I agree with BeckSt, don't sell yourself cheap, at least $20 for friends and $25 for others. As others have said, your time is valuable, so are friends. If you think you can't charge this amount say no and the perhaps make one as a gift for a birthday, holiday or special occasion.

Don't cut yourself short on the price! That's a really cute wallet. Remember Vera Bradley charges about $40 for hers - LOL I'd say start at $15 -- you can come down to $12 if they hem and haw.

What I wanted to say - - -

You don't charge friends for small items like a wallet and larger items just charge the cost of material and etc. Remember they are friends, not strangers.

How long does it take you to make the wallet? I would charge a minimum of $10 per hour for the time spent making it plus the cost of materials.

Depends on how many 'friends' one has and how much/often they want something - - - -

$5.00 definitely sounds too low. Maybe time yourself the next time you make one. You should be able to get AT LEAST minimum wage for your time...or as I usually try to get is $10.00 per hour if I am going to make something for someone else. If I can't get at least that, it isn't worth my time...I can be doing something else I really want to be doing.

Crafters that sell at shows charge three times the cost of the materials. If you don't make some kind of profit and find yourself getting too may orders, it won't be fun anymore.

if i remember correctly, there is an equation for handmade items: amount paid for the supplies times 3. so, if you used $3 to purchase the supplies, you would charge about $9. that said, i think the market could bear about $15 or so.

also, i would make them and allow people to choose from what i made rather than take orders. with orders, you might find that making them would be tedious rather than enjoyable.

I need a translation for 10 dollars. But when I make something for a friend etc, I charge for the material thread etc. my time is my hobby with no cost. If they wish to pay more, one of my classes costs £12 so I tell them they can pay in increments of 12. It works for me.

OMG - this is why we love this Board so much. I was pretty much "talking out-loud" to myself, about what to charge for my wallets, and I have received so much good input. I thank you all. YES, our talents are unique and we should NOT underestimate the value of our abilities. I am guilty, guilty, guilty. Thank you all for your opinions. I'm thinking $15 sounds like a pretty good investment for all parties involved :)

I would say $15-$20, and it really isn't even worth you time for that, with all the detail you have in them...

I agree they might just come out of the woodwork.

I think $5.00 is way too low, $15.00 would not be out of line. But on the other hand, if this is for your friends, I would probably hold off and give them as a Christmas or Birthday present. If they want to buy them to gie to someone else, then I would more than likely go for the $15.00.

How long does it take to make this darling wallet? You must put a dollar value on your time--at least minimum wage, plus the materials for the product. Your time is the most precious commodity you have---don't give it away. If you don't value it, no one else will either. froggyintexas

I've seen them at the craft shows for $15-$22...so, add up the cost of the fabrics...don't think scraps...a cheap fat quarter is $2.50, interfacing, fabric for binding...velcro.

Tell the friends that this is a special price for the friend. Prices will be more for others.

I think at least $12 to $15 at minimum. Mass produced quilted wallets I've seen at $22 to 25 each.

I don't believe I'd do it for less than $12.00

They are worth much more than 5.00, Just think you pay for the material, along with other expense such as electric and maintance of your machine not to mention the cost of the machine in the beginning. Just some thoughts of doing bussiness, not to mention they are beautiful and look like good quality.

This is so true Sewnbug! I made these little oven door towels that is all the craze in my area right now, this past year, for my church's Relay team to help raise money. Started out selling for $5 each. No biggie since almost everyone was bringing their towel for me to fix. Then, it got to "you just buy the towel for me, you know what to get". Well, let me tell you after selling over $3200, yes, $3200 of these it was a "job"! It only takes about 20 minutes to turn out these little jewels but, still yet....
So make sure you sell them for enough that they do not become a chore to you!

Very cute wallet,$10 is a good price. Doing something you like to do and making a little bit of money besides.

Vera Bradley wallets run close to $50 US. So, don't be afraid to charge more than $5.

Oh my goodness- $5 is way to low. I think $10 is the minimum. I would go $12 as someone suggested. It is so much easier to reduce your price than it is to increase it. Love your idea- go for it and make some money for your time.
Good luck.

Personally, I would pay $15.00 for one! We so often undervalue our work!

Four hours of work. $15 is good....

I'd pay $10. it seems you can't charge for time.

i made something similar and sold all i made for $10.00 and they all want more but i am tired of making them.. moving on i guess they call it...lol...

10 to 15 sounds about right

I paid $22 for one from ThirtyOne. It has a couple of zippers in it, but not that much different from the ones you make. Go at least $12.

I'm agreeing with what I see here. $5 is ridiculous! Charge more - and then see where the ceiling is. If you WANT to make lots of them - you can charge less (as in $10-12). If you are tired of making them - charge more ($15-20). You are the decider on this one. I would make them all day long on an assembly line of sorts (in my jamas) if I could bring in $20 a pop for them. Your price and your market will tell you once you decide what your intention is. And good luck!

$15 is a fair price to me. i recently saw a small quilted wallet selling for 9. after looking at it i realized i had the same pattern at home so i dug it out and made one. While it was not difficult or time consuming, if I was going to make them to sell i would want more than the $9 they were being sold for.

Ask yourself if you really want to turn your fun into a job. If you are considering doing this, I would do as someone suggested and make some up and then offer them for sale. Custom orders can be a real pain.

Before you set your price, here's something else to consider. I have a couple of friends who have a large network of people so I will make them an item that I'm "testing the market waters" and give it to them for free but ask them to show others as well as give me feedback how well it works and if there's anything I should change. Told her if anyone wants one, they are $28. I also tell her how long it took to make so she can pass that along if someone balks at the price. She also adds that it's 1 of a kind which makes the value go up.

I designed a small cross-body bag and gave to my friend - I got at least a dozen orders just from her and everyone paid the $28 because it was so unique. $28 for a cute, unique bag??? What lady isn't going to pay that?

Over the past year I've probably made 30 or more. These little bags sold for $29.95 + shipping on my Etsy shop. I only sold this few because I got sick and haven't made any in the past 5 months.

Just don't sell yourself short or you'll be unhappy with your decision. If you want to discuss more offline, please feel free to PM me. I can give you more tips that have worked or didn't work for me. If others are interested in making these small accessory items let me know and I can continue to post my experience. Lord knows how many failed items I've had and what is working.

Think that $10 is a super bargain. You do beautiful work. My problem is that if someone likes something I made and asks for one like it I just make it and give it away. My DH says I should charge. I agree with another member, if you bought that wallet commercially you would easily be charged $25 or more.

this is so true. We ladies like our accessories and wallets can be a fashion statement. And if we can say "this is a one-of-a-kind", other ladies will want one. Like I posted before, mine would sell for $30 but $25 would be a fair price for all the work involved.

Would you share your pattern or tell me where I could purchase one? LOVE your work and would not charge less than $12.50. Lois

Vera Bradley is all the rage now for teen girls in my area. $25 for a small wallet is about average for that brand at the retail stores. I've found them on sale for $12 at the outlet stores. If I sew to sell, I sew to SELL. Sewing to fill orders is either a business or just something to do with your time.

I would charge at least $15-20 for the wallet. For the friends (and by friends, I mean close friends, like the old saying, ...."the ones you count on the fingers of one hand" so to speak, I would probably find some way to make them one for a gift, but for casual friends (acquaintenances, friends-of-friends, groups you belong to, etc.), IMHO, I think you should charge for making these. Special fabrics, or embellishments should be an additional charge. What is fun quickly becomes a job when you have to make oodles of one thing when you are yearning to start that next exciting project that is just sitting there on your work table! (Smiles)

I'd say $22.50. That's a happy medium. They are way too nice for $15 or $20. I would pay $25 for one, but it sounds like you don't want to charge that much. $22.50 is a good clean price. Can I buy one for $22.50?

That is sew cute. I think it would be a shame to charge less than 10 bucks. Charge a bit more if you go on Etsy to sell them.

Why not split the difference between $15 and $20 and bring it up to $18?