cremerging – Page 2 – Bridget Macklin

A few weeks ago I was contacted by a delightful person wanting to buy some work that his wife had seen on my website. After a couple of emails he settled on two pieces with a combined value of £1000. They were for a special wedding anniversary present.

to-my-special-wife-happy-anniversary[1] — He wanted a special present for his wife.

I was over the moon. No-one had ever spent this much on my work in one go and I was so pleased that they were going to be a special present. The discussion coincided with my best month since setting up as an artist; I felt as if the world was alright!

A cheque was sent. But no sooner had he emailed me to say that he had posted my money than he sent me another email to tell me that, due to a misunderstanding, he (well his accounts manager) had made the cheque out for too much. Please could I cash the cheque when it arrived and repay him the excess. Sure, I could do that. No problem. I nearly sent the money before the cheque arrived. This man was charming and not only buying a generous present from me but also now out of pocket.

The poor guy was out of pocket and I felt bad.

What stopped me? Prudence – and a strange feeling about the communications. Before very long I began to be pressurised by daily emails asking if the money had arrived. I stalled – I wanted the confidence that the cheque had been honoured by the bank. There were tell tail signs that something wasn’t quite right but I felt really guilty for thinking them. One should never treat one’s customers with suspicion – right? Yet I couldn’t help wondering. Firstly the cheque was in euros but he wanted the repayment in sterling and into a different bank. Secondly his English was not good – not a crime but when added to other suspicions it seemed to begin to matter. In addition, he kept talking about visiting his post office to know if I had repaid the money – why would he do that? Why not call his bank or check online? Then there was the intensity of the emails which was, by now, beginning to make me feel quite stressed.

Technique_Adverb_AlarmBells-01[1] — Alarm bells were beginning to ring.

I called my bank to ask how soon the money would be available and was told that, because it was in euros, it could take six weeks. Now I felt really bad. The poor guy! Should I pay him his money and send the goods? What if we missed his anniversary because I was being so cautious and tight?

Eventually I got a letter from the bank. The cheque had been cleared. The money was in my account. But the last part of the letter told me that, until they had checked it fully, I could not be confident that it would remain there. Really?? Surely now I should give this guy his money. I didn’t. Why not? Because he was now being rather a nuisance in his emails and I decided to make him sweat – whilst also feeling really guilty about it.

Two days later I received another letter from the bank telling me that the funds were no longer in my bank, that they were charging me £15 costs and that the cheque was probably fraudulent. I wrote to my customer telling him what had happened and asking him to get in touch. Oddly, the daily emails now came to an abrupt end. 48 hours later I received a call from the fraud department at the bank asking me for details of the transaction. As a result of the conversation that I had with the bank I contacted the police who are now dealing with it.

It turns out that this scam is currently doing the rounds and that it is directed chiefly at artists and other self employed people with a small turnover. The charm and the warm fuzzy story at the start are all part of the plan – although if you ask me this guy had to put a lot of effort into getting the £2000 ‘overpayment’ out of me even if I had given it to him.

I am posting this blog because I was so nearly ‘got’ and I would hate for anyone else to fall victim to this scam. I truly hate people who take others for a ride in this way. I watched my own dad be destroyed by a (far worse) scam and I think the people who decide that this is a way to make a living are absolutely despicable. How they sleep at night I would love to know. I mean to say, who do they think they are tricking honest people out of their hard earned cash like this?

Thank goodness this time I wasn’t taken in but, please, if something like this happens to you, be on your guard. Do not assume that the customer is necessarily right. Times have changed, apparently!

And if you have been the victim of a crime like this, or you think you might have been, and you live in UK contact the police using this link

Beyond doubt the best thing about working on a commission is the moment when the client sees the finished piece. That is when you know if you got it right or not. So it was with my most recent commission which I had the pleasure of sending on its way this week.

I was delighted with her reaction to her vessel. It is a special birthday present for a member of her family and includes material from the woods on their land and details of the location and architects drawings for the house.

The colours which have come out in the patterns on the vessel apparently match those of the house, which is not surprising given the origins of the material but it is still gratifying to know.

bellmansknottbase_edited-1 — Surprises even on the base.

I am particularly pleased with the idea to put the drawing of the house on the base. It is as if everywhere you look there is another surprise waiting for you, even when you turn it over there is something else to see.

But without doubt, it is the reaction of the client which gives me the best feeling. She was really happy with it and it clearly meant so much to her – considerably more than it did to me as I have never been to that part of the UK. Up until that point it felt like a job well done but as I handed it over it became so much more than that.

bellmansknottclient1 — The finished commission

I felt as if I was launching a ship or something. I find that these vessels, which are so personal to the person who orders them, are so much more than any of the other work I am doing and I love the warm fuzzy feeling that the hand over gives me deep inside.

bellmansknottclient2 — One happy customer.

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