reginalovesfabric

I think that's a reasonable price. I get $500 for a tee shirt queen size and anywhere from $350-450 for a full/queen scrapy quilt

lclang

Unfortunately most people think you quilt for "fun" and so don't need to charge much for your products. I decided a long time ago that I would not do any "custom" work for anyone, just make quilts and projects for family, friends, and charity. Then we have no misunderstanding. Non quilters have no idea what fabric costs, or the hours you you spend on the work you do and get huffy when you ask a fair price for your work. It's one thing to quilt because you want to and quite another to quilt because someone wants you to do it and doesn't understand the process at all.

Yooper32

Excuse me, am I nuts, or did you not specify that the person wanting this quilt made had purchased the fabric herself? If that was the case, I think $150 was a bit high for a lap/throw quilt construction.

AZ Jane

I give a number high enough they never ask again. Made my daughter a purse. Her MIL loved it and asked how much, without blinking an eye, I said$300. She never brought it up again. A lot depends if you sew for fun, family or income.

CarolynMT

That is what i do as well, I have had people ask about my celtic knot french braid quilts and how much it would cost. I tell them it starts at $1500 and goes up from there depending on various factors

The one I did for my brother took the following:
$250 materials cost
took me:
2hrs to pick fabric (french braids are very time consuming on selection stage)
2hrs to wash and prep fabric
3hrs to cut
10hrs to embroider
4hrs to piece
2hrs for quilt prepping (ironing backing/top, squaring up etc)
5hrs to stencil
10hrs to quilt
4hrs to bind
That is 42hrs @ $20/hr = $840 labor costs

so now we are at $1100 for just labor/materials.......and that is if I dont want any profit.

I use $20/hr because this is a skilled "job" and when I tutored I got paid $20/hr, so when I quilt I get $20/hr

Most people when told how long it takes to get from "idea" to finished product and how many steps, are ok with the prices, but most cant pay. I refuse to undercut my skill by charging pennies for quality work. I dont get many commissions, but that is ok with me. People want walmart prices and Designer quality.

I would break it down like that, labor + materials and then add a little for profit, show the people what they are paying for, they may surprise you.

I also agree with those who say if she is hemming/hawing about design, walk away....she will never be happy and is hoping you will drop your price to what she feels she wants to pay. You dont need that stress. YOU deserve to get paid a fair price for quality work, She cant buy a Mercedes for $2000, she shouldnt expect to get a quality hand made item for less than a fair price either

x7lillies

Wow! $350 is really inexpensive, especially for a quilt of that size. I charge around $300 for a lap/crib sized quilt. Queen sized quilts are $700 and up, depending on the number of pieces and the difficulty of the piecing. I factor in my time and charge $10 an hour. I am skilled labor, after all (truly, $10 is low). I mean, my goodness. Fabric, batting, and thread for a full-sized quilt can get as high as $250. For the 25-35 hours or so you're spending on shopping for fabric, planning the quilt, piecing it, and quilting it, you're only charging $100 more? That's like $3.50 an hour.

If people are going to under-value my time and skill that much, they don't deserve a handmade quilt and I point them to Walmart.

Don (isewman) - For a lap-sized quilt, you should charge at least $200 for pattern choice, cutting, piecing, and quilting. Even though they gave you the fabric for it, it still represents a lot of your time and your effort, not to mention time lost making quilts for family or yourself. If they truly value handmade quilts, they will think that's a fair offer.

Dina

I think you made an excellent decision, Don!!

Dina

quiltingfan

I made a red white and blue star quilt for a fund raiser someone came up to me and asked me if I would make a king size one for her. I said sure minimum of 500.00 plus material. He never brought it up again. :-) Would love to make some for money but you know we don't make quilts for money.

Debbie C

In my area, people just drop their jaws when you quote them a price - I recently was asked to make a table runner. When I figured in all the costs of materials, time, etc., I came up with a price of $75. This was to be all custom to match her fancy dining room. Her answer? "I could just pick one up at Home Goods for $12.99." My thoughts are unprintable!! lol!! I won't take any orders from anyone - just not worth the aggravation!

Halo

Don, you said she bought the fabric for the quilt? Did she also buy for the backing, batting & thread? I have sold several quilts, but my prices are low for this area. The way I figure it is the total cost of supplies & double that plus add 20% to that. I also require non refundable half down before I even start it. That way, at least the supplies are covered if they try to back out. I have never had anyone back out so far. If someone ever brought me the fabric, what I would do them was to figure the cost of that fabric & go from there. I don't think the $150.00 is to much. I would be on guard, though, since she is already showing signs of not being satisfied with what you have already shown her. It would be best, if you decide to go ahead with this project, to make her chose the pattern too. That way, if she is not happy with how it turned out, you will be able to say you picked the pattern & fabric. Since you have already made a few samples & she is not happy so far, require at least half down before even starting her quilt & be firm about it. You have already spent valuable time making the samples for her.