Why I Set Up A Ko-Fi Account

Hey! You’re probably wondering what a Ko-Fi account even is and why am I using it. I’ll explain it all to you in this post...

Ko-Fi is a website set up with the purpose of helping creatives receive money from fans for their work and join in on a new community.  As an artist this seemed perfect to me, so when my friend Maria (@mbkiernan_art on Instagram, go check her out) shared her account on Instagram I thought it would also suit me.

A screenshot from the Ko-Fi home page

I am so grateful and absolutely LOVE all of my followers interactions with me. It’s so fun to chat with you all from a DM, reaction to my story or comments on my photos. This is a hard industry to work in, especially hard to break into, so every conversation or ‘like’ gives me a boost in confidence that I can actually do this. That people out there like what I do. It gives me hope that creating art can be my full-time job some day.

I do offer a range of commissions, averaging from around €30+ . I love creating these, it makes me happy to think of my art in your home. Since I opened up for commissions after Christmas I was able to leave my weekend job which was like a dream! This was amazing as I had time to work on my final year project & thesis for college, while still making some money from commissions to help cover my rent etc. 

It can be challenging to get the word out about your business, especially while in your degree year but I try my best. I was so happy and thankful for each commission I got to work on. Everything was going really well and according to plan.. I completed my thesis and was finishing up my final project, my boyfriend and I were looking for somewhere new to live, we found some contenders in the West of Ireland that we really liked! My plan was to complete my course, move into our new place, get a weekend job and create art/commissions during the week days. This job was (hopefully) temporary as I want art to be my career but starting out I need to be practical so the weekend job would help keep me going with expenses during weeks where I might not get any orders. 

A screenshot from the Ko-Fi home page.

We then quickly saw ourselves in a global pandemic, which like many others, affected the plans we had. We couldn’t move to our new place which meant I was unemployed but still a student. Understandably, my commissions and orders became less and less. But the messages and support I’ve received, especially recently has been really special. I want to thank each of you by continuing to create art. I have so many exciting projects in mind, a lot of which need supplies and softwares to become a reality. 

This is a little message from my account briefly explaining why I am on Ko-Fi;

I’ve had customers ask me if they could post me a present or if there was anything more they could do to say thank you. Then a fellow art friend told me about Ko-Fi. The purpose of this account is to support my work. Wether it’s a generous thank you for a project I worked on with/for you or if you currently can’t commission a piece, maybe you’d like to give the cost of a coffee so I can continue to buy supplies, upgrade my drawing softwares and continue to make art for people to enjoy.

A screenshot from the Ko-Fi home page.

If you’re a fan of my work and would like to support me,

here’s a few ways you can currently do so:

- Follow my social media accounts.

- Like a post that makes you smile or you engage with.

- Share my work with credit.

- Tell a friend about me.

- Commission a drawing.

- Buy a print (Most of my fashion illustrations/personal work are on sale, just ask to see if your favourite is) .

- Buy me a ‘coffee’.

*I also love that ‘Ko-Fi’ sounds like ‘coffee’. Good job development team!! lol 

You can find my account by searching my name on Ko-Fi. 

I also have the link to my account in my social media bio’s. 

Or you can jump straight to it by clicking Here.

Thank you!

Karen x