Selling crocheted items...?

[Deb]

I saw this thread on here once... but can't seem to find it this morning...

How do you determine the price of a crocheted item? I have several requests... and need to give a price.

Is it double the price of the yarn? Or is that too low? My time is valuable.. you know what I mean?

Thanks!

[MommaChelle]

I've been told that you should triple the cost of the supplies purchased to get your selling price. But I go by what I feel is a good price for something I make. Does it take me long to make it? Was it a difficult pattern that took time, or was it pretty simple that I could whip up a couple with no problem pretty quickly? I always go by what I feel is a good price for what I made.

[Deb]

Thanks Chelle.

I like your thinking. <img border=0 src="http://img28.photobucket.com/albums/v84/crochetville/bounce012.gif" />

[Ambersafghans]

I agree pretty much with Michelle,
I heard the triple your costs, but that wasn't working out. Pattern and simplicity have a lot to do with it.

Amber

[3Fortunatas]

Do you think that the originality of the pattern should be taken into account?

I just invented my own pattern as I went for a baby's sunsuit. I think it turned out really cute :D and it wasn't from a pattern. Does that up the price or do consumers care?

[RachelG]

Unfortunately, consumers don't care about originality...at least most of them. A few that understand and really appreciate the art of crochet might.

Rachel
www.crochetpatterncentral.com (http://www.crochetpatterncentral.com)

[bythehook]

I just decided today how I would price my items if I sold them. I charge $15.00 for the first hour or any part of an hour, then $5.00 per hour after that. I charge for a whole hour even if it's just minutes, so for 1 hour and 15 minutes I would charge $20.00 PLUS the cost of the materials and I keep any leftovers. I feel very comfortable with this method. Now, if I only had a buyer. lol

[SamplerLady]

I tell most people they can't afford me! :)) My daughter makes jewelry and her formula is three times the retail cost of supplies (excluding tools) plus minimum wage per hour of work. Nothing irritates me more than people downselling their skills just to make a sale. Well, maybe people thinking they have to make money from their creativity in order to justify spending time and mone on it irritates me more. Good gracious, if Van Gogh or Picasso only painted because they could make money from it, well, we'd be without many masterpieces in the world.

Stepping down from soap box. :))

[dur30cat]

I always find this topic interesting. I do think much has to do with the clientele you are selling to. If they associate handcrafted items with quality and are willing to pay, you've struck gold. However, most of the people that I've come around wanting me to crochet or knit them something are often shocked after knowing the amount of time it takes me to produce the said item (usually a garment or toy.)

Unless you are looking at selling easy to produce items, the time and effort spent on producing the for-sale items may not be worth your while.

Custom or commission work may be the way to go though :)

Em

[dandelions2]

I try to pay myself $8/hour plus cost of supplies.

[klouised]

It's interesting what you all are saying, but I'm not sure what one person does would work for someone else. I agree that you need to keep some idea of what you want to charge per hour plus cost of supplies, but there is more to consider than that. Your level of ability and how fast you crochet are 2 things I can think of off the top of my head. Let's face it, other people are just better crocheters than some of us. Are your skills just beginning, good, great, or FANTASTIC? One person can make something that is not as good as someone else who is making the same thing. Also, I'm one of the faster crocheters, so I can get something crocheted in half the time as someone else. So, should I get less for my project than someone who just crochets slow? I agree that the level of difficulty in the pattern is important, too.

I would say it is based on an individual basis. I'm one who crochets to sell. I start my items with a price that I think is fare. If the item doesn't sell soon, then I lower my price. If I'm selling so fast I can't keep up, then I raise the price. It also depends on the time of year, so I'm always lowering and raising my prices. For me, the price depends on what I can keep up with. My costs are minimal, so my prices are based on the value of my time. Also, if I make something that the color is not real populer and doesn't sell soon, then I really lower the price, just to get rid of it. LOL. I hate keeping anything in stock after a certain amount of time.

I have to say, though, that people just don't want to pay what your item is really valued at. That's just the hard truth. Rarely do I find someone who says that my items are low priced. They are usually crocheters themselves, and they are in awe that I would work so cheap. You need to explain to your customers how much time was involved in your project. Me, I tell them how much time is involved for a normal speed of crocheting, because I crochet fast. I usually get the husbands who loudly like to put down the price. They intentionally do that to get me to lower my prices. I don't. The wives get so embarresed that they usually buy something from me, anyways. LOL. It's all good.

[dandelions2]

It's interesting what you all are saying, but I'm not sure what one person does would work for someone else. I agree that you need to keep some idea of what you want to charge per hour plus cost of supplies, but there is more to consider than that. Your level of ability and how fast you crochet are 2 things I can think of off the top of my head. Let's face it, other people are just better crocheters than some of us. Are your skills just beginning, good, great, or FANTASTIC? One person can make something that is not as good as someone else who is making the same thing. Also, I'm one of the faster crocheters, so I can get something crocheted in half the time as someone else. So, should I get less for my project than someone who just crochets slow? I agree that the level of difficulty in the pattern is important, too.

I would say it is based on an individual basis. I'm one who crochets to sell. I start my items with a price that I think is fare. If the item doesn't sell soon, then I lower my price. If I'm selling so fast I can't keep up, then I raise the price. It also depends on the time of year, so I'm always lowering and raising my prices. For me, the price depends on what I can keep up with. My costs are minimal, so my prices are based on the value of my time. Also, if I make something that the color is not real populer and doesn't sell soon, then I really lower the price, just to get rid of it. LOL. I hate keeping anything in stock after a certain amount of time.

I have to say, though, that people just don't want to pay what your item is really valued at. That's just the hard truth. Rarely do I find someone who says that my items are low priced. They are usually crocheters themselves, and they are in awe that I would work so cheap. You need to explain to your customers how much time was involved in your project. Me, I tell them how much time is involved for a normal speed of crocheting, because I crochet fast. I usually get the husbands who loudly like to put down the price. They intentionally do that to get me to lower my prices. I don't. The wives get so embarresed that they usually buy something from me, anyways. LOL. It's all good.

Well, I think that someone who is not such a good crocheter probably wouldn't be selling much anyways. Don't you want to feel confident in your craft before charging for it?

[threeolivemartini]

i factor in my time as well.. i take my item ..look at it and determine a value for it.. i buy my yarn in bulk so if i were to do the three times rule i would be selling stuff for under 10 dollars LOL ..

[swapnae]

Actually I keep thinking of being able to sell my stuff one day and getting all breathless at the thought :O Imagine making money from something you enjoyed doing!!!
Haven't actually tried selling any of it, though. One thing that stops me is the abundance of (especially) thread crochet stuff that our native traditional workers churn out at warp speed and selling it for way below what it would cost on a per-hour basis if I made something like it. So my stuff would have to be ridiculously priced if I wanted to sell in India...

[nataleeza]

Thanks for all of the good stuff to think about... A woman asked me yesterday where I got my beaded handwarmers. When I said I made them, she said she would like to commission me to make a pair. I initially said no, I was so taken aback by it! Then I figured that if it's good enough for her to want some, then they must be good enough to sell, don't you think?

However, this lead to trying to decide a price. I think I'm going to go for 3x the materials. That seems about right to me and my sister.

Also, I crochet for fun, and I've noticed that any time I take something on seriously that was a hobby, I lose interest (I stopped acting 1/2 way through my Theatre degree). If I'm charging based on materials, maybe that won't happen...

I can't imagine anything worse than giving up crochet

[Katchkan]

Years ago I used to do the craft shows and sold a lot of crocheted items there. I was trying to price myself comparable to like items in the area. I always made sure mine where the best on the block, so to speak. I did this for a couple years, till I figured out I was working for something like a dollar an hour. (At that time that was about half of minimum wage.) When I raised my prices to reflect a more realistic wage, I quit selling, People weren't willing to pay the higher prices even if the pieces where better quality then most. because they could get something simular to mine for less, two spaces down. I quit doing the craft shows at that time. I just wasn't willing to work till 2:00 am making nice items to practically give them away.
It really iritates me when I see someone under price themselves. I always wonder if they respect themselves or not. Let alone the fact that they demean the art. I have heard the argument that they were just filling up their spare hours while watching tv, and as long as they got their materials cost back that's all that mattered. They always seem to forget the price of a space, displays, and the hours working a space. Let alone that their time is still worth something.
For the last twenty years I have just crocheted for myself and the joy of watching an idea take shape. Until recently, when I started making my beaded purses. Everyone said I should market them. Fine I set up a website and have sold a few. Though I have done much better on the patterns and the kits. Again the average person is not willing pay for or doesn't realize the true value of our time. let alone the cost of materials today. The cost of a ball of good thread amazes me.
Main thing is I promised myself I would not be motivated by ego or greed. As long as I am creating for the joy of it I will continue. I price my work on the number of beads involved as it is easier to calculate that than my time. I work a little here and a little there. Though the purses tend to take approx 40 -60 hours depending on the design.I have been told I am too high priced and I have been told I am too cheap. You will never please everyone, so try making your self happy and everyone around you benefits.
I don't think there is a set formula that works for everyone. You have to find what works for you, but try and remember you are a reflection on all of us that love the art of crochet. Be proud of what you do and price it fairly from there.
I will now step down off of my soap box.

[Cordelia]

I also found while doing the craft show circut, wow that sounded high fah-loot-in..., anyhoo I would price according to area...I made several different signs for the same items and used those accordningly...Of course I did this only on the higher price items..not the fast and quick easy buck items! I was told this by someone that had been crafting/selling for YEARS before I even thought about it. Of course its still a gamble!


Now I just barter...I trade for things I need or want...but again Im not cranking out items like I did before!

[sewcrochet4fun]

This is a subject that really gets me going because there is no wrong or right way.....the hardest part is being able to explain to a consumer that it is more unique because it is NOT mass produced!

STORY:

I saw a bolero tie shrug in a magazine that I wanted to make for myself. I showed it to hubby and estimated the cost of yarn and alerted him of my next purchase (we take turns buying the 'extras")...so, today, my week to splurge, we went to Walmart to look for the yarn I needed.

We passed the ladies department and hubby stopped and held up a $12.97 crocheted bolero shrug IDENTICAL to the one I was gonna make......knowing the yarn would cost me well over $45, hubby suggested buying it (you can get 3 different colors for the cost of the yarn to make one)....now hubby is a passionate man, but this he simply did not understand....."by doing the pattern, I learn new stitches, experience new yarn and have the pride of saying I MADE THAT....no amt of $$ can replace pride"

He put the shrug back on the rack and wheeled the cart to the yarn section....we didn't find anything I was happy with BUT he learned that handmade is heartmade and no mass-produced, cost-saving item can ever change that!

So...moral of my soap-box?

Price with pride and worth....those who appreciate the time, $$ and heart that went into your item will pay for it...all others can go shaop at **&^%$#&*

[Raquel]

Also, I crochet for fun, and I've noticed that any time I take something on seriously that was a hobby, I lose interest (I stopped acting 1/2 way through my Theatre degree). If I'm charging based on materials, maybe that won't happen... I can't imagine anything worse than giving up crochet

Oh, my God, me too. It's so sad. I love reading and writing, then got a MA in English and couldn't read for pleasure for at least two years afterwards I was so burned out! Now that I'm starting a crochet small business I'm totally stressed and irritated about crafting when before it was a way to relax. Oh, the ironies. No fair!
:book Raquel

[LadyyOftheOak]

It really iritates me when I see someone under price themselves. I always wonder if they respect themselves or not. Let alone the fact that they demean the art. I have heard the argument that they were just filling up their spare hours while watching tv, and as long as they got their materials cost back that's all that mattered. They always seem to forget the price of a space, displays, and the hours working a space. Let alone that their time is still worth something.



I've gotten this too, primarily from a lady I work with that has flat told me she'd never dream of charging for her work.. but for me, there's alot of work and pride in that item whatever it might be. I'm just as quick to give something away if I need a nice gift for a birthday or christmas.. but it sure helps to be able to get a decent price as well. There's no way to figure in all your time however I don't believe, you'll price yourself out of business.

The most expensive thing I've ever sold? An afghan for $125 .. the most expensive for the size / work of the item? A tiny evening bag in black cord for $30.. I about died, but that's what the buyer felt it was worth and that's what the check was for.

It's a hobby I enjoy and take alot of pride in, but there is ALOT of work in these items. If they want to go and buy something cheap out of the store and pay pennies for it then that's fine, but if they want something truly quality then they will pay for it.. but I'll nearly guarantee it will still be around years and years from now as well with proper care :manyheart

[nataleeza]

It really iritates me when I see someone under price themselves. I always wonder if they respect themselves or not. Let alone the fact that they demean the art.

I have to agree as well!! I've been away on holiday, and went to a craft fair. There were loads of gorgeous knitted and crocheted things but from my estimates they can't have even doubled the cost of the materials, yet - a few stalls away there was a woman selling felted items for unbelievable amounts of money...

I talked to the felting lady (she was fantastic and answered all of my questions! and offered to teach me if I ever came back into town) and she said that she made a piece that sold for $700 and the materials were barely $50...

I wish life wasn't so unfair, but there's no way a crocheted or knitted item could fetch that amount, especially since we all know someone who does it..

[TepperWear]

I just decided today how I would price my items if I sold them. I charge $15.00 for the first hour or any part of an hour, then $5.00 per hour after that. I charge for a whole hour even if it's just minutes, so for 1 hour and 15 minutes I would charge $20.00 PLUS the cost of the materials and I keep any leftovers. I feel very comfortable with this method. Now, if I only had a buyer. lol
Dot, that made me howl. Thanks for the laugh.

[bythehook]

Dot, that made me howl. Thanks for the laugh.That could be the reason I haven't sold anything. :lol