This is a difficult subject for a lot of people to understand from the artist's point of view. I understand as a consumer that when I purchase something, especially something expensive, I want it at my door step right away. Well that can be tricky when it comes to a hand painted product especially is that product is a hand painted Air Force 1, hand painted converse , etc.
There are a few factors that play into why they take so long.
One of those is the vendor availability and distribution speed. There are times where a specific shoe size is out of stock for several days, so it's a waiting game just to order them. There is also shipping time from the day of order which can take up to 2 weeks for us to receive.
The artists, well ARTIST. That's right, there is only 1 artist fulfilling all of the orders and painted 8-10 hours daily. Even though it's a pleasant experience when painting it could get tiresome and cause hands and fingers to ache at certain times in the process.
It's not just painting during the week. There is so much more to this than just painting a shoe and sending it off. The only person running this business is also responsible for managing, social media, client communication, digital artwork, drafts, invoice, website managing, etc.
Last but not least, the art work is not good when it's rushed. As an artist, I want to enjoy every piece and take time and patience when painting them because well, that's what makes each custom hand painted shoe so special. If you rush a product, the quality it's just not the same and it's really not an enjoyable experience.
With that being said, I always recommend ordering 6 weeks in advance if it has a due date. I also added an acknowledgement box prior to check out for customers to understand the time delay.
I hope this blog explains why they take so long but I PROMISE, it is so worth the wait!
-Saint