Speaking of non-confrontational...

Celles

I sent this to an Etsy seller last night:

"Hi XXXXX,

"I just returned to the States after a week in Calgary and received my headpiece. The feathers are lovely -- if a bit smooshed from the mailing -- but I have to say, I'm very disappointed in the quality of the hat covering. The edges of the fabric are jagged and frayed, and the fabric itself doesn't lay straight; there are several bumps and creases in it from uneven gluing."

She actually glued a cut piece of cloth over the hat frame.  I think it's because when she sent me pictures, the frame wasn't covered in ivory silk as we had discussed.  I reminded her to cover it, and she did, but I rather strongly suspect she had already attached the veil and feathers at that point, which meant she couldn't sew properly around them and opted to glue instead.

"I hesitated at writing this because you have been an absolute pleasure to work with... but the truth is that I was /so/ looking forward to this headpiece being the highlight of my wedding ensemble -- and unpacked it with such excitement and joy! -- that seeing the hat looking as haphazardly made as it does was a crushing disappointment."

She hasn't responded yet.  Now I'm wondering if she hasn't responded because she simply hasn't gotten around to it yet, or if she hasn't responded because I didn't actually ask a question or make a specific request. 

Should I follow up with her (asking a specific question this time)?  Wait?  Eat the $120?  Dispute it through PayPal?  Leave neutral or negative feedback?

I'm SO bad at this!  I'm also obsessively refreshing Gmail in the hopes that she replies -- but so far, nada.   

goheels05

Ugh.  That's so frustrating. 

I'd give her a couple more days and then email her again.  How many sales does she have?  She's probably asking someone for advice on how to resolve the issue. 

Celles

That's the weird thing!  She has just over 200 sales, with 100% positive feedback.  I felt really good about ordering a custom piece from her. 

I'll try to wait. 

/twitch

AllAboutTheBenjamin

Ditto heels.

Although reading this makes me extremely paranoid now, since I have my veil and wedding jewelry picked out on Etsy - I just haven't purchased it yet.

Nebb

Agreed, I would wait a few days and if I havnt heard back I would re-email her and say that if you do not hear back soon you will be disputing it with etsy/pay pal. Its unfortunate but I think thats what you should do

goheels05

See, I think that's a good thing.  Sellers do not like to have even a single neg feedback and she will likely do whatever it takes to make you happy.  Either she only checks her email at night or she's asking the forums or admin what she should do.  Since she has 200 sales, I'm guessing she just hasn't read her email yet. 

Celles

AATB - Does the seller's name have the name of a western European country in it?  If so, proceed with caution.  >.>

AllAboutTheBenjamin

Haha... thankfully, neither of my sellers have any European country sounding names.  But I'm still a little paranoid - since you were really excited from what you saw in the photos, and the seller's feedback.  My seller's photos are divine and both have flawless feedback.

AllAboutTheBenjamin

Thanks MilkDuds I will proceed with cautious optimism...

Celles

This was the picture she sent me.  You can kind of, sort of, but not really see the uncovered hat frame at this angle.  It looked lovely -- until I reminded her that she had agreed to wrap the frame in duponi silk, and she just plastered it on with glue.  >.<

Now it's all squished and ugly. 



I got an email and was excited until I realized it was Michelle Obama asking if I wanted to sign her husband's birthday card on teh Internets.  Um, okay.

nda_roxybabe

ooh! Thats pretty! I would've been excited too.

Celles

ILoveMilkDuds - Who did you buy yours from, if you don't mind my asking? 

AllAboutTheBenjamin

Yeah - that headpiece is absolutely gorgeous.  In the photo.

vegasgroom

As a small business owner, disputing it through paypal is not the right thing to do unless the seller or Etsy (note, i have no idea how etsy works) have a published terms of service or satisfaction policy that states you have the right to your money back if not completely satisfied.  If the quality or finished product was not what you expected, but what was to be provided was never outlined in a contract, and neither the seller or Etsy have a 100% satisfaction policy, then I hate to say it but that's life buying things online site unseen from someone without such a policy.  Just because she has 100% positive reviews doesn't mean she's not incompetent, could just be bad luck that the others all bought something she's good at and you bought something she's not good at; unfortunate luck of the draw, but hopefully she'll either fix it or give you the money back if it can't be rectified.  If there is a policy about guaranteed satisfaction, then ignore everything I've said and dispute it since you're not 100% satisfied.

noodle_oo

hi Celles,

I read your OP and I agree, you didn't ask for anything.  Maybe she thought you were just complaining.  I guess I'd wait and see, but if she doesn't reply, I think you need to offer her suggestions as to what you want for resolution.  Do you have time to send it back and have her fix it?  If so, you should ask for that.  If not, I'd ask for at least a partial refund.  I don't think she'll refund the whole thing since she obviously paid for supplies, etc, but asking for like 25% back is reasonable I think.  I would also say "I really don't want to leave you a negative feedback, so please help me find a reasonable solution to satisfy us both".

Good luck!  I think it is gorgeous.  Is the glued on satin really noticeable from far away, or only up close?  Won't it mostly be covered by the feathers?

jennylove810

Hi Celles!

The other girls have given you some great advice on how to proceed from here, but as an aside, I think your email to the seller was really well written & polite when you could have been a raging bitch about the situation.  I always have a mild panic attack when I need to address poor goods or services, its awful.  But that was a perfect email.

Knittibell

I'm sorry, that sucks! The photo is gorgeous, and I can see why you'd be excited. I'd give her a few more days, in case she might be away or something, but after a week, I'd send a follow up letting her know that you would like a refund (and will be happy to send it back), or a replacement, otherwise you'll be forced to leave negative feedback.

Your letter was very well written!

I think negative feedback scares these sellers, as it rightly should. I always check feedback!

Celles

noodle - I don't think it would be noticable from far away.  The feathers cover the hat, so assuming I can fluff them out again -- they arrived smooshed, either from the packaging or from being bent around the last-minute glue job -- I think it'll look okay in pictures.  If the seller isn't willing to fix it, then I may try to remove the silk and recover the frame myself.  I can't sew to save my life, but I don't think it would be too hard to fold cloth around the frame and glue it on the bottom to create smooth edges. 

Thanks for the advice.  The wording about negative feedback is perfect!  I'll give it another day, and if I don't hear from her again, I'll write back with something along those lines.


jennylove - Thanks!

tidetravel

I agree w/ PPs.  If she doesn't email you in a couple of days with an offering of resolution, I would email her again and outline what you expect of her - whether you want a partial refund or a replacement.  $120 is too much to pay for something to not be satisfied with it, IMO.  If you do not hear from her at all, or she refuses to rectify the situation, I would leave negative feedback, and probably dispute the purchase with paypal - the worst that they can say is "no, you're not getting your money back."

Celles

That's lovely!  Thanks!

betrothed123

I agree with everyone else.  Give her a couple of days and then email her again, this time being very specific about how you want her to rectify the situation.  For all she knows your email is just to complain, but not necessarily seeking any sort of resolution to the problem.

Celles

I won't send it yet, but is this okay?

"Hi XXXXX,

"I realized after rereading my last message to you that I didn't give you anything concrete to respond to.  I should clarify: the last thing I want is to leave negative feedback -- and I am certain that you are the type of seller who cares about the quality of her work! -- so I am hopeful that we can work together to resolve this issue. 

"In looking over our previous correspondence, I suspect that you may have forgotten that you agreed to cover the hat frame in ivory silk until after I mentioned it -- at which point both the veil and the feathers were already attached.  I imagine this would have made it difficult to fold the silk around the frame to create a smooth edge.  Unfortunately, the jagged edges of the unhemmed silk and bumps and creases from the glue are really not acceptable.  For $120, I expected something beautiful; the haphazard hat covering makes the entire headpiece look cheap.

"If I return the headpiece to you, would you be able to repair or recover the frame? 

"I am withholding feedback in the hopes that I can still leave a glowing recommendation.  Your work is truly lovely, and I was so hoping to buy my bridal jewelry and possibly even shoes from you.  (I've had my eye on the peacock colored heels in [the seller's other store] for a while!) 

"Thank you in advance for your thoughtful reply,

"Michelle"

betrothed123

I think that's good.  It's to the point, specific, and not overly emotional.

goheels05

I think the email sounds good. 

Celles

Thanks!

... I might be slightly obsessed.

pirategal03

I would change "Your work is truly lovely..." to something like "The photos of your work are truly lovely..." since the rest of the e-mail is about how you don't really feel like the silk around the frame is lovely.  Otherwise, sounds good.

kimheartsscott

I think both emails sound good.  I know it's hard to be patient though!  I sent an email that was pretty similar to your first one and waiting was the hardest part.  I ended up getting a full refund and free return shipping though, on a wedding dress. 

Celles

Thank you ladies for not letting me jump the gun on this!  The seller just responded that if I will cover shipping both ways, she will rework the piece for me.

*happy dance*

betrothed123

That's great news!  I'm so glad it all worked out.

thesuninherhead

I'm glad! Fingers crossed that the next attempt is better!