Butterfly Posted July 16, 2010 Report Share Posted July 16, 2010 I am doing a quilt for a woman who is so very excited. This is her all-time best and favorite quilt that she's ever made. She's considering it an heirloom. Well, I'm almost done quilting it and it just starts to really bother me that the quilt seems so puffy. I'm thinking, wow, wool is puffier than I remember. Then my heart stops when I realize that the batting is white and not off-white. Its Puff, not wool. It came in a wool package, so I didn't even think to question it. I'm so miserable over this and I feel just awful. I'm not looking forward to telling her and I'm really not looking forward to the $350 loss when I give it to her. Jess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
francine Posted July 16, 2010 Report Share Posted July 16, 2010 who supplied the batting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted July 16, 2010 Report Share Posted July 16, 2010 Was this your mistake? Did she bring the batting? Was the batting mis-labeled? I know it's easier to say than to do, but if it wasn't your mistake (you just discovered it) then you and your customer will need to find a compromise. No way should the quilting be free! No way should the quilting be free! No way should the quilting be free! Is there an echo in here? You are merely the messenger. As for who will fix this--should it only be you? Or does QD have some measure of blame? Option 1--Let it be, it has poly batting, but great quality batting that shows off the great quilting. Unless they will sleep under it (and if it is an Heirloom, they probably will display it but remove it from the bed when it is used) then it will be a gorgeous quilt with a secret. Who will know or care? Don't charge her for the batting and give her a 25% discount to keep things friendly and show her how much you care (because you really do care about it.) Option 2--Give it to her as-is without charge if she wants the quilting removed. Her option to frog it herself and bring it back for re-quilting at full price. That way if she has her heart set on wool batting, it's possible. Option 3--You can frog it for her at an hourly wage and re-quilt it for no charge. No way should you have to eat the whole thing. You need to be paid for at least one quilting job. Does this all sound reasonable? If you took your car to be painted, they mistakenly used a lower quality paint, found out their mistake and re-painted with the better paint, wouldn't you expect to pay for the final paint job? Just trying to be logical here. Good luck and I hope your wonderful customer can be made happy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibbyG Posted July 16, 2010 Report Share Posted July 16, 2010 I love Linda! She always knows exactly what to say and has such good advice. I would call QD because if it happened to you, it happened to someone else. If they compensate you, you can pass it on to your customer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted July 16, 2010 Report Share Posted July 16, 2010 With out knowing if she supplied the batting or it was provided by you its hard to say which I would do...but Liinda is right you should still get paid for something, and I would also let it be up to the customer as to which choice she takes. She may very well like the Puff so there isn't a oops after all. I personally love them both and once in a quilt other than the handling of the washing they both look very much alike, and they drap pretty much the same way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterfly Posted July 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 Thanks for your responses. I need to think this through. I supplied the batting and I have already called QD to tell them of the error. They appologized and will send another wool batting at no charge. I'm not mad. I know mistakes happen and there is nothing they can do to fix this quilt. I'm hoping Bonnie is right and my customer ends up liking it. I'm so unsure about that though. Jess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 So....... Jess, why in the world do you need to forfeit your payment for < < this > >?? Heavens to betsy. I am sure this quilt is absolutely stunning. This is not a "mistake" just show the final quilt to the customer and explain that the manufacturer made the error -- in fact, I would not use the word "mistake" or "error" or "refund" or anything. Just finish the quilt and show her. Some things are better not mentioning... just let things flow... see how she reacts. After she falls in love with it, you can explain the "situation" with the batting...again, no bad words come from your lips. It's not as horrible as you think. Think positive, act positive, talk positive. Do not point out errors. This is how you handle it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 Shana is so wise! Don't inform your customer of the batting "substitution" until after she has seen the quilt. She will be swooning from the beauty of it and her "happy high" will soften the moment when you tell her " There seems to be a small issue. After I finished quilting I had a concern about how pale the batting is. I called QD and they apologized profusely and let me know there was a packaging error and two different types of batting had been swapped during packaging." Tell her what her batting is and see how she reacts. She may not care. But if she frowns and thinks about it a bit, that's the time to offer her some options. It's only a tragedy if she thinks it's a tragedy. Don't feed into that--just be matter-of-fact and offer her what you can. Please don't take on the entire burden of fixing this problem that you had no hand in making. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neher-in-law5 Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 Question: is a quilt only considered heirloom if it has wool in it? That would not be the case for me. If the workmanship and quilting, or the customer's decision make this an heirloom because of the way it was made or looks, it can still be an heirloom. The customer can use or display it as she chooses, it might even be a benefit to have it able to be more washable with less stress than it would be with the wool. Hope she loves it just as it is. Yes, you have done the work she asked for, don't give away your time and effort for free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LA Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 Originally posted by quiltmonkey So....... Jess, why in the world do you need to forfeit your payment for < < this > >?? Heavens to betsy. I am sure this quilt is absolutely stunning. This is not a "mistake" just show the final quilt to the customer and explain that the manufacturer made the error -- in fact, I would not use the word "mistake" or "error" or "refund" or anything. Just finish the quilt and show her. Some things are better not mentioning... just let things flow... see how she reacts. After she falls in love with it, you can explain the "situation" with the batting...again, no bad words come from your lips. It's not as horrible as you think. Think positive, act positive, talk positive. Do not point out errors. This is how you handle it. Right on all counts Shana (& Linda)!! If ANYONE should make a montary "adjustment" it should most certainly be QD! (If that is what it comes down to!) I can't even imagine that she isn't going to be thrilled to pieces & most likely cry when she sees her beautiful quilt!! I am sure everything will be just fine, have a positive outlook & talk it up, take pictures with her & the quilt! :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 All great advice. I actually love Dream Puff and I think that she will be thrilled with how the quilting shows. Mistakes happen and this certainly is not your fault. I'm with Shana don't forfeit your fee. Show it to her and then tell her what you discovered. I love puff after a washing and I'd suggest you have her do that before making rash decisions. I'm sorry you had to go through this stress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 I agree I would imagine she will be happy when she sees her quilt, she would probably not notice initially as DPuff is a lovely wadding anyway. If it were bound already would anyone really be able to tell the difference????? I really hope that your customer loves your quilting so that she will not worry about the type of wadding used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbi Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 Jess, you are such a sweetheart! listen to the good advice these girls are giving you! It will all work out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fabric007 Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 A lot of times after it is quilted..you cant imagine it looking any other way than what it looks like now...Lots of times the customer comes in and comments that they thought it would look different but love the the way it looks now..so give her a chance to comment first... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Posted July 17, 2010 Report Share Posted July 17, 2010 I'd say it's QD who should bear the loss too. Although I suppose they will say you should have noticed. I've found several people who mistake wool for polys, so that would be unreasonable, but it improves the odds of the customer liking the result. Ferret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterfly Posted July 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 She came to pick up the quilt today and I was so nervous. I took your advice and did not use the word mistake, and I tried to be completely positive. Anyway, she loved the work I did on the quilt and when I told her about the batting, she was not too disturbed. I then told her that I gave her a big discount because of it. She looked at the bill and gave me more than I asked. I'm so relieved!!!!! Now on to the next one. Thank you for your advice. I needed it and it helped me a lot. Jess (((((((Hugs))))))) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 Jess I'm glad it worked out that way! I have found that my customers are very reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 I'm glad, too, Jess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 Yaaaaaaay!!!!!!! I love happy endings!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda S Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 I'm glad this worked out for you. I really couldn't see how it was your fault to begin with. I would probably never have realized it was the wrong kind of batting by its color -- I would have gone on oblivious - convinced it was what it said on the package. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazel quilts Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 Jess glad everything worked out for you. I'm always nervous when a customer picks up their quilt, So far there has not been many who have been unhappy.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 Jess I am glad things worked out and your customer was happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewlinzi Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 Pleased everything worked out for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbi Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 YAY! Sometimes it's hard to stand your ground, but often we find our "fears" are truly baseless! Good for you!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBQLTN2 Posted July 22, 2010 Report Share Posted July 22, 2010 so glad you worked this out in a good way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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