On our current sit we stupidly put a bag containing a bottle of baby oil (Don’t ask!) on a cream, fabric-covered chaise longue -
The oil leaked and caused a nasty mark on the chaise.
By trying to get the stain out ourselves we only managed to make the stain even worse.
We decided our first option was to call in a professional upholstery cleaner. If that failed, plan B was to try to get it reupholstered before the home hosts returned!
Thankfully the cleaners managed to save the day and the chaise now looks as good as new.
However, we now have a chaise that looks as new - much cleaner than when we arrived! It is in the guest bedroom so there is a chance the hosts may never notice.
1 - Do we say nothing hoping they won’t notice and therefore not have to admit to our stupidity? However, if they do notice it may look as if we are not being honest with them about the events during our stay
or
2 - Do we admit our stupidity with the good news that we managed to sort it - but does that look as if we are trying to get brownie points by twisting the story and making the situation look as if we have done a good thing rather than a stupid thing?
Hi @Colin accidents happen and you handled it professionally and promptly and rectified the problem.
I get the apprehension of broaching it with the owners, but I’d tell them the truth. It wasn’t on purpose and if I were in their position, I’d admire and respect your honesty.
As a HO I would definitely prefer honesty. Having found a way to fix the problem I would think you were responsible and dependable people which are qualities I look for in sitters.
But I would save the communication for the end of the sitting. Because personally, if I would be on vacation, I would not like to be bothered with something like this, because it would make me worry (Is the chaise really okay now? Are the sitters in general a bit clumsy and will destroy more furniture?) and I could not do something about it anyway.
So, I would only bother the HOs with problems, that require action from them or a solution, like a water leak or a health issue with the animal and would save anything else for the end of the sit.
@Colin I won’t ask! I believe it isn’t your first sit for this particular homeowner so they already know your track record.
Personally I would ‘fess up’, especially as the item is better than new and they may notice anyway. I feel your pain but accidents happen - it is how you deal with them that is important.
My goodness, what were you boys up to??
Seriously, I’d be going for Option 2, @Colin. Honesty is the best in this situation. We all know accidents can and do happen and you have handled this very responsibly. If you’re seeing the owner on their return, then that’s when I would be telling/showing them.
A puppy I sat chewed a handle on a nice leather beanbag, which I had no way of repairing. I had purposely kept her in the same room with me, to keep an eye on her, but turned my back while vacuuming. Next thing you know, chomp, chomp. I showed the HOs on their return. Fortunately, they shrugged it off.
I could’ve pretended it didn’t happen and who knows when they’d realize, because they had a large house, full of nice things. But I’d know and I’d feel bad about not telling them, so I did.
Option 2, but because it’s already fixed, I would only mention it on their return. And you don’t need to give all the details! Just say you spilled hot chocolate or something
I have a repeat non-THS client who has many beautiful handmade art pieces. One is a bell that hangs in a tree on their patio. It’s a 5 foot long string of small glass beads with a bell on the end. She’d had it for years and it has a lovely story associated. While on a sit I gently (I SWEAR!) touched it to see how the beads glimmered in the light and the line broke! I spent about 30 minutes on my knees picking blue beads out of the mulch, bought a spool of fishing line and restrung it. When she returned I told her what happened and that I restrung it but the bead pattern was obviously different. She was so gracious and appreciated that I had repaired it. I still sit for them frequently and the restrung bell still hangs in the tree.
We’re human and accidents happen. I would tell them.
Phew! So glad the cleaner managed to get the stain out. I know you as an extremely honest guy so am not sure why you’ve posted this, other than to tell your story and see what the consensus of opinion would be . It wasn’t stupid at all, anyone could have done that. Next time you’ll check the bottom of your plastic bag
I’m sure that you will explain to the home owners when they return what happened but just say you didn’t realise there was something on the bottom of the bag. Your honesty will go down very well in your favour as a result. Bet they’ll be really pleased that they’ve ended up with a chaise longue that’s cleaner than it was before you marked it and they probably would have told you that you shouldn’t have gone to the expense you did. You’re such a lovely chap
Great quick thinking and amazing solution. If it looks better than ever we would probably confess and say “sorry, we spilt something on the chaise and so had it professionally cleaned and it’s good as new.” Don’t think you need to tell the HO until they come home though as it they might fret. Nice job @Colin & hubby IMO
Option 2. I recently had to tell a HO I had run their ride in mower into a fence post. I spent hours removing the fender, repairing it and refitting everything to the point it was like new. I advised the HO who laughed their ass off as the mower was damaged by them years ago. They of course thanked us profusely.
