Commission an Original Painting
What can I commission?
I am open to a variety of painting subjects, but I will only accept custom work if I feel confident that I can both fulfill your vision and stay within my style. I want to make a beautiful piece that we can both be really excited about!
The best way to decide if I am the right artist for you is for us to talk about what you’re looking for. I promise that I’m friendly and easy to work with, and will be genuine about the process. Right now I work with both watercolor and acrylic paint and do a variety of landscapes, abstract pieces, and flora and fauna. If you’re interested in something that I just feel isn’t my thing (like personal portraits or exact replicas), I can often recommend other artists for you to check out.
I encourage you to explore the “work” tab on my website, my Etsy shop, and my Instagram feed. If you have favorites that drew you to my site, let me know in our discussion so I can get a better understanding of your style. You can also send me inspiration images, colors, photos of where the painting will go, etc. All of these will be used to inform the design, but please keep in mind that I’m creating an original one-of-a-kind piece for you, so inspiration images need to be exactly that – I am not interested in copying other people’s work.
*OTHER PROJECTS: The following info is specifically about creating a custom painting, but I am open to other commissions as well, including illustrations, stationery design work, hand-painted wooden jewelry, and sets of my hand painted notebooks, etc. (They make wonderful one-of-a-kind gifts!). Just shoot me a message and we can go through a process similar to the one outlined below. I am frequently asked about stationery and wedding/occasional invitations, so see the note below about that.
What will the process be like?
Once I have a good idea of what you’re looking for, I will draw up a sketch and create a palette to confirm with you. Particularly for larger canvases, I will create a mini inspiration piece that will share the general color and layout of the larger piece. For watercolors, I will do some rougher sketches and work up a color swatch.
I will take photos as I work to share with you and may come back to ask questions as I go. Once I'm finished, I will submit photos for your final approval and then I'll move forward with any finishing work like varnishing, etc.
How long will it take?
I will fill my calendar for the year on a first-come, first-served basis. When you contact me I can give you an expected start date and timeline depending on the size/type of painting. Most pieces will take 4-6weeks from start to finish, but can sometimes take longer if they are particularly involved or if I need to order materials, etc.
How much will it cost?
After we discuss the style and size, I will price out the cost. This will include materials, time, and any shipping/handling. If you’re working within a specific budget, please let me know up front – often I can give more than one price point depending on materials and size.
Once we decide to go for it (yay!), I will send you an invoice for 50% of the payment up front, which is non-refundable, and will come with a contract for you to return. This 50% will cover the cost of materials and planning time. The other 50% and any shipping will be due once you’ve seen and approved photos of the final piece.
I want you to love, love, LOVE this painting, so I am willing to rework acrylic pieces prior to sealing if they’re not meeting your expectations, but watercolors and heavily textured pieces are often not easily adjustable. Because of this, if we just can’t work it out and you are completely dissatisfied with your final piece, I will give you the option to have your 50% down payment turned into a shop credit to be used in either of my online shops for something you can enjoy.
What sizes can you make?
Truly this depends on what medium I'm using and what the subject is, so the best way to figure out if I can make what you want is to just ask. Watercolor and gouache designs tend to be more detailed, so often those pieces remain smaller - usually in the 4x4 - 11x14 range, but I can do larger watercolors, design depending, or make complementary sets of coordinating smaller works to fill a gallery wall.
Got a big, empty wall to fill? Acrylic canvases are a great option for any size and I can also do diptychs or triptychs if you're looking to fill a large space.
Artwork Copyright
Once the original piece is finished, I retain all rights, which includes the ability to offer the work as prints or to share photos and include it in my portfolio. If this custom piece is a gift, please let me know so that I don’t share photos of the process on social media, etc. that spoil a surprise. If you prefer not to have prints made of this work, I am willing to discuss this with you. Please let me know if you have questions or concerns about this part – I’m happy to talk through it.
Custom Invitations and Stationery
Are you interested in having one-of-a-kind invitations for your wedding or another event? Please shoot me a note! This process is similar to the one above to create the original design, but I can offer several different options for having the work put onto invites, from sourcing materials and having them printed for you to selling you digital files that you can have custom printed yourself. In the past I have done a few wedding sets and it has been a pleasure to also include the original painting as a keepsake. If you have an idea, I'd love to chat about it!
