If you take custom commissions, you’ll get this message: “Is it done yet?” It shows up a week after you agree on the piece, again two weeks later, and once more right before the delivery date you already gave them.
The client who changes the order at the last minute
A client who ordered a plain leather satchel messages you five days before pickup asking if you can add hand-tooling to the flap. You didn’t discuss tooling when you agreed on the piece. You don’t remember agreeing to a price that covers it, because you didn’t. Now you’re either eating the extra hours or having an awkward conversation about money with someone who’s already paid a deposit.
This starts earlier than the last-minute request. Most commissions start from a rough description: “something like this reference photo,” or “similar to a piece I saw once.” Whoever has the more generous memory of that conversation ends up filling in whatever the description left out.
Most creators skip the agreement anyway
A signed agreement closes both of these gaps. It names the piece, the price, what’s included, and what counts as an extra. When the satchel client asks about hand-tooling, the agreement already has the answer.
Most creators taking commissions don’t have one. Writing one from scratch means knowing what to put in it, and most people don’t. Asking a client to read and sign a document, rather than send a deposit over Venmo, feels formal enough to risk the sale. Without one, the actual terms live wherever the conversation happened to take place: Instagram DMs, texts, whatever thread was open that day.
The other message: “is it done yet”
This one has a smaller fix. The client is asking because there’s nowhere else to look. Put the current status somewhere they can check on their own, and the message stops.
Pending Magic keeps it on one link
A Pending Magic tracking link carries the signed agreement, the conversation, and the current status. A client opens it anytime, no account required.
When they ask for something new, you point at the agreement instead of your memory. If they ask whether it’s done, they check the link instead of texting you.
Early access is free to join.