Talked myself out of a $400 job last week, turned out better

Had a homeowner in Tacoma ask me to match their existing baseboard profile, so I pulled out the old router bit and got ready to run, but the conversation switched to what their grandma would have wanted. She said the house was from 1952 and they were basically ripping out all the trim anyway, so I convinced them to let me design a simpler shaker style instead. Anyone else find that clients often get better results when you push back on the 'match it exactly' instinct? What do you say to folks who think original always means better?

1 comments

1 Comment

lindaw1228m ago

Ha, classic. Grandma's ghost strikes again! Honestly though, half the time "original" just means "someone was too cheap or lazy to do it right back then." You probably saved them from a headache of trying to match some warped, paint-caked profile that doesn't even exist anymore. Shaker style is timeless anyway, they'll thank you in five years when they're not hating every shadow line. Good on you for talking some sense into them.