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I received a reply email from Tess on Friday. She asked that I direct readers to her blog, and also asked what she could do to ease reader’s minds. In researching this story, I’ve heard many different allegations and I want to give Tess the opportunity to tell her side of the story.
What would you like to ask Tess?
I’d like to ask her, and not to pry, what was the prognosis of the illness at the time of the bookings? Did she realize the impact on the brides’ lives during this time? Is this all true?
I just don’t…I don’t think I believe her.
as an unaffected (presumably unbiased) bride, i think that any professional business person need to have a backup plan. there were solo-shop photographers, videographers, etc. with whom i met, and i always asked them “what happens if you can’t be there? food poisoning? car trouble? even at the last minute?” *all* of them had backup–be it a network of photographers who cover for each other, an assistant, or another who *would* be there in their absence.
insurance is another indicator of a professional business. you take it out, pay your premiums, for a situation such as illness, disability, etc. if you run a business where people depend on you, it’s irresponsible not to have insurance.
i read through Tess’ blog and think that her posts, while sympathy eliciting, would not alleviate my doubts about her reliability on a go-forward basis.
she writes: “If I told you I would be able to do your wedding because I will be in LA and you decided to cancel me anyway, it may take longer for your refund.”
why would anyone actually trust that after *all* the missed weddings and stranded brides? if a bride would want a prompt refund, she has to wait–on pins and needles–until the day of her wedding to know whether Tess will actually show or not? while she may very well be there, i would think the stress of not *really* knowing until the last minute would be horrible. in a service industry, you only have your reputation and admitted no-shows certainly don’t set a precedent of dependability–no matter what the reasons behind said no-shows.
all the above is just my opinion. and i apologize for rambling, but it’s the lawyer in me that is compelled to sort of parse out Tess’ blog and my thoughts on it. i feel badly for Tess and anyone who is ill. i have watched friends live through cancer and watched others who didn’t make it. but in all things, i think that accountability is key… i think that Tess’ demanding brides stick with her for certain dates lest they be put on the tail-end of her refund timetable is really wrong and does not seem to reflect contrition.
If only you knew what we know.
While I feel terrible for someone who is sick, I think it’s TERRIBLE karma to use your sickness as a smokescreen. Tess claimed she was going on *vacation* to Boston, yet she turned in her plane ticket and *drove* to Boston. She knew she was leaving. She has admitted she has been planning to leave her husband for a year (and admits to having a BF in Boston), yet she claims her husband spent all the money she rec’d from brides. Another bride says she was told Tess was using the money for cancer treatment. So what it is it? Another was told details of her biopsy and how she rec’d a discount for paying cash for her biopsy. Oncologists make cash deals now?? Why would any reputable vendor asked for someones balance MONTHS in advance and give such a substansial discount -which would cut her profit down considerably. She wouldn’t be making any money! Now she is saying she is going to start paying brides back…with what? I am assuming *if* she pays back anyone, it will be with the deposits/money she is taking from the brides she is booking on the East coast. Does that seem right?
IF her cancer story is legitimate, I feel sorry for her. I still think she is very irresponsible. I don’t know what stage cancer she has but she should have been able to foresee this. The responsible thing to do was to contact her clients to tell them.
Brides should count their losses and not sue her. Her reputation as a makeup artist is already shot.
Yes, it is indeed unfortunate what happened to Tess. However, all the brides that have been scammed have are her word that she will repay them. Hypothetical: What if Jan ‘07 rolls around and nothing? Given that there are statute of limitations to file a claim in court (varies by state), I think these brides need to think of the worst case scenerio and be prepared to file suit.
I strongly feel the lawsuit should go forward. I agree with Skeptical that what if the statue of limitations runs out? She needs to have this onher record - she really needs to be covicted of fraud. If she is *so* sick, why has she been running all over the East Coast hiking, swimming and photographing everything? yes, she has an account on Flickr and it’s obvious she hasn’t been ‘resting’.
I ran this by my lawyer friend to see if there are some options and here is what he has to say:
some considerations for these brides:
Bankruptcy - If flaky make-up artist is low on assets or files bankruptcy, any lawsuit may become worthless. So it pays to sue earlier rather than later, and collect on judgment as soon as possible before flaky make-up artist runs out of money or files bankruptcy and has no money to pay. Chances are that since the money has not been paid back yet, flaky is low on funds, meaning that waiting to sue could result in getting a judgment against someone who can’t pay.
Scamming - If flaky has pulled this off on a number of people, chances are she’s pulling a scam. She’ll scam a few people, then take the money and run away to a different state, making service of a civil lawsuit difficult or impossible, and also making criminal prosecution a little more difficult as flaky may be difficult to find. If this person has indeed done this to a number of people, the district attorney and/or state attorney general should be contacted right away, before she runs away. And more than one person needs to contact the authorities … DAs and AGs are busy with prosecuting other bad folks and may shrug off one complaint of a scam. But if many complain, DAs and AGs will wake up.
Also, if the Internet has been used to perpetrate the crime, the FBI and/or Federal Trade Commission may also want to know. This may be the only way to effectively stop any fraudulent activity. Finally, it may be worth contacting a local media outlet. At least one local television station in every city loves to run “consumer alert” stories like this where they expose the scammer on TV, and which often leads to folks getting their money back.
I feel so bad for all brides who have been affected by this situation. You want to look beautiful on your wedding day, and I can’t imagine a makeup/hair artists backing out and leaving me to find a replacement asap. Like anyone needs the added stress.
Please note that her blog has been taken down and her Flickr site has been set to private.
I am one of those brides…… I booked with her mid May and paid her a deposit of $200.00, we had not set the date for my trial run so I emailed her yesterday and got a auto reply about her illness. I felt so bad! I replied with my best wishes. My own mother passed away from cancer at age 46. I got the auto reply again, so I called her and her number is disconnected. At this point I was concerned that she had took a turn for the worse. Well last night I did some research and found that she had pretty much skipped town on many many brides. Thank goodness I am out just the 200, but many brides paid her over a thousand dollars and no one can seem to reach her. I located her on http://www.flickr.com and emailed her. Well, she didn’t respond but blocked me!! Can you believe that!! Please be ware. She is a awful person, I just can’t believe that she could be capable of this. The many emails we exchanged and phone calls we had. I would have never guessed. Wish me Luck!! I am now trying to book a replacement and someone cheap, since I am out 200.00 already.
Chiming in: I paid in full to get the discount in April, on the basis of all the rave reviews like others have said. I learned what was going on (or not, as it were) on Thursday when I attempted to check in with her and discovered that her artistrybytess.com website had disappeared, and googling “artistry by tess” brought me here.
So. Since I only got into all this on Thursday, officially I am taking her at her word and giving her a few more days to respond to me before going further. However, it doesn’t hurt to start planning for that eventuality. How many of us are there? Has anyone started organizing and coordinating efforts yet? If not, I suggest we do so. (Not that I have anything else to do other than a wedding and honeymoon in two weeks, HA HA HA. …HA. harrrgh.)
Has anyone managed to come up with any contact information more concrete than her email?
I really don’t think she has the intent to pay anyone back. She has promised me for over 2 months that she would pay me back. But I still haven’t recieved a thing. Should I just take her to small claims court? she owes me $800. But I don’t even know how to find her to serve her?
I am yet another bride that paid in full a year ago to get a discount with Tess and she has yet to refund my money. I am just discovering the extent of her actions and am blown away. On another message board there was talk of contacting the BBB as well as small claims court. At this point I would just like to figure out a way to contact her. If she is working in Boston someone has to know how to get a hold of her!
I too paid in full for a May 2007 wedding. Although it was less than many other brides have paid, it is an incredibly frustrating experience.
I looked up the BBB and this is the report on Tess. No recent complaints have been filed. Although she probably won’t be contacted, at least we can report her to the BBB and hope that other brides don’t get into a similar situation.
http://www.labbb.org/BBBWeb/Forms/Business/CompanyReportPage_Expository.aspx?CompanyID=100018767
Just so that you all know, as late at June 19, she was pretending all was well. The website no longer works, however.
I used Tess and her services from 2004, my sister was a bride of hers from 2001, and so was my cousin 2005, and several other friends and family members. I find it hard to believe that Tess would make up something like this. I have known her for over 5 years, and of her services since she has been in California. It would be devastating to learn of such a horrific disease such as cancer, even moreso to find out that she would be fabricating or lying about the disease. I am not sure on why she isnt able to refund the money to most of the brides that she can not provide her services as promised, but I hope that she really does pay everyone back as promised. If she is indeed lying about her illness, it is a truly sad day us brides, and brides to be. Best of luck to you all.
tess is living in maine with some guy she met online. she’s running all over new england with this man going to zoos and having a grand old vacation, probably spending money she didn’t earn. go here http://www.flickr.com/photos/leecullivan/220660385/ to see her drinking in a bar with the guy. too drunk to drive even.
cancer? seems to be the least of her worries.
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Mrs. Bee, New York Age and Occupation: 29, Weddingbee Publisher Fiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Internet Engagement Date: May 7, 2004 Wedding Date: March 5, 2005 Venue: Westside Loft, New York About Me: Yes, my name really is Bee! I love my blogging, wikis, and tabasco sauce!
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