quilticing

Around here, even churches charge rent. The money raised by North Star Quilt Guild, nonprofit, goes for supplies for kids' quilts. They are donated to local causes (hospital, Habitat For Humanity, homeless women and kids, etc. Some people even complain about the $3 entrance fee until they find out more about us.

sewbeadit

I have been to ones that are free and ones you pay for. One we payed 5 dollars to get in and then got a 40 percent off coupon for a local quilt shop, which we quickly used! I don't mind paying but like to have it advertised before hand so we can expect to pay so we are not caught with no $$ to get in. Which can happen depending on what time of month it is!

Hinterland

Trust me, no one sets their entrance fee any higher than it needs to be, and if it's raised, it's not done lightly.

It costs money to put on a quilt show. Depending on where you are, there may be a charge for the hall and a charge for the quilt racks. The judge costs money - her time and transportation. Advertising costs money, and all the forms and programs cost money. Teachers and speakers cost money. And for however much money these things cost, there is a lot of volunteer time organizing, contacting and arranging for vendors, receiving quilts, putting up and taking down quilts, white gloving.

I have a great time at a quilt show, so I think my admission fee is money well spent for a few hours meeting people and shopping, and I would gladly pay more at some shows.

Janet

Daylesewblessed

Everyone has a different idea about what is worth the entrance fee, and the expenses to put on a show do vary from community to community. I think it is wise for a guild to have an entrance fee that is estimated to meet most of the expenses and hold other fundraisers at the show to help meet a possible shortfall or make a profit. For instance, there is frequently a raffle for a guild quilt or a "boutique" where quilted items are sold for a commission or all profit. Attendees can choose whether or not they want to participate in those.

Quilt shows (and guilds) are a benefit to the community, and it is heartwarming to see support from local businesses and attendees.

I know one thing -- there is a tremendous amount of volunteer work by guild members to put one on, and I would hate to think about situations where they lost money on the venture.

Dayle

pinkberrykay

Our Guild does one every 2 years. This past year out Guild held theirs in the high school gym free of charge, however we then turn around and donate something to the school in the amount of $500.00. The Quilt Show generates money for our non profit and has to last 2 years. Our Guild donates to our States Fallen Soilders, Hospice, Cuddle Quilts, Domestic Violence shelter and many other organizations through out our small town. I was not into quilting when the show happened this year so I am not sure what they charged for an entrance fee but I know it was not much.

catladyquilts

the proceeds keeps guilds going with programs and speakers. It is expensive to put on a quilt show, when our guild holds a show we have to pay rent on the building and rent the poles to hold the quilts. we have vendors and about 300 quilts so there is a lot of variety for everyone, our members hold demos on tools and techniques also

lfletcher

Quilt shows are usually a guild's primary fund raising opportunity. I don't think $5.00 is out of line, however, it might limit the number of quilts some quilters would enter.

dunster

I'm not sure whether you're talking about the fee to enter a quilt into the show, or a fee for a visitor to come look at the quilts. Both could be called entrance fees.

One of my guilds, the smaller one, had a quilt show in October 2011. We charged visitors $4 (an increase of $1 over our 2009 charge). We only had a few vendors, but we had close to 200 quilts, including those for sale, and we offered several classes/speakers each day, included in the entrance fee. We raised our price because other guilds in the area were in the $5 and over range. We never have charged for anyone to hang a quilt in our show, because we want to encourage community involvement. We don't usually have judges. Putting on the show required a huge amount of work and expense, and there was no guaranty that we would make a profit. The show is the guild's main way of making money that is used for community education, comfort quilts, etc. Much of our profit was from the sale of small quilts that were donated, as well as raffled items that were also donated. I don't think we would have made any profit if we relied solely on the admission charge.

Around here I think $10 would be too high for a guild show.

Lori S

I would think twice about spending more than $5 for a small show. There would have to be more than a 50 quilts and just 5 vendors.
At $8.00 its a maybe... at $10.00 .. doubt I would pay that for a small show. It would have to be a show that I felt some obligation to attend .. like a friend was showing a quilt .. and I am going for moral support.

susie-susie-susie

The last show I went to was in a small town and charged $5.00. It was held in a church, and the quilts were draped over the pews. They had both new quilts and antiques. I really enjoyed looking at the antiques. They had cards explaining the history or the quilts and we spent a lot of time reading everything. The refreshments were free (donation if desired) and they had maybe 10-15 vendors. I think the fee was reasonable because it was probably a lot of work. Remember, if the guild is small, everyone has to work harder.
Sue