The message boards again seem to be steadily filling up with requests for the creation of particular skins. There are certain important rules to consider before making a request.

1. No movie, TV show, band, video game or brand name skin requests.

The copyright issues involved in creating such a skin are simply too big for any legitimate skinner to get involved. If a skin uses the trademarks/copyrights held by another party, then the author is opening themselves up to the possibility of a costly legal battle.

While it's true that certain skins do exist in these categories, they tend to fall into two distinct groups. Those which have been created as a result of a commission from the owner of the copyright, and those which have been created by 'new' skinners who don't know or understand the potential legal repercussions of their actions.

2. Be polite.

Never demand a skin. It isn't your right to have a particular skin made for you, and you're not going to get any help through bad manners. Simply state what you'd like to see, and don't get upset if you don't get any takers.

Some people seem to think that by buying a commercial skinning/customization application (eg. WindowBlinds, DesktopX, IconPackager), they are also buying the right to have skins of their own design. This is like complaining to a car dealer when they refuse to supply you with unlimited fuel and CDs to play on the stereo.

3. Be specific.

Don't just ask for a 'blue skin' or 'a skin with nice buttons'. There are plenty of those around if you only look.

For a skinner to get enthusiastic about creating a skin, they need to have a relatively clear picture in their mind of what they want to finished result to look like. If you can 'sell' the idea of a particular skin, you're far more likely to generate interest for your idea.

4. Skinning takes time.

If someone said they'd look into creating a skin for you on Monday, don't pester them on Tuesday to ask where it is. A good skin takes days, weeks, or sometimes months to create. Be patient and if you're lucky you'll eventually get what you wanted.

5. D.I.Y.

If you can't find anyone to create your dream skin for you, why no do it yourself? We all started somewhere, and if you have a good enough idea you're half-way there already. Just sit down with whatever tools you can get your hands on and give it a try.

Skinners are far more likely to give you advice on the mechanics of skin creation than they are to create an entire skin for you.

Who knows, one day you could be the one giving out the advice.