Ballpark bids and thumbnail sketches of possible ideas are without charge. Detailed itemized bids, and all requested preliminary designs and other creative work, and any travel, time, and expense associated with a job-site for measurements and design development require a retainer of up to 10% of the minimum possible costs of the proposed work ( dependent upon the scope of work under consideration ). When this retainer has been paid, Sonrise Woodcarving Studio will do all preliminary on-site and off-site evaluations, drawings, and detailed proposals required to define the project under review. Design copyrights will remain the sole property of R. Stephan Toman. If the concept and the proposal are approved and accepted by a dated signature of all contracting parties, the retainer fee will be included in the overall costs defined in the final proposal. If the proposal and its related documents and drawings are not accepted, and the client desires to terminate negotiations with R. Stephan Toman ( d/b/a Sonrise Woodcarving Studio ) regarding the proposed project, the retainer will be regarded as payment for creative services rendered to date by Sonrise Woodcarving Studio. Conceptual and graphic design services are billed at $150.00 per hour. All other creative services are billed at $75.00 per hour. This rate is subject to change without notice, but will not change during a negotiation already in progress or during the execution of a signed contract. After a contract is signed any and all change orders will require a written, dated, and signed amendment to the original contract before taking effect. All detailed bids will be itemized and/or clearly explained in writing, answers will be given for all questions that arise, and all finished drawings will be reviewed, dated, and signed by both the commissioning client and/or the client’s representative and Sonrise Woodcarving Studio to protect the interests of all involved parties, and before any work is begun.
For all custom work a 50% deposit will be expected (calculated on the full price of the commission) at the time of the signing of the contract, with the balance of payment due prior to the delivery of the work. Other terms and payment schedules may be arranged through negotiations prior to the signing of the contract. Large commissions may require a multi-stage payment schedule to which all contracting parties must agree before the work on the project is continued. Most finishing charges, all delivery charges, and all installations will be billed separately unless previously negotiated. All applicable taxes will be added to the total price in the case of finished products, or deferred to the general contractor for the job in the case of unfinished work that is to become part of some larger construction. Any applicable taxes will be expected at the time of the initial deposit to avoid confusion in later billing.
Sonrise Woodcarving Studio accepts liability ONLY for those aspects of a project over which it has direct control and is in no way responsible for installations by third parties not directly supervised by Sonrise Woodcarving Studio. An unconditional guarantee applies only to the use of premium materials and to craftsmanship. We cannot be responsible for on-site environmental issues with wood products beyond the reasonable attention to the time-honored practices of fine cabinetry. We will make every effort in good faith to resolve any issues that may arise to the client’s satisfaction.
PLEASE NOTE! Fine woodworking of the exceptional quality that Sonrise Woodcarving Studio produces is time and skill intensive artistic hand craftsmanship. Our work is costly and it cannot be hurried without compromising the finished product, which we will not do (PLEASE don’t ask us to rush).. We use only the finest materials and time-proven techniques. The finished product is worth both its cost and the wait. There is no valid comparison between our work and the plethora of production furniture and machine carvings that have flooded the market. Please, plan to have enough time in your schedule for your project, and don’t put any commission off to the last minute. For small projects allow a minimum of 12 weeks from the clearing of a deposit and accounting for bench space. Larger projects will take longer. In some cases work in progress may result in a significant backorder for new commissions, which will be accepted on a first-come-first-served basis.
