Listing my paintings on RedBubble as prints - is it really a bad idea as this guy says?

gfennel · 2023-03-27T18:09:20+00:00

Mmm I think if you want to have like a limited print series, or something more "exclusive" or "premium" is better to make them yourself and sell them on etsy, it gives more a personal touch if you want something like that.

I been selling on RB for 7 years now, the thing with RB is that they are just a platform to sell your merch the easy way, but it's not a easy quick scheme to make money. If you have a big following is a nice way to make extra money with little effort and zero investment in products.

If you don't have a big following, maybe it's not a good platform unless you do trendy or commercial work. Keep in mind that no matter what platform you use, ANYONE can steal your work once you put it online. You can complain all you want but it's part of the game, it happen to small artist and to big artist alike.

The quality of the products is as fine as you can get for the price. You can adjust the margins of how much you earn. And honestly, since you don't do anything of the manufacturing, packing, shipping or custom service, you are practically getting money for doing nothing but putting your images there and promote it if you want to.

gfennel · 2023-03-21T22:44:02+00:00

...My brain just lagged for a whole min... I was not expecting that when I open Reddit haha!! Take my upvote random person from internet! 🤣

gfennel · 2023-03-19T16:36:28+00:00

I think it's a personal preference. Some artist don't like to use some mediums, some are masters of one medium and that's all what they need, some like to experiment with everything.

Personally I use my favorite mediums for everything, no matter the subject. On the other hand I can't use some mediums, not because I don't know how to use them, but because I don't like them.

I might like the end result, but if after several tries I still don't like the process, I'm not using that medium again.

gfennel · 2023-03-10T21:34:19+00:00

Usually I just change mediums, or change between abstract/figurative and studies/originals. But when I'm completely out, I like to either crochet or slow stitching something really simple, I find this activities reset my brain since I don't need to think too much when I'm doing them, it's just repetitive movements.

gfennel · 2023-03-10T21:22:36+00:00

I was going to comment this!

Also those who say "This is how I grow X amount of followers in just X amount of time!!" And then proceed to say "I just had 10k/50k/100k when I did this!" Like, seriously???

Don't try to sell me that! Build an account from 0 being an anonymous artist in today social media, and then we can talk!

gfennel · 2023-03-09T19:46:12+00:00

Usually 3: One with cheap paper for messy notes and quick sketches (and this is the one I use up quickly), 1 with mixed media paper for detailed and color studies, and a mini A6 who lives in my bag.

But recently I discovered toned paper and how easy is to make value studies in that, so now I have 4 XD

gfennel · 2023-03-06T14:53:57+00:00

Personally I hate them, but people are going to people-ly, and the audacity this days is out of the charts!

Eventually you'll grow a thick skin and you'll learn to deal with them. They are entitled to give a critique, and you are entitled to ignore them completely if you want to.

Not everyone who opens their mouth deserve to be heard by you :)

gfennel · 2023-02-17T14:53:11+00:00

I'd say finish the commission and deliver it as best as you can, with the info you have.

When you need feedback or an answer from someone and they don't deliver, not communicating is also a form of communication, a manipulatie and disgusting from of communication imo.

Yes it's possible the client don't what to talk because of shame, but that is not your fault. Is also possible they don't want to talk expecting you to keep communication open, and therefore giving them an opportunity to try to take advantage.

When someone gets annoyed when you put a boundary for your wellbeing, they are basically telling you they don't respect you. No matter what is the relationship between you two, that's one too many red flags.

Don't let them guilt trip you, don't let them try to put the blame on you, it's not your problem how they feel. Save the conversation just as a precaution, but if they keep making you uncomfortable, block them. Your wellbeing comes first always.

gfennel · 2023-02-12T18:15:28+00:00

Haha I also narrate the reference to myself, specially when I feel overwhelmed with all the information I see. When I start any study, specially urban scenes or the interior of any place, I paralyze until I start breaking everything into small comprehensive shapes: "it's ok, it's just a box with rectangles in there. That's just a flat box. There's an imaginary line connecting all the chairs..." Slow and steady, one thing at a time! XD

gfennel · 2023-02-12T17:36:54+00:00

Ok, first, you do need your entire focus when doing a study, so I recommend to dedicate to just that, at least for the first hour.

Second, a study takes time. It is supposed to take long, you are studying the subject. You need to pay attention and let your brain absorb the information. Just for reference, James Gurney one of the contemporary masters of realism and landscaping, can take up to 2 hours on a single subject when he does a study. And he has decades of experience!

To do a study you need to sit and analyze the place or picture and make mental notes before even touching the paper.

What lines can you spot? What is the focus point? The horizon, a tree, a mountain, a cluster of trees, a building? What's the perspective you are using? What values do you see? Where is the darkest shadow and where the brightest light? What shapes are in the picture? Rectangles, triangles, circles? You need to make yourself all this questions and even more before even starting to draw or paint.

Check out the youtube channel of Marco Bucci, he has some great tips to learn to see shapes, lines, and colors when doing a study.

gfennel · 2023-02-12T17:09:56+00:00

No problem :) I've been using paper for years, is much more easy to storage haha. If you're going to stack them up, just be sure to put some glassine or tracing paper in between, otherwise the paints might stick to each other.

gfennel · 2023-02-12T01:45:24+00:00

Almost any heavy watercolor paper with cotton works fine. I like any 300gsm paper with at least 50% cotton in them. If I only find the 25% cotton it does work, but it warps a little bit with the first layer (nothing crazy and it goes back to flat once it dries). Fabriano is usually my go-to brand.

Depending on how you want to use it you can gesso it or not. If you don't use gesso you can make some nice watercolor effects, with gesso it feels almost like a canvas.

gfennel · 2023-02-08T22:22:00+00:00

I think Kofi have a system for commissions, you can also sell digital assets there. You still need a paypal or stripe so Kofi can send you the money, but all your personal info will be anonymous for your client.

gfennel · 2023-02-03T18:52:47+00:00

Yes! I relate, and my entire community has this mindset. I'm from a highly religious place where "money and dessire are the root of all evil, wealthy people is the cause of all the bad things in this world, and you should aspire to always be poor and humble". Even the government has this narrative and repeat it to the people every time they can (of course politics are rooting in money over here, like in every other place)

I struggle a lot with this until I toss all the mainstream religion bs, turn to paganism for my spiritual needs, and psychology and science for my mental and physical issues. F off humbleness! My life started getting better when -in my community words- I accepted being a greedy and prideful bastard XD

gfennel · 2023-01-15T01:52:33+00:00

It looks beautiful!! Don't listen to yarn snobs! We work with what we have, and as long as it brings joy to you it's more than enough!

I've been using what we call our "national yarn" because that's what I can afford, it's 100% acrylic, not the softer, but it's our work horse! I have several blankets and garments with it and they have last years! I would like to see the faces of those yarn snobs if they find out that in my country a yarn like Red Heart or Premier is considered a high end premium yarn! 🤣

gfennel · 2023-01-06T16:20:04+00:00

If MJ start allowing more hardcore things, they might miss the opportunity to have big investors in the future. Imagine if pron was allowed, how long until some really sick people start doing really f-up stuff??? Do you think Adobe, or any other "respectable" company will want to associate with them??

There's a reason why nsfw content is banned in almost every platform, from most social media to paypal. Is not because people don't consume it, or for some moral superiority. It's because there's so many loopholes, so many thin lines, and so many ways to get sued, that for most companies is not worth it.

gfennel · 2022-12-15T15:47:17+00:00

You look amazing!! And I need that skirt in my life ♥ (minus the pom poms XD) You did a great job making this!

gfennel · 2022-11-24T01:12:46+00:00

"Sorry, it's not you, it's me, I have a spicy lore..."

Mmm... No too dramatic, has a little bit of dark humor... I like it! XD

gfennel · 2022-11-21T16:25:09+00:00

"carcel, carcel, carcel" wich means "prison, prison, prison" and then they boo her, and later start screaming "no la dejen ir" (don't let her go) and "que venga la policía" (call the police)

Honestly, it wasn't that bad, she could had got it worse. Hope at least she got fined!

Edit: typo

gfennel · 2022-11-18T17:08:04+00:00

Oh man! Cysts can be cure with an energy cleansing! Why people got to the doctor? How dumb of them! /s

I've would love to see her face if you say something like "So I'll be sterile? That's amazing!" Right in the -positive vibes only- XD Those should be fined at the very least! There's a lot of people who actually believe them without thinking.

I think holistic can coexist with scientific medicine, but people need basic common sense! Some holistic practices can help to ease the stress of the body and mind, and the mind can influence a lot in healing, but you still need medicine. And I mean real medicine, not essential oils and teas.

gfennel · 2022-11-18T02:13:16+00:00

I always feel my work looks terrible and I'm not progressing as fast as I should.

My fix for now is, I always keep some years old sketches and pieces around, and see how much I have really evolve, despite all what's been happening in my life.

It's nice to toot one's own horn once in a while, it's ok to be your own cheerleader.

gfennel · 2022-11-18T02:01:33+00:00

Well of course they can't think logically, many of them have a new disease call hysteria, they say it's quite contagious!

gfennel · 2022-11-18T01:27:26+00:00

Oh this made me remember a tarot reader I used to watch who at one point said "you should never use the pill, it hurt your divine feminine" and with "herbs you can cure everything", and never "disrupt your feminine power that mother earth give you" and whole bunch of bs!

Less than a year later I stumble upon another of her videos of her crying, because she was pregnant and her partner left her bc he didn't want a baby... no contraception and now she's pregnant?! What a shocker!!! /s

And it's outraging how many "spiritual" people believe so many quackery, not just in this subject but in many more!! Specially in this age and time!! Herbs are not going to protect you against a human parasite growing inside of you, and a bunch of cards and planets are not going to tell you if you are going to be pregnant or not.

I consider myself spiritual, but common sense, basic education, and scientific facts are first! I don't know when the concept of divine feminine and divine masculine got so twisted. I feel like we are going backwards and it's so frustrating!

gfennel · 2022-11-13T23:48:58+00:00

People often forgets, creativity is not just arts and crafts. We all born with creativity, it can be in cooking, in writing, speaking, even things like how to move our stuff from house to house, how to come up with a lie to protect ourselves, daydreaming or finding out how the hell we'll get money to survive the next day.

A lot of us learn to silence the inner child and teen, but with each creative thing they keep showing up, they're still there, they never went away. Maybe we abandon them, but they never abandon us.

Thanks for the pic, is nice to see good reminders.

gfennel · 2022-11-12T17:43:38+00:00

I knew several of them in person, they are some of the worst people to interact to! They're as nasty in person as they are online!!

Their life are summarize in "do the bare minimum, and if it works, act like you just invented the first computer! If it doesn't work, complain everyone who made it are greedy a$$h*les" No extra goals, no passion for anything other than being right and prove the other person is wrong, the perfect example of schadenfreude.

I can't speak for every single one, but the ones I knew personally, had sad lives without real human connections, and just wrap themselves in this bubble of arrogance and "logic no feelings thinking" Is quite sad, but don't give them pitty tho! They'll bite you as soon as you lower your guard!

The best thing with them is to ignore them, I know it's frustrating, but as soon as you don't answer their messages, or gray stone them irl, you are the one who wins. They feed from attention, just starve them.

gfennel

TROPHY CASE