teaberryhouse
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April wrap up! Life updates + sketches and new art/merch!
🕑 Added 2023-04-30 18:00:04 +0000 UTC
Hey everyone! So.. this month has been a doozy for me. If you haven't seen my twitter posts or checked in on Discord, here's what happened:
During Anime Detour (in Minneapolis) earlier this month, my car got broken into and damaged pretty badly. I was an unfortunate victim of the kiaboyz trend, and my car was hit the second night I was there. They were unable to actually steal the car, and thankfully nothing was taken from inside. I had already setup my table at the con the night before and left most of my merchandise there.. so my car was pretty much empty. This happened on Friday morning, right before the con started.
Unfortunately, the repair place said it could be up to a month before I got my car back.. Thefts and damage of this nature are so rampant there, that the needed parts are always on backorder. My insurance didn't cover all the repair costs or a rental.. so I had to pay out of pocket for nearly everything.
my anime detour table!
Anime Detour went fairly well though, despite me being over an hour late and pretty shaken during that first day. The con ended on that Sunday, and my airbnb host graciously let me stay an extra 2 days while I waited on news about my car. On Tuesday, they were still unable to give me an ETA on my car repairs and suggested I should just go ahead and return home. So I headed to the airport, rented a vehicle, loaded all my convention stuff and drove the 14+ hours home.
After being home for 2 days I got a call on Friday that my car was done, and ready to pick up. W h a t. I'm glad that my car got finished faster than expected.. but I had to immediately fly back to Minneapolis just to drive 14 hours all over again. .-.
I purchased an overpriced last minute one way flight to Minneapolis on Sunday, stayed the night at a swanky hotel at Mall of America (which was free thanks to a Marriott gift card I had saved up!) and first thing Monday morning I headed over to the repair place and got my car.. then immediately got the heck out of there and drove 14 hours home.
I am beyond tired still from the whole thing. I think I slept a good 2 days when I finally returned home for the second time. All in all, my total expenses for this ordeal is about $2.5k. Which honestly? I expected more, but it still hurts quite a bit.
After returning home, I had some serious thoughts about my safety and traveling with a car that has a target on its back. With Kia thefts on the rise just about everywhere I decided to say goodbye to my car. I loved that car - I purchased it in 2018 because I needed something larger for conventions and I largely paid it off thanks to you all here on Patreon and Blizzcon. It was very much a milestone purchase for me, so I'll miss it.
A few days after I got home I ended up visiting a car dealership, traded in my beloved Kia and came home with a slightly used Ford Transit Connect! I got a pretty good deal on it, and considering how hard these are to find in my area with low mileage, I jumped on it.
Its a small cargo van which should help me greatly with traveling to cons. Its actually pretty small, my parent's Honda Element is next to it in the picture and they're pretty much the same size. I was already struggling a little getting all my inventory and supplies in my Kia, so this was very much a needed upgrade. I was just forced to get it sooner rather than later. ^^;
So.. would I go back to Minneapolis for Anime Detour? Absolutely! The convention was fantastic and I don't think I've done a con where artists were treated so well. I'd probably just either fly there or stay at the main hotel instead of trying to save money with an airbnb. Lesson learned, I guess.
If you missed the last update, here's an overview of the rewards!
Fallen King Anduin
Maw Nightshade mini pin
Along with the two pins, I've also got these two mini prints
I've also been working on a little idea for convention merch going forward - Cosplay Bears! I've started out doing Sailor Moon, but I'll eventually expand it to other series in the future. I'd still love to do some actual Sailor Moon fanart in the future too, but these will be a great way to build on my brand a little more.
Deluxe tiers this month will get the Moon and Tuxedo Mask bear stickers! I've already ordered stickers of all the designs and some keychains in prep for conventions I have coming up in June. I'll also have them all available on the shop for preorder soon. ^.^
Speaking of shop updates.. I'm very behind on this. I'm so sorry everyone! With my car drama, all the travel and trying to prepare for my next con, I just haven't had time to take care of the shop.
My next convention is Indiana Comic Con May 5-7th, and my plan is to immediately start with shop update preparations when I return. I'll have some preorders up for the Sailor Moon stickers and keychains, as well as a few other items! I'll have a set date soon for you all.
I'm also planning to have a large sale to help cover some of my recent car expenses. Many of my pins from 2019-2022 will be $10 each, so if you're missing any previous pins this will be a great time to pick them up!
(I may also sell some of my pin collection and other collectables to try and raise funds, so if you're interested in what I might have, please keep an eye on Discord! Might take on some mini commissions as well if I have the time. 👀)
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That's about it for this month!
Digital Reward links and new discount codes will go out later tonight.
As for March and April physical rewards, they are all currently in production! I don't have an ETA right now when I can ship rewards, but I'm aiming for mid to late May. As always, I will let you all know ASAP when I have more information. :)
Thank you all so much for your continued patience with me and your support. ❤️
Comments
thank you ❤️
katsunakii
scary and stressful! glad you are ok
