Magic&Nails

Dugo sam razmišljala da li da javno progovorim o svemu ovome ili da ćutim i izjedam se u sebi. Sa jedne strane, znam da je gotovo, da je mogu da uradim ništa više povodom toga, da sam se opekla na skup način. Opet, tu ste i svi vi. Možda sledeće godine neka od vas poželi da uradi to što sam ja uradila i opeče se isto kao i ja, a one tamo godine još neka od vas, pa još neka, i još neka, a sve ćutimo. Zato ja danas biram da prestanem da ćutim.

Sve je počelo početkom marta a završilo se 6. Aprila. Onog dana kada sam odlučila da ću da idem na sajam kozmetike videla sam da na njemu takođe postoji i takmičenje za nokte pod nazivom Magic&Nails. Većina kategorija je bila vezana za nadogradnju noktiju (čiji sam protivnik) a bilo je i par kategorija crtanja po tipsama. Jedna od njih, Bajke Braće Grim činila mi se savršena. Obožavam bajke. Ali kotizacija, 60 eura. Kada sam već bila donela odluku da ću se prijaviti makar iz zabave, shvatila sam da ne postoji način da se prijavim. Tamo je stajao broj telefona organizatora. Imala sam još oko dve nedelje vremena za prijavu tako da nisam žurila. Jedno veče, sedela sam i čitala objave na facebook-u, kada mi je palo na pamet da pogledam da li postoji stranica organizatora, neke takozvane akademije (danas se očigledno sve može nazvati akademskim) Atelier LK. Našla sam nešto drugo, lični profil gospođe Lesje Karić (vlasnice akademije). Nikada nećete verovati šta je bio poslednji status.  Obaveštenje o održavanju besplatnog seminara za objašnjavanje kategorija takmičenja. Znači, morate biti prijatelj na Facebook-u sa organizatorom da biste dobijale informacije. Ne znam za vas, ali ja ne dodajem baš svakog kao prijatelja. Kada sam joj poslala poruku, dala mi je broj telefona da je nazovem. U međuvremenu, naišla sam na još jednu zanimljivu informaciju napisanu na nemačkom (sreća pa ga razumem) kotizacija je 50 eura, znači manja nego za naše državljane. Dok sam pričala telefonom sa Lesjom Karić objasnila sam joj da ne mogu da odložim sve svoje obaveze danas za sutra i odem u drugi grad,pitala sam je zašto nije nigde javno objavljena informacija o tom seminaru na šta sam dobila odgovor  “A mi nismo prijatelji na Facebook-u?”, i dalje nismo.  Iskoristila sam priliku i da je pitam za razliku u ceni, pokušala je da je opravda, ali nedovoljno dobrim argumentima, te mi je snizila cenu na 50 eura. Tada sam prvi put pomislila da je takmičenje namešteno.

Usput sam se još par puta čula preko poruka na Facebook-u sa dotičnom osobom, i mogu vam reći da mi se činila fina. Na sva pitanja mi je odgovora, i imala sam osećaj kao da stvarno želi da pomogne.

Dani su prolazili, ja sam crtala moj rad, i napokon je došao i taj dan sajma. Pojavila sam se tamo u 9 ujutro kada je bila registracija učesnika. Nisu me imali na spisku (kao da se nisam ni prijavila) ali su me dodali, zatim niko nije znao da mi kaže kada trebam da dođem, kada će biti proglašenje pobednika, ništa. Potpuna neorganizovanost. Nakon malo čekanja, rekli su mi da dođem u 13 časova. Prvih četiri sata na sajmu sam iskreno uživala, šetala, gledala. Jedini problem je bio što je bilo nemoguće izaći napolje pa se posle vratiti, znači zatvoreni u toj jednoj hali. Kada je napokon bilo 13h, otišla sam tamo da bi onda rekli da dođem u 18h. Sledećih 5 sati proteklo je neverovatno dugačko. Već sam i raspored štandova na sajmu zapamtila, popila mnogo kafi, i sedela na stepeništu previše puta. Usput, već su bili izložili radove u jednu vitrinu. Ono što sam prvo primetila je položaj. Neke od radova su tako postavili da je bilo nemoguće videti ih, dok su neki bili namešteni tako da onome ko ih gleda privlače pažnju. Od slučajnih prolaznika sam čula komentare kako moj rad nema 3D elemente, jer je cipelu bilo nemoguće videti ako ne odete sa zadnje strane vitrine.

Takođe, primetila sam i mnoga kršenja pravila. Na sajtu sajma kozmetike, stojao je pravilnik gde je pisalo da se ne smeju nikako koristiti nikakve vrste šljokica, dok ih je na radovima bilo. Takođe, u pravilu stoji da se moraju koristiti minimum 4 tehnike (a navedeno je pet tehnika). Kasnije, nakon proglašenja pobednika, ovo pravilo se promenilo u “Minimum 25% rada u svakoj od četiri tehnike : reljef, 3D, iscrtavanje, unutrašnji” . Ovo je bio samo jedan od šokova koje sam doživela. 

Kada je napokon došlo 18 časova, stigla sam tamo, i upitala organizatorku kada će biti proglašenje. Dobila sam odgovor “Dođi sutra, imali smo probleme sa strujom”. Naravno, rekla sam da nisam u mogućnosti da dođem i sutra (zamislite gubljenje još jednog dana). Rekla mi je da može odmah da mi pročita rezultate, pa ipak ne može jer nisu ocenili još, pa može ali ne bi zbog drugih (toliko kontradiktornih izjava u samo 5 minuta).  Napokon, složile smo se da je nazovem sutradan ujutro pa će mi preko telefona reći.

Ceo sledeći dan provela sam držeći prst na Redial dugme na telefonu.  Nije bilo odgovora.

Napokon, u ponedeljak mi se javila. Prvo sam je učtivo upitala da li ima vremena da priča, rekla je da ima seminar ali da može da priča. A onda, čim sam joj rekla ko sam i šta me zanima, rekla je kako žuri, na putu u banku je i da je nazovem za sat vremena. Kao odgovor na pitanje što se nije javljala prethodni dan, dobila sam “Izgubila sam telefon pa ga je muž slučajno pronašao uveče”.  Za sat vremena pozvala sam opet, i samo mi je prosledila vezu na neku devojku, valjda njenu radnicu. Devojka je bila toliko prijatna da mi je bilo žao da ja budem neprijatna prema njoj. Rekla je da će me nazvati u toku dana, reći mi rezultate i uzeti moju adresu kako bi mi poslala rad. Nije zvala. Takođe, upitala sam je o prekršenim pravilima, na šta sam dobila odgovor da koliko ona zna, svi koju su prekršili pravila nisu učestvovali, ili nisu izloženi ili nisu bili u toj kategoriji. Rekla sam joj da jesu učestvovali, stajali su u vitrini (kako bih ja inače znala za njih) i bili su u toj kategoriji za šta ona nije imala odgovor. Taman smo prekinule vezu, kada mi je zazvonio telefon. Lesja Karić, lično. Uputila mi je masu argumenata, masu opravdanja i sve se završilo sa “A i to nije tvoja stvar da gledaš ko je prekršio pravila”. Znate šta, kada dam 50 eura, jeste.

Devojka me nije zvala ni taj dan, ni sutradan, a tek prekosutra odlučila sam da ja ponovo pozovem. Opet sam pozvala Lesju Karić, i čim sam joj rekla ko sam, dobila sam odgovor  “Ne mogu da pričam, pozovi isti ovaj broj samo ***”. Opet ona prijatna devojka. Uzela je moju adresu i rekla da će mi taj dan poslati rad. Kada sam je upitala za rezultate, rekla mi je da bodovi još nisu sabrani. Pet dana posle takmičenja, bodovi još nisu sabrani. A ovo ste sigurno već pogodile, pobednici su proglašeni.

Nedelju dana nakon takmičenja, gospođa Lesja Karić je objavila slike sa takmičenja na Facebook-u (opet na privatnom profilu) i naravno, napisala pobednike. Ni jedna od pobednica nije imala srpsko ime.  Njihovi radovi po meni, nisu trebali da uđu ni u prvih 10. Takođe, od jednom se stvorilo desetak učesnica više nego što je i bilo na sajmu prikazano, od kojih su dve pobedile.

Snižavanje cene. Pravila su se promenila. Bodovi nisu sabrani ali su pobednici proglašeni. Izbegavanje. Novi učesnici. Ne, nikako, ovo nije namešteno takmičenje.

Da budem iskrena, ne mislim da sam ja trebala da budem jedna od pobednika. Videla sam radove koji su mnogo lepši. Na ovo takmičenje su se prijavile devojke iz Nemačke, Ukrajine, Poljske, Rumunije  i mnogih drugih zemalja. Ovo sam samo želela da vam kažem kako bi sledeće godine uštedele sebi pare i izbegle ovu prevaru.

I spent  long time thinking whether to publicly speak about this or to keep quiet and eat myself from the inside. On one hand, I know it is over, that I can’t do nothing about it, and I got burned in an expensive way. Again, there are all of you. Maybe next year some of you will want to do what I did and realized the mistake like me, and year after that some more of you, and some more, and some more, and we all keep it low. That's why I now choose to stop.

It all began in early March and ended on April 6th. The day I decided that I would go to the cosmetic fair, I saw that there is also a competition for the nails called Magic & Nails. Most of the categories was related to fake nails (which I hate) and there were a couple of the categories of drawing on nail tips. One of them, the Grimms' Fairy Tales seemed perfect for me. I love fairy tales. But entry fee, 60 euros. I already decided that I will apply even for fun, when I realized that there is no way to sign up. There was the telephone number of the organizer. I had another two weeks to apply so I wasn't  in a hurry. One evening, I sat and read the news feeds on facebook, when it occurred to me to see if there is Page of the organizer, so-called Academy (now apparently everything can be called academic), Atelier LK. I found something else, a personal profile of Ms. Lesja Karic (owner  of that academy). You'll never believe what was  last update.  A notice about the free seminar where she will explain the categories for the competition. So you have to be friends on Facebook with the organizers to be informed. I do not know about you, but I do not add every single person as a friend. When I sent her a message, she gave me a phone number . In the meantime, I came across another interesting information written in German (luckily I understand it) entrance fee is 50 euros, less than fee for domestic citizens. While I was talking on the phone with Lesja Karic I explained that I could not put down all of my obligations today for tomorrow and go to another city, I asked her why there were no information publicly written about the seminar, to which I received the response, "And we're not friends on Facebook? " We still are't. I took the opportunity to ask for the price difference, she tried to justify it, but not with good arguments, and she lowered the price to 50 euros. It was the first time I thought that the competition is set up.

By the way I heard a couple of times through messages on Facebook with the person, and I can say that I did fine. For all questions I answer, and I had the feeling that he really wants to help.

Days went by, I drew my work, and finally came the day of the fair. I showed up there at 9AM when it was registration. There were not my name the list (like I have not applied) but they added me, and then no one could tell me when I should come again and when there will be announcement of the winners, nothing. The complete lack of organization. After waiting for a while, they told me to come in 1PM. The first four hours of the fair I really enjoyed walking, watching. The only problem was that it was impossible to go outside and come back after. When it was 1PM, I went there just to hear that I need to  come back in 6PM. Next  5 hours were incredibly long. I drank a lot of coffee, and sat on the stairs too many times. In the meantime, they already exhibited our tip box. What I first noticed is the position. Some of the tip boxes were set up so that it was impossible to see them, and some were rigged so that they attract attention. I heard comments of some people who looked at it about how my work has no 3D elements, because the shoe was impossible to see unless you go and take a look from the back of that cabinet.

Also, I noticed many violations of rules. On the web site of the cosmetic fair, the rules said that you can't   use any kind of glitter, while people used them. Also, the rule is that you must use a minimum of 4 techniques (and there were five of them written). Later, after the announcement of the winners, this rule has changed in the "Minimum of 25% for each of the four techniques: relief, 3D rendering, interior." This was just one of the shocks I've experienced.

When it was 6PM finally, I came there and asked the organizers when they will be announcing the winners. I got the answer, "Come back tomorrow, we had problems with the electricity." Of course, I said that I wasn't able to come back tomorrow (imagine losing another day). She told me that she can immediately read me the results, and then she can not because they are not calculated yet, or she could tell me but there other people too there so it would not be fare  (so many contradictory statements in just 5 minutes). Finally, we agreed to I will call her the next morning and she will tell me over the phone.

I spent whole next day holding my finger on the redial button on the phone. There was no response.

Finally, on Monday, she answered the phone. At first I politely asked her if she has time to talk, she said she has a workshop but can speak. And then, when I told her who I am and what interests me, she told me she was on the way to the bank and to call her in an hour. As a response to a question why she didn't pick up the phone previous day, I got  "lost my phone and it my husband accidentally found it in the evening.".  An hour later I called again, and I was forwarded to a girl, I guess she is employee. This girl was so nice that I was sorry for being mad. She said that she will call me during the day to tell me the results and take my address to send me tip box. She did not call. Also, I asked about the rules violation, to which I received a reply that as far as she knows, all of those who violated the rules did not participate or were not exposed or were not in that category. I told her that they did participate, they were standing in a glass cabinet (or how I would I know about them) and they were in that category and she had no answer. We have just hung up when my phone rang. Lesja Karic herself. She gave me a mass of arguments, justifications and is was all over with "And that's not your job  to look at who broke the rules." You know, when I  give 50 euros, it is.

That  girl did not call me either that day or the next day, and the day after that I decided to call her again. Again, I called Lesja Karic, and when I told her who am I, I got the answer, "I can not talk, call this number just replace  ***." . Again that nice girl. She took my address and said she will send me my tip box that day. When I asked for the results, she told me that the scores have not yet been calculated. Five days after the competition, the scores have not been calculated. And this you probably already guessed, the winners were announced.

A week after the competition, Ms. Karic Lesja published pictures from the event on her Facebook profile (again at a private profile) and, of course, she wrote the winners. None of the winners did not have a Serbian name. Their work for me, did not need to rank in the top 10. Also, there were about ten of the new participants, more than it was displayed at the fair, two of them even  won.

Lowering prices. The rules have changed after the competition. Points are not calculated but the winners are announced. Avoidance. New participants. No, not at all, this is not a staged event.

To be honest, I do not think I supposed to be one of the winners. I saw some works that are much more beautiful. In this competition there were girls from Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Romania and many other countries. With this I just wanted to tell you how to save yourself  a money and avoid the scam.