Just to let you all know because I'm aware there's a lot of cross-over watchers between here and my DA account (LhuneArt), my account has been compromised. Someone logged in and changed the associated e-mail address. I can no longer log in, so whoever managed to break into it now has full access to everything.

If anyone receives any weird notes or sees any other strange activity happening there, be aware that it's not me that is doing it. I'm attempting to contact DA staff and hope to hear back from them soon.

- Cara

Hey everyone!

I will be attending EF again this year, and unfortunately like many others we have not been able to secure
a room when the reservations opened. I know my chances are slim, but I would still really like to try
and get a room at the Estrel somehow!

I'm trying to reach out on my platforms to see if anyone has a double room for sale
OR space in their room to accommodate two more people!

If you do, or if you know someone that does please let me know!
Of course, rooming with people you don't know can be a bit strange so I'm happy to have a chat
first so we can get to know one another and answer any questions you might have.
And yes I will most definitely draw you something as a thank-you! ;3

Thanks for reading!

Alright, the boxes are packed and ready to ship, just some final things left to sort out before we start our long haul back to my home country. I've mixed feelings about moving back, on the one hand of course it will be nice to be back where everything is home to me, on the other I will miss aspects of Sweden (and I'm a bit bummed out that we're moving right before summer, which is always a lovely time here), having lived here has been a great experience.

It will be good to stay in one place for a while though, get some rest. The past year has been incredibly tumultuous for both of us and it will be nice to just have nothing to worry about for a while - or at least not in terms of having a place to live or having the space we need (both as individuals and together).

You've all been lovely throughout this time and as always I've found great support in the community and from my clients. I consider myself incredibly fortunate to have this flexibility with my work.

Regarding commissions - as you may have noticed I am finally almost done with this batch. Once done, I will change up the way I take commissions for a while to be a bit more flexible and varied - I will not be opening for a new batch of work as I've done before but instead take on smaller chunks, and I will not be offering any custom full color commissions for a while. I'd really like to explore and push my own creativity for a bit, so instead of full colors I will be offering YCH commissions which will be presented as a fully painted environment with a placeholder character that may be customized to whoever is interested.

In any case, due to the move I will probably be inactive online for a few days - I'll be able to check messages but not much more. Thanks everyone for your patience, and to my recent watchers thank you all very much! I'm glad you like my work and I hope I will have more to show more frequently in the coming months as things settle down in my life :).

Just letting you all know that I will be visiting my family in the Netherlands today until Tuesday. I will bring my laptop with me but I don't know if I'll be able to get any work done and I may be a bit slow to reply to messages. Thanks to my commissioners for your patience <3. I am doing a bit better, or at least I am managing to be productive but unfortunately due to my slowness last month I now have to play catch-up a bit. I'm cautious to make any promises as to when I will finish the current batch but I will be working through it at a decent rate once I return.

Hey everyone,

I don't like disclosing too much of what is going on in my personal life, but at the moment it's affecting my online presence and work schedule so I feel an update is in order.

I've not been doing very well lately, mentally nor physically and I'm struggling to keep afloat. Not financially mind you, work comes before anything else and other than some delays in my schedule I'm still doing my best to get things done. But everything else in my life is crumbling at the moment and I'm incredibly drained emotionally. My SO and I are moving out of our apartment tomorrow to crash with a relative because it has been impossible to find anywhere to live. We have not been able to live in one place for more than 6 months and it is highly likely that we will be moving again in 3 months or so, because we can not stay with the relative indefinitely either. This uncertainty, coupled with several other issues has put a lot of strain on us and on our relationship, needless to say things have not been easy.

I'm incredibly tired, stressed and down and as a result I'm very short tempered, it takes everything from me to focus on work and nothing brings me any sort of joy or fulfillment at the moment. I'm sure that eventually things will clear up and I will be able to regain some stability and be more myself again, but I have to honestly admit that right now, I'm not okay. If I do not reply to messages for a while, or if I come off as snappier than usual, please know that I am deeply sorry and I'm doing my best to pull myself together.

Again to my commissioners, know that you are my first priority but if you have any concerns feel free to message me.

Thank you for your patience and for the overall support and encouragement with my work <3. It keeps me going.

Please fill out the following form if you are interested in any of my other commissions (non-full colors).

https://goo.gl/forms/CacA4SEHqspazOlg2

Slots will remain open until 10 hours worth of work is filled.

Thank you!

---

Edit: Oops, that was very fast. Slots are filled, thank you everyone! Sorry I didn't have as many hours available this time around.
Edit2: Funnily enough, changer-the-elder and Autumnsunrise filled in the form at the exact same time, down to the second. Both speedpaintings, so I guess I'll be going over my time limit a bit!

The winners are SonicFox for the raffle and Tivadu for the favorite pick! Thank you all so much for applying!

---

This is the Raffle & Favorite Pick journal for my FULL COLOR COMMISSION slots (please be aware that this is NOT a give-away, you still need to pay for the commission if you win). After 24 hours, one winner will be randomly chosen from the applicants (raffle) and one winner will be selected based on my preference (favorite pick).

For more information about my commission re-opening click here.


Summary:

• Winners will be placed on my commission queue (link)
• I will contact the winners as soon as I am ready to get started with their commission.
• Regular prices apply (link)
• Regular ToS applies (link)
• Note that I reserve the printing rights for all of my commissions (as stated in ToS).

---

To apply, please leave a comment in which you fill out the following information:

• Number of characters
No limit, just be aware that more characters means a higher cost.

• Character reference(s)
NSFW links are fine. If you have no visual reference, please provide your most accurate description.

• Illustration concept
This can be as vague or as specific as you want (note that you will get a few different sketches to choose from regardless). If you'd like to give me full creative freedom, that is fine too!

I will re-open for commissions on Sunday, December 4th through to Tuesday, December 6th,
as I will explain below. Please read this journal carefully if you are interested in commissioning me.
All of the times mentioned are in the CET timezone.

Just like the last batch I will be opening two different lists – one for full color commissions and one
for all of the other commission types. Please note that applying for a commission slot will put
you on a waiting list, you will not be required to pay until I contact you stating that I am ready
to get started with your commission.

CLICK HERE for EXAMPLES & PRICES

CLICK HERE for my TERMS of SERVICE


Full color commissions (3)

I will be taking three full color commissions in three different ways: a raffle, a favorite pick and an auction.
The raffle and favorite pick will be combined in the same journal (meaning you will only need to fill out your information once to apply for both).

• The raffle will start at 8PM on Sunday (tomorrow) and end after 24 hours.
• The auction will start at 9PM on Monday the 5th and end after 24 hours.

NOTE: The auction will again be for the slot only – it will NOT cover the price of the commission.
For those of you who are confused by this, I will explain it more clearly when I put up the auction ad.


Other commissions (10 hours)

I will be taking 10 hours worth of smaller commissions on a first-come, first-serve basis.
This batch will open on Tuesday the 6th at 10PM.

• Stencil: 1 hour
• Sketch: 2 hours
• Icon, Shoulders-up bust: 3 hours
• Hips-up bust: 4 hours
• Speedpainting: 7 hours


Schedule overview

For clarity, here is an overview of the schedule. Again, all times are in the CET timezone.
If you are unsure what the times are in your own timezone, use this website (link) to check.

Sunday the 4th at 8PM – Journal for the raffle & favorite pick goes live
Monday the 5th at 8PM – Raffle winner & favorite pick are announced
Monday the 5th at 9PM – Auction for the slot starts
Tuesday the 6th at 9PM – Auction closes.
Tuesday the 6th at 10PM – Other commission list opens until filled.


Questions

As always, if anything is unclear or if you have any questions, please leave a comment or send me a PM.
If your question is not listed below and is relevant for others I will add it here.

Q: Is there a fee to participate in the raffle?
A: No, the raffle is free.

Q: Will the raffle winner have to pay the regular commission price?
A: Yes, there is no discount for winning the raffle.

Q: What is the starting bid for the slot auction?
A: The starting bid for the slot will be 0 USD.

I will re-open for commissions this coming Sunday. More info will follow!

I am currently offering a 10% discount on all of my prints until December 4th! Use the promo code "IGPNGKE" with your purchase.

https://www.inprnt.com/gallery/caraid

<3

I just want to express my everlasting gratitude for all of the support, appreciation and encouragement I have received in this community in the past year and a half. Switching to creating furry art as my main source of work and income has been one of the better decisions I have made in my career in recent years. Contrary to most of the work I do in the industry, I feel appreciated here. I feel like my work matters, my voice matters. I matter. It sounds cheesy I know, but I have met some of the best people I know in this community and collectively you have seen me through some pretty bitter times, perhaps (probably) unknowingly so.

You guys matter to me, and to my art. I feel that my work has seen a notable improvement over recent months and a lot of that is thanks to the motivation this place gives me to keep working for it. I don't want to give too much gravity to numbers, but I can't ignore the fact that I have passed the 10.000 follower milestone today and I mean, shit guys. That's a small town's population worth of people that think my work is worth following and it's difficult for me to fathom the size of that number.

I'm a bit too wrapped up in work right now, but once I have a bit more time I will hold a raffle for a small piece to celebrate and as a thank-you.

I was invited by mickeybamboo to do an interview for his podcast Panda Pause! We talked about my art, about the furry community, how I got here, why I chose to do this work - in short, a bit of a background story on who I am and what I do :).

If you're interested, you can listen to the full interview here: https://soundcloud.com/mickey-bambo.....se-ep-8-caraid

You can find Mickey Bamboo and his show on:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/Mickey_Bamboo
FurAffinity - http://www.furaffinity.net/user/mickeybamboo
Tumblr - http://mickeybamboo.tumblr.com/
Patreon - http://www.furaffinity.net/user/mickeybamboo

Thanks for looking!

Just letting you all know that I will be on a short hiatus starting tomorrow and I will return this Saturday (the 15th). Until then I won't get much (if any) work done but I should be able to reply to messages if needed.

Short bout of illness and exhaustion hit me the past week, I'm still feeling a bit lethargic but I think the worst of it is over. Eating all the citrus fruits and taking breaks when necessary, but it did mess with my planning.

SO. Let's try again shall we. I'll be a bit less optimistic this time to account for breaks / off-time. I bit off a bit more than I could chew with my freelance work unfortunately, so I'll have to push some more of that in as well. I have a few deadlines on October 15th, after that things should calm down and I will get around to the list of smaller commissions.

Today
- Freelance work
- Possibly progress on Magarnan's commission
- Swedish lessons / probably taking the evening off

Tomorrow (Tuesday)
- Freelance work
- Progress on and hopefully finish Magarnan's commission

Wednesday
- Freelance work
- Start sketches for Vorell's commission
- Possibly start refining MerlinScorch' commission

Thursday
- Freelance work
- Progress on MerlinScorch' commission

Friday
- Freelance work
- Color roughs for Vorell's commission
- Progress on MerlinScorch' commission


I'm holding off from planning into the weekend for now, as I may have to adjust based on what I get done. Thanks for all of your patience!

Just wanted to take a moment to apologize for my recent lack of activity. I wish I had a good excuse, but unfortunately the horrible truth is that I installed Legion and got hooked. Should have known better, especially with my schedule being as cramped as it is right now.

Sincere apologies to my commissioners. I will do my best to pick up the pace and make up for lost time, which I feel will be best done by making a public schedule again, so here goes:

Friday the 23rd (tomorrow)
• Freelance work
• Sketches for MerlinScorch (possible stream)
• Progress on magarnan's commission

Saturday the 24th
• Freelance work
• Progress on magarnan's commission (stream)
- Going out in the evening

Sunday the 25th
• Freelance work
• Color roughs for merlinscorch (stream)
• Progress on maganran's commission (stream)

Monday the 26th
• Finish magarnan's commission: (prolonged)
• Progress on merlinscorch's commission (stream)
• Patreon-only stream

Tuesday the 27th
• Freelance work
• Start new commission (prolonged)
• Progress on merlinscorch's commission. (possible stream)

Wednesday the 28th
• Freelance work
• Progress on merlinscorch's commission. (stream)
- Take evening off

Thursday the 29th
• Freelance work
• Color roughs for new commission (possible stream)
• Finalize merlinscorch's commission. (possible stream)

I can't promise to stream every time but I will try to do it as much as possible,

My current batch of commissions has been filled. Thank you all so much for your enthusiasm, your feedback and support, and of course for grabbing a slot if you did! I'm excited to get started.

With regards to my recent auction, know that I have read all of your comments and taken the feedback to heart. In due time, I will write out a journal explaining what I've learned and how I plan to go forward with my next batch.

Now, it's time to get back to work!

The raffle winners are MerlinScorch and vorell! Thank you for participating!

---

This is the raffle journal for my full color commission slots (please be aware that this is NOT a give-away, you still need to pay for the commission if you win). After 24 hours, two winners will be randomly selected from the participants.


Information:

• The raffle is FREE. You do NOT have to pay to participate.
• Winners will be placed on my waiting list.
• I will contact the winners as soon as I am ready to get started on their commission.
• Regular prices apply (starting at 550 USD).
• Regular ToS applies (see profile page).


To partake, please leave a comment in which you fill out the following information:

• Number of characters:
No limit, just be aware that more characters means a higher cost.

• Character reference(s):
NSFW links are fine. If you have no visual reference, please provide your most accurate description.

• Illustration concept:
This can be as vague or as specific as you want. If you have no particular idea in mind or if you'd like it to be a surprise, that is fine too.

I will be re-opening for commissions on Thursday the 8th of September, through to Saturday the 10th. This batch will be conducted differently from the previous one and I will strive to complete all of it within 30 days.


Full color illustrations

I will be taking three full color illustrations in two different ways: a raffle and an auction. All times are in Central European Summer Time (CEST).

• The raffle will start at 8PM on Thursday the 8th, two winners will be chosen after 24 hours.
• The auction will start on Friday the 9th at 11PM and end on the 10th (Saturday) at 11PM.

You can use this converter to convert the times to your timezone.


"Other" commissions: 20 hours

I will fill the rest of the batch with commissions on a first-come-first-serve basis, until the hours are filled. Please note that the hours counted are not necessariy the exact hours taken (I may take shorter or longer if the commission requires it, these are rounded-up estimates).
This batch will open on Friday the 9th at 9PM CEST.

• Stencil: 1 hour
• Sketch: 2 hours
• Icon, shoulders-up bust: 3 hours
• Hips-up bust: 4 hours
• Speedpainting: 7 hours


Timeline overview

For clarity, here is an overview of the timeline. Again, all in CEST.

Thursday the 8th at 8PM - Raffle for full color illustrations start.
Friday the 9th at 8PM – Raffle closes, two winners are chosen.
Friday the 9th at 10PM – Auction for full color illustration slot starts.
Saturday the 10th at 10PM - Auction closes
Saturday the 10th at 11PM – "Other" commission list opens until filled.


Questions

As per usual, if you have any questions please leave a comment here or send me a note.

EDIT: I have moved the "Other" commission opening to take place AFTER the auction is completed. The auction will be held 1 hour earlier than initially stated.

Well, back from EF22. I had a blast there and met some really cool and fun people! I'm looking forward to next year already and I'm also hoping to be able to attend MFF in 2017, which should be pretty amazing!

After coming home I was mentally and physically drained so I spent my time doing mundane chores, taking care of non-art related things and doing some doodling for fun, trying to get back into it. Yesterday I sat down and planned to get work done, but unfortunately after finishing the piece for Stimata I came down with delayed con crud and am now dealing with a pretty severe cold. Can't focus on anything for too long without getting a headache, so I'm just going to sit this out for a bit to recover. Apologies to my commissioners for the delayed progress.

Where are you staying?
Some Airbnb place nearby.
When will you arrive?
The 15th.
Means of transportation?
Plane
Sharing a room with:
This cat
Do you have a doorsign?
Nope! Guess we might make one on the spot if needed.


What is your gender?
Female
Relationship Status:
Spoken for.
How old are you?
26
How tall are you?
1.69
Which languages do you speak?
Dutch (native), English (fluent), German (rusty), French (basic), Swedish (basic)


Where will you be most of the time during the day?
Walking around in the Estrel, I'll probably hang out in the Artist lounge/alley occasionally.
Who will you be with?
The folks I'm staying with and whoever else I meet ^^.
Do you do free art?
If I'm drunk enough. Don't expect quality.
Do you do trades?
No.
Do you do commissions?
I might do some sketches, either for money or drinks/food haha.
Do you have prints/ CDs?
Might bring some prints!


Can I dance with you?
Can I dance with YOU?
Can I touch you?
Eh, depends why, where and how. Use common sense/decency.
Can I talk to you?
Of course!
Can I hug you?
Sure.
Can I take photos of you/with you?
Ask me when you see me.
Can I buy you lots of drinks?
Absolutely.


Do you drink Alcohol/Smoke?
I drink, I don't smoke.
Can I give you lots of money?
Uh, yes please!
Can we hang out?
Sure!
Are you nice?
Meet me and find out.
Attending any events?
I might do! Don't know which events I want to go to yet.


How can I find you at the con?
Uff, ask around, I'll be expecting to meet lots of people, someone might know where I am.
If you really want to meet me, send me a private message on Twitter (@CaraidArt).
Can we go out for a dinner?
If I don't have plans already, maybe! Just ask.
Are you buying art?
Probably not :c
What is the best way to contact you?
Twitter (@CaraidArt) or Telegram (note me)


May I kidnap you to my room?
Your room or our room?
You look pretty tired, are you ok?
Probably fine! Maybe a bit hungover. Remind me to stay hydrated!
Last time/last con/last meet/last chat we talked so much and now you forgot my name? Why???
I have a visual memory, mostly. Chances are I'll know your face but not your name or what we talked about.
Please forgive me and just remind me of who you are real quick so we can get on with our conversation ^^.


Will you tell me your room-number and can I surprise visit you?
Not staying at the Estrel, and since I'm sharing a room with others, no.
I have a personal question for the convention. May I ask you that?
Of course :).

In the past two days I have been in the process of moving to a new apartment which is why I haven't been very active. I will have time to work today and tomorrow, and perhaps early on Sunday before I get on a plane with zeeraw and fly over to the Netherlands to visit my family, see my niece for the first time and celebrate my birthday, after which we will continue on to London and visit friends before going back home on the 18th.

I will be taking my laptop with me and I am planning to get some work done while I am away but obviously I will not be able to work quite as much as usual so my progress will be a bit slower until I return.

Thank you all for your patience! <3

The past two days have been a bit slower than I would've liked work-wise, I've been slacking a bit and I do apologize. Time to pick up the pace properly again, so below is my planning for the coming days.

Tomorrow
- Brogon's commission
- Trace commission sketches
- NecroDrone's commission progress (okay no stream today, wasn't in the mood, sorry!)

Thursday
- Brogon's commission
- Finish NecroDrone's commission (STREAM)
- Start on Guy9's commission (STREAM)

Friday
- Brogon's commission
- Finish Guy9's commission (STREAM)
(if enough time due to midsummer)

Saturday
- Rough colors for Trace (maybe STREAM)
- Finish Guy9's commission if needed (STREAM)

Sunday
- Random (probably STREAM)

Ah, sorry guys! I forgot to disable comments for the Queue & Status journal as I'll be wanting to make that my new "official" Queue & Status. Comments have now been disabled there and the already posted comments have been hidden. I will also be deleting the journal containing the forms to keep my journal history somewhat clean - so if you're missing messages in your inbox, that'll be the reason!

Things really went fast this time, I've never experienced anything quite like it. I'm both very flattered and thrilled to get started! Congratulations to all those who made it onto the queue this time and good luck to those who are trying (again) tomorrow!

----

UPDATE: So, now that the second batch is complete, I think it is definitely clear that I need to adjust my methods for the next commission opening. I've had some very good suggestions and I'm truly grateful that you're all thinking along to find a fair solution to the issue. Again of course I am incredibly flattered that my work is in such high demand and I'm very excited to get started! I'm sorry to those who failed to grab a slot this time - I truly wish I could accept everyone but I want to keep my waiting list manageable as best as I can (plus, the more frequently I open the higher a chance everyone has at getting one).

For future openings I am currently planning to hold a public raffle, where people get a certain amount of time to submit their information and I will pick "winners" using a random number generator in a public stream, so that everyone can watch along and the outcome is as fair as it can be. Additionally, I will probably auction off a full color commission slot as well (since these seem to be highest in demand). Feel free to discuss below!


My updated commission queue and status can be found HERE.

If you ended up finding this journal somehow, please note that I have a new status journal up here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/8414283/

______________________________________________________________________


Q&A

• Do you accept mature themed commissions?
I am fine with nudity and sensuality, but clear signs of arousal or sexual acts are not accepted at this time. If you're unsure about your particular request, please don't hesitate to ask!

• When will you re-open in the future?
As a rule I aim to finish any batch of commissions I take within one or two months. Please keep an eye out on my status for my current progress and to get an idea of how much is still on my plate.

• Do you do requests/trades/collaborations?
I do not take requests unless I explicitly offer them, I do not do trades and I am occasionally open for collaborations. For collaborations please bear in mind that my preference is to work with artists that are of a similar level to my own work.

• If you have any other questions, please send me a PM or e-mail me at caraidart[at]outlook.com

Here is the breakdown of how I will conduct my commission re-opening in the coming two days.


TIMES AND DATES

I will re-open in two different batches to accommodate different timezones.
Both batches will have an equal amount of slots available.
I will alternate between the claimed slots from both batches for a fair waiting time.

Batch 1: Sunday June 12th, 11PM CEST (5PM EST, 7AM AEST on Monday)
Batch 2: Monday June 13th, 1PM CEST (7AM EST, 9PM AEST)


FORMS & SLOTS

I will put up two different forms: one for SMALL (<100 USD) and one for LARGE (100> USD) commissions.
There will be a total of 4 slots available for LARGE commissions (2 per batch).
There will be a total of 10 slots available for SMALL commissions (5 per batch).

Click here for a screenshot of the SMALL commission form
Click here for a screenshot of the LARGE commission form

For commission types that are not on the list, pick the "Other" option - use your best judgement
as to whether it would count as a large or small commission.


TERMS OF SERVICE

Before you commission me, please have a look at my Terms of Service. By commissioning me you automatically agree to these terms.


Q&A

• Do you accept mature themed commissions?
I am fine with nudity and sensuality, but clear signs of arousal or sexual acts are not accepted at this time. If you're unsure about your particular request, don't hesitate to ask!

• When will you re-open in the future?
I aim to finish the new batch of commissions within roughly two months. I can't guarantee anything there as life is difficult to predict, but that is the plan!

If you have any other questions, please comment here or send me an e-mail or PM.
If your question is relevant for others I will add it and my answer here.