Weddingbee boards

Yeah, I think that's a good response.  I would feel pretty uneasy about sending the deposit without seeing a contract that has my specific date on it.  If you don't sign any kind of agreement, what's stopping her from just taking your money without giving you any services? 

Maybe she doesn't understand what you mean by "contract"?  Like she thinks all you want is to know that she has the money/you're paid in full, and she thinks a receipt will keep her accountable?  We had the same problem with two vendors up here because they just never use contracts with their clients.  I guess most of the time people are satisfied with just a verbal agreement and a receipt of the payments.  Lol, not us, though! 

We actually had to write up, on a piece of paper, the details of the agreement (where, when, how much, etc...) and have those vendors sign it.  They both thought a receipt was enough proof that I had paid them and they would be there to do the job.  I was like, "No!  I want us both to be very clear about what's going on!"  Interestingly enough, we also had to do that with our landlord, so maybe it's a regional thing...  :)