Good for you Onebyone!
My experience with auctions for hand-made items isn't very formal, but it rings true with what others have noticed. We have a family reunion every few years and host an auction to raise money to fund it during the event. The items that sell for the most $$ are homemade jellies and pies. Really huge mark-ups for the amount of raw materials and time. Conversely, the fiber arts and home dec stuff brings in very little in comparison to time and materials. I ended up winning a scrappy quilt that was made by my cousin using my grandma's chenille bedspreads as backing. The auctioneer started the bidding by having everyone in the room raise their hands at a dollar. When the bid got too high, you dropped your arm. It came down to my neice and me. It was tense. At $95 I decided I couldn't take it from my neice, so I dropped my arm. Just before the auctioneer called sold, my husband raised his hand and ended up outbidding my neice. Final bid was a little over $100. It was a steal for the memories and the quality is awesome. However, the pie my aunt made went for more. Moral of the story is next time I'll make some baked goods and leave my stitiching projects for something else.