A lady from down south really wanted one of my tops. Not a quilt yet. I said off the top of my head $350.00 for just the tops and she took it. It is queen sized and all half square triangles and 41/2" sqs. I think it was worth it. Takes a long time to do all those. I hadn't really wanted to sell it so just threw the number out there. So, now instead of making 5 tops I will end up making 6 tops of the same pattern. I know this one by heart until it comes to the layout. That takes time. But I am loving it because it is all scraps. My girls hate scrap quilts and they both asked for one of these tops. I don't even have to quilt theirs. Yeah. They are going to do some quilting for me in return.

I'm doing a queen size Trip around the World for a customer for $400. That includes all the fabric, thread, batting, my time to cut, piece and quilt it in a simple fmq. This is the first time I'ver ever made a quilt for money so I'm keeping track of my time so I can figure out my "pay rate", LOL!

I think $400-$500 is reasonable. I recently went on the Keepsake Quilting website and was astonished at what some people were charging for their quilts. A few years ago while visiting the Keepsake store, I saw a log cabin wreath (ala Eleanor Burns) quilt hanging up for sale with a price of $96, and the fabric wasn't even all that special. I have made dozens of them and sold them for $35 at my church fair, some people thought it reasonable and others thought it was too high. $50 to me would have been more reasonable price, but having said that, in that area of NH with lots of summer homes and summer tourists, she probably got that much. Don't be afraid to ask a reasonable price for your work and materials.

You have to get out of it the amount you have in it, then add what you think is fair for your time. (some take more time than others.)

So, how much would you charge then if one would just charge someone their time spent on the quilt?

I love this... I will remember that one... it is so hard to charge what it costs and its worth...

Sometimes you can have over $200.00 in materials, depending on the size. I would think it's very appropriate to charge $150 to $200 for the labor.

For a lap, $100.00 for labor (plus materials).

What are your thoughts?

I am currently making a king size quilt for my son and daughter-in-law. I estimate that the materials (fabrics, batting, not even counting thread) alone are between $250 and $300. I estimate the longarmer will charge me about $300. So the quilt is expensive even without any charge for my labor (of course I'm not charging my son, but just to give an estimate).

I'm sure you could find cheaper fabrics (mine are Moda)...

I think 400.00 is too cheap for the time and energy that goes into a quilt. Your pattern design also needs to be considered. Visit an area quilt shop and ask the ladies there what other people has sold their quilts for. You just might be surprised.

$800-$1,000 for queen (includes the cost of longarming)
$1,000-$1,500 for king (includes the cost of longarming)

Don't under-estimate the PITA factor of wrestling around quilts that large!