Gay

Just posted this on another thread. One lady quilter charges around $240 per sq ft for commissioned quilts, patchwork or hand embroidered, depending on the complexity of design. I don't know if that includes the fabric, but does include quilting. She seems to get enough work. I know of one machine embroidered quilt sold for $60,000 and another for $20,000. Makes the head spin, eh.

Price will depend on how badly you need to sell yours, as not everyone appreciates the time spent making them, and the cost of fabrics. I tell the tight-fisted, if they want to pay peanuts, then get monkeys to make it.

twinkie

Prices may be much higher in outer space than where W7Sue lives. I think that has a lot to do with it. Many times you cannot sell a quilt in my area for $300 but I have seen them in Hershey and York, Pa with a $1,000 price tag on them. What makes selling quilts difficult is the Chinese "knockoffs" that sell in retail stores for $150 and less. You try to talk about quality to some people and they just can't grasp it. One good thing is the outlet. Most people who are shopping for antiques are used to paying higher prices for their merchandise. Good Luck

QUOTE=Candace;6243699]I spend much more than $100 for fabric, batting and thread on my quilts, and my labor is sure worth more than $100.[/QUOTE]

mjhaess

It depends on the area you are trying to sell them in. I have noticed that prices are all over the place. I have seen beautiful Amish made quilts in NY for under $400.00. I would not do all that work for that price...Good Luck...

granny64

I have never sold my quilts, but I use to sell crafts. No one ever gets the worth of their labor out of hand crafted item. You know that your time put into an item is priceless. In crafts they use to say double what it cost for you to make it and that was how you priced your items. Hope this helps. I figure handmade quilts are priceless.

Froggiey

A "friend" texted me the other day and asked if I had a quilt I would sell her for $100-150 so she could give it to her daughter for her birthday the next week. Wouldn't that be great! People don't even know how much money and time is spent on making a quilt. $100 would not pay for the material and add quilting to that usually makes a quilt cost around $300 just to make. I just told her I didn't have any made (which was the truth. ) I think it takes a lot of gall to ask someone to spend hours making a quilt and offer to buy it for $100. People see "quilts" for sale at department stores for $39 and assume they are one in the same, which they are not. Good luck, but please make it worth your time.

quiltmom04

Don't dismiss the cost of long arm quilting - only now for you it's profit, not an expense. You say it like your time is worth nothing so that won't be figured into the cost of the quilt. But at the end of the day, if you're happy with the money you get, then the price is right. Don't "give" your quilts away because someone who just came from Walmart thinks its too much. A quilt is an original, handcrafted piece of art. Don't let anyone make you price it like a 'blanket '!!

jaba

" I have a HUGE stack of quilts without homes that are just sitting in a closet - I might as well sell them so I can make more. "
I have sold a lot of quilts, but this quote is the way I feel. I've made them because I wanted to and will continue to do. They do no good sitting in a closet and if you can sell them and get some of the money back that you spent, why not? You have money to buy new fabric and are really getting paid for a hobby you love to do. I'd rather get $300 for a quilt that has no use to me than it sitting in the closet. If someone asks for a specific color, style, etc. that's a different story, but if they buy them in a shop, they buy what you are showing for sale. Just my opinion

MargeD

Pricing quilts can be quite complicated - you want to at least get back the cost of all materials and your time, but a lot depends on the area you are in. I've seen small wall hangings (like Eleanor Burns log cabin wreath) with a $400 sticker price, which I thought was way out of line, as the fabrics were not even that spectacular at Keepsake Quilting in NH. Then I've seen twin and full size quilts priced for just a few hundred dollars, and I thought they were worth far more. And then there are the very expensive quilts, however, in that area of NH there are some expensive homes with wealthy people, so they will probably get $1000 for a quilt easily. A lot just depends on your market area and what they are willing to pay. I know that's probably not much help, but it's what the market will bear. I would start with moderate prices, if the quilts go quickly, then I would increase my rates with the next batch of quilts and see what happens. Good luck in selling your quilts.

ghostrider

The seller sets the price for the quilts sold at Keepsake Quilting and the store adds their commission on top. The quilts come from all over the country so the sellers really have no idea at all what the local market will bear. These quilts are sold online, thus the market they are selling to is actually worldwide, not local at all. Their in-store client base is also extremely broad. They are far, very far, from aiming at the local market (which is not nearly as extravagant as you seem to think).

But yes, in normal situations, price setting should certainly take market location and conditions into consideration.

w7sue

Thank you to everyone who responded to my question. I did take a few smaller ones over to her - 15 x 15 and some small lap size ones. We labeled and priced them all before I left the store. I am not very hopeful - her shop wasn't one I would expect to find quilts in - we will have to wait and see. The quilts will be displayed with other handmade items - scarves, soaps, etc. so it might work. I will give her a call in a month and see what the status is. I do feel comfortable with the prices I set on the quilts. Many of them were made from scraps left over from other projects, experiments, or just something to do ... I did take into consideration long arm quilting costs - even on the ones I did myself - I felt that I was owed at least that much. One of the things I took over was a small pincushion that I made last week with a paper-pieced bee on it - she loved it and felt she would be able to get more than I wanted - we will see ... Some of the quilts I pulled out of the closet were made in 2006! They really need to be thinned out and given away if I am not going to use them!