Artist Alley Generally Speaking

Came back from a con with around 5,000, maybe more and made over twice as much revenue than I did at AWA, a con with 4 times as many people.

I don't get these people who say "I don't go to cons with less than 10,000 people, its not worth my time". From my experience, con attendance and revenue aren't nearly as connected as you think they would be. Though, idk, many people do say that AWA is generally one of the least profitable cons, so it could just be a big outlier.

All the talk of "if you're a lone artist just get a helper for your table" toward the end of the last thread had me thinking back to my last con, a friend and I were planning to split a table for literally more than a year before the con came around, and then the night before setup she texts me "sorry Anon I cant do the con anymore".

Honestly I don't know what I was expecting, less than a week before the con she was posting on twitter about how she hadn't even started drawing any prints yet. Needless to say I won't even consider tabling with her again.

>tmi
>tfw i was shark week during that con as well
>only got to go to the bathroom once the entire weekend

>>9337271
yah, same. I don't have any friends to help because most of them are out of state. :/ Friends that are willing to sacrifice a whole weekend for you are hard to find....

>>9337193
the crowd can be fickle - and generally the popular tables usually seen with a crowd around the most of the time will get the love. Just not enough to go around.

An annoying response from attendees is how they tell you they don't have money (which comes off as an auto-response - seeing how they are just going down the row).
>looks at what they are carrying are prints you know the artist charges 15-20 and theres several

>>9337308
The easiest, well if u r not too autistic is asking a coworker in advance by bringing the subject up to see what they think about cons/cosplay/anime etc - and simply find the closet otaku that'll take a chance to help. I have to admit the nice thing about helping is being able to go around n have a place to lounge n kick back in the AA tables at times, assuming ur neighbors are not loud n obnoxious.

>>9337315
They probably don't have money after burning it on other tables. At the start of the cons I sometimes overhear people talking to their friends that they have "x" amount of money to spend.

>>9337320
ya no for sure, but most cons I have to fly out to. I've made friends at cons so that they could help me out, but i'm always worried about the reliability of con-goers.

>>9336716
From what I know about casting, you'd probably do a pass where you fill up the detail cavity of the mold with a white resin and then once that's dry fill in the rest with another color.

Also if you're planning on doing that then you'd have to make sure all the undercuts on your original are filled in since it's a 1 part mold that you'd be working with.

>>9337193

I also came back from a con with around 5,000, which is the smallest con I've ever been in, and made less than I've made in other cons. I think popular artists or insanely skilled artists will do well at any sized con, and artists who aren't will do better at larger ones where there is more money to go around.

>>9337315
Yeah, I'm at the point where if I see somebody coming carrying big prints, I don't think, "Hooray, someone who likes to buy a lot of prints." I think, "Great, they are already done buying prints."

>>9337451
>I think popular artists or insanely skilled artists will do well at any sized con, and artists who aren't will do better at larger ones where there is more money to go around.

Meh, I think that is the exact opposite. At larger cons, only the most popular artist will get all the sales since they are they get the most attention, but in smaller cons, where there aren't as many famous artists, and not as much competition, people are forced to buy what is available.

I'm a craft artist, and it means a little more to me since some cons I can have no competition at all (Where I make the most money at), or I can have a lot of competition of people selling very similar crafts (like how it was at AWA).

>>9337432

Thats basically it. The thinner your layer the more transparent your effect. Ideally you want to mix just enough to coat the area.

The only thing you were off on is you want to back fill it when the first layer becomes tacky. If you wait until its completely hardened it could delaminate.

>>9337193
Numbers aren't the biggest factor by a long shot. I think for the most part it's traffic/visibility, and then other random factors that might vary on the con itself. For example, KawaiiKon used to be a huge moneymaker, esp for West Coast artists because it was the only con in Hawaii and pretty much guaranteed sales. Its value has kinda gone down, though, because they've got other cons popping up on the islands, so the demand isn't as concentrated.

I've done well at small cons and not so great at large cons and vice versa. Being able to estimate your sales is something that really just comes with experience.

>>9337432
I've done this with multi layer molds. It takes longer but creates a nice effect.

>>9337271
I tabled alone twice. The first time it wasn't so bad. When the DR opened, the AA fizzled down and I was able to close up and run to the bathroom (The good part in this was I was near the bathroom).

Second time I wasn't alone, a friend forced herself into 'helping me' and then literally let me starve. Every time I mentioned having to go to the bathroom, wanting to stretch my legs etc, she had a bitchy response. I'm not a push over anymore, so when I told her I didn't need her to 'help me' and she could leave she acted sad and agreed to work in my place, but it was a fucking nightmare all weekend. I didn't eat anything all day until about 10-11 because she wouldn't even go do a food run for me.

Then people have the nerve to wonder why I have a hard time liking her.

>>9338162
fuck, i've had a helper like that. When I came back because starvation forced me to buy overpriced con food, she was smiling and telling people all about 'her' art. She threw a huge tantrum when I asked her to not pretend to be me just to get compliments for art she didn't draw.

>>9337271
Be friendly with the table next to you.
I only do AA alone and have just learned to bring enough food for myself, and extra water bottles for the people next to me in case I need to ask them to watch over my table for a little.

>>9338273
My mom helped me out at my first con and she ended up being a real big help to the girl tabling behind me because she was on her own the first day. We got her food and made sure to watch her stuff when she was gone and she was very appreciative. I think people should be willing to help out some if someone needs to use the restroom or hasn't eaten.

>>9338273
Seriously, this. Be friendly with your neighbors, you never know when you might run into them again down the line. I can't even count the number of times I've been rescued by someone who remembered me from another con when I was tabling solo.

>>9337618
Oh interesting! I didn't know about the de-laminating part, but that makes complete sense.

>>9338273
>>9338302

Being friendly with your neighbors doesn't always help. In my experience, I'm always by myself next to a table of 2 BFFs who have no interest in the outside world or interacting with me, and trying to be friendly doesn't help. Maybe my luck is shitty.

>>9338182
NO WAY. I would have been livid. I use to be friends with a girl that did similar stuff. I would make a cosplay, let her borrow it and she would take credit. When asked questions she would turn to me and say "do you remember how I did this?" and I would be so pissed I'd say "I made this costume, she's just wearing it."

We aren't friends anymore because she was shitty and bitter person.

My 'helper' friend would do stuff like drive people away with they're comments and they would keep asking to count how much cash was in my box. I felt uncomfortable with it so I'd take the cash box with me and tell them to tell people that I would be right back. That's really why I almost died. I didn't feel comfortable leaving my stuff with them. I'd take the box with me to the shower too and count the money then (before I got in lol). I also think I hid the key in my sock while I slept. Usually I trust everyone I stay with, because we had been friends for so long, but with this one the fact that they kept asking was a red flag. Also demanded I treat them to dinner. NOPE.

How do you feel about people who sell jewelry in the AA? Most of the stuff I see is just really cheap stuff from aliexpress thrown together and it's rare to see something original, or even to see a stand that doesn't have some straight up bootleg merch (like buying knock-off anime pendants and making stuff from them).

>>9338500
I wouldn't ask a "friend" to help if they've never had a job or other responsibility history. Even if they did have a job before, take note of any other money issues they may have complained - in the past - usually if I hear the "so and so owes me 5 or 10$" and act very livid about it I'd be concern about them being near a cash box.

Does anyone here sell buttons or charms of Lance from Voltron? I tabled at ALA and had fun running around trading with people, so I ended up with about a million keychains/buttons. But when I put them all on my bag I realized I forgot to get a single thing for Lance and now I feel bad, lmao. Plus it's impossible to find good merch on Etsy because I'm pretty sure they keep taking down Voltron listings for copyright.

>>9338505
I hate this. There's a girl I know who is shady in general, uses stolen fanart and low-res prints of official photos/art to make really shit jewelry. With how competitive AA is today I really wish people that were just trying to make a fast buck would fuck off.
That being said I have seen some really lovely jewelry, too, but that's besides the point.

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>>9338505
I wish cons would stop letting stuff like pic related in. You know, that cheap probably bootleg art smacked on to a cheap base and domed with some resin? Not cool.

One of the bigger cons in my area has been REALLY hard of crafters. There are certain crafts that are banned altogether (perler beads, plushies made from patterns that aren't yours must be advertised as such or you can't sell them). Now there's a separate jury just for crafters, especially jewelry sellers and their bootleg brooches, because there have been so many issues with them. I think all cons should do something like that. You would never let an artist who has blatantly traced someone else's work in your artist alley, so why is it suddenly okay to steal art when it's in jewelry form?

>>9338552
There were people going around my local cons printing tshirts with stolen artwork a few years back. Apparently they showed con organisers a completely different lineup of designs and switched display folders when volunteers/staff came around. I fished to see how shady they were and they even tried to claim it was their own artwork.
The truth got out eventually and they haven't been spotted at a con since, but it's crazy that they managed to go around for two years or so without anyone noticing.

I've seen a lot of really poor quality art in artist alleys as of late, too. I know we all start somewhere, but your art should be of decent quality to be let into an AA. One girl I've seen has stuff that honestly looks traced with minor shading and colouring differences, a bit worse than the original. She prices her stuff really low so young congoers with pocket money snap it up.

>>9338505

Honestly, I don't think that convention artist alleys are the place for jewelry. I think even if it's well-made, it's better suited for craft/art fairs. And with how competitive AAs are now, it makes me angrier to see spaces wasted on shitty jewelry than it does to see spaces of shitty art/other crafts.

>>9338530
>uses stolen fanart and low-res prints of official photos/art
You can report that to AA convention heads, if you can also provide proof samples/references/sources of the material copyrighted, they will take that shit seriously.

All the other gray-area jewelry stuff is going to be within the AA policy as far as I'm aware, just not worth pursuing random trinkets unless it looks disney related.

>>9338561
I feel like there's been a recent influx of people that want to get into the AA scene, regardless of if their work is actually good or not.

Also pisses me off that everyone wants to be spoonfed information instead of putting in the time to research. I don't mind giving some advice but when you're asking questions like "how do I sell stuff?" then it's a waste of time

>>9338507
The thing is I never asked for the help. I had done a con alone before and had intended to do the same there. They had gone to the con for a different reason and offered to help me. I agreed because it would be great to have someone bring me lunch and watch over while I go take a break, but nope.

I never let them handle my money the entire time. Just bagging etc and when I did leave to go to the bathroom I took it with me and told them to tell customers I'll be right back. This friend does have a job and is very responsible,but when they kept bringing it up I just thought it was odd and shut it down.

I only count money after I am in my hotel room. They wanted to count it in front of everyone at the con, even customers.

>>9338730
Aw man I am also so tired of those "I like ur stuff, you have any tips for new artist?" people too. Like yeah, I have sooo much spare time to write up an essay for you about basic shit you can find on google. It's like they view my work as just a stepping stone to their own improvement.

>>9338567
I disagree, because I think it'd be cool if there was a lot more variety in general about what people make and sell. It's nice to see things that aren't the typical prints/acrylic charms/artsmoo bags etc. It's a bummer that everytime someone in AA has a cool idea EVERYONE else in AA rips it off asap and then everything is the same again.

>>9338756
>They wanted to count it in front of everyone at the con, even customers
I wonder if it a: the customer gave a higher bill like a 20 when ur helper thought it was a 10 kind of thinking..or the helper think they put a 10 in realizing after may have been a 20 and the customer didn't ask for change back situation.

>>9338759
that's bc AA artists have this mindset just as bad as the "fandom of the week" they complain about - they all gotta ride the same product bandwagons every season, the actual designs and the way to best utilize it is always an afterthought.

>>9338759
Artists follow the merch bandwagons for the same reason they follow fandom bandwagons--too much of a financial risk to try something new/different and have it bomb. Customers always say they want something new or different or not so overdone, but when it comes down to it what they'll actually buy is same-old same-old. I'm sure most people would love to do something different, but why go for it when it's a gamble? I learned this the hard way a couple months ago, and now I'm done trying to be creative with product choices.

>>9338759
>>9338730
Do you guys get these people in person too? I've only ever gotten one and she was super cool and receptive to what I said. It's different when it's in person, otherwise, yeah, you feel like you're typing out the exact same shit with the newbies who keep asking for advice.

>>9338896
I get them in person because I do a lot of stuff that isn't that common in AA. Usually they'll ask where I get x done, I'll start with "I use a Chinese company on Alibaba" and their eyes gloss over. People are so scared of interacting with agents that they usually won't press any further.

>>9336716

Would totally buy. I don't really see too many good jewelers selling this type of classic lolita style (not that your piece was made for lolitas, but as a classic lolita, I would totally buy it).

>>9337895

So I'm a TX anon (in case geography matters) but I meant that if I have a design in both small and large sizes, people just tend to buy the small. Especially at cons where people buy small items. I want to have more postcard-exclusive designs, so I'm going to phase out my postcards for anything I want to keep as a large print and vice versa.

Overall though, I'm phasing out tabloid and switching to 11x14 and 8x10. They're more traditional frame sizes and after last year where a lot of my large prints didn't move, I thought I'd take a one-year chance on going a tad smaller and see how it goes. It also is going to save a bit of space on my displays.

I think a lot of my experience last year was just because consumer buying was down in the real economy and AA, but my art was dramatically better than in years prior and yet I sold worse.

>>9337271

Granted, I've tabled next to friends for the last few cons, but even the cons I've tabled with strangers, if you take your money with you, just dart to the bathroom for 5 minutes. If you gotta go, you gotta go and any lost sales or heck, even theft of an item, isn't worth not going to the bathroom.

My best situation though, by far, was my last con where friends who weren't even doing AA were willing to be food runners and went and got myself and my table mate food. Get friends willing to bring you food (I was also giving them $20s and saying to get food for themselves, too, but hey, I didn't have to get up and get it myself).

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>mfw considering stopping by my college's anime club to ask if anyone else is planning to table for a con

>>9339513
perhaps should go around the art bldg and ask somone to point out the otakus there.

I'm thinking of signing up for Animate Miami but they have a "1 artist per space" rule for single tables in their signup that I've never seen other cons have. How enforced is this kind of thing if they mention it? I table with 3 friends (we pair up in shifts) and have never had any trouble about it at other cons.

We could just avoid the whole thing by getting and endcap which doesn't seem to have this restriction and would probably be better for us in the long run, but I figure I would ask anyway.

>>9339513
Do it, you'll either have a good experience or a good story

>>9339686
yeah just one person buys it - and you delegate how u split the table on ur own. Less paperwork and nearly most of the hobbyist aa people "share" a table, no secret it's just splitting the cost 2-3 ways etc.

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So this was posted on AANI

>>9339941
>the watermarks everywhere
>who would even want to steal this or claim it as theirs

>>9339941
I'm glad I'm not the only one that hated this. This is exactly what I meant by there being this influx of people wanting to get into AA and their work is barely passable.

>First year con in my area
>One day event
>wants $150 for an artist alley table.

>>9339992
not even dealers tables cost that much at most one day cons.

>>9340096
They want $400 for a standard exhibitor booth and $500 for a premium. It doesn't say what the difference between the two is. I was considering getting a table since it's in my city. But not at that price.

>>9338776
No. Like a legit "let me count how much you made this weekend"

>>9340104
Premium might be a corner booth or something (ie. more table space)

Is it a big con (as far as one day cons go)?

>>9338896
>>9338905
I actually hate it when I get them in person because usually the person asking doesn't have the tact to wait until the floor is closed for the day or for a lull when customers aren't there. Buddy, I'm not gonna give you step by step instructions on my suppliers while there are customers waiting to spend money. I had someone come up to me at ALA and try to shake me down about the specifics of a vendor while I was trying to help other customers. Nothing makes me want to share my sources less.

People have this problem online too. Especially on AANI when people will ask for sources in the comments instead of PM-ing people directly. It's doubly worse when people don't even take the time to throw out a customary "Love your work!" or "This looks great!" before they jump straight into "Where did you get it made?"

>>9338896
I was surprised to get one guy that desperately wanted me to check out his Facebook page and give him pointers. I was polite to him and encouraging but his stuff was really not great and he wouldn't leave until he wrote his facebook link in my sketchbook.

I don't mind helping people that are willing to take advice but I can't handle people that just want you to tell them HOW to sell or expect you to write them an essay about everything you've done. Part of learning is just getting out there and making mistakes.

>>9340259
Another thing too, is that if they already don't have the initiative to learn things on their own, a lot of those people will hold you accountable for hiccups that may arise.

Just look at how many newbies got spoonfed on Vograce and complain about orders going wrong when it's their fault. They don't want to be responsible for any future mistakes - they want you to tell them all of your trial and errors so they have someone else to blame if it goes wrong. "Oh, well so and so told me the wrong information." & "Well, they said this supplier was trustyworthy but I guess not."

I've had an ex-friend who asked me to hold her hand through tabling at cons and when she didn't break even she decided to blame it all on me. Apparently, it was my fault for not telling her what price her commissions should be and choosing to carpool with friends when she had to drive by herself and eat the parking costs.

I'm wary of people that ask without research unless they're a super close friend because they 1) probably won't follow your advice in the first place and 2) if something goes wrong, you're going to become their scapegoat for giving them "wrong" info.

>>9340222
It's a first year. So honestly they don't even have attendance numbers yet. If this had a few years under it's belt and the numbers to back it up, I'd understand the price.

>>9340268
Ugh, I'm nervous about this. A lot of my friends are artists and I had two of them ask me about where I got my sketchbooks made. I told them that I got them through a local print shop (which I did) and they seemed kinda disappointed that I didn't have somewhere they could go to. Like...I did the research and spent hours editing and sending files. If I want a certain product or I have an idea, I'll browse around myself. I'll ask questions when I'm coming up empty but even then I don't expect people to give me every little detail.

I agree that people do want to have someone to blame. They don't want to think that they made a mistake or, god forbid, need to work on their products.

>>9340268
same, I'm sick of helping people out and being the one held accountable even tho that was never my intention. one of them didn't make their money back at a con and complained saying that I was the one who dragged them into going, and I've had someone complaining I didn't give them more information about Vograce even tho they have never contacted them directly to ask questions.

>>9338896
yes, quite a bit. The problem is that they would ask when I have tons of customers, or ask me how much it would cost me to produce something when there's people buying the said thing right in front of them. so rude! I ask other artists for help too on manufacture but never when there's customers or when they are busy, and always say it's cool if they don't feel comfortable sharing.

>>9340279
Waiting for the right time and asking politely/giving the artist room to back out if they're uncomfortable is the perfect way to ask! It makes me so uncomfortable when people ask for solid numbers because quotes vary depending on how much you're ordering and also because there are customers around. Honestly this is the sort of shit that leads to entitled customers demanding to pay material cost. There's a reason we don't discuss that stuff in front of customers.

>>9340276
>>9340275
I think that recently there's been a rise of people who think it's really easy to make money at AAs and want to be spoonfed. When they actually try it out and see that it's not as easy as just sitting there and taking money for their art, they get disappointed and lash out despite not having done any of the research themselves. That's how the aforementioned ex-friend was like. She helped me a couple of times at cons, saw how much money I made and decided she could TOTALLY do the same thing. I wish more people would realize that AAs aren't a get rich quick scheme and they actually have to have art/merch with appeal before people buy anything from them.

I'm so fed up with people asking about my sources that I've just started saying that I get my prints made at Staples, my printed clothing/accessories made at Moomoo, and my art books printed at home? I use none of those as my actual vendors. I'm just so fucking tired of stupid questions. Am I a bad person?

>>9340297
I think it's kind of a shitty thing to purposefully give people the wrong information. Just tell them no outright or that you're uncomfortable sharing.

>>9340297
Not really. If I was a newbie shopping for first-time suppliers, I'd ask multiple people and see what suppliers people agree on, as well as my own research about what suits my work best.
That's if you give a fuck, though.
If you just ask one person and immediately go with whatever they say, you probably don't give much of a shit about having a good product with a reasonable profit.
Basically, I feel like that process weeds out the non-serious artists that just want to make a quick buck.

>>9340297

Yes? You should just tell them you'd prefer not to say. There's not really any need to lie, so it seems kind of douchey to do that.

>>9340304
>>9340311
Have you guys ever tried telling people no? They keep hounding you for your vendors. "BUT ANONNNNN, WE'RE FRIENDS" if you guys even remotely know each other or "BUT ANON, I REALLY LOOK UP TO YOU" if you don't even know who this person is. They will not leave you alone until you cough up an answer, and I'd rather not end up in a situation like >>9340268 because I've already been there, done that. If you're too stupid to look up sources, you're too stupid to be selling stuff.

>>9340316

I agree when it comes to suppliers for basic things, but there are some items that sources are really hard to find. For example, I'm dying to know where people get their beautiful moleskin style sketchbooks done, but no amount of searching has helped me. I'm not gonna ask anyone because I don't want to come across as an info leech, but when it's something hard to source like that I can totally understand why people would ask. I'm guessing you're talking about people asking about obvious shit like charms/stickers, though. In that case I usually give them a rec. for one of the AA info tumblrs or AANI or whatever to read for info. It gets them away from my table, doesn't tell them my direct supplier, but still gives a helpful answer.

>>9340316
If they're PMing on something like tumblr after you've already said no politely once, I think you should respond publicly saying you'd prefer not to disclose vendors for certain products. That way it's kind of like shaming them for being a pushy douchebag and make sure your followers know not to ask either. I wouldn't feel bad about that if they're very obviously guilt tripping you.

If they're actually your friend, you can tell them a general answer (alibaba/local printshop/etc) and not the specific seller. I've never had an issue with giving actual AA friends my sources as long as they know not to spread the vendor around to other people.

>>9340329
>moleskin style sketchbooks
I don't know if you're looking for notebooks that specifically have the band like moleskins, but getmeds does blank and lined page 10x15cm notebooks. I wouldn't feel bad asking for uncommon product sources. If the artist is against it I'd say just put a disclaimer about not giving out product vendors on your ask page, then you can just ignore the people who ignored your disclaimer.

>>9340297
How is giving them the wrong answer easier than giving them the right one?

>>9340361
Persistent people won't stop asking unless they get some kind of answer they can accept.

For anons interested in original art, what usually draws you in?

>>9340390
u-u mean something not popular? but that involves thinking...

>>9339992
don't do it! Look at the guest list, if there's too many big-name guests, it's going to be a ghost town

>>9340390
I love original art. I think I favor buying original stuff over buying fanart stuff these days. I like elegant styles the most. Art styles like those of Sakizo, Junichi Nakahara, and Yoshitaka Amano for example. However, I also really love unique styles. You know those artists with such cool styles that you just end up buying fanart for a series you don't watch or have maybe never heard of? That stuff is great too.

As far as actual merchandise, I can't get enough of original art on coin purses, pencil bags, wallets, etc. but I rarely see that being done. I like smaller prints a lot. I have a photo album full of 4x6 prints from a variety of artists.

I think one thing that might help a lot of original artists is putting sticky notes on your display pieces with something that says "Original Art." That way, you won't accidentally exclude the customers who won't buy merchandise of series they don't know. Now they know there's a reason they don't recognize the character on that print- it's just original art!

>>9340390
good art.
that's not, weeb culture, tv head, lolita cutesy faiy dragon watercolour swirlly print style, skull octopus, or your own oc, idc about your oc.

>>9340390
Something a little more painterly, a little less blatantly shiny anime but still heavily anime inspired, if that makes sense. Pieces that are largely focused on a scene or an environment rather than a character. I like fantasy & sci fi settings.

I always have an eye out for this kind of thing to add to my art wall in my office at work. The kind of thing that will look good in a matte black picture frame.

>>9340422
Seconding the "origonal art" sticky notes. I always feel like an idiot when I have to ask, "Are any of these origonal pieces, or is it all fan art?" because there is one in specific I'm wondering about but I don't want to look stupid asking if it's just a fandom I haven't heard about.

>>9340423
show us your ocs anon

>>9340432
I sometime buy prints that inspire me because I have stories in my head and the print sings to me about it - often times the artist would tell me those are original art. I like it.

>>9340448
i dont have ocs

>>9340390
beyond technical skill/style, i like cool abstract-ish concepts, or really nice setting/bg (so many artists skimp on or avoid doing nice settings for their characters, so I leap on art where it's carefully rendered). I also like animals when it's clear the artist has studied it (good anatomy, personality instead of bland pose, etc)
i'm also a slut for non-pin up style fantasy ladies.

>>9340390
I only buy items if I like the artists style. I've often bought fandom items I'm not interested in (the series I mean) or have no knowledge of, just because I exclusively liked the artwork

For me personally I find color choices and good coloring really bring me in. Painter-y styles are really beautiful but I also appreciate other kinds of styles, like really good inked black/white pieces are really nice as well.

I think the answer to your question will be really diverse because everyone has a different preference. Plus I think you will find artists will have a very different opinion vs the general public

>>9340390
If it's an art style I like. There really aren't other criteria. Don't care if it's an OC, I'll still buy it if it's well-done. I do tend to avoid anime style or overly cutesy shit just because that's not my cup of tea. I really like to see unique work because I think it says a lot about the artist and I've had great conversations with people about pieces that aren't fan art.

Idk I tend to buy more original art than fan art unless it's for a friend.

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You know what art style I'm SICK of seeing? This early 2000s western "kawaii" add a generic face to everything-style.
Its so outdated people, please stop.

>>9340892
this alongside call yourself some shit like 'kawaii chibi studios' needed to stay in the 2000s. I don't understand how some people can set out to be professional artists/a brand and name themselves shit like that.

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this is why i detest aani

>>9340390
More than stuff I'm drawn to I'd say I have a list of stuff that makes me immediately go NOPE, that being:

generic cute foods/animals
generic sexy/animu pinups
generic tumblr style

I really like art with actual backgrounds/environments, unique/realistic styles, and dark content.

ironically I've stopped doing art with real backgrounds because it takes me 4x the time and effort as a lazy animu pinup people will actually buy

>>9340951
THERE IS A SEARCH FUNCTION. I wish comments like this would just get deleted

>>9340951
Ugh no kidding, along with the non-AA posts (ie help with my cosplay!!). It used to be so much simpler and on-topic
...

>>9341040
Any question asked in AANI -- if it can be found with the search function-- should be warned and then deleted.

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>>9340390
I love original art that's pretty/aesthetically pleasing, but that's a given.

>pic related caught my eye in the ALA AA

On another note, I try to avoid buying too much fanart/stuff since I know I'll eventually end up grow out of fandoms and it'll end up in the trash or stuffed in a closet

>>9340423
basically this

>>9341334
>On another note, I try to avoid buying too much fanart/stuff since I know I'll eventually end up grow out of fandoms and it'll end up in the trash or stuffed in a closet
That's so true, that's also a deciding factor for me of what to buy and what not to buy.

I remember years ago, I picked up this original print of this ring leader and masked performer - I thought it was rather inspiring and interesting, couldn't go home without it.

>>9341334
I noticed myself doing that a lot with fanart, so now I limite myself only to fanart of stuff I've liked for a long, long time, or really sweet OC.

>>9340254
god I saw the same thing as ALA this weekend, just, so cringy.
On a personal note, is it weird to want to know where the vendor got their charms made because I'm worried about how durable they'll be, since I know some companies' keychains chip like crazy? Or is it kinda just a suck it up and deal situation.

>>9340892
Everything old is new again anon.

>>9341040

AANI has gotten to be so much less AA focused it seems. Still a lot of AA posts but too much cosplay, crafting, general art stuff. Go find an Etsy group.

>>9341421

If you want to ask where they're made make sure you phrase it to show you just want to know for quality purposes, as a consumer. You could always start off asking if they're Vograce and let the artist correct you if wrong.

>>9340390
Something cute but not cloying. A little roughness, like the look of ink brush. Good draftmanship, especially in the perspective and shape of human figures. Good use of color without overdoing it, like in some booths I've seen where a wall of moba/overwatch portraits is like staring into a kaleidoscope and you can barely tell where a background ends and a character begins. For me, fanart needs to be something I'm super into and/or really polished to make the leap. Good looking original stuff is easier to splurge on because I never know when I'll see something like it again.

A little repost from another thread, these are artists I have actually bought originals from in the last year.
http://riceonstacks.tumblr.com/
http://maruti-bitamin.tumblr.com/
http://eecks.tumblr.com/
http://maiji.tictail.com/
http://maydaydoodlez.tumblr.com/
https://6-hours.tumblr.com/

yall ready for animfest signups

>>9341671

I hope it's not the long form I remember from years past, but yes.

>>9341671
Are endcap booths for Afest two tables? I know a lot of cons do 2 tables for corner/endcaps but their site doesn't specify.

>>9341693
if you're asking about prices, idk
but literally, if i remember correctly endcap tables have always been one table. but that's if my memory serves me correct.

>>9341694
Thanks, it's my first time applying but I've heard decent things about Afest from friends. They mentioned that endcap prices are $125 and I was sitting here thinking that can't be two tables because it's only $25 more than a regular AA table.

>>9341699
afest is one of those its too goo to be true but it really is true type cons imo. table's are inexpensive but the crowd they bring in are actually willing to spend money. profits man i def recommend afest both as an attendee and vendor ((their guest list is also always high quality))

>>9341671
Can't decide if it's worth it to go to a con where I'm forced to man a table on Thursday, too, and I also have Otakon a week before, so nope.

>>9341703
Do you know if there are table restrictions or anything? I know some cons let you but up to 2 tables (especially since it's easier for artists to sit by each other this way instead of submitting seating requests and MAYBE getting to sit next to each other.) Sorry for all the questions - their website is a bit bare bones re: AA reg.

>>9341710
direct quote from the website "Limit one (1) booth space per vendor or organization." but it probably wouldn't hurt to email them about it after signing up. Something along the lines of "i want to connect tables with ____ so please seat me next to them" I don't beleive I've seen people do the connected tables at afest before, but that might be because there's a lot of space in between tables, like I can comfortable move in and out as well as have my suitcase and other luggage with me.
sorry if this doesn't answer your question;;

>>9341682
Holy shit, anon. You weren't kidding. That was super long.

>>9341671

Applied. Yup it was the long form.

>>9341682
That took me forever, I definitely didn't make the cut. Had no idea what to expect since I couldn't find info anywhere.

>>9341334
name of the artist that drew that image?

After all of those pages and pages and pages on the Animefest signup, I still don't even understand what format this AA is, like if I just applied for a juried con or if that was FCFS or what. What a mysterious website.

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I plan on getting some book marks printed as an easy quick-buy item (I can get like 15 designs printed on 11x17s and then just trim out)

I dont have a lot of time and dont want to go through the process of laminating them. The print place i use prints their 11x17s on 100lb glossy paper. I dont know shit about paper weights so is this thick enough to hold up as a bookmark?

>>9341824
100lb is fine

>>9341824
I'm pretty sure it's the same thickness as most comes-with-the-book bookmarks.

fuck i forgot about afest and just signed up. do they hit 200 applicants quick? i'm nearly 2 hours late lol

>>9341787
I believe this is them
>https://www.instagram.com/everydayemil/

Does cowcow normally take down a bunch of the products from their shop n tell deals? Coin purses and a few other things are gone.

>>9342417
I've never seen them do that. Maybe they only accept a certain volume of orders during each promotion. Honestly though, you should never order from them around the lunar new year though. They rush everything before and after and the print quality turns to garbage. (This goes for many other Chinese companies, not all, so just be cautious)

>>9342434
Oh true, I keep forgetting places are still on holiday for lunar new year. I don't need stock for another two months so I should be ok if that is it, just wanted to check.

>>9341801

From what I understand, it's probably FCFS but they check your gallery to make sure you're not breaking immediate AA rules. Because isn't FCFS jury just to make sure you're not doing traced art and that kinda thing? A-fest certainly doesn't care about quality.

>>9341849

You and everyone else. So many people forgot or seemed to think it would be at noon. This is why I checked the site 10 times, set an alarm, wrote a note, and cleared my calendar that night.

It seems like it probably sold out quick this year but there's no way to know.

I'm curious to know, do any of you find that your art appeals largely to one gender only, or do you have a pretty even mix of people buying at cons?

Guys don't like my art, and I've been wondering if it's weird to be missing out on 50% of the population/customers and to only have girls buy from me.

>>9342439
Yeah I'd wait 2-3 weeks.

A con about an hour away from me just opened their AA. They're a first year con, and want $75 for a table (including one badge). I don't know much about the city to know how many people to expect to show. I know the city has one other con, but they don't post attendance figures anywhere. The con seems promising because they have two sort of known voice actors, and Tokyo Attack will be there with their games, but I'm a little nervous about losing money if no one shows up.

Should I apply? Is it worth it?

>>9342855
That's pretty vague, so hard to say. Is this just a 1-day show or whole weekend? Is the con advertising/trying to promote itself pretty well, any kind of facebook page you can see potential numbers?

for me, $75 is basically nothing and an amount worth losing even if all I get out of it is knowledge instead of $

>>9342861
Sorry, it's a 3 day event called Hazard Con. Their Facebook only has around 100 likes, but they seem to be promoting themselves pretty well. I heard of them from a friend that lives 10 hours from the con.

I think I'll just go ahead and apply.

>>9342855
$75 incl. badge for a three day small con seems reasonable. I would take the risk, especially if the con is so close and you don't have to spend on travel/hotel.

>>9342853
it depends on the event but I have a pretty even mix, I would say slightly more guys honestly. My table is largely videogame based content though (league of legends, overwatch, MGS, etc).
Although just in regard to my original art, girls buy 90% of it. Guys tend to only buy 'original' originals - like OOAK canvases and stuff.

>>9342853
I only offer commissions but I honestly never expected so many guys to buy them when I started. They also spend more to get larger pictures of their moe waifus. Some girls would buy more detailed stuff, but they're the only ones that bought chibis. I don't mind at all since I thought my cute style would appeal just to women and men wouldn't even look.

>friend decided to sign up for a first year local con
>"expected to draw in more than 20K attendandees"
>located at an Uni in the shit part of town.
>sign-ups require PDF emailed in.
>$250 for a 4' table, no information on if badges are included
>requires 50% deposit mailed-in check.

My friend just got accepted and wants me to share the table to split the cost. There's so many fucking red flags I just want to tell them to drop that con.

Has anyone ever signed up and tabled at a con like this?

>>9343057
Are you sure this isn't a front or just a flat out scam? You're a fucking retard if you go along with this, just so you know. She's your friend but you can only stop her from doing so much. If she gets scammed, so be it. You don't need to get scammed with her.

>>9342853
I'd say that other than one specific print-duo I have on my table, that doesn't really fit the pattern of my normal stuff, 85% of my sales are to men.

Furthermore, it feels like the majority of that 85% are probably /a/utists or similar. It's almost funny how quickly my helpers will pick up the pattern of what my customers look/act like.

>>9343057
I wouldn't do it just by what you mentioned already - sounds shady and a half on top of that with the mail-in check lol.(can't get refunds once that has been cashed)

Is the address some PO BOX as well?

>>9343057
Nonononono. Sounds shady as hell.

>>9342853
I haven't noticed a slant towards either side, at least in person. Online, I tend to have more men buying/interested in my art but I'm not sure if it's because my work is more horror based or what. Even with that being said, it's not a significant difference.

I really think it depends on the art style. Some men are likely to bypass anything too cute unless it's ~my waifu~ type stuff.

>>9342853
I sell super cute stuff and I always thought the same thing but men have bought rings and hair clips from me to wear for themselves. It's the best.

>>9343230
Ive had this happen! Only a few times but it makes me so happy <3
At a con last year I actually saw a really well dressed brolita who was chill. First time seeing one irl.

>>9343230
That's awesome! I also sell super cute art and men usually take one glance and walk away as fast as they can, haha. Although that could also be because I'm a guy so it's the cute art factor + they don't want to catch the gay from me.

>>9343057
what con is it? I'd love to see it.

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>>9343092
>>9343178
I've convinced my friend to drop that con. It's definitely not worth the risk for $250.
>>9343170
surprisingly no, not a PO box, seems like someone's apartment or something. (Had a suite # in the address)
>>9343397
Boroughcon. They say it's sponsored by Funimation and crunchyroll but there's no actual proof.

Picture included of a flier that they sent out that wasn't even half finished.

>>9343451
Also forgot to mention that the con is 3 months away and there's no information on their site about ticket prices, panels, or guests.

>>9343451
Are you fucking serious, they sent this out?? I'm dying

>>9343451
>that bldg. on google maps doesn't look like it can hold 20,000 people.

man idk...typically on campus held events I've seen at least had a front people locals can recognize and trust it'll be a real deal and usually tables are free/voluntary lolol...this idk, if the organizers are people you never heard of - be prepared to risk $125

>>9342865
Eh, I applied too. Worst case scenario you break even, best case the people that it attracts has more money to spend because its cheaper. It can back fire if the attendees are broke but I only had one instance I lost money and that was because the con lied about attendence.

>>9343451
wow, they advertise that 20,000 number on their front page. What drugs are they on that they think a first year mediocre con is going to bring in 20,000? Even huge established cons in atlanta only get 20k to 30k attendance. First year cons, even in big cities, are lucky to get over 1,000 people.
Also, wtf that flier.

>>9343451
Loving that filler text guests and events.

>>9343523
the last few cons at a university, people never spent - majority that showed up were high school kids and college students that came to mostly hang out and check out events...most were happy to either made enough for lunch or dinner.

>>9342853

I draw BL fanart (both shippy fandom things and fanart of actual BL series) so my audience is 90% female.

I do have a small audience of male customers who do buy the BL and they are some of my best customers if they are willing to stop. The other male customers I have come in big, mixed gender groups so the guys will buy my few non-BL items and the girls usually go for the BL. Many a time I've seen guys who clearly are interested in my art, but get shamed by their friends for even looking at my stuff. It actually makes me really sad and I haven't quite found a way to really say, "Please come back, I won't shame you!" I've wondered if I need to offer discreet packaging for all the closet fudanshi.

>>9343393 Tbh the men never look at me. Just the art lol. Most are dragged by an excited gf, but I do get the men and they're other guy friends that are like "that's cute. I need it". I'm happy I don't have to limit myself like I thought I needed to.

>>9342853
I get a pretty even mix of people with maybe a slight slant toward female customers - but only because women tend to outnumber men at most cons I've been to. I have a wide variety of fandoms though and noticed that those tend to skew one way or the other. I find that it's the subject matter rather than my art style that dictates which gender's buying what.

One Punch Man, My Hero Academia, and Steven Universe tend to draw in more male customers for me.

Yuri on Ice, DC Comics, Star Wars, and my originals (generally cutesy animals/pin ups) tend to get more female customers. when I used to carry Haikyuu and Yowapeda stuff that also slanted heavily female.

Overwatch, Fallout, and general western TV shows/comics have about an even split. Fire Emblem is also an even split because everyone has waifus/husbandos.

>>9342853
I've found that my customers are split pretty solidly 50/50. I draw things in a pretty "neutral" style, and mostly have Overwatch, Steven Universe, and Undertale merch.
Oddly enough, most of my customers who want Steven Universe stuff are men.

>>9342853
I get a pretty even mix, probably helps that the style I draw in is pretty neutral. I draw a lot of Jojo so it has a lot of appeal across the board, as well as some other fandoms that are pretty liked by all (TF2, Pokemon, Transformers, Punpun, etc). Interestingly more of my original horror-ish stuff is purchased by female customers.

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just why bother

>"we need a blurb about yourself so we can add you to the list of sellers!"
>running out of ways to say "im a faggot who draws big old burly baras for other homos and sometimes fujoshits"

it sounds so shitty and pandering to say something like "an artist who focuses on lgbt+ art" but that's the most professional way i can think of wording it.

>>9344602
Makes me feel a little salty seeing this because I tried to join the AANI group, but was rejected for some reason. At the same time, maybe getting rejected was a blessing.

To everyone who says finding resources for things is easy, yesterday I wasted like 5 hours trying to find where on alibaba people are getting those custom shape cushion/pillowcases printed. This must be the holy grail of sources or something, jesus.

>>9344730
Don't a lot of people just use getmeds for those?

>>9343847
>Fallout
I hate to be that bitch, but do you have an online store? I can never get to cons, but started a Fallout itabag and love to buy from gulls.

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Okay I'm going to be asking some dumb questions about banners because I've never hung a banner or made one.

I have an idea for a banner and I've already bought the fabric. Originally i wanted to make it like the bottom picture and use a wooden dowel to hang it up, but I havent been able to find one long enough. If I am unable to find a dowel, could a run string through it and have it be taut enough to not sag? Or would it be best to hang it up with 4 loops in each corner like the middle photo?

Also should I put interfacing inside the banner to help it keep its shape or is this a bad idea?

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>>9344901
Do you have a Daiso near you? They sell retractable/telescoping curtain rods and that's what I use in my apartment for my curtains. I feel like that would be more than long enough for your display. Alternatively, PVC pipes will also definitely be long enough. If you plan on using string - try to use something with a bit of weight. One of my friends does mostly screen-printed shirts for her AA set up and she uses string like in this picture across the top of her display. It's strong enough for her to clip several t-shirts on to them and still hold the tautness so it should work for what you have planned.

>>9344781
Unfortunately, I don't have anything that would work for an itabag. Sorry, anon! I just carry a Nick Valentine daki for one of my friends.

>>9344918
Oh gosh the telescoping rod is genius! I do have a daiso near me which is where I pick up a ton of AA display stuff. Thank you so much for the idea, I will have to take a look there!

Does anyone here do tshirts for AA?

My day job is working at screen printing company and I'm thinking about adding shirts to my table I'm just trying to get an idea of what is a reasonable amount of what sizes to bring. I've seen a few AA tables with at least a dozen designs and I'm curious as to how much stock they actually keep with them

>>9344614

So I would say something like "My work focuses on bara themes and features musuclar men drawn from an LGBT perspective" because it's relevant that you yourself (from what it seems) are in that community and it's worth saying you draw bara. Both legitimize the other to fans who are in the know and because bara is an often ignored genre, it'll catch people's attention. It's not really pandering in my opinion.

I say bara in the Japanese genre sense, because bara is not an adjective for character descriptions or body types. If you're just drawing muscular, burly men it's still bara, but the men would be called gachimuchi. Sorry if that comes across as know it all, but it's a pet peeve of mine when people call characters "baras."

>>9344957
I did 2 runs of a couple shirts and had like 2-5 of all sizes. the ones that sell the most are medium-xl

>>9345023
that... actually helps a lot, anon. thanks!

>>9344957
>My day job is working at screen printing company
do you work on direct to garment printers?? or traditional screens and ink

>>9345120
Both, we have a guy who does traditional screens and inks and we also have a digital printer, they're both technically their own business' and will give discounts. I figure if the designs are one color I'll suck it up and do screen printing, and if its overly complicated i'll do the $5 a shirt for digital

>>9344678
Honestly didn't know you can get rejected, I mean... there are people on there who got in, why not you?

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I see a lot of sad things on AANI, but this is by far the saddest.

Just thinking about working on art for 7 years and having no improvement makes me cringe

>>9344730
Oh, interesting. I was gonna post here about those. I think I found a seller. I'm waiting to hear back for a sample and was thinking about putting together a group order probably here and maybe on twitter. Will keep you updated!

>>9344767
The GetMeds ones are ok, but my friend has done some that are a lot softer and bigger. Also if you go directly, there's a greater profit margin. Overall, cushions are not super profitable, but they're fun and cute, so being able to profit even a couple dollars more is kind of a plus.

>>9345412
her art got even worse...
The shading is so weird to me on the 2nd one.

>>9345412
Eh. I have a hard time pointing fingers considering my own trajectory isn't exactly a perfect uphill slope either.

>>9345412
wow. It looks like she still follows burn tool shading tutorials from deviantart from 2003... it seriously feels like she must be one of those artists who only draws 3-5 times a year. I can't imagine staying so stagnant for so long otherwise.

>>9345430
I think it depends on the fandom in terms of pillows. I recently took a gamble with a pillow vendor and ordered 15 pieces for a few of my charm designs and sold out of them early day 2 of a con, but I think it's because the fandom is blowing up right now in terms of hype and there isn't much merch of it from what I've seen the last couple of months.

>>9345469
fandom for custom shaped pillows?

>>9345466
>artists who only draws 3-5 times a year
D-do these actually exist? I understand people only doing very few completed works a year, but actually drawing very rarely sounds unimaginable for me.

>>9345469
Well, I mean in terms of cost to price, not popularity. Getmeds are $10 each, which you can still get some sort of profit off of if you sell all your stock, but it's not like a huge profit margin. If you get them directly from a vendor for like $5-$7 each that's a couple more dollars in your pocket but again, probably not the highest margin you can get, esp since prints and keychains still dominate in terms of cost to sale, if that makes sense.

>>9345476
I'm pretty sure they mean the subject of your art. Like for example A Fandom might do really well as pillows because the fandom itself is popular. While B Fandom pillows might not do as well because B Fandom is not as popular.

Also, I'm in agreement with >>9345469. I've been doing pillows recently as well and I always sell out of at least one design at every con I've been to. They've been selling like hotcakes online as well.

>>9345481
Some people just like the title, and telling people that they're an "artist", but they don't feel the drive to constantly make stuff that most artists do. That's also why some people go years without improving.

>>9345492
How much did you or your friend sell your pillows for, anon? I don't use GetMeds and price my pillows around $30 each, and I only needed to sell like 5 to cover all the costs of production. At my last con my charms and pillows were my bread winners since I sold out of several designs for both merch types. My prints were just a little slower than usual. I think it was mentioned a few threads ago, but there seems to be a shift in misc merch since people may be running out of room to put up prints, or want to have something they can use on the daily

>>9345506
Not the anon you're talking to but pillows and notebooks were I sold the best at my last con with charms coming in second. I've also noticed a definite downswing in print sales.

>>9343731
You could coerce them to take your business card by standing up or holding it out to them in your hand and say "Please, take a card!". Maybe ever so slightly desperate tone so they're pseudo-guilted into taking to be polite.

Then on the back of the card have the text:
"Feel a little embarrassed? Please come again later, you won't be judged!" Maybe with a little drawing of a storekeeper bowing rather than something like a winky face.

Plain brown paper bags or envelopes might be good packaging.

>>9345506
The prices I've been seeing are $25 for the GetMeds ones (maybe some people sell them for $30?) and $30-$35 for doublesided.

I've never done cushions so I don't know from experience, but just based on costs, I'm assuming that the profit margin is not as high (again, in comparison to prints). Like either way, you're paying more to manufacture the product, and the price you can sell it at is only so many times more than that base cost (in this case, 2~6x the base cost, as opposed to, say, 10~15x the base cost of prints).

>>9345530
We rehash this every single time it comes up in these threads but your argument only works if you're selling a ton of prints. It doesn't matter how big the profit margin is if no one is buying.

I did mainly prints and charms and introduced pillows recently. I made three times the profit at a local con this year than I did last year when I only had prints and charms. My pillows actually moved. My print sales were down in comparison to last year. And from the general seagull consensus it seemed like other print artists are starting to notice a general decline in print sales.

My pillows cost about $3 to manufacture and like the other anon, I sell mine for $30. That's x10 the base cost. Even with the increased production cost, it's pretty profitable.

>>9345530
I can see your thought process! But really even if it is more to manufacture pillows vs. making prints, my profit margins for pillows blew out my print profit margins out of the park considerably. My prints were a little slow though, so that may be the reason why. It's worth the investment because I made 2k easy off of sales + people asking if they can preorder for sold out pillows at the con. It's nice to have them too imo because it's kind of an attention grabber and I put signs saying people can pick them up and try holding one to see if they like the texture/amount of stuffing. I like to use it to as conversations starters, so it's also a nice way of initiating convos with potential customers. But to each their own I guess, hope you try out pillows again and enjoy selling them!

>>9345562
Not everybody is lucky enough to find a manufacturer that can get them done that cheap. A lot of us are stuck either sewing them ourselves with spoonflower fabric (extra cost of time and labor) or going through group orders/getmeds which costs a hell of a lot more.

>>9345469
Are you the ALA artist who had FFXV charms and pillows? I've always wondered about overlapping different products with the same designs (not just print sizes), but I guess the unique product types and price points attract different customers. Congrats on selling out!

>>9345430
Awesome! I hope the seller works out, I'd love to see the samples here if they send them to you.

>>9345575
I go through group orders too. Ordering in bulk with other artists is what makes the production costs so cheap. Getmeds is a middleman service so if you use them, that's not necessarily going to be the same as your traditional GO because you're paying them for a service. The extra middleman costs are what makes production costs so high. I'm able to bargain my unit price down by doing huge group orders and skipping out on the middleman.

>>9345562
>>9345530
Fair enough. Prints still sell pretty well for me, so I'm a little more cautious when it comes to new products.

At the same time, >>9345575 is also correct. If you can't find a decent manufacturer or are stuck with Spoonflower/GetMeds, the profits aren't as easy even if cushions sell really well. With that in consideration, I'd consider cushions as more a labor of love than something done for pure profit.

>>9345567
>>9345562
It'd be amazing if the AA market moves towards non-print stuff, saying this as both a customer and seller. I like the variety of practical stuff I've seen lately. Getting a nice variety of items on your table makes it easier to have something for everyone. Plus it looks a lot more professional imo than only paper based stuff.

>>9345585
I feel the same, but branching out in products can also be a pretty big financial investment/gamble. If prints don't go well you know there at least wasn't a huge cost in getting them made, and leftover prints don't take up much space, either.

>>9345587
I feel this so much. I really want to invest in getting more practical stuff done - notebooks, stationary, etc) but the market is so fickle and it's such an investment.

>>9345584
Yeah, I will concede the point that affordable pillow production is not as readily accessible as affordable print production. However, that doesn't mean it doesn't exist and can be a pretty good source of profit as >>9345567
mentioned.

>>9345585
I love the trend toward a less traditional non-print market as well. It does make me a little antsy about future restrictions/crackdowns. Especially because a lot of comic book conventions are moving to be strictly 2D only and I'm wondering if any anime cons are going to follow suit soon.

>>9345577
whoops, ya got me, I am that artist LMAO desu I was a little worried too because I definitely thought people were more inclined to buy the cheaper option, but a lot of customers were super interested in the pillows and disappointed when they found out I sold out of their favorite character. It could honestly be luck on my end, but my online sales have been really great still with the pillows and charms both available for people's choosing. Thanks for support!

>>9345585
Agreed. I introduced notebooks and pillows to my inventory and it really has made a difference to the traffic I get. As a customer I love prints, but I also like being able to use the stuff I buy at cons like memo pads, mousepads, books, etc. I hope more artists become ambitious and make different types of merch! It definitely catches my eye more than a table that is strictly prints

>>9345589
To be fair, I think sales for prints are still more consistent for comic conventions where the culture is a little more geared towards an "art for arts' sake" attitude. Could also be that the attendees for comic cons tends to skew older, which means more disposable income.

Hard to say for anime cons, though. I'd assume maybe the bootlegging issue might move anime con AA's towards a crackdown on non-2D merch.

>>9345601
I do a fair amount of comic cons and while everything you said about the attitude toward art and general attendee demographics are true, a lot of the convention heads themselves make the distinction between artists and crafters. And if you have 3d stuff - they don't want you in their print only AA.

Also 100% absolutely agree on the bootlegging issue. To be fair, a lot of them only ban something if the IP already has existing merch in the same vein. I think acrylic charms should be in the clear because the styles are usually so distinctly different from the original IP but rubber/PVC straps are definitely "grey market"/borderline bootlegging.

I think the pillows should be okay as well because technically they're not "plush" as defined by licensors but if you're actually manufacturing fandom plush (the ones made from a pattern with actual limbs as opposed to a character pillow case that is stuffed) you might be in trouble. I've seen someone sell manufactured Haikyuu plush at AA tables and that seems like a copyright/licensing disaster waiting to happen.

>>9345590
>ya got me
Hah awesome, I figured I'd ask. I'd like to eventually branch out to notebooks and maybe pillows but I agree with >>9345587 that it's a gamble. If it's alright to ask, did you have a low profit margin for your pillows or were you able to find a low cost supplier?

I do think a lot of people unsuccessful people who jump on new product bandwagons don't put enough consideration into their designs and treat all their product types the same. You can tell a majority of artists don't take full creative advantage of the different properties each item has and just wants to be able to say they have the cool new thing.

I'm trying to place an order on catprint and was wondering if it would be okay to submit RGB files. Whenever I get last minute photo prints from Walgreens, RGB looks more accurate than the muddy CMYK I get from PS. Should I convert to CMYK for Catprint or would RGB be actually better?

>>9345481
To own my mistakes, yes, artists that only draw a few times a year exist, and I've been one for a couple years before. I was working full time in Graphic Design, and didn't have it in me to spend all day in a creative industry and come home and try and shit out even more visual creative stuff. I turned to writing instead of drawing, because I really needed a release hobby that was different enough my brain didn't keep gearing itself as being in "work mode" every time I sat down to do something fun.

Now that my day job is primarily coding (more back end web stuff than front end) I can enjoy sitting down at my tablet again, which has been very good for my art output and improvement.

>>9345643
The first time I ordered I actually forgot to convert to CMYK but they all looked totally fine when I got them. So now I just leave them in RGB.

>>9341865
>https://www.instagram.com/everydayemil/
thanks!

Has anyone here ever done art shows or zine shows? I was accepted into one and I figured I'd just sell some sketchbooks of personal drawings, but looking at the other participants it seems like it leans heavily to people making zines about their experiences. I guess that may just not be the right environment for my stuff (which isn't political or personal) so it might be weird...

>>9344678
If your FB profile is private, it's one of the reasons you'll get rejected. They need to confirm you're a real person and not some kind of bot. I got rejected for that reason but I sent a message to one of the mods and made one public post linking to my business.

I've been making holographic buttons on my tecre press lately and I've noticed about 50% of them come out fucked up. The mylar doesn't get fully tucked under the edge, I'm guessing it's the printer paper and holographic laminate being too thick together to fully press. I've tried trimming the paper smaller than the 1.629" circle template but it doesn't seem to do much.

Anyone else had this issue or have possible solutions?

>>9346307
I think with that you just have to put a bit more pressure when punching the holographic buttons. I found that if I don't press hard enough I'll end up with that same problem.

>>9345629
my profit margin was extremely high! I'm the same anon in >>9345506 and >>9345567, and the pillow sales tripled the amount I made at ALA last year. I don't have the supplier because I made the pillows on a whim when a friend told me they found a group order doing them back in December. I didn't pay more than $3/pillow though, and I mentioned before I only had to sell a few to cover all the costs of production to make the pillows.

I agree about the the bandwagoning and the stress of making a gamble... I was worried about pillows but was presently surprised! I have done notebooks too and while they do sell a little slower for me in comparison to my other friends', I still like having a variety of products to interest multiple demographics. Good luck finding a supplier and taking risks with your merch!

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I just got called "stingy" for making tiny originals on scrap paper so I don't waste it. They're the size of trading cards and I sell them for £1 each, yet apparently because it's paper that would otherwise be thrown away being given another chance at life, I'm cheap.

I'm curious about your thoughts on this, gulls.

>>9346525
tell em to fuck off

>>9346525
why anyone would care what you draw on... especially if ppl are buying it. Only critic would be if it clearly looks like ...3 hole punch/line ruled paper being sold in aa

>>9346525
Eh, at that price point you can't really expect much as a customer. People will find something to complain about. If the paper quality is crap I could maybe understand it.
I actually appreciate if artists are conscious of wasting resources. But I'm kind of a hippie.

>>9346566
>>9346568
>>9346569
It's the same paper I make my "main pieces" on (so, Arches watercolour paper in various weights and bristol board). not cheap shit, which is why I'm a little reluctant to just throw it.

Nice to know it's just them being weird about it.

>>9346572
Dang, I'd honestly buy that

>>9346572
Oh heck, yea good on you for not wasting Arches. That stuff is nice af anon

Do any of you have a 'mimic' artist alley friend....? or am I just overreacting?
A friend I met at college is also an artist and as soon as she learned I did AA she sort of assigned me as her 'senpai'. I was really hyped at the beginning because I didn't have any close AA friends, just the regular faces that come from doing cons multiple years in a row.

I didn't even mind all the 'you could've definitely googled this' questions because I was like that as an AA noob. My sources aren't exactly secret, I use the same as everyone else + a couple of less popular/known alibaba sellers.

None of which is the issue....the issue is that it feels like she's either trying to take over or directly compete with me. Everytime I do new merchandise she does the exact same. I'm doing new YOI charms? So is she. I do food based sticker sets, she produces some of her own next con. I'm introducing notebooks with designs from fandom x, y, z ? guess what she's doing... (examples are kept vague for the sake of anonymity, in reality it's things from older/more obscure fandoms, some of which i KNOW she had no interest in until I produced merch of it, so it's not an issue of us both doing FOTM merch)

She's not copying my art/style so it's not so blatant as that but I'm honestly at the point where I don't reveal a majority of my new stuff until i've sold it at least one con.

I don't know how to tell her to stop. Should I just suck it up? For the most part we're both doing fanart so it's not like i have 'more of a right' to do it than her, it's just so obvious that she's getting her ideas from me.

>>9346720
I'm not sure if there's a way to confront her unless you're willing to deal with the fallout and of course possibly losing her friendship. Maybe start focusing on more original works so if she does continue copying you can call her out on it? I know it's really shitty but it's harder to confront someone when you're both doing something that's of an established series (whether niche or not.) Recently I met someone at a convention who I really loved, and they inspired me to do some work from a series they covered. It was something I wanted to do for a while, but seeing their awesome interpretation just gave me that final shove to go ahead and pursue it. I don't know the dynamics of you and your friend, but try and look at it as a semi positive thing, like, you're an inspiration to her. Is she copying your designs and elements as well or is she just doing things from series you are doing? I guess if she's at least trying to make something her own, even if it's inspired (as in the material/characters/series she covers) by your work, then that should be okay. If not and if it's really grinding your gears that much, why not confront her? Don't turn it into some big drama fest, and if you're listing your concerns reasonably and she's really your friend then she will listen.

>>9346720
I know people who split tables will agree on who gets what fandoms to keep themselves from competing for sales. Just come up with a list of fandoms you're both interested in and then split it evenly for future prints/products, it's reasonable to me.

>>9346720
Just be upfront but you may want to do a compliment sandwich approach. l

"hey anon I see that you've grown your skills so much that its a bit disappointing that you seem to be following my production outputs. I can understand that there are some fandoms that are so popular that we both can take advantage of but I think its time that you branch out to the fandoms you love and get inspired from them. If you need advice I'm here for you but you don't need to follow my product line so closely. You've got the instincts and skills so use them!"

>>9345729
Did they have to review your work before they accepted you? If so, it's probably fine. Likely there will be other people selling sketchbooks and the like as well.

>>9346720
Ugh, I've seen people go through this before. Honestly, there are two possibilities here. First, is she kind of young? You said college, so maybe you were a couple years in and she's a freshman or something? Kind of lacking in artistic/social experience? If this is the case then she's probably just being overly clingy and has latched on to you as her teacher figure in the AA world. Talking to her gently about artist etiquette is a good idea, it's like the Birds and the Bees talk except for fanartists.

If she's your age or older though this behavior sets off red flags. First she made you "senpai", and made you feel like you are above her. Now she's ripping you off and because she maneuvered you into a position "above" her it probably feels wrong to complain to her, am I right? But if she's a classmate and not a much younger one then she is a grown ass adult and she should be fully aware of what she's doing. Basically it sounds like you could be getting manipulated anon. Be leery of this friend.

>>9345729
Alternatively you could be the one who sticks out *because* your stuff isn't so heavy.

>>9346572
Yeah those people can go fuck themselves. Arches is not cheap and it's a great quality paper to begin with.

>>9345729
I actually considered applying to a zine show, but figured I didn't have a lot of comics or zine-y print stuff yet so I didn't apply. Went to the show anyway, and a lot of tables were about regular AA tables. No huge print walls or anything, but pretty much people selling prints/bags/minibooks/pokemon/fotm stuff. It was fun, def applying to the next one.

>>9346720
This reminds me of one of my friends that always mimics my social media. She's not super involved online so I'm basically her only source for things. Like if I make a sales post she'll basically use it as a template for her own, same with my profile bio's. (she literally copy and pasted my about me and just replaced the name/details) I don't think she's doing it on purpose because she doesn't follow many people, so she probably thinks whatever I do is how you're "supposed" to do things. Could be a similar case with your friend? She might be assuming whatever new thing you come out with is a trend that everyone is doing and she just wanted to hop on the bandwagon. I would definitely say something about competing merch though, that's a totally valid complaint people want to avoid when tabling together.

>>9346720

If she's really your friend, then I doubt she's doing it with any bad intentions. You just need to be honest with her and tell her that while you're happy she trusts your judgment and uses you as an example to look up to, just following what you do could hurt your business and hurt her ability to produce her own unique content.

Yo anyone else sign up for a texas tax id for akon and they apparently sold your phone number because me and my roommate wont stop getting random calls from texas numbers.

>>9347784

Yeah, same for me. It'll be an OK tradeoff as long as I can get in, but I'm going to be extra butthurt if I don't get in this year and have to put up with all these spam calls for nothing, fuck.

>>9347784
the state gives the phone number away to other businesses as public records
those are businesses trying to sell you on getting their services (such as cable or internet

My phone wouldn't stop ringing for months after I signed up for one

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What do you think of suggestive/R18 works in the AA?
And on that note, doujinshi?
(I'm someone who does search for those things in the AA so I am wondering about its prevalencey.)

MTAC, please, you were 2 months late opening your AA applications, now its been over 2 weeks and still no acceptance/denial e-mails.
The con is 2 months away, I can't get a hotel until I know if I'm accepted or not, and this close to the con it is going to be harder to find a hotel. ugh, rip.

>>9347869

As far as suggestive things go, DESU I'm sick of seeing walls of big cow titty prints with tastefully placed sticky notes and barrel-chested buffman dakimakura, but that's just my personal taste and it's not like it's out of place or anything.

On the other hand, I would LOVE to see doujinshi of any rating or make some myself, but it's a hard thing to get people to buy/ask about if you don't already have a big following.

>>9347869
I personally don't mind seeing suggestive/R18 things and sometimes wish people would make more suggestive things but keep them behind the table. I like the idea and even if it's just a suggestive meme type item like a button etc but maybe not have it hanging from the highest point where kids can see. I guess if you're gonna do the tiddy bewb daki with post-it stickies, maybe have it places a little further behind your table instead of in front of your G rated prints. I know for some customers it can be a turn off or people might be too embarrassed to approach. I'm talking more like adults with their girl/boyfriend who get weird/threatened by certain items. At Wondercon last year, I heard a lot of people passing an artist's table that had tasteful prints but because a male character had a juicy ass, a lot of guys got weird and even mocked the art/their girlfriends who wanted to buy it and it was weird to witness.

Anyway, doujin is something I always wish people would make, even just slice of life. I wish it was more of a western thing but I understand that it's super labor intensive and can be expensive to make. Doujins in the west anyway are typically just called fanbooks even if they're just a one shot comic like most doujins.

>>9347842
jokes on you texas, im in fucking nevada you motherfucker

How many of you fly to cons? What's the smallest con size you'll fly in for? Smallest I've done is 6k attendance and I'm debating whether or not to apply for one that is about 4k in attendance.

>>9348031
6k is the smallest i've done and only upon good recommendation of a friend. would not bother with similar sizing unless a trusted friend could give me numbers.

>>9347993
congratulations

>>9348031
I fly to every convention, I don't go if it's under 10k unless I have friends I can stay with to help lower the costs

>>9348031
I have to fly to every con I go to because the only local con is Sakuracon and I can never get in. The only thing that will get me out to a con under 10K is if I have a lot of new merch I want to test out before a bigger, more expensive con.

>>9348031
con attendance doesn't really mean much. Ask around and see other artist do at that con. I've made $1,500 at a con with 20,000+ attendance and $3,000 at a con with ~6,000 (and would have made more if I had more inventory).

>>9346307
Why are you laminating them twice?

>>9348409
I'm not, I'm printing the buttons, cutting them out in my graphic punch, then putting the cold laminate holographic sheet on and trimming them down again. Then I press the button in my tecre machine.

>>9346314
For some reason the amount of pressure doesn't help. It's always the same part of the button that the mylar gets pulled up on.

>>9348442
Have you tried laying the laminate first then doing the machine? Also maybe it's the laminate itself?

>>9348442
dont put mylar on buttons that already have laminate on them

also grease your button machine

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What are some things you hate about other artists whether it's online or in person?

>>9346720
this happened to me with someone I met once. She asked for my tumblr but never followed it. The next event we tabled at, she had similar products with the same characters. She was the kind of person who acted really clueless/innocent but other people besides me knew she really wasn't. Luckily she doesn't go to any of the major cons that I frequent.

>>9348490
>things I hate
>when artists don't put in any effort into their products and whine when they don't make enough money
>artists who have a meltdown if they lose a follower

>>9348490
technique/aesthetic wise
- that fucking '3d' blur effect
- watching a ross draws video and mimicking the image/texture integration without doing any of the actual decent rendering to cover it up
- sakimichan knock offs
- blatant hiding of shitty anatomy in anime styles rather than attempting to learn decent fundamentals (see: overuse of patterns, every character wears elaborate outfits, thigh up only, hands have that melted-together barbie hand look, etc )
- terrarium charms

behaviour wise:
- guilt tripping people into funding their kickstarter/patreon or whatever - seen some artists spamming about how sad they are and how much it will crush them if they don't get funded )':
- WHERE DO U GET UR ENAMEL PINS DONE??/?
- western amateur male comic artists who think that 2k likes on facebook make them a Brand
- being obnoxious and trying too hard to be a saleperson and driving people away instead

>>9348450
>>9348454
You just use the holo adhesive as your plastic covering? Also the machine is only about a month old and came well greased. I'll try skipping the mylar, thanks for the help.

>>9348490
When they post selfies on their art blog. I hate it because it's never just one. They post one and if even one person says they're cute then you can expect at least ten more, and suddenly I'm following a 50/50 art/selfie blog. In the same vein, when they don't have a separate blog for their art so it's all mixed in with personal posts.

>>9348490
In Person
- Trying to guilt-trip or force people into buying their wares. Lines like "Buy something, I have to eat tonight" or calling out to customers across the aisle
- Related to the above, table neighbors who will call your customers away from your table when you're about to make a sale
- This is specifically a comic book convention thing but: western/indie artist snobbery. People who think anime/fanart isn't "real art" and having their own shitty self-published indie zine makes them more legitimate than you. (These people also turn around and throw tantrums about how they don't make money and all those fanartists are stealing their thunder.)
- Artists who ask for sources/manufacturers in front of other customers. Probably never sharing sources with you ever. Have the tact to come after hours or catch me before the con opens.
- Neighbors who let their shit spill into your area behind the tables without apologizing or noticing that they're taking up your space.


Online
- Prevalent on AANI, but people who assume you do trades/demand to do trades without ever having met you in person because they like your SPS. Get your entitled asses out of here.
- Asking for sources publicly instead of sending a PM. Forgetting to make small talk when doing so like complimenting the artwork first and reassuring the artist that they don't need to share if they feel uncomfortable before delving straight into WHERE DID YOU GET THAT MADE?
- Might be an unpopular opinion but people who argue that artists should be apolitical/stay out of politics. It's fine if you don't want to do anything political with your art for your brand or whatever but don't try to police what other people draw. Art has a long history with politics and if people want to draw something as a response to the current political climate, that's their choice.

Technique-wise, I'm tired of seeing people who can't digitally paint try to digitally paint. And then selling their muddily-shaded messes to people.

>>9348568
Yeah, it's very annoying to see this happen on tumblr. I don't mind this on Instagram since it's harder to manage multiple Instagram accounts and I follow artists on Instagram expecting to see personal stuff too. It takes all of a minute to make a second blog on tumblr. Reblog your stuff to your personal if that one has more followers. Come on now.

>>9348569
I agree with you entirely except for your last point. Everyone starts somewhere. I'm decent now but my first forays into digital painting with absolute shit (and arguably most of what I produced for my first alley, although that was 5ish years ago)

>>9348490
online:
>I know this could be solved with a quick search, but...
NOPE, JUST STOP THERE

In person:
getting a douchey table neighbor. I understand it's a business and we're all competing for customers, but I'm always friendly, and it sucks when the person next to me has a stick up their ass or thinks they're too good to talk to me.

>>9348572
Oh I should have clarified - I'm talking about people who have been doing this for years/do this as a main source of income but don't try to get better because they can shit out FOTM merch and get away with it.

To be frank, this was a specific dig at a girl I know who tries to make her art very "sparkly" but pays no attention to anatomy and it's very obvious that she did not spend her time rendering anything. People who are obviously new/starting to learn shouldn't be shamed, I agree.

>>9348490
art wise
- chromatic abomination
- blurring everything but the face of the subject way too much

behavior
- being rude to people who compliment your art
- acting superior because you don't draw in a certain style (anime)
also, my favorite:
>i-it's my style, you don't understand!
or
>i don't want to draw realism!
in response to concrits about improving their (the artist's) fundies.

>>9348527
> artists who have a meltdown if they lose a follower
God, I followed someone like this and found out later they were one of the ones responsible for running one of my favorite artists out of tungle for some inane reason.

>>9347869
This reminds me of something I've been thinking about. When it comes to western doujinshi/fancomics, should it be left-to-right or right-to-left? I feel like doing it the og Japanese way might be pretentious, but at the same time it might be awkward to make it left-to-right when most manga fans are used to reading it the other way.

>>9348595
You knowwhat... Korean manghwa are left to right so you do what you feel is most comfortable. left right: Korea, right left: Japan.

>>9348442

What's your paper weight? I use light weight paper when doing both the holographic film and mylar. I haven't had any mess ups in like 500-700 holograpic buttons I've made? Good luck anon

>>9348970
I'm just using normal 20lb paper, nothing special. Yea I never see anyone complaining about holo buttons which is why I'm certain I'm fucking something up.

>>9348563
yep, even when the mylar does work the laminate has a weird interaction with the mylar which makes a rainbow oil slick look. laminate protects it just as well

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>>9348558
>>9348590
found this on /ic once, made me think of yall

>>9348595
IMO do it in the format that matches the language you're writing in. Reading translated japanese comics that way makes sense because there are so many formatting issues with flipping it. It feels kind of weeby to make a western comic that's flipped that way. You might excite a few people by making it flipped but honestly the work will turn out better if you make it left to right. That's the way the sentences are going to run and so it will flow better overall.

>>9348595
I have purchased western doujin that have the pages read right-to-left, but the pages themselves were ordered like a western book. I've see this multiple times, from multiple sellers, and it is the most confusing, awful shit ever.

>>9348490
This turned more into a personal rant about a certain artist but she really bothers me with what she does.

I know of an artist who will practically have a literal mental breakdown if she can't get a table for a convention. I know some artists do AA for a living but she's not at that level. It's baffling that she doesn't seem to have a financial backup plan for AA and goes to highly competitive, expensive, and out of state cons.

She's also the type to do FOTM merch, which is ok to me as long as you do some research, but she makes no effort to. She draws them out of character with huge thick black eyelashes on everyone then adds a couple of stars and calls it a finished product.

>>9348595
Whether you choose left to right or right to left, the most important thing is setting up a good from panel to panel and dialogue bubble to dialog bubble. I've seen way too many examples of western doujinshi/fancomics with a panel with an opening at top corner, setup in a random spot, punchline bottom opposite corner, and the characters laid out in the opposite order to the dialogue so the visual punchline is at the opening dialogue! Needless to say the word bubble lines cross over each other and around characters.

Another thing about word bubbles, plan out your dialogue layouts as part of the page art! One of the things about western comics that turns me off is tight word bubbles shoved into obscure corners with too much dialogue for the panel's actions and not enough white space around the text within the bubbles. It makes a comic feel like a narrated picture book.

>>9349443
*setting up a good flow from panel to panel

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>>9349404
Is it this girl

>>9349477
her style is pretty tryhard t b h

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>>9349404
I have a friend of a friend who is similar. Terrible at coming up with a Plan B and has an emotional meltdown that affects all of her friends. Sure, it sucks not being able to get into a con but stuff like that happens. It's not the end of the world.

>>9349477
>>9349443
>She draws them out of character with huge thick black eyelashes on everyone then adds a couple of stars and calls it a finished product.
I've seen more and more artists doing this especially with male husbando-type characters and I hate it so much. Pic related. Shit anatomy, plenty of man-scara and sparkles/stars. Stylization is one thing but the guyliner + sparkles combo seems to be heavily utilized by artists who can't draw that well and want to be mookie 2.0

>>9349477

I think her style is cute, and if she has an aesthetic she likes to stick to, I don't see the big deal? I see plenty of people do weirder shit than give everyone excessive ma(n)scara.

>>9349494
That art looks so tumblr.

>>9349494
wtf is anatomy dear god

>>9349494
>Stylization is one thing but the guyliner + sparkles combo seems to be heavily utilized by artists who can't draw that well and want to be mookie 2.0

this, I feel like there's a lot of them out there

>>9349494
I feel better about my art already.

>>9349477
Looks like a mookie rip off.

>>9349494
I could understand if this was some twitter shit post or something but they aren't planning on selling this right?

>>9349487
What defines a style as 'tryhard'? I'm not trying to argue with your or anything btw just genuinely curious.

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I'm going to a local con as artist sortof soon. I got some buttons, sticker and prints ready but I was thinking of doing some small plush too.
I used to make plush like pic related, I'd be changing quite a few things about the pattern but do you guys think it could sell?

>>9349911
aww, thats so cute. I think it'll sell.

>>9349477
Good lord these are ugly af. Why would you use red to shade eyes? They look like they're high.

>>9348490
Petty as hell, but I hate shitty hobbyist artists taking up table space. I know of someone whose art is legitimately terrible - they use photos for heavy ref and have no clue how to draw without photos so their drawings always look really blocky and stiff - but they still apply to cons and sell their few little prints.

There's another artist who has the opposite problem, they NEVER look at ref and their drawings are absolutely bonkers anatomy wise, it looks like they're somewhere between a middle schooler's art and an attempt to do anime Picasso.

>>9346525
matte and frame those suckers, charge more, and don't tell anyone it's 'scrap' paper.

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>>9349682
It might be because she's friends with mookie00 and sells stuff at cons for them sometimes????? Part of the time I couldn't tell the two apart besides for the coloring. Also I've seen bigger mookie00 ripoff artists. pic related

I don't see why people would want to copy mookie00, their coloring style on the prints I've seen look so faded and light I can't tell wtf it is.

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>>9349751
Not as far as I know, but most of her for sale/convention work is similar if not arguably worse. Pic related.

I wish people didn't make Daki's with these horrible poses, if they looked even a little bit natural I would buy one every once in a while. Even well rendered daki's usually have terrible tits&ass posing.

>>9350142
Why would you wear shoes in bed

>>9350142
Grossed out by the idea of street clothes on bed linens. I can't hang with that at all.

>>9347389
>>9347625
>>9347695

Thanks for there replies, I'm probably worrying too much as usual. It's a pretty casual event anyway so I'll just treat it as so and try to have fun!

>>9349911
I think this is really cute and if you get it at the right price point I'm sure people would buy!

>>9349987
Is this a regional thing or something? I'm west coast usa and except for Sacanime, every con I've gone to (even if it's FCFS) has had a really high base quality level of art, and I've never seen a totally shitty artist.

>>9350322
You just need to look harder. Those artists are everywhere.

>>9350322
I'm also on the West Coast and I agree with this anon >>9350354

ALA had a ton of mediocre/shitty artists too. Didn't one girl there literally use a stock photo in her background on a print and get called out for in on Twitter? Anyway, I wish more people took the time to polish their work before trying to sell their bad art.

>>9350367
Lol I know who you're talking about and the way they handled that was so bad. Apparently to them bc there's grey areas in selling fanart there's also grey area in using stock photos as 50% of your print.

>>9349987
Saw an artist selling really shitty Sharpie drawings at a local comic con last year. His booth looked awful and he was next to decent artists which only made it look worst

>>9348590
>art wise
>- chromatic abomination
>- blurring everything but the face of the subject way too much
SAME. I hate how everyone's been doing the same style lately

Also people that hop on bandwagons and aggressively push their new merch that looks exactly like ten other people's. Like...you're not making a statement

>>9350417
I saw a little of it on my TL but it was hilarious how they traced the Rosie the Riveter drawing as well? I remember walking by their table at ALA and it was so obvious what she had drawn by herself and what she traced/used stock images for.

Basically, if you need to literally trace or use stock images directly in your prints, you're probably not ready to have a table in Artist Alley.

>>9350367
I'm curious what your definition of shitty/mediocre is.

For example, I've seen plenty of artists who can paint up a storm but have boring compositions and subject matter, or even lousy anatomy but a solid "polish". Then there are artists that work strictly in flat colors or black and white work where it's obvious they understand anatomy, composition, interest, etc. but under some definitions this may not be "polished" enough because it's not a certain type of style or finish.

>>9350142
Something about the shoes are off... like, it seems a tad small, and I understand perspective and all but the angles don't show a proper size - the hands are bigger than the feet.

>>9350510
The topdown angle that most dakis have doesn't really foreshorten the lower half of the body, so yeah, the feet are insanely small (as is the whole lower body, as OP's filename pointed out). A lot of people underestimate the actual size of feet.

If that's an actual daki, I don't understand why the lower half is so squashed, seeing that the dimensions don't even seem to be as tall as the standard daki print. Did they just start a bust and decide to haphazardly turn it into a daki?

I feel bad for ragging on the art, but it seems weird to let such obvious problems show up in a very expensive piece of merch.

>>9350117
Huh.. I know people joke about the yaoi Dorito chins a lot but I've never seen an artist unironically do it..
Mookie's DMMD art was good, but it's gotten more and more like a colorful mess.

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>>9350421
Did you say shitty sharpie drawings? Is this the dude? If not whoops.

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Has anyone here seen or tried selling FKMT goods in AA? Im not sure if his works are very well known around here, could find basically nothing (western) online either. I plan on making a print either way, i was just curious.

>>9350504
I'd say all of these
>>9349477, >>9349494, >>9350117, >>9350142
fall under that category.

For me, it's when artists use "stylization" to cover up obvious shortcomings/failures in anatomy and proportion. I think of the ones I linked, the FFXV chibis are probably the most salvageable. they kind of need to work on facial proportions (especially on Ignis) and it could be kind of charming. The muddy coloring/shading on the Voltron postcards and the complete disregard for anatomy and haphazardly thrown on sparkles/shadows on the daki are fucking terrible.

>>9350548
No, this guy didn't even have an overhead stand, just prints (or maybe just sketches) arranged on the table and I'm not even sure if he had a banner. He was advertising commissions. The sad part is his work wasn't even that good

>>9350561
I had a Kaiji/Akagi print a loooong long time ago. I actually didn't think it'd sell at all, but I got a handful of people who were super stoked to see it.

It's one of those obscure fanbases with 0 merch so any fans who find your stuff will instabuy it. It's not so obscure that you won't find fans of it anywhere, it's just really under the radar. The fans are very loyal, though.

Anyway, it's just a longassed way of saying do it fgt and let me buy all your shit

>>9350504
For me, it's someone who always does the same fucking thing over and over again and doesn't put any effort in to trying anything new or doing anything more challenging.

I see a lot of AA artists who have nothing but highly polished, highly boring waist-up animu portraits that all have the same face and same boring non-backgrounds. It seems like such a lazy copout, and it's even worse when they clearly have good rendering skills that they're wasting on boring shit. That's what I really see as mediocre.

I'd rather see an artist with lesser skills who really tries in terms of dynamic poses/backgrounds/composition over someone really polished who doesn't put any effort in to anything. I've bought a lot of prints from artists you would all consider "shitty" over much more technically skilled artists because the worse artist was the one to try to make an actual interesting piece instead of another cookie cutter portrait.

I'm probably the exception to the rule, though.

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>>9349850
ah I meant try hard as in trying hard to make another artist's style their own-
I guess they think "oh if my art style looks like this other successful person's art style I'll be just as successful ". I get you admire an artist and want to incorporate some of their style into your own art but flat out copying them is gonna make it look like a knock off mess

Late to con because I forgot about timezones. I feel so stupid, been doing AA too long to forget that. Ugh.

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Friend is helping me with AA table and is taking $5 sketch commissions. Pic related (along with some reference images) were what some one asked for. I don't think they understood what a $5 sketch gets you...

Ugh I'm at wits end. I had an alibaba supplier for low min. quality clear files (around 50/Design is what I'd need) that disappeared (welp, probably shady anyway so lucky) and now I've been searching for days to no avail where to get some custom printed.

I've seen that JimiAgency has the option, but they are not in the current order batch and I'd need them to to reach me early March for a big convention (Also, how much do they cost? There is no info, ugh).

Has anyone been printing custom ClearFiles somewhere or knows of some low min. quantity sellers I have overlooked that'd be willing to share?

Also how much would you think you'd be able to sell A4 clear files for? I have a seller but they'd charge 5$ for each file which rn is waaay too much for what I was shooting for (was thinking of selling for 8-9$)

Help OTL

>>9351325
I believe for JimiA you need to contact them for a private order for the min amount to start a order . Once upon a time I think it was 250 for a order of 100, but I think you need a min order amount of like 500-1000? Contact them to be sure. Also let them know your due date, you might have to rush order if anything.

>>9351293
Holy fucking shit. Not the person your responding to. This is worse when I ask someone for a sketch idea and they pull out their phone and ask me for very exact things, like ho, i'm going to draw a yorkie not your ya0i's

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>hey can i have some advice for selling in [place that is not the usa]
>its like this in the usa
>thanks but i was looking for [country] specific answers
>but anon it cant be THAT different can it

that "international" in your title is lies aani

>>9351381
>>9351293
This shit is why I offer commissions on media no larger than 4"x4". Holy fuck, people.

This isn't necessarily AA-related, but do you guys advertise commissions anywhere online? I'd like to pick up a few more slots, but I'm not sure where to let people know I'm available. I don't have a large following on insta/twitter/tumblr, so I seem to be getting swallowed up by oversaturation.

>>9350117
mookie00's style is so specific like I truly can't understand artists who want to copy or mimic her. It's one thing to say you like Viria or Johannathemad or something because those can really easily be tweaked around but mookie00 really established her own thing. There's nothing wrong with using same color pallets but everything looks really shitty when people trying to copy it.

>>9351728
>Johannathemad
Never really followed this artist, but damn, their strain of style was something I tried to imitate few years back. Weird to see how much my current style influence has changed.

>>9351548
>do you deviantart?

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where are these bags from? i tried looking but can't find them, sorry

>>9351835
Looks like Johanna the Mad's signature on the left side. They're on johannathemadshop's tumblr (third page), you have to email them to order I think.

>>9351906
i don't want that specific bag, i meant where are they printed so i can make my own

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>>9351908
This is like the worst level of spoonfeeding. If you even bothered to read the post on her post on tumblr, it says these are handmade. So either print some circles out through spoonflower and get sewing or actually do some research next time. It's not that hard to look up alibaba suppliers who do fabric printing and ask if this type of bag can be produced. Do the actual legwork sometime.

>>9351991
I get your point, but lots of people list their products as "handmade" even when they have them done through a manufacturer/overseas supplier. Because it's handmade... by somebody else. Just seeing a listing as handmade definitely doesn't mean they actually sewed it or didn't get it done through a supplier.

>>9352966
Last night I searched on Alibaba and Aliexpress for this and was able to find an affordable supplier with a low MOQ in fifteen minutes. I know it can seem like an impossible task but it's not. I understand why people get pissed over spoonfeeding on here now.

>>9352966
Yea, but they're clearly just spoonflower prints that they made simple circle bags out of. Sometimes the answer really is just handmade and easy.

I have an idea for a print but since I want the background to have a sudoku puzzle (relevant to the end of the game I'm drawing it for) it would result in the print being 12'x12'. I know it probably depends more on how well I draw it but do people tend to stray from prints in non-standard sizes like that?

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>>9353089
>sudoku puzzle
Pic related.

If it's a ZE print, I really doubt the print size will be a deterrent. The fanbase is small but devoted.

If you still think the size will be a negative factor, you can just play with overlapping elements and composition so segments of the sudoku grid are displayed in the background. I've seen a couple of ZE pieces done like that.

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who on earth bought this

>>9353843
Maybe they have a devoted family and a tiny first printing.

>>9353089
I have already accepted my fate that Artist Alley prints come in weird sizes and I will forever be finding new and interesting ways to frame them for my home. I feel like anyone who is serious about framing AA prints feels the same. I keep a stack of 11x14 and 5x7 picture frames for post con acquisitions, but somehow still always find myself with something in my pile that I thought was going to be a standard size but isn't. In instances like those glass free-floating frames or black paper backings come in handy.

Also agree with >>9353099 that the Zero Escape fandom is starved enough and devoted enough to not particularly care. The square print might even be a motivating factor, because it will have that additional "different so cool" feel.

>>9353920
If you buy one, please review it! I would love to get my hands on one, even a decent knock off would be welcome.

>>9353937
god damn wrong thread, wrong tab

>>9353843
family and friends who felt bad for her, 12 year olds, and adult artist who are even worse than her.

Can someone help me please? All of a sudden, I'm unable to render with overlay layers. When I merge layers, the overlay layer just...loses all effect and disappears. I've tried it with Clip art studio, Krita, and PS but nothing is working. It's weird because I was able to render without any issues just a week ago. Has anyone faced this issue before?

>>9354722
With Clip Studio, try merging through "combine copies of displayed layers". The Overlay blending mode should be kept as is in the merged copy, including whatever opacity you set it to.

>>9354961
Thank you, I'll try that tonight. It's s weird because I didn't have this issue last week. It just stated happening suddenly.

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These looked fine until Aqua.
Not sure what went wrong here...

>>9355730
Looks like they were going to do those munimuni mochi plush things and then changed their minds quarterway.

sorta off topic, but I think it was posted here before. Does anyone have that tumblr art image of ~10 women of different body sizes standing next to each other? I looked all over google images and could not find it.

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>>9355764
do you mean this one

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>>9355764
or this one

>>9355801
>>9355804
omg yes, thank you.

What is the protocol for safely mailing acrylic charms? I have some overstock from a con that I would like to sell online but I'm paranoid about them breaking in the shipping process.

My only thought is to sandwich the charm between two cardboard pieces and stick it in a bubble mailer.

>>9355801
not op but, Thank you, anon- for enriching me with diversity.

>>9354961
Sadly that did not work. What trips me out is that it worked last week! I exported a jpg of a print to do a test print and I could see all the overlay layers just fine. I don't know why it's not working all of a sudden. I'm about to take a screenshot of my work and print that instead because I'm so frustrated.

>>9355827
I've shipped a bunch with just the bubble mailer and I haven't had any problems. Cardboard is good for peace of mind especially if you don't have a lot of stock.

Is AnimeNext usually late with releasing whether artists got tables? They said emails would be out a week or two ago and now they're saying it's being discussed at a staff meeting.

>>9355827
I've received charms sent wrapped in bubble wrap, in plastic on a card, and just in plastic and they've all arrived safely. The ones in just plastic were coming from within my country so they didn't get bumped around too much, but the other two came from the US.

All three came in bubble mailers too, so I'd definitely suggest posting them in them.

Those ordering 11x17 prints from catprint, do you trim your 11.25x17.25 prints to make sure they're 11x17 or do you just sell them as is?

>>9356052
if you're talking about ordering full-bleed, they're already 11x17.

its suggested that you make the files 11.25x17.25 so the art extends past where the print gets cut (11x17) and doesn't leave any white borders.

speaking of prints, anyone have suggestions on how to mail prints? i've done research and so far it's between mailing tubes and sandwiching the print in between cardboard and putting that into a bubble mailer; so I'm not too certain which method to use. I only have 8.5x11 and 11x17 prints if it helps.

>>9356062
i used the cardboard sandwich method - some corrugated cardboard trimmed to fit the print, the print in a plastic sleeve, then covered with some chipboard - and just stick it in a regular manila envelope. Never had any problems, but packaging them is very time consuming so I stopped. Never mailed anything over A4 size either.

>>9356062
if you're selling cardstock you need to do envelopes (I use no bend with scrap cardboard), if you're doing letter you can use tubes which is much faster and less likely to bend.

>>9355827
I bubble wrap them and then stick them in a bubble mailer. Maybe 2 or 3 have broken in transit after shipping over a 1000.

>>9356062
if you really want your stuff to be secure, you can get some mat board scraps and use that in place of one of the pieces of cardboard.

>>9356062
If you choose white borders, do they send you 11.25x17.25? Sorry this is my first time ordering from Catprint.

>>9356603
If you buy a 11x17 print, you'll get a 11x17 print. If you choose regular, you'll get a white border. If you choose full bleed, there will be no white boarder. Though in the second case, to prevent your art from being stretched, you send a slightly larger file.

>>9339606
>>9339748
I actually worked up the courage to go up and ask them, and it turns out nobody's into tabling (or does art seriously enough to do it). They're planning to event Megacon, though, so I might actually join them, seeing that I've never even been to a con myself.

Does anyone have any tips on getting into artist alley at comic cons like emcc, sdcc and nycc?

I might be tabling at a very small con that's just starting up (year 4 now I think) so it's probably still shit quality. I'm used to medium/large cons so I expect the turnout to be mostly weeaboos and middle-aged nerds.

In your experiences should I try to stick to making merch for more popular mainstream stuff I'm kinda into that a lot of people will recognize or make stuff that I'm passionate about but might be overlooked? I know it depends on the crowd and location but I don't want to bother if someone overlooks my stuff.

>only cons nearby are comic based cons
>don't make comics
this is true suffering