25% of the total for your painting, including shipping, is due when you place the order.  When the painting is completed we will send you a picture of the painting to your e-mail, then upon approval we will send you an invoice for the balance due. When you have paid the balance due, and we have received the painting from the artist, we will immediately ship the painting to you.  It takes one or two days extra, once we receive the painting, if you are having the painting stretched, wrapped or framed.

We will be notifying you often during the complete process so you're always up-to-date on where your painting stands.  Following are the events when you will be notified.

1. Order and deposit recieved
2. Photo(s) received - 1 and 2 may be the same notification.
3. Painting has been started
4. Painting is complete, combined with e-mail of picture of painting for approval.
5. Approval(move ahead to step 6), or request for changes(go back to step 4 )
6. Invoice for balance due
7. Payment received
8. Painting has shipped

You only pay the balance due after you are 100% satisfied with the finished painting. A picture of the painting will be sent to you via e-mail when it is complete. If you require changes, those will be made and then with your approval we will send you an invoice for the balance. The painting will be shipped when the balance is paid and when we've received the painting from the artist.

Yes, absolutely. As soon as the artist finishes the painting, we will immediately send you a picture of it to your e-mail address.  You muct be 100% satisfied with the painting before it is shipped to you.  After receiving the picture of the painting, you let us know if there are any changes you would like made. Only after you have approved the painting will it be shipped to you.

If you are buying a rolled canvas then it will be shipping in a strong mailing tube to ensure your painting arrives undamaged. If you are ordering a stretched, wrapped, or framed painting, it will be shipped in a strong purpose-made shipping carton, wrapped in bubble wrap to protect your painting in transit. We use Fedex for all our shipping and you have your choice of the services they offer.  Paintings must normally be shipped only to street addresses, but if you are getting a rolled canvas and only have a PO Box, we can ship via USPS Priority mail. Please call to make arrangements.

All shipments are insured for their full value. It is important that you inspect the box before the delivery driver leaves. If there is visible damage you much report it immediately.

Yes, but only rolled, not stretched, wrapped or framed.  Please call for an accurate shipping quote and to place your order.

From the time we have your photograph until you receive your painting will be 4-5 weeks.  We do offer expedited shipping services, which can save a few days, but there is no expedited service for the actual painting process. All paintings are hand painted, and any effort to rush the painting would only result in lower quality. Our primary goal is quality and we do our best to make your wait is as short as possible. We offer status updates in your account on this Web site, along with e-mails throughout the process keeping you informed as to status of your order.

Folloiwing are the steps to complete your painting, and the approximate time for each step:

1. Place order - Same day
2. Photo(s) received - Same day - 3 days
3. Painting started - 3-5 days from photos received
4. Painting is complete - 2-3 weeks after started
5. Approval - 1-5 days depending if there are changes
6. Invoice for balance due - Same day as approval
7. Payment received - Same day, or if paid by check up to 10 days to receive check and for check to clear
8. Painting shipped to you - 5-10 days after completion of painting

Yes.  You can either provide instructions on what colors you'd like ot use, or better yet, provide reference photos with the colors you'd like for the most important areas.  The following painting was created by combining two photos, plus using two other photos for color reference.

Yes.  You can combine the primary photo with up to two other photos, plus a separate photo for the background if preferred. Please either call, or provide detailed instructions on how you would like them combined.

You can do one of two things. Either send your photograph to us and we'll scan it and return it to you, or you can go to Kinkos, or another copy center, scan the photo, then e-mail the digital file to us.

We accept virtually all popular file types; jpeg, psd, gif, png, bmp, tiff, PDF and more.  The higher the resolution of the image the better.  The more detail the artist can see in the picture, the more detail will be in the painting.  They also do an excellent job with lower resolution or damaged pictures when that's all that's available.

We can accept your image file through e-mail, on CD's, DVD's, thrumb drives, or a photo or art print that we will scan and return to you.

Yes. Every painting is started from scratch on an empty canvas. The artists paint solely based on the picture(s) that is(are) provided.  The oil paint is typically very smooth, duplicating the original photo as closely as painting allows, but if you would prefer to have a more sylistic finish on the painting, you may request that the artist finishes your painting in a more impressionistic style. Just request this at the time of ordering either in the comments box in the shopping cart during checkout, or call in and give us your request. 

Complexity

Basically the complexity and size determine the cost of the painting.  People are much more complex to paint than a building.  Also, the number of primary objects in the more complex paintings, like people or animals, effect the cost, i.e.,  if you have three people in a painting, it's comparable to creating three separate paintings.

Checking the Price

You can easily check what the price of a painting will be by selecting a category of painting, then on the product page you will see the starting price. As you choose options, such as size, framing options and number of objects, you will see the price adjust to reflect your choices.

We use Intuit(the Quicken and Quickbook people) to process our credit cards through a 128bit encrypted connection.  We do not store, or ever see, your credit card number. It is encrypted the second you click the button to pay, and goes directly to Intuit. We are not able to make any more charges to your card. When your balance is due we send you an invoice with a link to pay the balance due directly through Intuit. Again, we never have, nor see, your credit card number.  Even knowing the precautions we take to protect your credit card info, if you are not comfortable with using your credit card online, you are welcome to call us and place an order over the phone.

You may pay online or over the phone with Mastercard, Visa or Discover. If you'd prefer to pay via check or money order, you are welcome to do so, but the painting process will not start until your check or money order have cleared.

Purchasing a Gift Certificate

You purchase a gift certificate just like you would any product. Click on the big Gift Certificate graphic on the left side of every page, or click on the Gift Certificate menu item in the Products menu.  On this page you will be able to choose the amount of the Gift Certificate and purchase it. Once you have purchased it, you will have a credit on your account for the amount of the certificate. 

Using or Sending a Gift Certificate

You can either use the Gift Certificate you purchased to pay for a painting or frame you order for yourself, or you can send a certificate through e-mail to someone else. The amount of the certificate you send can be for $1 up to the total amount of the certificate you purchased. In other words, you could buy a $200 Gift Certificate and send $50 certificates to four different people. They will receive an e-mail with both a link to take them directly to the Snap2Art Web site to use it on an order, and also a redemption code they can enter at checkout at a later time.

Once a Gift Certificate is purchased it is non-refundable. It must be used either by you, or the person(s) you send it to for purchasing products on the Snap2Art Web site.

If you have any questions that are not answered on the site, or in these FAQ's, then please don't hesitate to contact us.

Yes. Our paintings are fully covered by a money back guarantee. For more information click here.

If you'd like to order more than one portrait at the same time, please e-mail us or call and speak to a sales representative about a discount on multiple paintings. 

The maximum size painting you can order online to be gallery wrapped is 30" x 40".   Because of high shipping costs on larger paintings, we recommend having the rolled canvas shipped to you, then have the gallery wrap done locally. If you can't get your painting wrapped locally, we can gallery wrap paintings up to 48" X 72" by special order. Please call for pricing and shipping costs if you would like a painting over 30" x 40" gallery wrapped. 

The maximum size frame you can order online is 30" x 40".  Because of high shipping costs on larger paintings, we recommend having the rolled canvas shipped to you, then have the framing done locally. If you can't get your painting framed locally, we can special order frames up to 48" X 72" in the same styles as any of our 3" or 4.5" frames. Please call for frame pricing and shipping costs if you would like a frame for a painting over 30" x 40".

You have four choices for framing:

Rolled:  Painting is delivered to you with the canvas rolled in a strong mailing tube ready to be stretched and mounted.

Stretched for Framing:  After receiving the painting from the artist we stretch the canvas on a thin (3/4") wooden frame that is ready to be mounted in a frame of your choice.

Gallery Wrapped:  Gallery wrapping is essentially the same as being stretched for framing, but it is done on a thicker 1.5" inch wooden frame. Also, the artist paints it 3" longer and wider than the dimension you chose so the painting actually wraps around the frame with the painting extending on to the sides.  This is called a gallery wrap because it is the typical method used in art galleries to display their paintings. The painting has hanging wire already attached, so when your painting arrives it will be ready to hang.

Framed:  If you order a frame with your painting order we first stretch the painting for framing then mount it to the frame you have purchased before shipping, so it is wired and ready to hange when you receive it.  You optionally can choose not to have the painting mounted to the frame if you'd prefer to do that yourself.