I wish I could say that I never had to worry about this, but alas, I have. Back in 2006-2007, I had a string of them that made me step away from advertising my services as a custom doll artist. It also made me very, very cranky and more or less punished those good clients that came around in the future. And now, I have a set of 4 little plush dolls from a deadbeat client that went unsold on EBay. It makes me bitter, but thankfully I’ve had so many great clients lately that I’m not de-motivated in the least.
So let’s see… where to begin…
Deadbeat #1 ordered two dolls; an 18” and a 24” (so I was quite pleased at a lucrative bit of work). He paid for supplies, I finished one doll without seeing a dime of additional payment, contacted him with the final pictures and asked about payment arrangements so I could ship this one and start on the second- or did he prefer to receive both at once. He never responded to my e-mails regarding payment options and letting him know I was willing to work with him if he needed more time- I just needed to know. He blocked me from his e-mail. Nice. The finished doll ended up becoming a Christmas gift for a friend. The base for the second doll was offered up to another client at a discount. She received a 24” base at an 18” price. Fabric was used on other projects.
Deadbeat #2 ordered the “Jigsaw” doll from the movie Saw. Paid for supplies, and I got to work. This doll was a serious buttpain to make, too. It was 36” tall and eerily close to the real thing. Client was thrilled with it and agreed to send the payments. Then client fell off face of the earth. I waited three months with that big, creepy doll in my house, staring at me, and I decided it was time to sell it because I had lost all hope of hearing from them again. It took 3 EBay auctions, each one with a lower and lower reserve. It sold for $30. A $150 custom doll. $30. I wanted to cry. I thought of how hard I labored over it and how I basically worked a sweatshop wage in the end.
Deadbeat #3 ordered a set of 4 plush dolls. Not an expensive order, but it adds up. She sent money for supplies right away. I finished the dolls, she ooh’ed and ahh’ed over progress pictures and the finished pictures and sent me her address. I informed her I’d send them as soon as the remaining balance was paid. It has yet to be paid and the dolls are now sitting in a box in my workroom. She hasn’t even responded to my emails asking her if she needed more time for the final payment. The EBay auction I just did was a bust and have NO idea what to do with 4 12” dolls of Panic at the Disco.
Deadbeat #4 is a doozy, and I’m also to blame for this. You know what they say about “assume”, right? Well, I did just that. It was a deal that had some serious potential, make dolls of the entire line-up of a band as prototype dolls, and they’d advertise me on their site and at their shows. I decided the labor being used as an advertising cost would be worthwhile if they would reimburse me for the supplies and it was a deal. DB4 gave me enough money for the 4 bases, and promised he’d send me the cost of the supplies I needed as soon as he was home from tour. Dummy me forked out around $120 of my own money to get the supplies. I get them started and he asked for progress pictures. I sent progress pictures and asked when I could expect reimbursement for supplies since my bank account was feeling the dent, being Christmas time and all. I also stated that I would not do anymore work until I receive payment for supplies. He then tells me he doesn’t feel he should reimburse me for supplies since he already gave me $60 and that he gave me ”more than enough”, in his opinion.
Click “read more” for the ass-backward logic he had behind that.
My average vinyl-base doll costs $140, and those met that value. He even appreciated the fact I was only charging for supplies. He ordered 4.
Actual cost of dolls $140….4 x 140 = 560.
His cost of dolls…. $180 for 4.
180/4 = $45 as per our deal. Basically saving him $95 per doll.
Now… considering all that… does $60 sound like “more than enough”?
Yet… I was supposed to accept $15 per doll and feel that was enough? He was actually mad that I did not agree. I offered to ship him the dolls (minus the supplies!) at my own expense and he could find someone else to finish them, or he could pay me for the supplies and I would gladly finish them. He said he’d pay me once I finished the dolls and sent them to him. I told him that was unacceptable, our agreement was that I would only send finished work upon receipt of payment.
Never heard from him again. I was livid. Luckily, most of the supplies could be reused. I had little use for 4 dolls head painted with glow-in-the-dark white paint, but two were repurposed for other clients (and offered to them at a deep discount). Over time, I found other uses for the hair, shoes, doll bodies, and fabrics. The two doll heads I could not use were donated to a haunted house :-)
He’s tried bad-mouthing me to others, saying that I don’t keep promises, whatever, and even said that to one band whose members *own* my work and are quite pleased with it. Their response? “Why should you get anything if you don’t pay her?” and when he complained he gave me $60 for 4 dolls and that was “more than enough”, they laughed at him and asked if he was crazy for expecting me to agree to so little.
