, profitable and enjoyable to do private tutoring/critique sessions, which have the added bonus of expanding your network for contacts and clients.

If you do decide to make a patreon: people are suckers for physical rewards. assuming you're in this thread because you also sell at AAs, you can offer excess (even just a sticker or button)/damaged stock as rewards at higher tiers.

>>8715102
Alright, thank you for your answer and being honest about it! And yes, I do aa and have stock which I could be using for this purpose. But after your comment I think I will be waiting for a while before making one - if I end up making one in the end anyway. I don't think I could afford the time it consumes, just yet at least, since there's no guarantee it working any way for me.
What kind of problems you had with it? Do you mean by scamming that the artist abused the system, or the people pedging money to artists? And by payments not going thru, do you mean that you didn't actually get anything from patreon in time, and if so, did they actually pay you in the end? Sorry for all the questions but I'd really like to hear about all the pros and cons so I could decide if its something I should even actually consider.

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Any aussies going to any of the Supanova's in the next few weeks?

>>8715041
I'd pay $6 for one of those. I like the Kirby one!

I've heard a lot of artists say that most of their profit is made off of commissions during the con. To those of you who do commissions, what percentage of your total profits for the weekend would you say is made from them?

>>8715230
I'd love to go to Brisnova but flights are killer. I've already booked a table at next year's Melbnova, though.

>>8715876
It really depends on how many you do total. I used to pump out 5-8 a day varying between inked, colored, chibi, and normal. Now, I don't have the energy to draw more than 3 a day. Sometimes I don't accept commissions at all. The percentage is usually around 10% now.

Speaking of commissions, does anyone get tipped? I always tip when I commission someone, yet I never get tipped myself.

>>8715876
When I do them, they do tend to bring in a fair amount. I'd estimate like 20~30% of my earnings come from commissions?

Hello there I'm wondering if you guys have any good suggestions on where I could get empty notebooks/journals printed (so that only the cover would show your art and the customer can draw/write on the inside)

>>8705058
maybe she was mad that you took all the pins that advertised a certain series, which would limit the amount of people who might be interested in her booth and walk away with a business card?

she still sounds like a jerk though

>>8715041
Honestly? I'm not sure if you drew the images yourself or not, but if I was at a con, I would probably pass them by because they remind me of bootleg goods. The cheap price only enforces that feeling. I'm sorry if this sounds rude - it might only be me.

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>>8715041
>>8717193
Stolen art. Typical of cheap items from people that have NO business selling in the AA.

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Looking to make a few Christmas gifts, nothing large scale, but I figured this would be the best place to ask.

I want to make a few brooches like in the picture, but not woodcut or anything. What would be the best materials to use so it doesn't come out looking cheap?

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>>8717331
every inside of ANY locket i've seen was just ripped from the show. sooo...

>>8717363
They didn't make a single bit of effort to make it their own design. They're selling ripped art at best.

>>8717363
It's an emblem though. Tough luck getting any creative licence in there while still making it recognizable.

Do you have any charm-attachments to recommend? Ebay preferred (or do you just order those from the same place as the charms?). Just asking because I've been using some random metal rings to attach the charms to phone straps but it seems those won't take much force before breaking, since some of my friends have had problems with them (the charm gets stuck to somewhere, you pull the whole thing, and the ring straightens during the process and frees the charm). I'd hate to sell defective product and I'm searching some alternative to replace them.

>>8717588
...just buy phone charms with lobster clasps?

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>>8717331
The original Sailor Moon compact in that image, man I really love her stuff. I think the paper emblem inside was removable because it's a double mirror cause I got the more flat one before she came out with this slightly more 3D look.

Looking on ebay I found pic related though and kinda want it but not for about 50$.

Compacts like this, if there was a distinguished emblem would they sell? Would AOT fans eat up mirrors like that if they had shiny Wings of Freedom or The Garrison Emblems on top?

>>8717707
at least the 'regular' size is too big for the charms and I'm not sure if narrower version would be too flimsy

I was wondering, is there a thread for advertising new stores and blogs?

>>8717906
you can plug your stuff in the AANI facebook group on sundays (self-promo sunday), or you can add your shop/blog link to the "artist spreadsheet" in the OP of this thread.

For those of you who sell buttons, how do you organize them behind your table so you can find the damn things?

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>>8717930
Get one of these

Use a logical organizing system (by color, name, etc.)

>>8717906

Is it ok to add yourself to the "artist spreadsheet"? I only see like 20 artists on it.

>>8718097
it would be absolutely fine. prolly just not that many people on there because most people forget about it.

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>>8695400
>"Can I take a picture?"

I don't understand. This is considered rude?

>>8718144
I'm assuming a close up zoomed pic of the print. Some people do that and are like: "'Kay, now that I have a pic there's no need for me to buy the print anymore!" and saunter off.

>>8718146

Ah, ok. I was thinking of crafts, not artwork. Sorry, got a bit defensive there...

How many sticker designs do you guys usually have? I just started stickers and since I didn't have the money to invest in sticker sheets or a cutter I decided to start out printing them on very nice strong glossy sticker paper and cutting them out individually, they're around 2-3 inches I sell them for $2 each and 3 for 5$ but my stickers collections just keeps growing because they do really well! but I'm running out of display place does anyone have a similar issue? I've see some people put them in trading card binders, do people really look through all of that?

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I redrew/vectored all of the images myself. I wanted to use the design from the show, and I didn't want to change it?

I wanted designs and faces that were familiar? I didn't just copypaste the designs on there from google, if that's what you mean. I don't see how it's any different from people making badges and stickers with these designs on them too?

They're really small- 25mm. So I can't imagine selling them for more than $6-$8? I thought of the price based on what I would pay for one of them, I didn't think it was cheap though.


Was using the sailor moon brooch design really that wrong? I'm sorry if it was, I've seen other people use anime symbols in stuff they make so I thought it was okay (badges, stickers and other jewellery)? I didn't want it to come off as cheap and bootlegged... I made the necklaces myself with glass pieces/resin/expensive paper.

>>8718226
this
>>8717331
>>8717193

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>>8718218
So you just traced the art? I mean, I agree with the one anon that said that its a symbol, so ya know, not the most creative liberty. But saying that doesn't really help your side of that argument...

And I think the other anon meant they LOOK cheap. Not that you should simply charge more for them. They look like the stuff you get from those 0.01 cent auctions on ebay if you type in 'pendant' and order the cheapest things first.
>pic related
The frames don't even match the colors of the pendants or anything. Sorry if that's harsh. Since you still put them together...I would say $5 or $6 with the chain may be reasonable for those that would want to buy them.

It may not have been the most wrong thing to do...but with the examples you've shown here it looks exactly like you copy pasted an image from google, because all you did was vector/trace the designs. Even if you free handed them, there is absolutely nothing that sets them apart. So unfortunately, while your idea was a good one, they are going to come off as cheap bootlegged items.

Maybe freehand the broach and make it more artsy/shojo-y? A kirby that isn't just the basic face mock up? Adding some personal touches will really help elevate the pieces from looking less bootlegged, to looking more like personally drawn, wearable art.

>>8718238
this was for this. >>8718226
Looks like anon-chan double posted and deleted.

>>8718238
>>8718238
I didn't trace, I had an image open on the side and I copied and centered the design on illustrator. I didn't trace over the top of anything, because that is definitely wrong.

They don't sell bezels other than gold, silver or black. I should have used silver. I chose a Kirby face because he's round and he only makes like three faces and that one was done without reference other than seeing what color his eyes were and stuff. I don't think there's much I can do about that unless I drew him with an out of character expression.

I'll try adding some stuff onto the symbols, and hope they're still recognizable. I'm still going to try and sell the ones I already made, since a lot of work went into them.

Thank you for the criticism, I'll definitely make some changes and see how far I can stretch some creative license into the symbols because I really enjoy making these.

>>8718240
Spelling mistake

>>8718226
Why should anyone be interested in something which is an exact copy? You can follow the design without making it the same bland thing. Why not make a cute unique Kirby face instead or some different shapes/details to stand out a tiny bit more?
I do agree with the cheap comment. It looks like you've printed them off Google and just popped them into some cheap necklace making kit. They're very bland and the frames are quite bulky colour and size wise compared to the delicate images inside. I guess some people will buy anything from a series but you're not going to get a lot of interest or respect with things which aren't original.

>>8718254
>Why should anyone be interested in something which is an exact copy?

Because the anime design for sailor moon's brooch is what some people want to wear?

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>>8718250
Even if you didn't trace, that's just unfortunately what it looks like. Sorry anon-chan.

Hmm, for the bezels, perhaps buy some metal/plastic spray paint in some colors you'd like? Hold it far away and do a nice even coat, and then seal with a top coat. They'll need to air out a bit, but that may be an easier alternative then to buy different ones that still may not match. Then maybe go and buy some cute star/heart shaped beads and connect them at the top of the bezel piece? Not too much more money, and once again it would soften that harsh look of the bezel.

For the art, I know you didn't trace now. But since you didn't I'd really consider redrawing them if you have the skill. Render their colors a bit differently (showing slightly different colored brush strokes that all blend nicely for an artsy looking kirby, thinner lines and shojo ribbon shine and sparkles on the crystal for that classic girly look, etc.) Choose a style that's more you and that will look and feel like more effort was put in. Your buyers will notice it too and appreciate it I'm sure.

>>8718271
Thank you so much for your advice, I'll try all of that. The metal spray paint is an amazing idea!

I'll try and improve the ones I've already made with some beads, and sell them for a lower price and I'll make the next batch more unique.

>>8718167
i have a little stand with thin trays in them - with trays sorted by fandom/theme and the stickers laid out in them. doesn't take up much space (compared to displaying them on a flat surface) and lets customers handle them.

>>8718167
I actually have the same problem. I resolved it by choosing what I want to display more (I choose the ones that I know will sell, popular series, and personal favourites) and put those on display board and then I had all of them listed on a printed catalogs which I put into plastic folders. I also had a display plate where there was every one of those just mixed together because some people just don't want to make contact and prefer just choosing what they want and paying them without many words. I still need to work the plastic folder idea tho. Those doesn't look (the plastic folders itself) very appealing - in my opinion - and since the plastic material is really slippery, those tended to start running around the place a bit. I didn't want to put those into a binder because I've noticed that people don't really want to browse those, and using a binder, only one-two persons can browse it at a time, compared to several people switching those menu sheet around.

>>8717354
hand painted then sealed with serveral layers of modpodge and domed with resin, if you don't already have resin, little windows is my favorite, it cures hard and clear and doesn't get bubbles as easily as other resin I've used

What is a good amount of buttons/prints to order for a >1000 person con?

>>8719038
Whoops, under 1000 I meant.

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Feels great when you over hear artists complain about not getting accepted into a con that you got accepted to.

Bingo sheet from one day con I was at saturday.

>>8718250
>I didn't trace, I had an image open on the side and I copied and centered the design on illustrator
>I didn't trace
>I copied
>copied
>do you hear yourself

>>8719146
You know the center tool on illustrator right? Yeah. Puts things in the center and lines things up.

Tracing would be if you have the image open in the program and TRACE over it. Having a reference open on another screen to look at, while drawing the parts of the design and getting it to all be aligned with the smart guides and center tool so it doesn't look wonkey and it all lines up is not tracing.

Learn 2 illustrator, pal. The designs may exist in animes, but that's the reason I used them- because they're recognizable. I put the work in and remade them all myself so they were vectored and I could resize them as much as I needed to.

>>8719167
The end products are boring and flat. And look like traced art. Doesn't matter how long you spent on them, they don't look like you did anything other than copy them from google images. Stop making excuses for it and take the advice to change them.

>>8704676
>and not just with the fujos (although I have seen an alarming amount of Saitama/Genos porn)

>and not just with the fujos (although I have seen an alarming amount of Saitama/Genos porn)

pls tell me which blogs u following

>>8719195
I already did say i was going to change the designs ? Like I said, I can't change the ones that have already been made.

>>8718250
Like this >>8718271 anon said, even if you didn't trace, you copied from the official image, so the art looks too close to official art. Things that look like official art printed onto whatever belongs in the dealers room, not the AA. AA has a handcrafted feel, because the artist's "take" on the characters or such comes through in their own unique artstyle. That is why people enjoy buying from the artists, because it's something different and unique. You should practice drawing in photoshop or on paper, and translate that into your work. No offense meant, but vector art made in illustrator, directly copied from official art (sailor moon pictures, Kirby's face) simply looks like official art. There is nothing that screams "this is my art!" about it, from you, the seller.
I would suggest working more on art outside of using Illustrator if you want to sell at cons. Imagine, instead of selling broaches, you were selling chibis or prints. How would you draw them? What is your "style"? Just some things to think about, and work on anon!

>>8719167
Not that anon but what you're describing is called eyeballing and is generally regarded as the "but I didn't REALLY trace it!" version of tracing. The end goal is to make what is essentially a 1:1 copy of someone else's work; the literal method used doesn't change much. It's still considered unethical by most artists.

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>>8718425
Instead of a plastic binder, if this is being used to display stickers and chibis, what if you got one of those plastic "desk calender" things? You could just slide examples into the little plastic things like a binder, but you can decorate it and leave it out for people to flip through. It would take up less space than a binder too.
That's what i do, the menu idea is good too, but i found that people are more likely to flip through something than to request a catalogue type thing to look at.

>>8719167
I know how to use Illustrator. I just use it to create my own original designs instead of copying someone else's works. Learn 2 artist alley and stop crying about how you spent x amount of time vectorizing something that already existed. You should also have lurked more so you could have avoided this, because what did you expect posting something that is an exact copy of licensed art?

>>8719223
Ohh, this is an interesting idea. Right now I have them on those tiny bulletin boards and categorized by fandom, but all of these are great ideas, thank you!

>>8719225
I posted it here because I knew there'd be honest opinions. I've seen other artists use similar anime designs when they sell badges and stickers and I got defensive when I read what I've been told here because I was wondering why I should change the iconic symbols when they don't.

I can see that you're saying and you're right, I want to make something that's different and hold myself to a higher standard than that. I'm only new to making these necklaces and I've learned a lot. I learned a lot here too. I'll try and change up the ones I've already made for people who dont mind the plain designs and I'll completely change how I go about making these necklace designs in the future, not using the same boring designs. I'll put my own twist on it.

Thank you guys for your honest opinions, I want to make better stuff.

>>8716534
I think there was something on printing/making books in the last thread but I'm not sure if it was for artbooks or book covers. It might be worth a look, I'm sure some of the suppliers would be able to make blank notebooks with custom covers.
>>8717462
That's a problem, certainly. AOT is a pain in the ass when it comes to creatively drawing emblems, and it never comes out looking right.
>>8717588
You're looking for jump rings to attach your charms to the phone straps, but it sounds like you're using jump rings already. Maybe try searching for thicker ones? I have a few from cnlalang on ebay that are really sturdy, but I don't know if I lucked out and got a good batch. Also, make sure the jump ring is fully closed, I use pliers to sort of snap the ring shut from the sides and the inside. That made my stuff hold up way better, but again, idk if it's a lucky batch made from okay metal or if it's the technique. Sorry if I'm not making much sense, it's late here. Good luck with your phone charms.

>>8719223
That sounds really neat, actually. It looks much better as a vertical than a flat display that a binder would give.

Hey was wondering if people could share/post pics of their favourite items bought from artist alley (with artist credit if possible)

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>>8719868
I really like this fire emblem zine and yugioh poster I got once, artist's name is milleto.

so, who got into katsucon and who didnt

>>8710849
[Different anon] Adding onto this, tumblr's a great platform for exposure, but twitter is the best for more personal conversation, since it's a much easier sns to actually interact on a casual level. It's where I've met a lot of close friends from many fandoms I've been in!

>>8720078
No one got into Katsu, anon.

>>8720078
There are victorious folks on AANI, but I'm shocked by who didn't get in. Rumminov and Digit are among them, both of whom I know to be fantastic artists with varied portfolios. There was another girl who had some really solid looking plushies that didn't make it in. It's bizarre.

>>8720135
The people who got in are mostly tumblr-style type of artists, judging by twitter mentions of Katsucon. Really good artists didn't get in at all.

>>8720135
Rumminov, Digit, Bwoltjen...A ton of great artists I know of didn't get a spot. I had no idea they were going to be this harsh.

>>8720111
So....do you just randomly keep tweeting at people until they pay attention to you? I always feel like I'm talking to myself on twitter because no one reads my tweets lolllll

>>8720140
Well damn. Now I'm curious to see who they did let in.

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This Katsucon drama all seems vaguely familiar.....

>>8720212
I poked around twitter and it seems to mostly be sort of cartoony stuff? It's weird because it looks like they rejected artists with more anime influence in their work, while calarts kiddies and the like got in handily.

>>8720176
Anon, here is a crash course on networking.

First, and this is true on all sites where you post your art: follow people. Post some art and then follow people whose stuff you're interested in - a lot of times folks will check out the pages of those who just followed them and if your stuff catches their eye you may earn a follow back. Don't spam follow/unfollow to try to get their attention if they don't, though, this will just annoy them.

Also, link all your sites. Your insta should point to your tumblr/twitter, twitter points to insta and tumblr, etc.

On tumblr and instagram:

Post your art and tag it. Don't just do the character and series name, add in tags like #artists on tumblr and #instagramartist and any other names the series or character might have. (So #attack on titan AND #shingeki no kyoujin, for example) On tumblr I think only the first five tags count for the general tag search; any after the first 5 are just for organizing on your blog. On instagram, go apeshit. I think the limit on insta is like... 30.

Do not expect the notes and followers to start rolling in immediately unless you are incredible. It may take a while.

Ride the trends. Right now, some cute Undertale art will get you attention. Do stuff like shipping, crossovers, and make silly joke art. Bitches love jokes. Drawing and posting daily is also very good. Once you get some followers, take requests.

For twitter: again, I reiterate: follow people! Follow people, say hi, ask questions. Follow people who you are genuinely interested in, or at least have interesting work, and talk to them. Twitter is a good place for WIPs and doodles IMO. You can post your work there too of course, it's just not as good as keeping things sorted as the other sites are.

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question, where would you recommend buying/ordering business cards? thanks

>>8720295
don't be an idiot and look at the links in the op

>inb4 wehh you dont have to be a bitch about it!! my stupid question should be treated with the utmost respect!!

>>8720078
I got into Magfest, so I can't complain. Sie got into Katsu and that makes me happy. But man, the majority of my friends didn't even get in. ;; Like Raspbeary was straight up rejected.

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>>8720212
here you go, quick search to see who said they got in

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Hello, I hope I'm not bothering anyone with this, but, as someone who's new to all this and has been drawing and painting traditionally all her life, I have a couple questions:
-What's the recommended canvas/picture size when working on different types of merch (postcards, charms, etc)?
-I did check the resources spreadsheet in OP's post, but I was wondering if there were any fellow (South) European artists who would recommed any sites in particular, since most places seem to be US based and I don't know how expensive shipping can get?
Overall I just wish it were easier to find other artists in my area...

>>8720419
...kinda unrelated since i'm not familiar with most of these artists, but am I the only one who absolutely hates those yarn-type 'dolls'? they seem so tacky, like something you'd pick up at like a souvenir store

also shapeless plushies....

>>8720438
Yarn ones are hit or miss for me. Sometimes they're tacky and sometimes they can be really cute. But man, those other plush...I just keep looking at them and thinking about all the people (at least one or two I know were good plush artists) who got rejected over those.

>>8720308
Lol calm down anon, didn't think about checking the top links (thanks??)

>>8720419
Who is the artist 4th from the top with the jojo chibis?

>>8720419
uh emi didn't get in.. she's been rejected or waitlist the last like 3 years

>>8719751
Ah yes, those were jump rings, I just weren't aware of the right term. And I used pliers, the problem just was the bad quality of the rings-- I actually think I could've pried those open with bare hands if I've wanted to and I think that's telling something how flimsy those were. I think I just try to use thicker rings the next time and hope for the best (tho the ones I already have, aren't even that slim so uhmm..). And what do you mean by snapping the ring shut from the inside? There may of course be something wrong with my technique but I'd think that simple rings like those are rather idiot proof-- but hey you never know

>>8717588
http://americanchainmail.com/

I'm probably the only person that uses them but because they make chain mail rings they com ein many thicknesses and sizes. I had the same problem you did and split rings took too much time so i just bought a bunch of thicker gauge rings from them. Been perfect since then.

>>8720419
europefag here and being just curious.. do the cons in US just pick the artist as they seem fit and that's all, or do they post any reasons/criteria for their decisions? And do you usually have only one person deciding (the person who manages alley?) or a jury? Just wondering because even I do know some of the artist by name who didn't get a table for katsu and that just raises the questions why didn't they pass. Do they try to pick new people every year or something?

>>8720650
>>8720419
MIght've been confusing for her friend Karen/iamacoyfish? She got in, Emi didn't.

>>8720419
Amazing, the only one on here that isn't painfully mediocre and actually fits the theme of the con is Emi, and she didn't actually get in.

>>8720728
It differs from con to con, there is no country-wide anime con artist alley policy. The Katsu drama is because they have a juried selection.

sorry if dumb question, but can anyone share experiences and tips on the etiquette of art trading with other artist alley artists?

>>8720740
What's your definition of "good"? I'm just curious.

>>8720650
>>8720729
>>8720740
Oh lol my bad, yeah I must have gotten their tweets mixed up. I dont even remember who's who. I would do a Katsucon rejected chart to see what they weren't looking for, but that's basically everyone else who applied so

>>8720832
not that person but consider
REJECTED:
nayuki-chan @ DA
raspbeary @ Tumblr
serenity-sama @ DA
ofskysociety @ DA

ACCEPTED:
jadiekins @ DA
puddingdrop @ Tumblr
enjouji @ Tumblr
CharmingLittleFox @ Etsy

>>– If we have worked with you before and you have good draw. Above all, we want an artist to succeed and attendees to be happy.

haha

>>8720872
Yikes, really?

Kraken con tables sold out in like a second. Are other cons this bad? I was hoping to do my first artist alley next year but it seems impossible to get a table anywhere.

>>8720872
What the fuck? Of those accepted artists, skill aside only one has any anime fanart I can find in their first few pages, and their style isn't particularly anime. You're right, it's all that tumblr shit. How the hell was ofskysociety not accepted?

>>8720928
>>8720977
There's tons more examples but this was just a quick sweep where style differences didn't excuse how shit the accepts were compared to the rejects

>>8720872
My tablemates and I got accepted as well
villainsbynecessity @ Tumblr
corviday @ tumblr
articbleu @ tumblr
nightmargin @ tumblr

>>8720959
Same here! I really wanted to try tabling for once. Super bummed, but oh well. I even camped and still didn't get in. Shit was wild.

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>>8720740
Kecky (third from bottom) actually has a fair amount of anime prints, I've seen her at cons before.

Noticed thatcmore well known artists with a decent following (which Katsucon implied they wanted) were rejected compared to artists I have never even heard of before. I have a feeling they really did just decide to scrap veterans and take on newcomers. Or maybe they just claimed it was a jury system when in reality they just did a lottery kek

>>8720586
>>8720438
the other plushes look like something you'd pick up in a kitschy botique managed by a jundgemental, 'crafty' pinterest mom

>>8721036
Katsucon has been pushing original art more and more recently for some reason, I wouldn't be surprised if that was part of it. I noticed that a lot of the people accepted with mediocre art have galleries that are largely original.

>>8721083
What's the point when everyone just displays and sells fanart once they are at the con though???

>>8721083
The link I gave them for my portfolio had more original artwork then fanart. I just wish they were more constructive in their email than "lol rejected."

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Given the nature of the content of this thread.

I've been making necklaces out of resin, but they have stickers in them. Like this. I know a lot of artists who sell stuff like this as well, should we be using original art too?

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>>8721211

>>8720959

It's so hard to get that first table lol at this rate I don't think I'll be able to table at all next year. :/

>>8721091
I agree, a lot of the rejections fall into "who the fuck knows" territory because the artists clearly have great technical skill and appropriate subject matter.

>>8721211
>>8721216
Probably better to use original art or make your own cabs to go inside. Resin necklaces that use stickers are about a dime a dozen, but nice stuff where people put in the effort to make their own art or cabs to go inside is gonna do way better imo.

Probably do well with sticker ones on etsy tho.

>>8720872
B-but I love serenity sama.
Also it's not until February but I'm so nervous about Metrocon's "new" AA system. It doesn't look any different from before except they screen applicants before the tables go up. They said it would be juried but it's still first come first serve according to their webpage after you're screened and accepted. So really they only jury whether or not you have the right to fight for a table using their clusterfuck servers...?

>>8720832
Well, on that chart, #1, #2, #4, and #6 have work that looks ugly (in the case of 1), or amateurish (in the case of 2, 4, and 6). #6 is awkwardly ugly too, on top of the Haikyuu character being nigh unrecognizable, I had to puzzle out who it was based solely on coloration and the crow in the background. So that's why I said they're painfully mediocre. The corgi artist is very good but I'm not entirely sure why a corgi cartoon artist would be a good fit for an anime con.

As for what I consider good specifically, well, rumminov, raspbeary, and digit, for example? All rejected.

>>8720872
>jadiekins
God I see this girl at every convention and I hate her stuff so much, she has that awkward style where you can tell she wants to draw more western stuff but can't stop with the anime proportions.

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>>8720872
>CharmingLittleFox
Not that the stuff isn't cute, but seriously? Did they decide they needed to reserve tables for newbies/less accomplished artists or something instead of going with the best of the best?

>>8720748
But that drama is typical of any juried show that doesn't have an explicit rubric. This was the exact same shit that happened with Fanime last year-- Juried shows, no one knew what the fuck they were being scored on, no one could make any sense of the people who got in vs. the people who didn't, loads of speculation, etc. etc. etc.

But apparently it's more fair than fcfs sooooo....

>>8720959
Yep, that's how it is now. Doesn't help that the Bay area is saturated with artists.

>>8720770
It's never rude to ask an artist if they want to trade. It IS rude if you insist on trading when they decline- however that may be. On the other hand, if someone offers to trade you, you're not obligated to trade them unless you actually like their stuff. Just be upfront about it and say you don't do trades or you're not interested. The one I usually say is that they don't have any fandoms I'm super interested in, and that's worked pretty well for me.

>>8721740
lmao did you even read what I was replying to, they were asking as if US cons are a conglomerate that all have the same policies.

vograce-related question. is kylin usually this slow?

>>8721036
>I have a feeling they really did just decide to scrap veterans and take on newcomers.
I feel this way also. Someone on AANI is doing a survey and it's looking like a fair share of first-timers got accepted.

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So a couple of weeks ago I posted some charms I got done at Acorn Press and some issues I had with them, but I emailed them and they remade my charms after they apparently upgraded their equipment. The new ones are on the left, and the old ones are on the right. The colors look a LOT better now and the spot white seems much cleaner, but the double white seems to have gotten worse... I'm not sure if they just forgot to add it onto these new ones, or if it's turned transparent. Anyways, for anyone who was wondering about AP's printing quality lately.

>>8721997
Thanks for the update! I'm glad they corrected the colors but dang am I sorry about the transparent background. If they could just combine the front of the new and the back of the old it wouldn't be so bad. Will you be speaking with them again about the double white issues?

>>8722002
Yeah I'm going to ask them when they get back to me. I personally don't think it's a big deal, but I know it's usually a deal breaker for other artists.

>>8721997
Acornpress and chillypig are both horrible quality.. AP being the worst of the two due to inconsistencies within a single batch. The chillypig owner boasts how much more "accurate" her charms are in terms of coloring compared to inkits, and I was horribly disappointed when i actually got some.