Giving

I sell a wide variety of prints on my website, and the proceeds from those prints always go to benefit a good cause (each print may benefit a different cause, so check the individual print’s store page to find out where the money goes). I wanted to share some details about how and when the donations are made, and what portion of the proceeds actually gets donated.

When are the donations made?

I make the donations moments after dropping the prints in the mail. This to me strikes the right balance of customer convenience with timely giving: there’s still a window to cancel your order before it ships in case you change your mind, but the important causes these prints support aren’t waiting weeks or months to get their money.

A consequence of this is that all orders effectively become final (i.e., no returns) once they ship to customers. If your print arrives damaged or you aren’t liking it in your space as much as you had hoped, you can reach out to me by replying to your order confirmation email, and I’ll do my best to get a reprint or replacement out to you quickly.

How much of the purchase price is donated?

This varies based on the print, but the short answer is “never less than 70%, and usually more.”

Small prints (under 11 x 17”) are priced relatively aggressively, and the production and shipping costs are minimal. For that reason, 100% of the purchase price (before tax, if applicable) of small prints will be donated to the relevant causes. If you pay $30 for a print, $30 gets donated. The paper, ink, packing, and shipping (within the US) are my contribution to the cause.

Larger prints are more expensive for me to produce: the upfront cost of a roll of fine art paper is quite high (hundreds of dollars), and I sell far fewer of them, which makes it harder to amortize the costs across volume. The shipping costs are also higher, as poster tubes are considered “abnormally-shaped” by most carriers, and they charge additional fees. For that reason, I deduct the cost of consumed paper, ink, packing supplies, and shipping from the purchase price of larger prints before making the donation.

On average, for larger prints, that means about 75% of the purchase price is donated, and that percentage increases the bigger they get (18 x 24” and 24 x 36” prints ship in the same size packaging, for instance). I will never donate less than 70% of the purchase price of any print. For example, if you pay $150 for a 24 x 36” print, at least $105 will be donated, and it’s likely to be closer to $120.

If you want to know the exact amount to be donated from the purchase of your prints, reply to your order confirmation email, and I can send you the specifics once the print has been produced and shipping has been priced.

Is my donation tax-deductible?

No, it isn’t. Buying a print from me is a purchase in exchange for goods, not a donation. If you’d like to make a tax deductible donation, you can do so directly through the websites of the causes I support (where applicable). Of course, then you don’t also get an awesome print!