So a few years ago a family moved in next door and the mom had a small business she ran out of the house making t-shirts and other personalized stuff.

Over the years I’ve bought stuff. She made us vacation shirts, she made a few hoodies, some school spirit wear. At one point I had asked her to make about 20 shirts I wanted to buy for my team when we returned to office in 2021 after Covid. Explained in detail what I wanted, confirmed she could do it by when I needed, paid her in full almost $300, they ultimately came out terrible. I ended up not giving them to my team, the vinyl was peeling off, she used scrap colors for the logos so they didn’t match, and she used tshirts that the sizing ran very small, like the 5XL fit me, a 2XL. I couldn’t give them to anyone. She didn’t offer to correct or refund. She just apologized.

I didn’t buy from her for a long time after that, but then for the 2024/2025 school year she offered a spirit wear bundle on her Facebook and I decided to give her another chance. She made us 3 crewnecks, 3 long sleeve T’s, 6 short sleeve T’s and 3 personalized water bottles. They came out great. Original designs, good quality, really nice. Teachers and parents started asking where we got them, and the PTA President asked if I could broker a deal for 80 shirts they would keep to welcome new students she loved my kids shirts so much. So the PTA bought the 80 shirts for $950. They wrote a check and paid her up front. So here’s the timeline…

9/25. Shirt order placed

9/26. Check given

9/29. I ask her to make two shirts for me/hubby for Halloween and ask they be ready by 10/12 for an event. Paid her same day and she says she will get the shirts and make them ‘this week’

10/2 she messages and tells me she will have all the school shirts and my shirts done by Sunday 10/6. I agree to drive to her (she moved about 15 minutes away) for pickup for 11am.

10/6 I message her 10:54am I tell her I’m on my way, ignored. I go to my mother in laws house which is near her and I sit there until she messages me at NOON telling me that things aren’t ready, and that she will have my 2 shirts by that evening but the school shirts now won’t be ready till Friday 10/11.

10/11 rolls around. I ask if I can pick up my shirts for the event I have on 10/12 she says yes and agrees to 10am on 10/12 (an hour before my event).

10/12 she messages she forgot to put them in her pickup box before work and she will now drop them off to me ‘really late’ and not to be alarmed. So no shirts for my event, but at least I could bring them on the trip I was leaving for on 10/13 at 6am. Fine.

10/13 I wake up to no shirts on my porch, and get a message she will be dropping them off at 6:45am 45 minutes after I leave for my trip. So now I don’t have the shirts I ordered and paid for for my week long trip.

10/20 I message that I’m home and I’d like to pick up the school shirts and my two shirts on 10/21 and I ask if she could leave them on her porch so I could get them at 8am because I would be in her area. She agrees.

10/21 I get there. Nothing is outside. She’s not home. I message at 8:31am. Wait and then go to run an errand. She answers my message at 8:55am and tells me my two are in her drop box, but she forgot the school shirts. I go back and get my two shirts. She tells me she won’t be home till 9:30pm so we agree I will come back on 10/22 on my way home around 7:30pm.

10/22 she messages and tells me only some of the shirts will be out because her dog has peed on the box and she now needs to re-do some of them. So we get one box of about half. She tells me they will be done by 10/24 and agree to 7:30pm on the 24th.

10/24 I message to confirm, now she tells me 10/25 after 3pm.

10/25 she messages and says her ex (who is still my neighbor) is picking up their kids and can grab them and drop them off to me that day.

He doesn’t.

10/26 she confirms he forgot and says I can come after 7:30pm and grab them. 7:41pm before i leave to go to her house, I confirm we’re good. We’re not. She tells me 8:30pm. 8:50pm I pull up. Her cars not there and no shirts are outside. 9:05 she says she’s still not home. 9:26 I abort mission because I’m tired.

10/27 she says she won’t be home till after 7pm and it’s a school night so I ask her about 10/28. She asks that I text her before 5:30am to remind her to put them out and I can get them for 8am.

TLDR. I paid in full almost $1000 for 82 shirts on 9/26 with the expectation I have them by 10/12 and it’s 10/27 and I still don’t have them and have tried to pick them up a dozen times. Give me my fucking shirts.

I don’t know how I could have communicated better. This is insane.