mic-pa

My DD who does long arm quilting has a list she gives people concerning the requirements before its on the frame, including the cost per inch etc. so there is no questions later.

quiltingshorttimer

I do as ckcowl does and then charge for the extra time(and materials) needed to deal with the problem.

bearisgray

i would want to be given options and what the cost for each option would be - before any work is done.

i do "get" that sometimes others just do not "get" the why for some things.

bkay

As a business person, you have to learn to stick up for yourself. You have to be able to say, "no". There are always people who will push you to do something that makes it easier or cheaper for them and harder or more expensive for you. She "blew off" (ignored/disregarded) what you said about needing the backing to be larger. You allowed her to do that. (You took in the quilt even though you knew it wouldn't work.)

Unfortunately, we all do it. When you are starting a business, you want so much to have happy customers (or just any customers), you do things that don't make good sense (been there, done that - I used to be a caterer). Or, you hope they will be happy you solved the problem for them. Unfortunately, that rarely happens. Chances are she will be angry about the extra charge, as my guess is, you didn't tell her there would be an extra charge.

You say she didn't "get it". Maybe she "got it" and she didn't care. It was her mother's quilt, and maybe she isn't into quilts. Maybe her mother is a royal pain in the tush and she just wants to "get it done". Maybe she doesn't quilt and doesn't care to learn. You assumed she felt the same way you would/do about quilts and especially, your mother's quilts. Obviously, that's not true.

Sometimes, you just have to blunt. When she says, "do the best you can", you have to say, "Does that mean it's ok to cut down the quilt or do you want me to fix it? Either way, there will be an extra charge". She'll ask how much. Be ready with an answer. Be it a set price, or an hourly fee, have an answer. Be ready with, "I'm not sure, I'll call you" if you don't have an answer.

If you have trouble doing/saying those things, I suggest you practice. Have a friend or family member be the client. They say the phrase, "just do the best you can" and you answer them. Keep doing it until it's easy. I would actually think up a lot of phrases that customers throw at you and come up with answers for them.

As a last thought, the customer doesn't actually need to "get it" (understand how the system works), they just need to "get" that the backing has to be X number of inches larger than the quilt top. They can pay you to make it larger or they can make it larger. Period. End of sentence. No exceptions.

bkay

Ellen 1

I do not think you can charge for something you "took upon myself". She did know know you were going to "do piece work on her quilt". She did not authorize you to travel, purchase fabric, piece on HER quilt. She asked for it to be quilted. You had explained the "rule/reason" for the oversized backing. If she were unwilling to do this herself, you should have asked her if she would pay you to do this. If she said no, you should have given it back to her and explained that you could not quilt it without sufficient backing.

Personally, I think some quilters ask for A LOT of backing that the customer (this lady??) may feel is wasted. I ask for 3" all around (I quit mostly for myself and some for friends/charity). I have heard some quilters ask for 6-8" all around.

Ellen 1

I agree with cathyvv.

cashs_mom

I agree with others. You've done the best you can. People often only hear what they want to hear. If she's a regular customer, you might want to remind her when she picks it up that you didn't have enough backing and she told you to do the best you could. If she's unhappy with the result, it's on her. When someone hires you to do something, it's not really necessary that they understand your rules. They are your rules and if they don't want to abide by them, there are others who can do the work for them.

If she tells you to do the best you can, IMHO, that is a blank check. If doing the best you can entails travel, purchases, etc. she should suck it up and pay for it. She could have taken the time to do it herself. Since she didn't and told you to do the best you can, she should be willing to pay. If she isn't, she wouldn't be a return customer for me. As a business person, you have the right to pick and choose your customers. It's one of the few perks of self employment.

madamekelly

I was the quilter who did not have a large enough back on mine, nor anymore of the home tea stained, backing fabric, I wanted on it. She suggested just purchasing a piece of fabric in the right color, even if it has a tone on tone print. I added a pieced strip to each side, and she was able to center the backing so it looks intentional. She told me to call it a “design decision”. Lol. No one has ever asked about it.

Darcyshannon

I think you should make sure you are adequately compensated. Her not having a clue does not change the cost or need. Many people don’t want to know. I have been asked to do things that far exceed the cost of what people want to pay and it seems that not understanding is a way for people to try and get lower pricing for services.

tuckyquilter

I don't quilt commercially, but charge accordingly. Never underestimate your VALUE and EXPERTISE in your business. I would absolutely charge for at least an extra hour. and hopefully you aren't undervaluing your time.

REMEMBER, You're like my CPA, Yes, I'm paying for the paper things are printed on, but what I'm really paying for is HER knowledge..in the field of accounting/taxes.