Regional Colloquialism Or Am I Just A Dullard?

Dang it! I left one "L" off of "Colloquialism"...

Anyway... I was watching "Homicide: Life on the Street" on "Sleuth" network this evening and this phrase was uttered that made me reflect on a past conversation.

They referred to a drug dealer as "a piece of work". It wasn't flattering.

Anyway, in this past conversation, I was very annoyed with this girl and said "You're a real piece of work".

From the tone of the conversation from that point on, I think she took that to mean that I equated "piece of work" with "piece of shit".

I didn't. And don't.

I always thought it meant "You're one of a kind" in a snide / sarcastic sort of way. Like, "You're a pain in the neck and it MIGHT be a good thing they broke the mold when they made you."

At the time, I thought she was overreacting, as females are certainly wont to do.

But now I'm not so sure and I'm wondering if I unintentionally really insulted her.

I'm looking for SERIOUS thoughts on this. So if anyone has an opinion, just let me know:

If someone said "You're a piece of work"... how would YOU take it?