British mum Sarah Bryan made headlines all over the world when she sent the parent of her young daughter’s friend an invoice for $548.
According to Bryan, her three-year-old daughter Isabella’s Italian designer booties were “scuffed” and had been drawn on with a permanent marker during a playdate.
After the incident, Bryan, who is a fashion designer, model and aspiring actress, appeared on Good Morning Britain and was reduced to tears during an interview with host Piers Morgan.
"You’re not a responsible parent...you’re the worst kind," Morgan told her during the interview.
Now, Bryan has opened up about her traumatic childhood, saying she takes any opportunity to spoil her children.
"I understand why the invoice has created so much outrage but wouldn’t anybody spoiled [sic] their children if they could?" she told The Sun.
"I was made homeless at 15 with a one-year-old after my mum kicked me out and we spent years struggling, relying on £50 a week and we had no luxuries. It’s only been the past two years that I’ve started to earn good money through my fashion work, design and some acting."
Bryan's invoice to the mother of a fellow child went viral when it was made public on the weekend. It read:
So Isabella has just come home from her playdate with your child and I am disgusted to see her new Italian leather shoes are all scuffed and have a Sharpie mark on them.
Below is the bill for these replacing because they can not be fixed these are fine Italian leather! As a designer I do not want my child to look anything less than pristine.
Bill for a replacement pair of Italian fur booties £325 (AU$548) to be paid by 01/02/2017 before I take this higher. Thank you. Sarah.
Bryan said she had since apologised to the fellow mother for sending the note.
"I’ve apologised to the mother since and told her I was worked up and acted very quickly. She’s forgiven me and understands I wasn’t thinking properly," she said.
"We are humans and we all make mistakes."
Top Comments
I am still gobsmacked by this. If you buy special, expensive items for your children, it makes no sense to whack them on for a playdate and get all upset once they get scuffed or damaged. Dress her appropriately for the occasion. She's a child, not a doll you dress up for your own amusement!!
Of course she wants to spoil her daughter, I'm sure most parents do, that part is completely understandable. The thing is, being a parent means doing what's best for your child, not what makes you feel good. Spoiling your child constantly is not a great idea, she needs to learn that she doesn't always get what she wants, when she wants it. Otherwise she has a massive shock coming when she gets out into the real world.