Check out the fully formatted version of the guide on my website: commission guide
Buy Art!
It’s really damn cool to get art of your own Original Characters (OCs). Art that is tangible, intentional, and collaborative is always going to have memories attached to it. Meaning that you’ve given it.
Having something that’s yours is indescribable, and I hope that this guide can at least help you get started and not feel too daunted by the process.
This guide is mainly about building your vocabulary when it comes to the process, and as you learn more, you’ll feel more confident.
My credentials
Hi, I’m Yana and I’ve been commissioning art for ~10 years, now. I’ve had two sonas in that time, have gone through redesigns on both, and have worked with artists to make or purchase other OCs throughout that time.
Each piece of art I get is a new facet to explore my characters through, and whether it’s kink-forward or simply in service of the character itself, it’s all a blast. I’m hoping I can help get you started, too!
Who’s this for?
As an author who is in a long-term committed relationship with an artist, we’ve both seen first-hand how generative AI has changed the landscape of independent communities like the furry community. While most furry sites have crafted some kinds of policies toward restricting genAI use, it’s been a touch disappointing to see it used so regularly elsewhere.
That is not to say that I don’t understand why folks turn to it so often. I do, especially if they might be looking to explore a new character, to dip their toe into furry in the first place, or for the simple reason that ‘fast, easy, and ““free””’ these days tends to triumph over ‘careful, deliberate, and personal.’
So this guide is for folks who may be completely new, or who may have experimented with genAI for creating character images. It’s for those who want to have something more personal—something that they know comes from combined heart and soul—not machines built to churn everything together to make the most literally average images they can.
This guide, simply put, is a collection of information I wish I’d had when I first started commissioning things as a nervous pre-transition teen. When I was someone who didn’t want to make waves, but wanted to have characters I felt comfortable inhabiting.
There’s something magical about working with someone to make a character or a design come to life, and I want more folk to feel like it’s accessible, not some archaic and confusing process.
So let’s dive in, shall we?
Getting Started (or: Where to Find Artists and Build your Preferences)
The four images above are some examples of more stylistic artwork I’ve commissioned of my OCs. The first is quite old, from 2019, of my main sona “Yana”. It’s by the artist BUTTSTEAK and I got it at Anthrocon. The second is of my old sona Zee, by sacherali. It’s definitely more stylized, and I adore it. Third is of my other main OC Virdis, by KayCat, also gotten at Anthrocon in 2025. The last is Stele, done as a custom stream adoptable, from Roxie. All of these are artists I can vouch for and recommend, even though not all of them are still making art in the same ways.
I know there are people on here who have come to this site without much interaction with the wider furry world. They may be brand new, freshly of age of adulthood in their country, and are looking for community. They may have just gotten into writing, and had a friend recommend this place. They may have been around for years, perhaps even before there were big furry websites built for sharing art, and everything they usually interact with is off traditional social media.
But everyone engages with art on a regular basis!
It’s in the games you play, the shows you watch. It’s murals on buildings and designs on stickers. It’s cool packaging, book covers, postcards, phone backgrounds. You’ve been building your tastes since you were young, and it’s worthwhile to chase that interest!
But where do you find artists to follow? How do you actually create a curated space for what you want to see? Below, you’ll find some tips and places for where to start building your follows out. These lists aren’t exhaustive, but are built from my personal experience and the experiences of my peers.
Dedicated Furry Art Sites (Where the Furries Congregate)
FurAffinity (“FA”) - https://furaffinity.net
- This is the locale that most will be familiar with. I’d highly recommend creating an account on here. Even if you only use it to lurk/follow artists, it can be nice to have a landing zone for following folks.
- It’s a great place to end up once you know a few artists and follow their links back to FA, but can be intimidating at first. Browsing and tags are still somewhat lackluster from a feature standpoint, but once you’ve found the artists you want to follow, you can see from their own posts and favorites perhaps commissioners that get similar things to your interests, or other artists to ‘watch’.
- Otherwise, you can browse by topics, find artists that are making cool things in the spaces you’re interested in. Explore! You might see some things you’d rather not see, but that’s the internet!
e621 - https://e621.net
- The other big furry site. The porn site. This one is great for looking up artwork that shares similar…attributes or focused interests, but isn’t awesome for actually collecting artists for commissioning, in my experience. That said, it can still be somewhere to find new artists that you’re interested in.
Other sites I have less experience with: InkBunny, SoFurry, Weasyl
- These are sites I’m not too familiar with. SoFurry used to be great for finding stories, but a redesign has made it more difficult for writers to use. InkBunny and Weasyl have their own bases and policies, so it serves to brush up on their communities and see if they interest you.
In all the above cases, these are sites that serve a more focused purpose than traditional social media sites. Places like Bluesky or Instagram may show you art, but can be tough to keep favorites nailed down, or to find more niche interests.
Social Media
BlueSky - https://bsky.net
- Now, this will mostly be the one ‘traditional’ social media site I’ll cover in this quick guide. There’s no way in hell I’ll be pushing anyone to visit the fascist genocidal fuck’s site (X), nor anything associated with Facebook. Bluesky isn’t perfect, but it is a place that is full of artists who thrive there.
- Getting started on Bluesky is as simple as making an account. Of course, for finding follows, it’s best to have somewhere to pull from. I recommend looking into Starter Packs like the ones I’ve linked below. They’re selections of artists, furry or otherwise, who use the site to post art and even commission openings.
- Here’s one from someone I trust: Bluesky
- You can also just go to search, put in something like “furry artists” and then filter to starter packs. Give each a browse, find ones that fit your interests. There you go! A starting off point.
Commission-Focused Sites/Bespoke Sites
VGen - https://vgen.co
- I’m very new to using this site, but it is a great “marketplace” site with vetted artists who can offer their commissions in a clearer capacity. No more looking through someone’s gallery on FA or checking their pinned posts on Bluesky, you can browse a site like this for artists that are open now, who have clear guidelines on what they offer and who they’re offering it to.
- I’ve commissioned NSFW art on here, but it’s not as popular as SFW art. If you’re looking for places to start with custom characters though, give them a search here, see what comes up.
KoFi - Varies by artist
- Some artists will take commissions through KoFi, and those will end up more like buying any digital good. Use your best judgement!
HireHumanArtists - https://hirehumanartists.com/
- Basically Craigslist but for artists. Less structured than VGen, still useful. Recc’d to me by my partner.
The above are just a few sites for building out the who of commissioning. But we should touch base on what you’ll be commissioning.
Addendum: How to not get scammed.
- Find artists who are followed by other artists. Check how many folk follow them, see if they look like bots or not.
- Find artists who have public “trello” boards, or other documentation of their queue. This helps you to know what turnaround time looks like. This isn’t really necessary, but helps if you’re unsure or if the vibes seem off
- Don’t ever commission someone who DMs you from the blue to ask you to commission them. Just don’t.
- Ask yourself questions when browsing someone’s gallery. Does this look like GenAI? How long have they been making furry art? Do they just not post often, or is there a reason that they seem to go from 0-100 in proficiency in the past x months? Follow your gut, and if they’re followed by others, see if someone else is vouching for them.
- Also, pay for comms with cards that you can do chargebacks on or cancel payments. It will be exceedingly rare that you have to do this, and remember that some artists just work slow, but it’s another safety measure.
So how do I actually buy art from someone?
You just do it. Artists like money, give them money, get art in return.
No, that’s not very helpful, is it? The first thing to keep in mind here is what you’re looking to commission. Do you want to get a custom character, where they’re designed by you to be your OC or your fursona? Do you want art of a character you’ve already made? Figure out your intent, then proceed.
This guide is aimed toward those looking to get first-time art of a character or sona, so that’s what we’ll focus on in this section. You’ve found places to follow artists by this point, what’s next?
- Find artists who are actively open or advertising they’re open for commissions.
- Most folks will say this in a post, in a journal, or on their bluesky/other socials.
- Some will have forms that spell out plainly what they want from you. How much detail they need, what kinds of commissions they’re taking, and more. Others will have ‘price sheets’ with a lot of that information.
- READ THEIR TERMS OF SERVICE
- Many artists worth their stuff will have public terms of service. These cover what kinds of commissions they like to take, how they like to be paid, what kinds of files they’ll be sending you, and other important information.
- These aren’t like the Terms and Conditions you can just skip through, they’re incredibly valuable and can give you a framework to start from.
- Fill out the form or send them a message with the information they requested.
- If they take your commission, send them money via their requested method.
- I’ve heard from a few folk that they’re nervous about artists or others seeing their transactions. Most artists have been doing this for a while, and have a defined process through which to pay them. They don’t care about your name, where you come from, or anything like that. We’re all a community, and judgement doesn’t stand.
- They may also send you an invoice, and you’ll pay that directly. Every artist is different.
Another Addendum: Patreon/SubscribeStar
Many of the artists you’ll find, and the sites they’ll be based on, will also have linked some kind of subscription platform (most commonly Patreon and SubscribeStar (SubStar)). These are ways for those artists to get a more regular monthly income rather than the intermittent payments that commission work and merch sales can bring.
I bring these up not just to explain the purpose, but to let you know that many artists that you may like will possibly only open their commissions to their patrons first, before opening them to the wider public. Some artists will offer first dibs, small discounts, or other perks to their patrons.
If you come to love an artist’s style, and are wanting to support them or commission them—but they never seem to open publically—check out their subscription pages, there may be a low cost tier that lets you get first dibs on commission slots.
Prices: Am I overpaying? Am I underpaying?
What’s the average price for a commission? I’ve seen some folk ask this and to be honest, it depends on a lot of factors, including but not limited to:
- How long the artist has been taking commissions.
- How “skilled” they are (or believe themselves to be)
- How fast the artist works
- What kind of commission/degree of ‘finish’ you’re looking for
- Sketch < lines < flat color (unshaded) < shaded
- Headshot/icon < bust (above the waist) < full body < multiple characters
- Backgrounds tend to be extra, amongst other factors
- Where they’re located
- An artist taking commissions in Russia or the Philippines will have different rates/costs of living as someone in Europe or the US.
Ref sheets tend to be quite expensive, but you don’t always have to start with a ref sheet. If you’re looking to feel out a character, to get a design of them without feeling locked in, see if an artist is taking ‘custom adoptables’ or something of the sort. There, you can usually give them a few things: species, colors, vibes, and they can give you a design in return. Think of it as character design lite, a place to start from.
If you’re looking for specific estimates, I’m hesitant to give them. Every artist is distinct. Some folks may take charity sketch commissions at low prices, others might have freebie streams, even more will have their own way of pricing their art, from per-piece to per-hour. This is a situation where you’ll build out your own intuition as you follow artists.
Interlude: A few artists I can personally recommend/have gotten great art from
-
Arlen: @ratwednesday.art on Bluesky
- Proficiencies: sfw pieces and colorful scenes, ref sheets
- SleepingWoolf (@sleepingwoolf.bsky.social on Bluesky)
Starting From Scratch, or: How to ideate and describe a character design to an artist
Lots of what I write in here is on a case by case basis. I want to recognize that a lot of you are writers and roleplayers who have described your character in text already. That’s a great starting point, and many artists will be happy to work off a written description.
My first recommendation is to not start by giving them a genAI reference. You may have ideated with one—it may look good to your eyes—but by giving them a genAI reference you’re starving both the artist and yourself of the experience of unbridled creation, of starting from scratch without the visual influence of something you’ve already generated.
Instead, try some of the following steps when coming up with a character. Artists will thrive with this information. I’ll split these into necessary and extra, though again it really depends on the artist. When in doubt, read their TOS.
For all of the below, you can also build a ‘mood board’ of images alongside. If you have a bodyshape in mind, but don’t know how to describe it, find pictures of people or characters with that shape, point to them as inspiration. (Other extra features covered in my website guide)
Necessary, usually:
Gender/sex
What kind of gender do you want your OC/Sona to have? Do you want to share it with them, both be cis/trans, both be male, female, or something else? Do you want them to not have a gender at all?
If you’ve ever wanted to experiment with how you feel about your own gender expression, now’s your chance! If you’re not getting an NSFW comm, you’ll probably not have to worry about dictating exact primary sex characteristics, but here’s a few good ways to describe certain body types, as some words can be harmful to some folks.
Instead of “futanari” or “futa” or “dickgirl” or “shemale”, describe what you want. Do you want a pre-op trans woman/trans-femme? (A person who’s kept her penis?) If so, use those words! Are you worried it’s appropriation? You could also, depending on the artist, ask for a woman with a penis. Check their TOS and see if there’s terms they prefer.
If you want a character who’s perhaps masculine or male but with other anatomy, try to avoid words like “cuntboy”. Instead use Transmasc, transgender male, or man with a vagina. Again, these are not hard and fast rules, just something to keep in mind. Some terms are fetish terms, and not all artists like to work with those.
No distinct sexual characteristics? Androgynous/neuter/null/agender all work as terms to look up and perhaps use.
Both sets of bits? Something exotic? Some artists prefer to not use the term “herm” or “hermaphrodite”. You can describe in plain text
For all of these, sometimes just describing in plain terms what you want is the safest option. Or use secondary sex characteristics
Example: “Hi, I’d like a character who’s masculine, but still has his breasts because he doesn’t mind them, but does have other stereotypical masculine features.”
Example: “I’d like a woman with both sets of parts who has a very voluptuous body.”
Example: “Could I get a character that has a lot of fluffy body fur stylized like body hair, but they’re a buff butch lesbian who could basically lift a car?”
I’ve seen some folks use gynomorph and andromorph on here, and as far as I’m aware, those terms aren’t as loaded but also aren’t as recognized. Check what your artist draws and see if they’re a fit!
General body shape
Do you want them tall/short? Exact height in mind?
How heavyset are they? Are they a waif with barely any fat on their body? Someone who’s an ultramarathon runner in physique? Are they fat? Where do they have pudge?
Think about the masculine/feminine/other stuff here too. If you want a character with an alternative body shape, think about what you want. Taur? Quadruped? Monstrous? Come up with some ways to describe their body, and think about if there’s any pictures online you can share as example!
Color palette!
This can feel like a more esoteric thing to pull at. You can always use sites like “coolors.co” to generate a few palettes, but don’t just stop there. Are there plants that you’d like your character to remind you of? Flowers or trees or animals that you like the designs on and the colors of? Gather those pictures, put them in a folder that’s labeled “color/pattern ideas” and start to build out your options that way.
Think about ways to describe the entirety rather than the singular. Do you want a green dog? Or do you want a dog that is green and brown in the way that a forest at dusk is? Do you want a red dragon, or do you want a dragon that looks like the deep red of a sunset in the sky? Pull from media, nature, other art. Go wild here!
You don’t need to include all of this for your artist, but it’s great to help you think about what’s important to you in a design.
Where do you want these colors? Is there a pattern you’d enjoy? Any distinct markings? (Be careful here, getting too complex can make the character a headache for some other artists to draw in the future…unless you’re willing to pay.)
Usually artists will only need details of the above to start working on something. Some may iterate with you with sketches, others might give you a few "thumbnails" to pick from that could be very rough sketches of the creature/character. In a stream, they might be able to work real-time with you to design something.
Give your honest feedback! If they ask you for any changes and you don't love the way something looks, let them know. Artists want you to be happy with your commission.
Example: Designing Virdis
When I commissioned Rott-Rott (Syd) for Virdis, here’s a basic rundown of what I provided. This was a custom character, and a ref commission, so we were practically starting from scratch.
Here’s verbatim the request I sent in. I will admit ahead of time it was a bit wordy, and somewhat disorganized, but it gives you an idea as to the process:
REFERENCES URL (optional): [folder link, images above]
Additional Information:
Coming to you with a werewolf* (of sorts) character design concept that I think you’d be really great at. I’ll provide a drive link with reference material, alongside the rough descriptors I’ll try to provide here. I’m looking for a half-elf + werewolf design, and am willing to pay for both, of course. I want to ahead of time apologize for the wall of text i’m presenting. It’s a lot, and feel free to go looser than I end up describing. I really appreciate this and look forward to your ideas and design!
Firstly, here’s the material I’ll be referencing in this description: [aforementioned images]
I’m coming at this from the perspective of kind of wanting to remake an older werewolf character, with some of that older character used as foundation.
Half-Elf form: I’ve provided some examples of the previous character I had, Aese. I really liked the face shape and the inclusion of some wolfy features (ear tufts, black sclera, darkened nose) but for this new character, I want to change up the body type/style/vibe quite a bit. If we could keep the same sort of face shape, maybe sibling if you will, but instead build her as a more lithe character. Think mousy professor who gets exercise from field research rather than hardened adventurer. The thinner vibes and style of ‘Aese Portrait’ are in that vein, but feel free to experiment a bit. I think some smaller round glasses would look good. I love when the wolf of a werewolf shines through on a non-wolfed form, and love seeing folks’ takes on that. They are trans-feminine, just to be descriptive.
Half-Elf form, other specifications:
Name: Virdis Keppel
Age: late 30s (in human years)
Hair color: Open to what you think looks good!
Occupation: Botany Professor
Height: ~5’4", flexible here too. Want the height difference between person and wolf to be pretty substantial, though.
Eye Color: Black sclera, iris color up to you (see palette maybe)
Pronouns: She/They
Wolf Form: So the main animal I want to base her off is the fictional ‘Loth-Wolf’ from Star Wars Rebels. But that can serve as only loose inspiration (see reference drive link). Other animal inspirations may include hyena and thylacine. The main thing I’ve been inspired by from that design is the talons, which I’d like preserved in some way in the final character design. Coloration-wise, I’m a bit stumped, but I like the idea of having a teal or cyan as an accent color.
As for a main body color, I’m thinking a cream colored fur of some sort would be pretty, with the palette shifting to teals and deep blues. I’ll include a palette link for inspiration, but feel free to experiment. Create a Palette - Coolors I’m really not married to these colors, and I’m mostly inspired by the cream and tan in that palette. I’ll also include some flowers for mood-board reference, as they are a botany professor! I’d like to definitely see if we can make the werewolf more ‘were’ than ‘wolf’, more in the monster-design side of things, with hunched back, big teeth, that sort of thing. there are some inspirations and references in the folder. They’re all suffixed with “DesignRef”. Really, if they end up with a lot of monster features, I’m not at all opposed to that. I really like your canine face shapes and think you’ll do an amazing job! Def like the real present/sharp teeth.
TL;DR: big fluffy wolf-beast with talons for fore/back paws. Mostly bipedal though hunched. Cream and tan in the color palette with some striking contrast color of some sort. Really open for you to go nuts and have fun though.
Other Specifications:
Height: like 8ft ish? again, just looking for drastic difference between non-wolfed and wolfed.
Eye-color: same here as it is in non-wolf form
Clothes: not clothed in this form
Now, obviously the character design changed a lot between this opening request and the final product, pictured below:
That’s because we didn’t stop at my reaching out. We entered into a process on Discord, iterating on design ideas. The teal was nixed as it would be a bit clashing. The fingers being talons in humanoid form was ideated upon and tried out. Sketch upon sketch was shared. This is not how every artist does it, but helps to demonstrate what a collaborative process commissioning can be.
Commissioning Etiquette
You’ve found an artist, you’ve sent in a request as noted on their form, and now the next step is the easiest/hardest of all: waiting.
First, we should touch on some best practices for reaching out. If an artist wants to be contacted for commissions, they will most likely list that somewhere. If they’re closed, or don’t do commissions, they might still have an email listed, but may not respond to you. That’s okay!
As ever, these tips are just tips, and every artist has personal preference. Clear communication is key, though. When sending in an inquiry via email or chat platform, try to keep it professional and to the point.
- What tier of commission are you interested in?
- What is the reference material for your character/commission (you can commission environmental art too!)
- If you have a moodboard of images and ideas, and are wanting to share them, create a shared folder on a cloud sharing like Proton Drive or DropBox. That’ll be a helpful way to convey ideas.
- If they need an email to send you an invoice, here’s where you’ll put that as well.
Some other best practices:
- If they ask you to send money through PayPal or Stripe or another payment processor, and otherwise don’t have an invoicing process, don’t put ANYTHING in the comments. Let them know via email that you’ve paid and what paypal account/email/name to associate your payment with.
- Payment platforms are really puritanical and can/have banned artists for taking certain commissions, through flagging processes. Better safe than sorry. If you’d like you could say "From ‘so and so email’ in the comments, but anything more is potentially troublesome.
- If they allow tips via that payment method, consider tipping your artist! Especially if you think they may be underpricing their work. This is totally up to your discretion, but it really means a lot.
- Once you send your request, give it time and space. Artists are much more likely to work with those who are professional and patient. Once they’ve accepted your commission, you may be in greater contact with them, but an artist you commission isn’t automatically going to be your friend. Treating them with courtesy and respect is the best way to go.
- It’s not unprofessional to ask for an update though. If they’ve accepted your commission, given you a timeframe on when to expect an update, and that time has come and gone, reaching out with a ‘hello, just checking in, could I get an update on the status of my commission?’ is usually acceptable.
- You may also be able to check something like a Trello board that the artist hosts, showing their progress on commissions. Not all artists have this, but it can be a good first stop.
- When you get your completed commission, if you’re happy with it, tell the artist! They will be thrilled to hear what you like about the commission, and to know that you like it at all. It can be a nice morale boost when a commissioner not only likes a piece, but points out some things they absolutely adore. If you like the body shape, the colors, the outfit, the pose, the expression, let them know!
Conclusion / tl;dr
Thanks for reading, and I’m happy to answer any questions. Everything in this guide boils down to:
- Find artists
- Experiment and explore with describing your OC
- Reach out to those artists via their preferred methods
- If you get accepted, pay them!
- Work within their TOS to create something you both are happy with.
- Get the finished art and post it somewhere to tell folks how happy you are with it! Use it on Wolfery, use those new accounts you’ve made. Use it to get more art! Once you have a ref or even just a solid reference image of your character, you can keep getting art from artists with a much more streamlined process.
Commissioning doesn’t stop at getting a ref, or a standalone image. You now have a handy shortcut for cutting out much of the “work” detailed here. Yes, you’ll still need to tell them what you want, but you’ll have the image of the who at your beck and call.
I really hope that y’all can enjoy buying art and feel like this process is a bit more clear after reading.