CreatorDesk: a self-hosted approval loop for commission artists
This is a submission for the Hacktoberfest Open-Source AI Challenge Week 2: Side Hustle What I Built CreatorDesk is a self-hosted, open-source tool that solves one specific problem for independent digital artists: tracking which version of a commission a client approved, and why. An artist uploads a work-in-progress (a sketch, a lineart, a colored render), sends the client a private link, and the…
CreatorDesk is a self-hosted, open-source tool designed to help independent digital artists manage the approval process for client commissions. The tool allows artists to upload work-in-progress pieces (such as sketches, linearts, or colored renders) and share private links with clients. Clients can then approve or request changes with optional written feedback, all of which is recorded with timestamps.
CreatorDesk eliminates the need for artists to maintain conversations in DM threads or track feedback in various tools like Discord, Trello, or spreadsheets. The app runs locally on port 3000 after a few commands: git clone, npm install, npm run db:reset, and npm run dev. The dashboard displays commissions with a next action (either in_progress or approved), sorted by actionability rather than recency.
The client approval page shows the current version of the commission, any feedback, and two options: Approve or Request changes. The revision history is displayed in an expanded view, showing previous versions and the artist's response to each change. CreatorDesk was built using the Next.js 14 (App Router) with TypeScript, React, and SQLite via better-sqlite3.
The app does not use any LLMs at runtime and relies on self-hosted data control, cost-efficiency, and portability to provide value to artists.
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