Mandy Elliott's Online Art Gallery

Q: What sort of paint  and glitter do you use?
A: Mostly acrylic "System 3" paints in the primary colors (Red, yellow, blue, black and white) for my paintings and I used a Folk Art "Gems" glitter.  It's a brush on glitter paint that comes in many colors. It's a water-base so it washes out of clothing if you accidentally get it on some.

Q: What sort of pastels/chalk/pencils/colored pencils do you use?
A: I use a regular #2 pencil for drawing, sometimes shading with a set of Steadtler shading pencils by Mars Lumograph. I usually only use the "5B" The best eraser I found for these and my regular pencil is the Pentel Click Eraser.  As for the pastels/chalk/colored pencils, I use Prismacolor. So far they're the best. Their pastels and pencils are oil based for best blending, their chalk is firmer for lack of a better word and really blends well without too much dust.  Most, if not all of these can be found at the local Michaels.

Q: Do you use any special canvas' or paper?
A: No, not really. I usually get my canvas' as gifts for my birthday, Christmas and any other holiday I can sneak 'em from. They vary from pressed board with canvas over them, to stretch canvas on a wood frame (my preferred canvas). The paper I use is sometimes found in a sketch book, recycled paper or just plain computer printing paper.

Q: What sizes do you usually work in?
A: Anything from 1" X 1" to wall sized. My usual is 20" X 24" canvas' and 9" X 11" paper.  When I work with photo's and editing, it depends if I intend to print or not. If I intend to print, I usually work on a large scale with 300-400 DPI (dots per inch) I can always shrink it down to size if I need to.

Q: What program do you use to edit your pictures?
A: Photo Impact Pro 10.0. It's the best I've found so far when it comes to usability. I've tried Photoshop 8.0 last and it was not user friendly for me. Or at least not what I wanted. It did have more features and textures and special effects but I'm used to making those the hard way I guess. I started out using Adobe Photo Business Edition 1.0 (which shows in some of my earlier works) so I've upgraded quite a bit since then and found this one to be the most user friendly and still do some pretty cool effects.

Q: Not all of these pictures are your's why are you taking credit for them?
A: Well, the answer to that is on my "site information" page. I do not take credit for anything that isn't mine, nor do I receive or accept payment of any form for any images that are not solely mine. Anything that is a joint effort between me and another artist will be marked with both our signatures or logo's. Please see my "Site information" page for a list of sources.

Q: What is the largest, most expensive work you've done?
A: There is no cap. The bigger, more complex, more time and resources consuming the work, the more it will cost. To answer the second question, so far the biggest painting I ever did was a $1500 USD mural of a tree with a dog peeking out from behind it (See "paint" link for a picture) It took eight hours to complete almost non-stop with myself and my twin doing the work (solo would have been nearer to 12 or 13 hours) and the paint and brushes were supplied by the commissioner.

Q: How do you set the price of a commission?
A: I usually start with a base price I calculate by the size of the project (how many pictures or how big the "canvas" and add that to the estimated cost of the materials.) For photo's Prints are not included so I give the option of just getting a disk to print or just add the local and current price to mine. What brings the price up from a base price is how complex the design or painting. Do I have an exact image to duplicate, am I working from my own creative intuition or are there many elements wanted in the picture that I must reference several pictures to obtain? How soon is it needed? How long does it take me to complete? These things will drive up the price. I do generally give a quote before beginning, and most often this quote is free. But please keep in mind I don't often take commissions because art is my passion and sometimes my artistic freedom can be trumped by a client's ideal. I like to be free.

Q: Do you discount your work?
A: Sometimes. I've been known to discount friends or family and sometimes if something inspires me to do more than I was paid to do, I don't generally charge for that too. My philosophy is simple, if you aren't happy with my pricing, find someone else. I know I am fair in my pricing.  This is my passion and I wont sell my self short to gain a buck. On the same side of that coin, however, I don't do this for money. This is not my job, it's my passion and just because there isn't someone throwing money at me to do something doesn't mean I will stop my work. I love to paint and draw and create images of beauty and emotion that move people and while getting paid for is a plus, I don't need it to be satisfied or for it to define me as an artist.

Q: If I wanted you to do some picture edits for me, how much would you charge?
A: That goes back to how I charge but usually if someone just wants some blemishes removed, some red-eye maybe, a little cropping and maybe brightening or contrast adjustment for best color I charge by time. Usually such edits take less than an hour per picture, sometimes only minutes. So the average is $15-$25 USD

Q: What about the pictures and paintings and such you already have on your site?
A: Ask about one specifically and let me know which you're interested in. I'll let you know if it's available for sale. Though in the near future I hope to have all those I've already sold or that were commissioned marked.

Q: What if I want to use one of your pictures for my RP character?
A: Ask if it's being used by using the "contact" link and if not, give me credit and I'll be happy. :-)

Q: Can I get one of your pictures as a tattoo?
A: Sure! I love knowing there are people walking around with my work on them. I've already got a few and I'll be adding a link for it too so if you do, please reference my website here and send me a picture at me@meoag.com! Also, if you plan on getting my work inked on you, if you let me know ahead of time I can send you a post card and or business card to give to that tattooist so they can reference my site as the basis of the art.

Q: Will you draw me a tattoo?
A: I'd love to! Please keep in mind though that I can't always turn my creativity on or off.

Q: You do commissions and such, but I don't see anywhere to order...
A: No, you don't. I only accept money orders mailed to me or cash and I will not mail a piece until I receive a deposit payment. I will post all works here in "WIP" for approval but any changes during the making are made, I may charge extra.

Q: Where do I send a money order?
A: First, we'll discuss the parameters of the work, and I'll give you an estimated cost. From there I will provide you with the address to send the first half. Second half upon completion. (All deposits-first half's payment- are non-refundable unless the work is not completed in the time specified)

Q: Can I just suggest something you might like to do and not pay for it?
A: Sure! If an idea is inspiring I will do it without anyone paying me. Most of my work is inspired not
commissioned. As previously mentioned, this is my passion. Getting paid is just a bonus.

Q: Can I get a print of one of your works?
A: Of course. I generally only charge for the print what ever I'm charged plus what it'll cost me to mail it to you.  Average sizes are from wallet to poster. Ask for more details as not all pictures can be printed in good quality in all sizes. I don't usually make much money off prints but most of them will have my website strung across the bottom. It's worth it for me in the end. I just like to share my work.

Q: Can I use your work for my desktop/phone/myspace/etc?
A: I love sharing my work with people so I allow this so long as I'm sited as the source with a link to my website. www.meoag.com

Q: I saw someone who's using one of your pictures and they didn't site you, what should I do?
A: Well, let me know! As much detail as possible because everything on this website is (c) to someone and protected by intellectual property laws.

Q: I see something on your site that isn't sited...
A: It will happen from time to time because I search for references on the Internet using google.com; If I don't know the original artist, I can't site them. If you do, PLEASE let me know and I'd be happy to site them. I don't take credit for anything I didn't do.

Q: Do you still do AOL Profiles?
A: I'll do the picture edits but I no longer provide the code.

Q: If you do the editing for this RP thing for free, why wont you do my editing for free?
A: I did not take the original pictures of the celebrities and models used for the RP edits and they are protected by (c) laws. I cannot and will-not charge for them.  When I edit pictures for people who will share them with friends and families and they are of themselves I generally take those myself to ensure quality. Even when I don't, all pictures sent to me become my property as will be agreed upon before the edit is done and therefore I can and will charge for it. Please keep in mind though, some edits I can/will do as a courtesy. If something wont take me more than five minutes to do, I'm not likely to charge for it. If you don't want to pay someone, Walgreens, Wal-mart and other such places offer a basic service with the printing of your pictures.