Charge what you will, just be fair.

i agree too about being fair on how much a quilt is worth...generally i do not charge more that 4 or 5 cents psi for my quilts because after adding to that the cost of thread, batting, fusible, needles, fabric, rotary blade, binding even a simple "dragger" can come out on the expensive side. i never charge for labor. and most times, after doing my figures i discount by at least 15%. and if i am commissioned to do a quilt i get the money up front before beginning a quilt and do my very best to give back a quilt in return that is worth the commission.

A little update about how much the quilt was worth. I decided to charge her 3 times the cost of supplies, as was suggested by some of you.
After giving my friend the estimate ( and worried she would think I was being outrageous) for the king size quilt, she said her biggest concern was that I was not getting paid enough for my labor.
When I told her it was a big investment to make and I would not be offended if she bought one.... Well I got the job! Because she wants a hand made quilt.
Thanks for all the helpful info everyone gave me.

Money can't buy the worth of a quilt
 

I feel you should definitely figure in all the totals and at least $20. an hr.
The quality, time, and the meaningful thoughts that are on your mind (like love, "made with love") while making your master piece, well... you just can't put a real price on that, because it's worth way more than money, it's a special rare gift, that's worth more than a mountain of gold and a heirloom to pass on. If she is a friend, willing to pay the price to a friend, than it's because her love, trust and respect of your friendship is worth more to her than you possibly realize. You should feel very grateful and honored that she treasures your work in the master of the arts in quilting. It takes a special person to craft a master piece of art out of material, with patience to do so.
Enjoy it! And reap the benefits of your hard earned work. No guilt, its work you enjoy, that's all.

Everyone wants a quilt! No one else expects to work for free! Plumbers, realtors, carpenters all get paid for their work! Quilters should, too.

I'm gonna tell the next person that wants a t-shirt quilt that I charge $17.50 per shirt. The ones i make are a lot of planning and work.


Plus, thread is $4.00/spool.


I have the same problem with my stained glass windows. People don't realize the time involved in designing and constructing them.

I don't know about others but I have sold, quilts that I make just for the pleasure of making a quilt, for $1000. And a Queen for $600. If a person wanted me to make a specialized design I have done even a baby quilt for $250. So much depends on the cost of material and mostly my time. I don't often make quilts for people to be sold. That's not my thing right now. The majority of my quilts go out as gifts that are well appreciated by the recipient.

I don't know about others but I have sold, quilts that I make just for the pleasure of making a quilt, for $1000. And a Queen for $600. If a person wanted me to make a specialized design I have done even a baby quilt for $250. So much depends on the cost of material and mostly my time. I don't often make quilts for people to be sold. That's not my thing right now. The majority of my quilts go out as gifts that are well appreciated by the recipient.
One other thing about making a quilt for someone else I learned along the way is a "contract"! Even the best of minds don't visualize things the same way. One thing I also learned is to make sure you get a 50% 'non-refundable deposit with the other 50% due on deliver or you keep the quilt! Other aspects of a contract will be interesting for another thread. I am sure someone here has a copy of their contract that they can share.

Before I retired I was asked to make 3 T-Shirt quilts and I said only if you pay me what it is worth. I added up all the materials, thread, etc. then added my labor. I used what I was getting paid as a Librarian at the time, then showed him the cost. At first he said no, then his mother spoke up and told him he was getting a bargain. He paid my $300 per quilt. This was back in early 1990's.

Wow. She doesn't care about the cost?!? We have some appraisers in our guild who can appraise a finished quilt and it (the appraisal) really isn't that expensive. I would be very sure you and your friend know what she wants as far as colors, style and pattern.

Department store quilts are not the same thing. For one thing the materials, including the batting and thread, are usually not the same. Also, many people like the idea of making or owning something unique, just for you.

Just an observation:

The original poster (the first thread in this discussion) posted the comment clear back in Dec. 2010.

Um....almost a decade later and the selling prices are about the same?

Since then, the cost of all supplies and materials has doubled. At least.

I wonder why we are still so shy about asking customers to pay for our time and talent.