I love painting babies, even after I have done a big batch of them, have mohair and glass beads everywhere (am I the only one with mohair dust bunnies in my dryer that sometimes look like a spider and freak me out?) I love painting them even after I realize of have 7 Steven sculpts and don’t know why. I love it even when order the wrong eyes, it rains on my nuwave, or the one body I need can’t be found in my big box of bodies and I have to order it and you know what happens…you end up spending a 100 bucks on silliness.
I have been doing this a while and I have learned a lot along the way. I was so annoying when I was new, my gawd I am embarrassed. In some ways this was harder than I thought and I a lot of ways it was less intimidating than I thought.
I have also met some really cool people.
I am lucky, 98% of my buyers are pretty cool. I like an easy transaction, if it gets complicated I can’t deal. I paint a baby, I list a baby, I sell a baby. I can’t do all the bookkeeping that goes with holds, reserves, payment plans, lay aways. I can only multitask as much as I can. I feel bad but I gotta take care of myself too, and I would rather put my dolly hours into dolly making.
I don’t do customs because, I am not patient. I am just wound too tight and like to hold my own pencil.
(being honest)
Ok… so that 2% of buyers… they may be the reason I stop doing this.
(this is were the venting starts)
I totally get they we all show up to this hobby where we are, who we are and that is totally cool with me. Collectors are on a big ol’ spectrum. These babies mean different things for different people, I love that.
I am fine to own it if I did something wrong, I will make it right.
What I don’t appreciate and have a hard time with are people who have issues that are bigger than I have the skills to navigate. I like making people happy, its one of the perks right? I mean I could sell t-shirts or coffee mugs… but these babies are personal, they are pretty powerful little works of art.
They are not playthings, I mean you can interact with them if you are gentle, as long as you know there is a wear and tear factor. They take a very long time to make and a lot of care goes into making them. I don’t know about other artists but I am not making a ton of money doing this, this isn’t get rich quick.
I also want to add that this isn’t Amazon, and you can buy it, try it on and send it back.
I don’t have to field a lot of the complicated but when I do it makes me not want to paint anymore.
Am I the only one?
My gram would say, “You don’t want to be the fly in the honey” meaning (I think) the one little thing that makes all that sweetness gross. I don’t think people do it on purpose but grrrrr… they just kinda wreck all that honey.
