Custom Quilt Question: Please Advise
09-09-2014, 03:31 PM
#11
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Piedmont Virginia in the Foothills of the Blue Ridge Mtns.
Posts: 8,562
I just can't make quilts for other people that they want me to make for them.... for money. It just makes me feel uneasy. I figure they think I've charged too much but they don't have a clue about the time and $$$ you spend putting one together. I did a baby quilt once after a friend saw one I made. I told him I'd make one just like it for $100 hoping he'd say he'd find something in a store. But, he had to have me make the quilt. He said he loved it, paid me the money but I still felt uneasy. Now, I just tell people I'll help them make the quilt. They usually don't want to do that.
A wise real estate instructor once told me, "Business is business" This is hard for some women because they do not or can not value their worth/work/creativity outside the home. Even when reminded that a friend is not some one in the family or their home, it's hard to separate their personal space or value out.
I bring this up NOT to criticize (been there myself!), but to encourage women in general to recognize they have value beyond spousing, parenting, and housekeeping, because to not doing so affects and devalues all women who are making their way by the labor of their hands and minds.
Maybe, maybe this age-old attitude is changing a bit in the younger generation of today. (It sometimes sure seems like they feel they deserve everything else handed to them!)
Jan in VA
Last edited by QuiltnNan; 09-11-2014 at 10:07 AM. Reason: language
09-09-2014, 04:37 PM
#12
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Riverside, CA
Posts: 1,634
Very well said Jan ;-)
I made a friend once couple of things custom order but really felt the obligation to lower my price because she is my friend, but i wasn't really comfortable doing all the work for cheap. I don't regret doing it because she loved them, but i enjoyed it a lot more when i made her a quilt as a gift, because I WANTED TO GIVE!
Now i am planning on making few small quilts and posting on my website with full price of material and labor and if it sells that's great, but if not, it's mine to keep! BUT i won't ever under estimate my efforts and time.
Faten
I made a friend once couple of things custom order but really felt the obligation to lower my price because she is my friend, but i wasn't really comfortable doing all the work for cheap. I don't regret doing it because she loved them, but i enjoyed it a lot more when i made her a quilt as a gift, because I WANTED TO GIVE!
Now i am planning on making few small quilts and posting on my website with full price of material and labor and if it sells that's great, but if not, it's mine to keep! BUT i won't ever under estimate my efforts and time.
Faten
If you are working for pay, it's business even if the payer/client is a friend.
A wise real estate instructor once told me, "Business is business" This is hard for some women because they do not or can not value their worth/work/creativity outside the home. Even when reminded that a friend is not some one in the family or their home, it's hard to separate their personal space or value out.
I bring this up NOT to criticize (been there myself!), but to encourage women in general to recognize they have value beyond spousing, parenting, and housekeeping, because to not doing so affects and devalues all women who are making their way by the labor of their hands and minds.
Maybe, maybe this age-old attitude is changing a bit in the younger generation of today. (It sometimes sure seems like they feel they deserve everything else handed to them!)
Jan in VA
A wise real estate instructor once told me, "Business is business" This is hard for some women because they do not or can not value their worth/work/creativity outside the home. Even when reminded that a friend is not some one in the family or their home, it's hard to separate their personal space or value out.
I bring this up NOT to criticize (been there myself!), but to encourage women in general to recognize they have value beyond spousing, parenting, and housekeeping, because to not doing so affects and devalues all women who are making their way by the labor of their hands and minds.
Maybe, maybe this age-old attitude is changing a bit in the younger generation of today. (It sometimes sure seems like they feel they deserve everything else handed to them!)
Jan in VA
Last edited by QuiltnNan; 09-11-2014 at 10:08 AM. Reason: to match original edited quote
09-09-2014, 05:00 PM
#13
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,522
I think it is reasonable and fair to charge "replacement value" for materials.
09-09-2014, 05:39 PM
#14
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Illinois
Posts: 2,140
I'm with Jan!
I think part of the point of charging full price for the materials is to help offset the fact that we consistently undercharge for our labor. But the business rationale I've heard for it is that if you sell a quilt to one person & get all the fabrics at a 50% off Labor Day sale, you might be able to sell it for $200. Then, someone asks you to make them the same/similar quilt a month later when there is no sale. So, to cover your costs, you ask for $250 but then they think that's not fair because you just sold the exact same quilt to X a few weeks ago for $50 cheaper & there's "no way your quilting skills got that much better in such a short time".
To be honest, I think $50 plus materials -- even if you did get her to pay you for batting, backing, binding, thread, rotary blades, machine needles, starch, electricity/water/laundry soap/etc, etc, etc -- is insultingly cheap. People will do what they will, but I always cringe when I see a beautiful quilt that someone clearly spent 10-20 hours making being sold for the same amount of money my mom spends for an hour at the nail salon getting a no-chip mani/pedi that lasts 2 weeks at best. It's insulting to me when someone tells me my time and skill as an artist is worth less than a Vietnamese immigrant with a 4th grade education whose work lasts 14 days when mine can easily last 14 years.
Carol Bryer Fallart suggests that quilters should charge at least as much for an hour of our time as we would pay a cleaning service to come clean our home for an hour -- and that's assuming we don't have any real skill at sewing/quilting. I know I've been sewing for more than 25 years. I've taken classes, studied techniques, bought books & patterns until I was skilled enough to work without them... I belong to 2 professional organizations (NQA & TAS) in my industry and much of my work is done by hand. I've spent time researching what others in my area with quilting businesses charge & set my prices accordingly. I charge $0.05 per square inch for the machine quilting (I'd drop it to $0.03-0.04 if it were an all-over design). I charge $3/linear foot for binding (that includes basic, solid colored material for binding -- if they want a print or something special, they pay a premium for that, but I've yet to have someone upgrade). I charge $10 for batting (if you don't already buy batting on a roll, I'd buy a Queen-sized W&N at JAF with a 50% off coupon. I keep the difference to cover miscellaneous/unforeseen expenses like laundering quilt, rotary replacement blades, needles, spray starch, time spent washing quilt/cleaning & oiling machine, removing starch from iron sole plate, etc). I charge $15 for quilting thread (I need approx. 1200m for a baby quilt & use Aurifil). Because I do applique, I use a lot of colors for piecing/applique, but unless it's a really funky color, I usually have something that will work so they don't have to buy a whole spool. That tends to run another $15 total. I expect the client to cover the cost of all fabric. If they want to run out to the store to buy it, they can use whatever coupons they want & pay that price. Otherwise, I charge extra & count the difference to pay for shipping or for my time, fuel & mileage. I will meet a first-time client ONE TIME at the fabric store for a free consultation. After that, I work $15 into the cost of the quilt for my time. For all cutting, piecing, sewing, applique or design work, I charge $18/hour.
So, for a basic baby quilt that isn't heavily appliqued (mine are -- so I tend to get $600-800/baby quilt), I would want the client to buy the fabric. I would insist that the fabric is NEW and of decent quality and assuming those things, I would ask between $200-250 (depending on how many hours it takes you to cut, piece, sew & baste -- if you can do all that in 2 hours, charge $200; if not, add $15-18/hour for each extra hour. Do not include quilting or binding in the number of hours because I already counted that time in the sq in/linear foot rates).
Remember that part of that cost is the fact that I already have invested money in a cutting mat, rotary cutter, sewing machine, seam rippers, an assortment of pins, various types of scissors, marking pens, wax, glue, hoops, and so forth. One cannot reasonably be expected to produce a decent quilt without a certain number of notions. I spent a LOT of money on those things, and they need to be replaced/sharpened/serviced from time to time. Another piece of it is that I have spent time & money learning how to sew over the decades. I don't have as much experience with quilting in particular, which is why I don't charge more, but I get 6 even stitches to an inch with the machine & 8 perfect stitches to an inch by hand (I have15 years experience doing hand embroidery & applique), so my quilting is not terrible, I just have a limited number of designs I can offer.
I'm all for doing things for friends, but if I need a haircut or a massage or a medical check-up, I don't expect my friends to provide those services at cost. If she's a REALLY good friend, I'd probably just make her a gift & get reimbursed for my costs. Otherwise, your art is worth a fair wage. $200 for an heirloom quality quilt is still a crazy good deal. Not everyone can afford beautiful art, but just because I couldn't afford to spend more than $50 on a painting, doesn't mean I expect my friend with a sofa sized Jackson Pollack to sell me the painting for that price. Believe in yourself, believe in the art of quilting & know that when you put as much care into your art as I'm sure you do, it's worth a lot more than a manicure.
I think part of the point of charging full price for the materials is to help offset the fact that we consistently undercharge for our labor. But the business rationale I've heard for it is that if you sell a quilt to one person & get all the fabrics at a 50% off Labor Day sale, you might be able to sell it for $200. Then, someone asks you to make them the same/similar quilt a month later when there is no sale. So, to cover your costs, you ask for $250 but then they think that's not fair because you just sold the exact same quilt to X a few weeks ago for $50 cheaper & there's "no way your quilting skills got that much better in such a short time".
To be honest, I think $50 plus materials -- even if you did get her to pay you for batting, backing, binding, thread, rotary blades, machine needles, starch, electricity/water/laundry soap/etc, etc, etc -- is insultingly cheap. People will do what they will, but I always cringe when I see a beautiful quilt that someone clearly spent 10-20 hours making being sold for the same amount of money my mom spends for an hour at the nail salon getting a no-chip mani/pedi that lasts 2 weeks at best. It's insulting to me when someone tells me my time and skill as an artist is worth less than a Vietnamese immigrant with a 4th grade education whose work lasts 14 days when mine can easily last 14 years.
Carol Bryer Fallart suggests that quilters should charge at least as much for an hour of our time as we would pay a cleaning service to come clean our home for an hour -- and that's assuming we don't have any real skill at sewing/quilting. I know I've been sewing for more than 25 years. I've taken classes, studied techniques, bought books & patterns until I was skilled enough to work without them... I belong to 2 professional organizations (NQA & TAS) in my industry and much of my work is done by hand. I've spent time researching what others in my area with quilting businesses charge & set my prices accordingly. I charge $0.05 per square inch for the machine quilting (I'd drop it to $0.03-0.04 if it were an all-over design). I charge $3/linear foot for binding (that includes basic, solid colored material for binding -- if they want a print or something special, they pay a premium for that, but I've yet to have someone upgrade). I charge $10 for batting (if you don't already buy batting on a roll, I'd buy a Queen-sized W&N at JAF with a 50% off coupon. I keep the difference to cover miscellaneous/unforeseen expenses like laundering quilt, rotary replacement blades, needles, spray starch, time spent washing quilt/cleaning & oiling machine, removing starch from iron sole plate, etc). I charge $15 for quilting thread (I need approx. 1200m for a baby quilt & use Aurifil). Because I do applique, I use a lot of colors for piecing/applique, but unless it's a really funky color, I usually have something that will work so they don't have to buy a whole spool. That tends to run another $15 total. I expect the client to cover the cost of all fabric. If they want to run out to the store to buy it, they can use whatever coupons they want & pay that price. Otherwise, I charge extra & count the difference to pay for shipping or for my time, fuel & mileage. I will meet a first-time client ONE TIME at the fabric store for a free consultation. After that, I work $15 into the cost of the quilt for my time. For all cutting, piecing, sewing, applique or design work, I charge $18/hour.
So, for a basic baby quilt that isn't heavily appliqued (mine are -- so I tend to get $600-800/baby quilt), I would want the client to buy the fabric. I would insist that the fabric is NEW and of decent quality and assuming those things, I would ask between $200-250 (depending on how many hours it takes you to cut, piece, sew & baste -- if you can do all that in 2 hours, charge $200; if not, add $15-18/hour for each extra hour. Do not include quilting or binding in the number of hours because I already counted that time in the sq in/linear foot rates).
Remember that part of that cost is the fact that I already have invested money in a cutting mat, rotary cutter, sewing machine, seam rippers, an assortment of pins, various types of scissors, marking pens, wax, glue, hoops, and so forth. One cannot reasonably be expected to produce a decent quilt without a certain number of notions. I spent a LOT of money on those things, and they need to be replaced/sharpened/serviced from time to time. Another piece of it is that I have spent time & money learning how to sew over the decades. I don't have as much experience with quilting in particular, which is why I don't charge more, but I get 6 even stitches to an inch with the machine & 8 perfect stitches to an inch by hand (I have15 years experience doing hand embroidery & applique), so my quilting is not terrible, I just have a limited number of designs I can offer.
I'm all for doing things for friends, but if I need a haircut or a massage or a medical check-up, I don't expect my friends to provide those services at cost. If she's a REALLY good friend, I'd probably just make her a gift & get reimbursed for my costs. Otherwise, your art is worth a fair wage. $200 for an heirloom quality quilt is still a crazy good deal. Not everyone can afford beautiful art, but just because I couldn't afford to spend more than $50 on a painting, doesn't mean I expect my friend with a sofa sized Jackson Pollack to sell me the painting for that price. Believe in yourself, believe in the art of quilting & know that when you put as much care into your art as I'm sure you do, it's worth a lot more than a manicure.
Last edited by Bree123; 09-09-2014 at 05:45 PM.
09-09-2014, 05:41 PM
#15
Member
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 55
My own personal policy is to stitch from the heart, but urge the recipient to give a little extra to the offering plate for missions in the coming weeks as recompense for my work.
Naturally, you must do as your circumstances dictate.
Naturally, you must do as your circumstances dictate.
09-09-2014, 07:44 PM
#16
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: San Joaquin Valley, California
Posts: 829
I just finished a 100" x 100" quilt for my sister in law, she told me the color and I said I would make it for her but since I am retired I don't have extra money, she needed to pay for the fabric that I would choose. I purchased the fabric and saved the receipts. I mailed the quilt along with the statement and receipts for the fabric and it totaled $175.00 and I didn't add postage or batting ( I have a roll of 108").
My bother call when they received and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the pain and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
My bother call when they received and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the pain and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
09-09-2014, 07:51 PM
#17
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: San Joaquin Valley, California
Posts: 829
I just finished a 100" x 100" quilt for my sister in law, she told me the color and I said I would make it for her but since I am retired I don't have extra money, she needed to pay for the fabric that I would choose. I purchased the fabric and saved the receipts. I mailed the quilt along with the statement and receipts for the fabric and it totaled $175.00 and I didn't add postage or batting ( I have a roll of 108").
My bother call when they received it and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the paint and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
My bother call when they received it and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the paint and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
09-09-2014, 07:59 PM
#18
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,522
I just finished a 100" x 100" quilt for my sister in law, she told me the color and I said I would make it for her but since I am retired I don't have extra money, she needed to pay for the fabric that I would choose. I purchased the fabric and saved the receipts. I mailed the quilt along with the statement and receipts for the fabric and it totaled $175.00 and I didn't add postage or batting ( I have a roll of 108").
My bother call when they received it and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the paint and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
My bother call when they received it and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the paint and canvas....
Anyway, I said for this time it was my gift to them and they are family...I told him that I would not do that for others...but knowing him, he will send more than $175.
09-09-2014, 09:05 PM
#19
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Illinois
Posts: 2,140
My brother call when they received it and he was upset...he said that he didn't need receipts and that I should charge for my work because it was commissioned and we are artist. He said if I commission a painting the painter is not only charging for the paint and canvas....
Thank goodness for good siblings that support what we do & want us to be able to earn enough to make art full-time rather than just once or twice a year while working at a job we hate just to pay the bills (& hopefully support our quilting habit!). If he sends more, use it to keep making art & send him a photo of your next quilt. I'm sure nothing would make him happier than to see you continuing to make beautiful things.
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