I feel so conflicted reading this thread. I've been yelled at by a plant vendor... I misread an email about plant availability and my subsequent response was perceived as pushy/insistent/entitled, when really I just completely misunderstood. I tried to immediately follow up and correct it, but my correction wasn't seen. I'm very conflict averse so after I got that super hostile response I was so shocked/hurt/mad I never went back, even though I'd been a loyal customer for years. So, I think we're entitled to our feelings and sometimes just need to walk away. I'm sorry you had to go through that. That said, I think that, when you are collecting rare plants, the situation (for good or evil) is that the vendors have self-selected into the industry due to their love of the plants, not because of their love of business and customer service. And people in small businesses tend to wear a lot of hats and not all are in their strong suits. Sometimes you have a plant vendor who is a super professional organized sweetheart, but usually one of those variables is missing. Generally you have to shoot for "has good plants" + "is honest" and that is a hard enough bar to cross as it is. Your post freaked me out, because at the time I read it (yesterday) I had a VB order sitting behind me unopened, that was shipped during snowy weather and had had to sit in my work office for a week after it arrived, due to an unforeseen event in my travel schedule. I have taken hits of >$200 losses, as has anyone who collects plants (somewhat) seriously. And it is absolutely horrible horrible horrible. I don't think vendors should accept responsibility for transit death. Although a plant replaced here and there can be a good customer relations policy, it's a slippery slope to promise a replacement for every loss unless you are a mega nursery. I definitely think they should remove the "guaranteed" language from their website. "Express shipping in winter is highly recommended and usually successful" ... or "We only ship via express mail in winter" would be more appropriate, and it's language like that that most Hoya vendors use. Can I ask if you are trying to save those Episcias in the picture above? I don't consider myself an expert on Episcias, but it seems like if you put them somewhere humid and warm, like a terrarium, you've got some good stems on them still and they might surprise you and bounce back. My VB order did come through okay this time. I've ordered probably hundreds of plants from VB over the years and some have arrived DOA. I never asked for a credit or replacement because it was such a small percentage that I didn't hold them accountable. The 100% DOA orders I've had have been Hoya orders (from other vendors) and of course part of me was like, "They must have done something wrong/different... why didn't it work this time?!" But then after a few days the rational part of my brain kicked in and I realized that they processed the order like every other order and I just drew the horribly unlucky straw. I try to think of it like how sometimes you go out for drinks with friends and spend a lot of time/money/energy and have 0.0000% fun. I've definitely wasted more money on failed social events than failed plant events. That probably says something about my personality limitations. @xmahini I applaud your attitude. I do think the first few orders you make with specialist vendors can be very rattling, because your expectations are almost always wrong, not quite being an insider yet. But obviously you did the right thing, taking that risk, since your husband ended up very happy. I have to say it's so sweet listening to you praise him for his hobby and skill. He's a lucky man. :)

my impression is that hinkley is indicating that it will grow under his cool maritime conditions not that it requires it. in "trees of southern africa" k. c. palgrave says that it grows on "dry hillsides, wooded valleys, at the margins of forest and in coastal thickets," sounds like a generalist to me. furthermore in the same entry, he characterizes it as "fast growing and hardy" the "hardy" designation is used down there as indicating tolerance of normal s.a. conditions of heat and drought not necessarily in the way the term is used here as a measure of resistance to frost. i have not tried this particular species myself but if it is anything like its relatives you should be getting at least a very tough plant in general and its case especially a heat tolerant plant---though i think as a freshly planted baby you would be advised to water well until full established and then we will all see.

I was hoping to find a sofa quickly for my daughter, who moved into her first apartment couchless. Before ordering the Ava, I called Grandin Road to ask about availability and was told that the blue sofa was in stock and would be the quickest to ship. Once I placed the order, I was given a delivery window of December 6-13. Each time I checked the order status the estimated delivery date was postponed. I called customer service to ask about the order status and, each time, was told the sofa would ship out that day. However, the order status continued to show as "in process" with a new delayed delivery date. I then found a sofa locally that was in stock and available to deliver the same day, so I used the Grandin road chat feature to cancel the order. The chat agent said they would email the warehouse about the cancellation. The next day, the order status still showed as "in process" with a new delayed delivery date. I then called Grandin road to cancel the order again with the same results. After canceling by phone the second time, I received a text message saying my order had shipped. I emailed Grandin road to let them know I had canceled the order, and the next day they charged my credit card for the sofa I had canceled four times. When I asked for a refund, I was told they would request one, but it could take a few weeks. Thankfully my credit card company was willing to reverse the charge, as I don't have confidence that grandin road would have handled the refund any better than they handled the order or cancelation. I am also relieved not to own a product from them. I recommend something other than Grandin road.

I ordered these a couple of years ago. Sturdy, great condition and easy to assemble. I didn't find anything comparable locally. However, I seem to remember the price was for 2 at about 1.5x the current price. https://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Mason-Ladder-Back-Chair/9761987/product.html?recset=f5d95141-3f52-4464-94c6-9791cc056416&refccid=66623DZIRNEKPGSMGWW6Q7ESBQ&searchidx=0&recalg=61&recidx=0&keywords=black%20ladder%20back%20chairs&refinement=