did a 24x30 acrylic commission back in march for a guy who wanted his dog in that flat graphic style i do. quoted $700 flat, felt very professional typing that number out, like a real business.

then i actually painted it. reworked the background three times. redid the eyes because he sent me "reference photo 2" after i was basically done. total time in the file, 31 hours. maybe more, i stopped logging because it was depressing me.

$22/hr before materials. before the $60 of paint that's now permanently part of my palette. before driving it to him because shipping glass-framed anything is a horror show.

the kicker is he was thrilled. said it was a steal. and instead of feeling good i just sat in my car doing the math again like an idiot.

anyway i'm quoting the next one at $1200 and i'm fully prepared to lose it and then make a post about that instead. what's your per-hour number when you actually sit down and divide it out, because i'm starting to think i've never once charged a real one