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I finally found a person who seems willing to do my customized costume of Klaymen from the Neverhood.
I'm not sure what kind of things I should look for in the contract.
The designer mentions a company name, but is there some kind of business certificate or such I can and should be asking for?
He expects to have the costume finished in 6 months. I can wait 1 full year. Maybe a refund clause minus $50 or $100 that I could request my money back if the costume if not finished by then?
I'm not sure about materials or what works for comfortability.
Maybe I should hire a lawyer to help me draft up a contract?
He has certain details such as:
Eva foam that will be sealed and than painted with acrylic to look like clay.
Fans will be installed in the head for cooling purposes.
Clothing worn by the character will be hand sewn and included in the commission price
Any thoughts on what should be added and/or asked?
Thank you.
I would ask for pictures of his/her work. Don’t pay until it’s finished.
Don't pay until it's finished is a tough one as it would seem reasonable to ask for pre-payment to be able to buy materials. They do need something for the time and energy to put the work in.
It seems like in this nerd culture, some people just pay and normally without an (informal) contract by e-mail/Word, which kind of surprised me. I can understand that for a super simple request. Something that has more significant cost and/or labor/complexity, it seems like something in writing is minimal.
I think I should stick with using an (informal) contract even if the contract is simple.
Don't pay until it's finished is a tough one as it would seem reasonable to ask for pre-payment to be able to buy materials. They do need something for the time and energy to put the work in.
It seems like in this nerd culture, some people just pay and normally without an (informal) contract by e-mail/Word, which kind of surprised me. I can understand that for a super simple request. Something that has more significant cost and/or labor/complexity, it seems like something in writing is minimal.
I think I should stick with using an (informal) contract even if the contract is simple.
Then there's no confusion.
But really, if someone has a business and they can’t afford the overhead, isn’t that a red flag? I can see perhaps a few hundred$ deposit that protects both of them, but that’s it.
But really, if someone has a business and they can’t afford the overhead, isn’t that a red flag? I can see perhaps a few hundred$ deposit that protects both of them, but that’s it.
In this case, it isn't necessarily a red flag because many costume businesses, especially ones with a storefront, which is relatively rare, but I did find one near me, are concerned about copyright and just don't want to deal with it at all. Also, if I give nothing at all, and then they go through all the effort to make the costume, then I could just theoretically say "I don't like it" even if they did a good job. Then the costume maker(s) would totally be out. So, it seems sensible there should be some kind of in-between with both some kind of protection for customer and designer (designer for being paid properly and customer for getting what they want within reason and costume being completed. For example, costume is finished 6 months - 1 year instead of 4 years.)
There is a space of people in nerdy culture where it seems like 50% upfront is standard, but then it seems I should also be looking more carefully at their past work, portfolio, what materials they use, and how they interact with me. I've run into two people, one online only, and one online but was in an online group where all of us worked at the same convention, where both of them didn't even have a contract. I do think there should be a contract in place even if it's written in a Word document and that's it.
I looked into considering an official contract through a lawyer because of the amount I was willing to consider for the costume, but one of my relatives who is a lawyer in a different state told me it wasn't worth it and that "my request should be simple".
I have a couple of smaller dollar amount requests which I am considering to ask this particular designer about, and at the same time, I think for a variety of reasons, I need to keep looking for other designer(s).
Don't pay until it's finished is a tough one as it would seem reasonable to ask for pre-payment to be able to buy materials. They do need something for the time and energy to put the work in.
It seems like in this nerd culture, some people just pay and normally without an (informal) contract by e-mail/Word, which kind of surprised me. I can understand that for a super simple request. Something that has more significant cost and/or labor/complexity, it seems like something in writing is minimal.
I think I should stick with using an (informal) contract even if the contract is simple.
Then there's no confusion.
Pay 50%
Balance upon completion.
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