What a fantastic year for #commissions! Now, as a disclaimer, the majority of the pictures I have in the collage didn't make the "top 10" but believe me, it's not because I didn't like them or anything like that, it's just that when it comes to narrowing things down, some of them just won't make the list. At any rate, just like in 2018, the first year I started this "top 10" shenanigan, the guideline as to why I pick the ones I picked remains the same.
Accuracy: Since I commission a myriad of different artists (and have been since I started), it's more than safe to say that the various styles will alter the measurement of accuracy. A certain character, let's just say Elsa, will not look the same from artist to artist and that's just the fact of commissions and/or fan arts. Take that same idea with Elsa: as long as one can look at the drawing and SAY it's Elsa, most of her features are present and said character is recognizable and the style is satisfying and complimenting to the Disney Queen (or insert whatever character we are looking at here), then accuracy is there.
Price Tag: This is also a pretty subjective area since different caliber of artists charge differently, and that is understandable. But it definitely does play a BIG factor to a Commission's status, whether it be good or bad. Expensive does not always equal HIGHER quality after all.
Time: Another factor that is also subjective. Time is money, yes, but something that took some time to do but produced some jaw dropping art work will definitely be considered to be on the top ten. On the other side of the coin, if something took more than a few weeks and the result is something I enjoy but nothing grand (and I paid good money for it), then it's going to have a hard time getting no my top favorite.
Client and Customer Experience: This may not have anything to do with the quality of the art and/or the caliber of the artist but I am a big fan of customer service and being treated like someone who is giving good money to get something done is important. Almost all of the artist I have worked with are professional so this hasn't been an issue with me. But there have been some artists who took a step above just to ensure my experience was great. They spend the time to communicate for clarification and for the sake of following up. The experience also becomes more satisfying if the artist just spends the time to show appreciation for the business I am giving him/her.
Personal Preference: Now obviously this plays a big part. When it comes to commissioning, there are a lot of areas that personal preference can play a big part for my decision such as the character/s that are drawn, what kind of scenario, what is the theme (pin up, just awesome fanart, fetish... etc), and the meaning behind the commission. While it's hard NOT to put this as the forefront of my decision, I'm going to say it right now that it's a huge reason as to why some of these drawings made it to the top ten and beat the others. Just saying.
Alright, now that we have that established, let's get right into the Honorable mentions!
::Honorable Mentions::
In terms of Honorable Mentions, I have a bit more than last year. Again, it was hard to scratch them off the top and I struggled to shave them off the "top 10", but alas, they make the mention.
Honorable Mention: Onyx & Muramasa
By: PapillionStudios
#FrozenSkyrim suffered a lot in 2019... unfortunately. With that said, there were only one or two Onyx related commissions that got out and this was one of them. As always, PapillionStudios did an amazing job. We had a lot of notes back and forth to fix a few things here and there that made the process slightly bumpier than normal, but all in all, the result is still wonderful. With all that said, I have a feeling 2020 will bring more of Onyx and his adventures with (or without) Elsa in #commission form!
Honorable Mention: Terra Branford Anthology
by: Alif-Masra
Just to be clear, this won't be the last time we'll see Terra Branford on this list! Clearly, this is part of Terra's #DiDressphere series that is still ongoing (with no ending in sight). With all that said, this was a wonderful commission executed by Alif-Masra, an artist whom I only had the experience of working with this one time. The process to get this commission done wasn't exactly time-friendly and I believe this was about six months in the making (something that I commissioned in mid-2018 and didn't get until early 2019). Now, I'm not saying that Alif-Masra is a disrespecting artist for someone's time; he had a lot of things going on and he wasn't able to deliver time-wise. But the result in art form is amazing. And throughout the process of the commission, sketch and line art, Alif was doing some good changes for me. Good art but not the smoothest experience, not by mine or the artist's fault. The result? An honorable mention. I do love this piece regardless of how the journey experience was.
Honorable Mention: Spider-Woman vs Rikku
by: Blackprof
Blackprof continues to be a presence in my #commissioning hobby. While he wasn't as prominent in 2019, I DiD manage to work with him once or twice and the result of one of them was this wonderful conitnuation of his Spider-Woman VS--victim? None other than Rikku herself! Looks like Jessica isn't playing well with her other "V.V" team members? Well, I just love how this turned out! Rikku getting into a total bind with Jessica Drew's Omniverse webbing!
Honorable Mention: Elsa DiD Fever
by: TheBoundArtist
Elsa will also be a reoccurring damsel, mind you. Also, I have a little routine with TheBoundArtist with Elsa in her various outfits and this time we collaborated on Elsa's Frozen Fever attire. Not only do I adore his very animated and vibrant style, but the way he managed to weave my instructions and just make it work gives this picture a real distressing vibe! Elsa is just completely helpless and despite how hard she tries, she ain't getting free anytime soon! Fantastic picture and worth the mention!
Honorable Mentions: Elsa Let-Me-Go
by: Kusujinn
DiD I not mention that Elsa will be a reoccurring damsel? This is my second commission with Kusujinn EVER and it's breath taking! The moment I saw the Frozen 2 teaser, I wanted to see Elsa in #DiD form with her 'stripped' down outfit, barefoot and all! Who better to accomplish that than Kusujinn himself?! This would have made the "top 10" if it wasn't for the fact that the outfit isn't as accurate as it should be. Not by fault of Kusujinn at all, nor can it be even mine. We were working off low-res screenshots from the Teaser Trailer! Regardless, the result is nothing short of amazing!
::MVP Artist of 2019::
MilesShendon is an artist I came across at the tail end of 2018. A very talented artist who is generous as he is skilled. I’ve had the extreme pleasure of working with him throughout 2019 and my experience has always been positive in all areas of commissioning. I kept coming back to him because he was easy to work with (despite language barrier), he gives his own spin while following instructions, continues throughout the process to update his commissioner, and his prices are also quite reasonable for what he offers. He gives variants, his style is very captivating and vibrant, and he's just an overall pleasure!
It was hard NOT to put 95% of his artwork on this list but I had to leave some out. I have enjoyed every #commission I collaborated with Miles! And I'm more than positive I'm going to continue to work with him 2020 and beyond! For anyone who still doubts MilesShendon, don't. He is worth EVERY penny!
Top 10 Commissions of 2019
So, here is my list! Again, I want to reiterate that I LOVE all of the commissions I came out with in 2019. There were some 'below great' but all in all, the commissions from this year is more than adequate to join my Commission Gallery! While some of the ones I put in the list may not as high in caliber as others in the Honorable mention (or the ones not in this list at all), they are here for a reasons far beyond just the finished art. I'll try my best to explain why. So without further adieu, here we are!
by: PyonSangSang
PyonSangSang is a newcomer in my #commissioning hobby. 2019 is another year to introduce me to new artists (thanks to FourPieces) and that's a good thing. Pyon brought a cute "DiD" element to my gallery that it needs more of! Diane is an adorable and a bit different from the usual cute anime gals that I like, but she is, no doubt, worthy of having her moments of duress! This was a good start with my commissioning rapport with Pyon and we are still working together as of right now!
9: Save Queen
by: AkinaSilver
While this commission (and the other one (Lebreau) in the same post) is a gift for FourPieces, this is still a commission I paid for and helped bring to life. AkinaSilver is obviously a familiar face and I have worked with her throughout 2018. I didn't collaborate with her as much this year, but having someone like Queen, a very obscure Final Fantasy character getting a DiD moment... I'd say this is worth mentioning. This was also a fun commission and it just turned out so great.
by: StudioKatsumi
Speaking of 2019 newcomer, here we have StudioKatsumi! This artist has a very distinct style that I gravitated towards. I like his prices and he usually opens up commissions pretty frequently. Iris Amicitia from FFXV is one of his first victims under my collaboration, and boy, was the result something I truly adore! There is something very exciting about seeing a hyperactive gal like Iris packed up and ready to go and completely helpless about her scenario. StudioKatsumi followed my refs and instruction just fine and we have ourselves a treasure. As one of the first commissions StudioKastumi finished for me, it was a great introduction and first impression. Partner that in with Ashelia B'Nargin being the other half of the first impression, Iris' packaged scenario was a great start to our partnership and I adore this commission a ton!
by: DestroXXIV
This year was actually the year I started exploring 3D rendering; I had commissioned a total of three artists in this 'genre' of art and DestroXXIV was one of them that added something special to my gallery! Had to get into some Spider-Woman DiD and what better choice than to 'continue' that infamous scenarios of hers! The idea was to give a 'slight' variation to a very established scenario and give it a little bit of a flare. What Destro managed to accomplish was a simple but very genius. This was a pleasant and quick product that I truly enjoyed. With a new 'genre' of artwork that is a beautiful homage to a very (in)famous scene of my favorite character, fast work, and a smooth/pleasant experience, it was really hard not to put this on my list.
by: McBound
Kaitlin Star got a LOT of attention from me in 2019. Not only DiD I give "Kaitlin's Front Page" a few more commissioned love, I also wanted to explore different 'what ifs' of certain episodes where Kaitlin didn't have the best result in her endeavors against Grimlord's forces. An episode that I seemed to have taken a liking of is "Oh, Brother"; just as cheesy as "Kaitlin's Front Page" and while it didn't have Kaitlin in distress, it did have her wearing a nice outfit that daringly wants to put her in some nice rope and a gag. McBound is an artist I have seen in DeviantArt for some time now. I do adore his style and when he opened commission in November, I jumped on board!
The result was a very fun experience and an artwork that I must say is a good addition to my other project that focuses on an old time crush of mine. McBound definitely took the time to give me sketches, made corrections, and delivered a finished product that I believe we both came out satisfied. Will definitely work with McBound again since this first experience was fantastic!
by: ThunkStudio
I had this Mini-Project that involved Castlevania DiDs and I'm sure the title says it all. A few of the finest Castlevania ladies got themselves into situations through some weird Omniverse event and the result is some pretty distressing scenarios. Charlotte Aulin is one of those Castlevania gals that I didn't really get to know since I didn't even play her game but she has always had this innocent sexy gal vibel. To join the ranks of this mini-project is none other than ThunkStudio, an artist I am more than familiar with! The DiD position makes this very unique since I haven't used this position beforet, in any shape or form. But I think it worked out just fine, added with the unorthodox captors, the Jellax, Thunk's vibrant coloring and expressive faces, I just really found myself gravitating to this picture. Definitely worth being on this list.
by: I-Want-My-Mummy
Once in a while I come across some sketches from some talented artist and the result is... well, something like the art that took the number four slot. I-Want-My-Mummy is an artist I follow and quite enjoy when he explores Marvel Heroines in DiDs. I find his comical pieces endearing, and just his overall vibe when he puts art out is just fun. When I spotted this little piece, I just found myself drawn to it. Venom used to be one of my favorite Marvel characters and to see him putting my favorite Marvel character, Spider-Woman, in some deserving distress is an absolute joy. I reached out to Mummy and he was down to giving his movie some color and the rest is history. With very minor modifications, what I got is what I wanted and the experience is more than worthy of this list!
by: ThunkStudio
ThunkStudio is an artist whom I have worked with for a while. It's clear that with two of his artwork entering 2019's list that I have a high fascination for his talent and with this wonderful commission about a Daedric Prince(ss) being snagged and made to be Distressed is something I feel deserves some shout out. Thunk has always had this ability to make his drawings sexy and Nocturnal lends herself to be sexy with what she wears and her enigmatic ways. So my idea? Put her in a #DiD situation and voila! Thunk, while I have had a generally magnificent experience with, is sometimes bound for some correcting and guiding and that's fine. That's what commissioning is about and any commissioner SHOULD understand that they pay for the commission so they have the say--as long as it's logical and not extravagant--people who pay for commissions shouldn't shy away from making corrections.
With all that said, Lady Nocturnal's capturing in commission form was seamless. I had an enjoyable time and Thunk just absolutely nailed it. Not much else to say about how much I adore his vibrant style, but all in all, this was just an appealing commission!
by: MilesShendon
What have I not said about Miles that I haven't said before? This list could have been easily been just 80% his artwork had it not been for the "2019 MVP" slot I decided to give him. Part of the The Missing Slayers project, this wonderful commission puts another lovely Castlevania gal, Shanoa Ecclesia, in some (un)fortunate situation with another rare damsel, Agrias Oaks, from Final Fantasy Tactics. There's really not much else to say about how much I adore this! From the way Miles just makes clothing look so distressed against bindings, the juxtapose of coloring, the beautiful ways he draws women, and the overall way he executed the details everywhere, yes, this commission is just that good to claim this high spot.
1. Rikku_x_Elsa
by: Kusujinn
TWICE. TWICE in a row that Kusujinn struck my #1 commissioned art of the year and there's a damn good reason for it. I have been waiting to collaborate with Kusujinn for some time with this piece and when it finally happened, it happened with amazing results! Sure, there were some corrections here and there, but all in all, the result is just a breath taking and just absolutely sensual. I know it's quite an unorthodox sight to see Rikku and Elsa in the same pic, but do keep in mind that this is half of my "V.V" team. Curious to see if I can get the flip side of this commission--Rikku under Elsa's whims, which I do plan on commissioning Kusujinn for it again! 2020, right?
In conclusion, 2019 was a fantastic year for my commissioning hobby. I had a lot of great fantastic pieces #commissioned and in the end, I terribly adore what I have accumulated. Much like last year, there are plenty of artists I have collaborated with that are not mentioned or their pieces featured, but that doesn't mean that I did not enjoy what they gave. I firmly believe that as long as I personally enjoy the art, in the end I can say that it was a successful commissioning year. So here's to 2020 then! Let's see what other magnificent things the new year will bring! Hoping to work with new artists and expand the list next year with other non-fetish related stuff!
Until Next Time!
