Scraplady

I have followed this thread with great interest. When I decided to open an online store (so far only have the one etsy shop) I waffled about whether to take custom orders. There is possibly money to be made there, but no one wants to pay for the kind of work I do. I am not throwing together random pre-cut 10" squares. I put a lot of thought and much blood, sweat and sometimes tears, into the quilts I design and make. Quilting is not just a hobby for me, nor is it just a business. It is my passion and my artistic voice. I believe I am very good at what I do and not ashamed to say so.

And, yes, I'm still waffling about doing custom work. I don't want to get into the rat-race of making things to other people's orders. The few quilts I have sold were ones I had ALREADY completed. I listed them as "here it is, here is the price." If you like it and appreciate its one-of-a-kind hand-crafted artistic value, buy it. If not and you want cheap, like someone else said, go to Walmart.

The problem is when a friend of a friend heard I made one for a mutual acquaintance and wants to know how much I charge, either expecting the friends and family discount, or totally clueless about the price and the process. If a family member or really good friend asked me to make one, I wouldn't charge anything except for materials. I'm not about to risk a relationship over the price of a quilt. But when my DH's coworker expressed interest in having a t-shirt quilt made, I wrote up a detailed list of the materials I would need and a per shirt price list (based on prices I saw on internet). He gave her the list and I've never heard from her again.

And why, when I ask people for advice about how much to charge, is $10/hr. the magic number? Not one of the people who have suggested that to me would work for $10 an hour. No, I didn't go to school for 8 years to learn to make quilts, I don't have a plaque on my wall with umpteen letters after my name, but heck, I made more than than at the retail job I quit last year. I could go on ad nauseum, but I will shut up and get off my soap box for now.

sewbeadit

I don't have to charge, all I have to do is ask a certain amount and you can be guaranteed no one will pay for it. Then I can go on and quilt for myself.

cindi

I have made it a hard a fast rule to take only two "commission" quilts per year. I charge my full price for those. They're my "extra fabric money" quilts, and I've got the rest of the year to make quilts I want to make. I no longer get my feelings hurt when someone balks at the prices I charge. If they order a quilt, great! I'll put my heart and soul into it because I know they understand and appreciate the work that goes into it. If not, then no love lost. I'm not wasting my time making a quilt for someone who's not truly going to appreciate it. I've already made my two commission quilts this year, and already have two for next year.

Oh, and no matter WHAT you charge, make sure you collect half of the full charge UP FRONT before you even start. This shows that the person is serious about having a quilt made. Keep the customer informed every step of the way. Send pics of the fabrics you've chosen and get the approval for those before starting. Send pics as you're making the quilt. This helps to subtly remind the person they've got a quilt ordered and will be expected to pay. And collect the final payment before you give them the quilt!

Z Any Mouse

I do those on commission only. I do have a pile of table runners that need a home, and they sell for $50-75 and usually take me anywhere from 8-15 hours to make. I'm still not getting a good hourly wage, but I do get a lot of enjoyment from sewing. Recently, I was asked to crochet a baby blanket and so I looked on Etsy to see what the going rate was. Some of them were priced as low as $35.00! The yarn, using every coupon I had, cost $17.00. I really don't understand how people can charge so little. It might as well just be a gift at that point.

lildinks2013

ok well what about tied quilts. I dont have a machine to do all the fancy stitching whic i love. I make scrappy quilts which enables alot of cutting and then sewing together. then the batting and backing and tying of the quilt. So i dont think i could charge that much for my quilts if anyone would ever ask. What do you think I could charge for an old fashioned tied quilt?