No problem for a man like you
Some years back, I was installing cabinets for a client when they asked me if I could run some extra crown molding. There was crown on the tops of the…
Some years back, I was installing cabinets for a client when they asked me if I could run some extra crown molding.
There was crown on the tops of the upper and tall floor-to-ceiling cabinets so we were going to be running crown anyway. I thought the guy was talking about a couple of pieces when I said, "sure," but then he pointed to a huge stack of oak crown and indicated that he wanted crown in every room of the house.
The shocking part was he thought I would "just throw it in.” I mean this was a week’s work for two guys and only if the two guys knew how to run crown. When I pointed this out, the guy said, "It's not that much. Should be no problem for a man like you.”
Yes, he actually said that. I have always understood the concept of the baker's dozen and the idea that, sometimes, you have to sweeten the pot a bit. But this was just over the top. If it wasn't so outrageous it would be funny.
So here's the question: Where is the point at which "a man like me" or a "man like you" puts his foot down? How much extra freebie stuff gets tossed in as part of that baker's dozen?
D.D.

David DeCristoforo possesses an extensive resume as designer/maker of fine furniture, high-end cabinetry and architectural woodwork. His experience in professional woodworking spans a period of 35 years. For the past 20 years David DeCristoforo Design has been located in Woodland, California. During this time David's shop has ranged in scope from a "full on" cabinet production shop with as many as 15 employees to a small fine furniture and custom millwork shop, working with his son, David RBJ, a highly skilled maker in his own right.