For context, I'm getting married and the mother in law lives across the country and can't afford to make it up here. I've offered to pay her way up here and even do all the planning to make my wife to be happy and I'd hate for her mother to miss out on her daughters marriage. But lord she's testing my patience.

I lurk on this sub often so I get the frustration that artists feel when their clients undervalue their work. I’m not an artist but the memes and stories are entertaining to me. Well, I’ve now found myself in the middle of a not-so-fun “stand off” with an artist and I’d like to know, from the perspective of redditors here, whether I’m being the choosing beggar. I’m removing a lot of detail as negotiations are still ongoing.

Background: I posted on a sub asking artists if they were interested in rendering/sketching/drawing from a photo reference. I clearly posted my budget ($25). So, as I mentioned, I’m not an artist, and I don’t know what the terms are that people use in the industry. I have commissioned pieces before from a handful of artists on Reddit and I’ve never had any issues.

Situation: An artist, W, commented that they were interested, I saw their portfolio and liked their work, so I went with them. There was a contract and everything, with the work described as a simple sketch, draft of two people, and done as a cartoon. I was satisfied and paid in full.

Yesterday, I received a drawing that wasn’t coloured in. I commented my happiness with it, suggested minor changes, and said I couldn’t wait for it to be coloured. That’s when I got a long email explaining that a “sketch” is a drawing that isn’t coloured and that if I wanted it coloured, I had to pay an additional $25. You can imagine my disappointment.

I was never told from the beginning that colouring was extra. If this is something understood in the industry, I certainly didn’t get any memo especially since, as explained, I’m not an artist. I’ve since asked the artist if they’re willing to reduce their fee since I’d like the gift soon and I’ve already paid them the full budget I had set aside for this.

But am I wrong to ask for a reduction of the fee? Tbh I’m irate to have to pay more, but I’ll take it as a “punishment” fee since I should have been extra clear that I wanted a coloured sketch. But to have to pay 100% more is ridiculous to me.

I’m willing to hear others out on their opinions on the matter though.

Edit: So most if not everyone has made it clear that “sketch” refers only to a black and white drawing. While my only defence is that I am not American and we don’t really use sketch in that way, I did come here asking for judgment and so am willing to admit that I clearly was wrong from the start. I will learn from this mistake and will speak to the artist about it. Also, I know that it is Reddit and some people love being assholes online because it’s easy to do it when you’re hiding behind the screen, but I do thank those people that were critical yet kind and civil about it.

Not on game day, just for set up and tear down.