I can only add what others have already said: you made an absolutely lovely cake, and this biznatch is batshit crazy and/or looking for a freebie. I sincerely hope you are able to receive payment. Good luck!

People are insane!!! Your cake looks wonderful. She is insane, blind and stupid apparently. Tell her NO REFUND and to F off if she ever needs a cake again.

*sorry in pissy mood and need to tell someone off right now*

wow. what a rude woman.

Where do these people come from??

(actually, now that I think about it, I don't really want to know....)

Thank you all for your support. I haven't heard anymore from her since I posted the cake on my blog and my website.

I know that I am right in this situation but I can't help but be shaken. I did an amazing wedding cake(if I do say so myself) in January and the bride LOVED it.

I dreamed about it last night and the bride hated it and was so upset she wouldn't even accept a full refund from me. She was going to call the police on me instead. I know its stupid but I just really want this off my mind.

On the up side I was at a graduation party Friday night and I ran into some people that I did a cake for their son's first birthday a couple of weeks before. The dad made a point to come up to me to tell me how fabulous it was. That reallyl made me feel better about things.

I'm just shaken I guess.

I'm happy to know that things worked out. Don't doubt yourself or your skills as a baker and decorator because of that woman. You did a great job on the cake... the problem she had lies with within herself.

The compliments you received from other cakes you have done are affirmation of your skills.

Don't even sweat it anymore...just let it go

You'll be just fine.

I agree with everyone else. That wacko probably did something to the cake and it was ruined for the party. Did you take her check this morning and cash it? Please tell me you did. I hate that so many people have the mentality of trying to rip someone off and try and get a refund.

I think your cake is fabulous! I would be proud of that cake, and she is nuts if she thinks she could have gotten a better cake somewhere else for the same price.

Doesn't Doug have a a form posted about picking up and signing off that everything is ok? I will check and get back to ya'll.

hubby was in banking for 25 years. It is illegal to stop payment on a check "just because". For example, he had one customer write a check for the car payment, then put a stop payment on the check just to get out of paying it. He wrote the check with no intention of honoring it.

Did you get your money? or did I miss that post?

Beth

Don't let this beeyotch shake you up...It's hard to get an email with a complaint, but that one that she sent went waaaaay over the line of nasty, so much that you can't really take it seriously. The cake was perfect, nothing wrong with it. And like you said, how would she know about the straws if she didn't take it apart before the party?

Don't let her shake you up at all, you did nothing wrong.

I have an order (30 min away) and they are picking it up here in a few weeks. I've always accepted payment upon delivery/pickup just out of convenience. Is this not wise?

Should I ask them to mail a check several days in advance, and how do you word this? Until now, I would have felt funny asking for money before I actually made anything, but it makes sense... Honestly, the idea of "stop payment" never even crossed my mind.

thanks

I do everything payment in advance. You can set up a paypal account, also. Then people can send you the money using a credit card. Paypal takes a fee out of it, but if you have a business that would fall under a bank fee on your taxes so you can deduct it.

Well, it depends. Here's what I do.

Wedding cakes (or any cake over $100) are paid in full 1 month before the wedding date/event. If they order and the event is less then 1 month away then they pay in full at time of order.

All Occasion cakes priced under $100 require a 50% deposit at the time of order with the balance paid in cash or bank check at pick-up/delivery (delivery charge is paid in full up front, not part of the 50%)

I have a $50 minimum cake order policy. I only deliver tiered cakes all others are pick-up.

Since I'm a small business most of my clients are repeat, so thankfully I've weeded out the bad eggs. In the beginning I felt funny too asking for a deposit or payment upfront, but I quickly learned that I needed to cover my costs.

To answer your other question about how would you word the deposit policy thing........

If you have a website you could place your terms on there. If not, when they order you could tell them that in order to reserve that date you require a deposit from them.

I've been considering the PayPal thing lately since I've had a few inquiries about it. Costumeczar, is it foolproof? or Can the customer "recall" their funds if they're so inclined?

I've used PayPal for over 3 years and haven't had a problem with it. The customer can dispute the charges, but I don't think they can simply recall it like a check. Not sure about that one...I'll look into it. I really love being able to email invoices. It makes everything so much easier, and then there is no reason that they shouldn't be able to pay, unless of course they don't have the money in the first place.

OK, this is from PayPal's website:

A buyer has 45 days to dispute a transaction, by opening a claim in the "Resolution Center". Transactions older than 45 days may not be disputed, but can still be reported.

The buyer and seller have 20 days to resolve the dispute before it is escalated to a "claim". A hold will be placed on the funds associated with this transaction.

If a dispute cannot be resolved within 20 days, and is moved to a claim, then PayPal will investigate the situation and decide the outcome. Claims are resolved within 30 days.

Buyer and seller will be notified when a final decision has been reached.

THE END

I had Paypal put a hold on some money at one point, it was because of a question they had about the legitimacy of the charge or something. They sent emails to both of us asking for verification, and it was cleared up in a day.

People could theoretically ask to have money pulled back on Paypal, just like on any credit card service, but as long as you have a contract, photos of the cake, etc. I don't think they'd be too inclined to allow a charge to be pulled back from you in the long run. They might put a hold on funds for a while until they get the details from you, but you'd get paid eventually once you presented your specifics.

I had a lady pull a similar stunt on me, I had previously made a baby christening cake for her first grandchild, the cake turned out beautiful and every one was very pleased. She then contacts me to make a 3 tier cake for her husband's birthday, tells me "you did such a great job on the baby's cake, do what you think will look ok", the only request she had was that the cake be red and white. I did the 3 tiers, wrote Happy Birthday in fancy script on the sides of the cake, made cookie bonbons iced white with red swirls and put them around the borders of each cake and added red and white curling ribbon on the top tier. She came to pick it up and stood in my kitchen, called me on my cell and gushed over how perfect the cake was, paid my husband and proceeded to place the cake on the back seat of her car, needless to say we all know what happened on her way taking the cake to the party site-IT FELL! She then calls me the next day and asks that I come to the party site and fix the cake since she was unhappy with the condition of the cake at that point. I politely declined and have not heard from her since.

I had a lady pull a similar stunt on me, I had previously made a baby christening cake for her first grandchild, the cake turned out beautiful and every one was very pleased. She then contacts me to make a 3 tier cake for her husband's birthday, tells me "you did such a great job on the baby's cake, do what you think will look ok", the only request she had was that the cake be red and white. I did the 3 tiers, wrote Happy Birthday in fancy script on the sides of the cake, made cookie bonbons iced white with red swirls and put them around the borders of each cake and added red and white curling ribbon on the top tier. She came to pick it up and stood in my kitchen, called me on my cell and gushed over how perfect the cake was, paid my husband and proceeded to place the cake on the back seat of her car, needless to say we all know what happened on her way taking the cake to the party site-IT FELL! She then calls me the next day and asks that I come to the party site and fix the cake since she was unhappy with the condition of the cake at that point. I politely declined and have not heard from her since.

I actually have something in my contract for this, as well as for setting up at an outdoor event. Once it leaves my hands, I am no longer responsible, and I make them sign it and I sign as a witness. I haven't had any problems asking people to sign it. I also require a 50% deposit, and most people actually ask ME if I need a deposit before I even bring it up.

Thanks for the PayPal information guys! I guess I should step into the 21st Century and get an account.

The client actually mailed me a check for the full payment which I received on Wednesday. I deposited the check on Friday afternoon in my bank. My bank told me it takes a "couple" of days for funds to clear.

So far I have seen nothing on my account indicating that there might be a problem but I won't feel assured until Thursday or Friday since there was a holiday this week.

It can actually take weeks in some cases.

Thanks for all the info on PayPal and on how you all run your business. I think I'm gonna have to adopt some of your practices.

I tend to be too trusting and think that people are going to do the right thing...meaning pay for services rendered. Up until this point, I've always accepted payment on delivery, in both cash and check form (I know....not too wise ). Thank goodness, I've never had a problem.

Your cake is wonderful. There are some people who use intimadation to get what they want-free cake in this case. That doesn't mean the are right or truthful!! Don't doubt yourself.