Apple & Pear Fundraiser to Help A Friend

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This Auction Is To Aid the my Zarate family of Kentucky. Their daughter has stage IV Uterine Cancer  and the medical bills are piling up.
I am starting the auction at $1.
100% of the Profits from this painting will go to them!

If you miss out on this auction or just really don't like apples, and would like to donate any amount of money please click here:

Help Donate to Christy

Big Sale or Scam? Don't Fall For This Trick!....

I recently received this email:

Good day,
My name is Peter Glendover, I'm from Texas and i hope this message finds you well.I was going through your works and my eyes caught this particular work, i will like to have it for my new apartment this month.please let me know if the piece is available, if yes let me have the detailed price and more information about it. I will be waiting to read from you.
Regards.
Peter.

Immediately I had a feeling this was not a real buyer. The bad grammar was the first thing to give him away. Also the name didn't fit. "Peter Glendover" should not have said "waiting to read from you" If his name was Sanjupt Khumarkeyt, I might have not been so skeptical.

I figured I would play along and see where it went:

Hi Peter,

I just sold that particular painting in early December.
I could paint a similar one as a commission. The price would be $2,500.00 which would include shipping and a frame.

Clinton

His Response:

Hello Clinton,

  I will like to know how long will it take to make a commission painting and will like to also know if you receive payment upfront.

Thanks

Peter

I thought this seemed promising....maybe I am wrong, so I responded with:

Hi Peter,

It will take me three weeks to finish a painting that is that big.
You can pay for it upfront if you would like. Usually, I just ask for a deposit of $500.00 to begin working. The rest is paid after the painting is completed but before it ships.
If you decide that you do not like the painting upon receiving it, I will refund your money after the painting is returned to me.

I accept PayPal or you could mail a check if you prefer.
My cell phone number is (---) --------- just so you have it.
Thank you,
Clinton


And now the truth comes out! :

Hello Clinton,

Thanks for your prompt reply.I really appreciate your details and frankness on this,

Unfortunately, I'm on my way to India on an official trip(I'm a marketing Executive) and wont be back for another two weeks, I would have come to inspect the piece personally. I'm taking your word for true on It though .

I'm okay with the price, I think it worth it anyway. If you'd like to know, I'm relocating soon to South Africa (Johannesburg) to be precise  and I'm trying to gather some good stuff for my new abode. Im buying yours amongst others,. So, I'll arrange to send you payment ASAP.
However, I'll have to notify my shipper who's helping me move my stuff from the US,to get set for the pickup of the piece from you as I MIGHT be delayed in India depending on how things goes.
Thanks,

In the mean time kindly give me your details so i can prepare a certified check and have it sent to you A.S.A.P .
 Peter.

This paragraph is just full of BS. First of all, Marketing people don't go on "official trips", I actually laughed out loud on that one. Secondly, I never told him where I lived so how is he going to inspect it personally, what if I worked in Alaska, or North Dakota.....heaven forbid. Why is "might" in all caps? Is marketing a more dangerous job than I am aware?

So now I figure I'll have some fun:

I tell him he never told me what he wanted in the painting. He Replies with "Apple and Banana" which is also an indicator that he is not taking the painting seriously. I gave him my address, I figure it is easy to find out anyway.

Then I get hit with the best one,

Dear Joshua,

The check has been issued out to you via USPS with tracking number (EO 059 563 939 us) you can track it yourself on their website. I concluded you are a responsible person and I can therefore entrust you with this arrangement.
You can now go ahead and have the check cashed and once you have it cashed, deduct the deposit for the piece and kindly help me send the remaining balance in cash!! To my shipper who will be coming over to you place for pick up as he has asked for upfront so he can register my other properties he is helping me move from the US to Johannesburg.
  Kindly help me send the remaining balance in cash via WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER to the shipper. You can walk into any of their agent locations around you and have the money sent right away and do get back to me with all the  necessary information which will be needed for the collection the money I.e:
Sender's name
Amount sent
And mtcn #
text question and answer

Below is the shipper's information which you will be sending the remaining money to via western union;

NAME: Denise Mckown

ADD:    15 Adams St 

             Unadilla, NY 13849

             U.S.A 


Who the hell is Joshua? At this point I am really laughing, so I respond with this:

Peter,

I'm not sure how you normally purchase paintings but I do not work this way.
Once I have received the deposit I will begin working on the painting.
I DO NOT ACCEPT CASH from a third party. I do not give or send cash because I have a small amount of common sense.
Once the painting is completed you can either send me another check, or money order, or pay the remaining amount either via PayPal or a credit card through PayPal.
Once I have received the total amount due, I will then ship the painting to your shipper in NY.
No one is coming to my studio to pick it up. I am in Florida.

If these terms are unacceptable, please let me know.
I will void your deposit check and mail it back to you.

Regards,
Clinton

Him:

Hey Clinton,
Am sorry this has to go this way, I was short of cash and I decided to kill tw0 birds with a stone, I send a check of $3,000 cos the shipper has asked for an upfront of $1,500, I apologize for any inconvenience this might have caused you.
Regards.
Peter.

pet glendover

-
 I respond with:
-

Peter,

The Spanish Prisoner.

Clinton

I doubt he even knows the name of the scam he is running, but I felt the need to tell him I was onto the gag.

The way this works is that he really did send me a Cashiers check: It is either a stolen check or a good fake. 

 

Banks process Cashiers Checks immediately and the money appears in your account so you think it is real. You then go ahead and wire the money. It doesn't get found out as a scam for 5 to 10 days and then they take the money back out of your account. By then you have already given them the money. Notice that the check came from Chow's Automotive, which is a real place with solid reviews. I'm not sure if Chow's has anything to do with the scam, they may be an arbitrary victim, but I am posting it in case anyone gets the same thing.

This scam does work, in fact it has been working for many years. It is known as "The Spanish Prisoner" I had learned of it several years ago while listening to a series of Psychology lectures. 

There is a great David Mamet movie by the same name starring Steve Martin. Just for fun I suggest looking at the Wikipedia page on it.

Hope no one out there falls for this or any other scam!!

 

Satsuma Tangerines

I love painting the leaves on these tangerines. I painted this one in NJ over the holidays. I currently live in Florida and believe it or not, the grocery stores here don't carry them. I had to go to NJ to get citrus fruit!! 

You have to paint the leaves quickly because the dry out fast and look very different overnight.

6 x 8 Oil on Panel

"Cracked Eggs IV" - In Process Eggshell Demo

It's Finished!! Took alot longer then was expected. Some commissions and an entry into a show I like to enter got into the way. I love this particular frame on the painting.

I have two people interested in this one, but If you like it, and want one - send me a message!

I throw out the eggshells after each painting and break new ones so that no two of these are ever the same!

Very close to being done now, in fact, it should be finished tomorrow...This is the eighth day of working on it but much of the last few days have been minor changes and then waiting for the painting to dry before adding another layer.

There is a sitting inbetween the below shot and the above because I forgot to shoot a photo....

sorry about that folks. All I did that day though was refine the eggs a bit. They look like they do in the pic above. Last night I added the reflections and that was all I had a chance to work on. I am working on an 18 x 24 painting for a show which has been eating up most of my time. Pics of that coming soon!

Because of the amount of commissions I had to do over the holidays, I had to put this one on hold for a few weeks......but i'm back to work on it now!

After I lay in the colors of the Quail Eggs, I quickly sketch in where the outlines of the reflections will be......

I decided to add the images from the top and go backwards. Whenever I paint something that is not going to rot, I do a drawing in paint first and then let it dry. The benefit is that if I make a mistake I can wipe it off and still have a dry drawing underneath. The first layer of paint is Raw Umber and White. I will add color on the second layer.

 Day one - I start with a drawing in burnt umber and white. These are all done from life and the eggshells in the painting are painted actual size. In case you were wondering, those are Quail Eggs.

 

 Above is a photo of the set-up. There is a frame available and included in the price. Photos of the frame will be posted soon!

 

This is definitely my most popular painting. I like to joke that one has never made it to the gallery wall. I decided to post this one with step by step photos and make it available for purchase immediately. I just started it today, and it will take me a week to finish, but I will post new photos as it moves along....

Because of the popularity of the painting I have added a link to buy at the bottom. If anyone is interested but just wants to put a hold on it until it is finished just send me an email. If you don't like the painting when it is finished you are not obligated to purchase it and I will refund any money paid up front.

"Cracked Eggs IV"
6 x 12 Oil On Panel

SOLD

Cracked Egg Paintings are Available by Commission for $750.00 

Pomegranates & Figs

I love Pomegranates.....eating them I mean. As a former fat person, I love any food that is difficult to eat....it slows me down. Pomegranates are one of the most difficult and If you eat them one at a time, it can take hours!!! I thought it would be fun to paint several of them together. I also like Figs an Grapes so this just went perfectly together!

SOLD

A Short Video On Productivity

This was posted on one of my favorite Blogs "Muddy Colors", and I thought It was so good that I would repost it here.......
For anyone who likes illustration, and has never been to "Muddy Colors, here is a link:
http://muddycolors.blogspot.com/ 

Two Pears

 

Lately I have been posting two different types of paintings. Sometimes I like to paint a still-life with little or no background, and call it done. These are my favorite types of paintings! The other type is to put a really dark background on them, and put in the reflections, which seem to do better when up for auction. I will continue to make both types of paintings and alternate them!

"Two Pears" 6 x 8 Oil on Panel

Up for Auction

SOLD

Four Recent Commissions

Around the first week of December, I got a call from a woman who was on my website and wanted to purchase a few paintings. Unfortunately, everything she had wanted was already sold. I told her I could make her something similar if she wanted. Because I work from life, no two paintings are ever exactly the same because I have never found two of any fruit or vegetable that are exactly alike.

Of course she wanted all of them done before Christmas! I wound up doing two of each so that she could pick which one she liked better...I will post the "Runner Ups" soon.....

Coconut & Limes

In December I had a wonderful client commission me to paint four Minnie still-life paintings. As usual I wound up doing two of each...yeah, I'm a touch obsessive..Anyway, she chose the paintings she wanted and I decided to put some of the others up for auction. This may be the tenth Coconut and Lime painting I have done. I'm taking a break from them for a while.....a long while.......

6 x 8 Oil on Panel

SOLD