The thing about my husband's auction to keep in mind is that it is not really a charity auction, it's people trying to get stuff cheap. If I donated a quilt for the Humane Society's Black Tie Auction/Fund Raiser event, I'd get different results. But you do have to be aware that your value and the public's value may be at odds!
Instead of giving the top for free to Ronald McDonald house or one of my other projects, someone who wanted it got it and the charity got $20 that they wouldn't have otherwise get, and I had another project go out the house. Although a bit underwhelming, it's all good in the end. As it is, I tell myself during donation projects that if I can give someone just 15 minutes of comfort or knowing that someone cares, then my work is worthwhile. There is just that part of me that says while I give freely, I don't work for cheap.
Like many people, my husband didn't know until then the cost of the fabric or why since I'm giving almost everything I make away, why I buy fabric at the thrift stores for $1-2 a yard. He actually has a better understanding now after that donation than before.