Someone who only pretends be a painter.

What is a faux painter?

I'm still not understanding how this all went down. She ordered the wrong mirror, decided to have the painter paint it with the "rest of his hours" instead of ordering one anew, yet the painter had already exceeded his hours by 3 fold? That's incredibly poor judgement and out of bounds.

Who pays the painter? You directly, or the designer will them bills you? If that later, you need to make damn sure that she isn't adding a mark-up to those extra hours, if you choose to pay them at all.

How do you agree to these purchases? Orally? In email? With a written and signed purchase order?

I wouldn't pay for more time than estimated unless I approved the additional time.

Anonymous wrote:She should have insurance and beyond things you approved then changed your mind on (sorry - I just believe you own any decision you approved whether or not you fully understood!) but cost of redoing HER ordering wrong color is on her - but you should bill her for times she arranged for an appointment and didn't show when you paid for someone to be there. Fire her and document all. She sounds awful and EVERY client should be treated with equal respect once engaged.

OP here. This is my sense. I do feel part responsibility for work I approved but not for the correction.

Anonymous wrote:Why are all of those color decisions happening together in one place?!?

The faux painter happened to be there working on chandelier when mirror arrived. He was also commissioned to replace crystals on chandelier. Mirror arrived, designer called in and she decided to divert the remainder of faux painter's hours to faux paint the mirror. Designer told me that the mirror was last in stock. Initially estimated to take 4 hours to faux paint mirror but took 10 hours.

The take away here is don't faux paint. I wouldn't want to pay the designer any of these correction fees and we'd be having a discussion about this. It goes without saying that I wouldn't work with her again.

I'm not surprised. I find that whenever I outsource things they are messed up. Which is why I would rather design my own house even though it's a pain.

Regarding 1 and 2, it seems like, even from your own version of the events, that you approved the faux painting. It didn't turn out how you wanted, but you were present and approved the work, so, yes, you have to pay for it.

Did you not want to wait for the mirror to be returned and reordered in correct color ? Didn't want to pick out another mirror? Final sale?

#3 sounds like a "wording" issue, where there was a misunderstanding on what part of the stair you and she meant. That point is possibly one you could argue, but I'm not sure you can expect a laborer you hire to redo it to work for free. You want her to eat that cost, it's possible.

I am also curious how you know that she was meeting with more important clients and blew you off? You state it like it was almost an understanding between the two of you, when you mentioned you "just wanted to be told". Did she actually tell you about other clients and you just assume that's the case? Do you know them?

Well, you pay because you don't have a contract. That's a big problem.

It sounds like you should cut ties. This isn't working out. Mistakes are common but this is too many.

I am a designer and I eat small mistakes on the rare occasion I make one. Re: the mirror - RH accepts returns so why didn't she return it?!?!

She should have insurance and beyond things you approved then changed your mind on (sorry - I just believe you own any decision you approved whether or not you fully understood!) but cost of redoing HER ordering wrong color is on her - but you should bill her for times she arranged for an appointment and didn't show when you paid for someone to be there. Fire her and document all. She sounds awful and EVERY client should be treated with equal respect once engaged.

Why are all of those color decisions happening together in one place?!?

I would take the faux painter bill out of her salary. All of this is unacceptable

Yikes- I wouldn't pay for the chandelier or mirror. Time to move on.

We don't have a contract. There are a few issues that have become contentious:
1. Faux painting of chandelier- designer selected color. I expressed reservations because I felt it was too shiny. She painted the dome of chandelier very lightly with the final color which looked ok. When the faux painter was done the end result was really awful- picture fluorescent pink when you wanted a pastel pink. she called thfaux painter back to tone down. End result still not quite right with sconces looking completely different from each other and chandelier- whole thing horrible until she added the crystals back when it just looks okay-nowhere near the eclectic fun outcome she had promised but just normal looking chandelier. Meanwhile faux painter bill tripled.


2. Requested sand colored Restoration hardware mirror. She ordered wrong color in error- came in dark grey with black shadows. Faux painter was still here as he had initially been commissioned to replace the crystals after painting chandelier. He was taken off that job and the hours were diverted to faux painting mirror to the sand color we had ordered. Faux painter went over to get job done properly. Again additional cost.
Final cost for faux painter 4 times initial quote.


3. We agreed to paint the banisters on stairs a dark brown and the sides of stairs all white. We have light brown colored wood floors. I was out all day and came back to all fine except sides painted only up to the stairs. I was expecting to only see dark brown and white. Rather there is dark brown, Light brown wood on stairs and white at the sides of stairs. Called to confirm that the sides of the stairs would all be white but she said no excerpt at an additional cost.

Now I'm going to have to eventually change the chandelier, Pay to have sides of stairs painted and cover all the additional costs or correcting the faux painting job on chandelier and mirror.

As an aside, l've had other problems with this designer. She's a one woman band with several clients, many of whom are higher up the totem pole than I am. There gave been many times we'd arrange to meet but she'd get a call from one of her higher paying clients and she'd just not turn up and not let me know. There have been times I've had to pay someone to stay home to wait for her contractors only for them to not turn up. I've told her several times that I fully understand that she has to meet the demands of her long term higher paying clients first land all I needed was a heads up and not left hanging chads at those times she goes completely incommunicado-so I can't even get hold of her.


Question: do I bear full cost of all the or do we share visit since did chose color that required correction. I had agreed to the original quote for faux painter but had not anticipate the additional cost of correction. Is there an equitable way to share this cost?