Selling a baby quilt?
 

My friend's sister just asked me to make a baby quilt for her daughter, using her old baby clothes, bibs, burp cloths, etc. I'm really new to the quilting game, so I'm honored she asked me to make one. But after having recently completed my first quilt (yay!), I realize how much time-and-effort go into making quilts, so I really appreciate that she offered to pay me. The thing is, I have NO idea how much to charge her!
Since she'll be supplying most, if not all, of the fabric, the cost would reflect my time and labor.
Does anyone have suggestions on what a fair price would be for a baby quilt? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance!

I saw a while back one of the members posted the cost of a quilt. The cost of the yardage for the backing and the batting and any yardage you add plus binding and so forth and labor would be up to you.

It would be easier to help determine if we knew the size of the quilt and the pattern used. I would go with her to pick up materials so she pays and sees how expensive the materials are and so you make sure she gets the correct stuff. You might feel better if you could barter with her for a skill she has...

dont forget stabilizer and thread.

You may find this a more daunting project than you imagine. There will be a lot of designing involved in order to use the fabrics from old clothes - they may not lend themselves well to quilting. Many will probably have to have interfacing, the pattern should not be little pieces but bigger blocks to show the pieces. Not a project I would be willing to do for someone. But then I won't quilt for others - I don't want to work with someone else's choice of pattern, fabrics, or on their timeline! If I were to make something like this I would probably charge $300 or more - the time you will spend doing this project will be more than you think it will be.

I agree - I think it could be a real pain (or a challenge - if you like challenges) to do.

If it were me - I would thank her for thinking of me - and suggest that she do it herself!

I think these should only be done as labors of love.

Most people have no idea how much effort is involved - and are expecting to pay less than a blanket purchased at a discount store - after all - it's homemade!

If you have only done one quilt so far, then you should give a lot of thought as to your capabilities in making this special quilt. It can be a lot of pressure.

Hmmm, this would be a challenge for even more seasoned quilters. Think, really hard about this. I am sure you can do it. I made a Bargello for friend's mom. I did it for free. My payment was playing with someone else's fabric and learning how to make a Bargello, and I was quilting for ten years at that time, preceded with 15+ years of garment sewing. Maybe do this one for free, at least it will remove some of the pressure and you WILL learn a lot. Good luck. As the Marines would say: improvise-adapt-overcome!

I think you can do it. Charge between $10 to $15 since you are a beginner and you might spend a lot of time scratching your head. If at the end it seems too much money, lower the rate accordingly. I think it's great you are trying to make a baby quilt with clothes being so new! That's how you become great!!

I have found that saying, "I don't quilt for money. If you really want one, I will show you how to do it." usually solves the problem.

If you do decide to do it, set your price high and use an approximation ("It may cost as much as $300 for my time and additional materials.") And get a deposit of at least 1/2 of the price you quote. Also, make clear that you won't deliver the finished quilt until you are paid in full.

You can google t-shirt quilts and find what others are charging for similar projects. I agree, this type of quilt can be very challenging.

I like the idea of block and applique. You can make all the clothes and bibs into hearts and applique them on.

I think I would charge between $50- $100 since I am new to quilting too and I look at it this way. If I was not working on something, then I probably would be wasting time on the computer..LOL So I would not charge a lot until I was pretty good.

Are you going to be quilting it also? or just puting the top together. The price might change a bit if I was quilting it too.

I have done several but large twin size. The cost will not be in your material but in the amount of work and the wear on your tools and equipment. Also how big will the quilt be? I would at least charge $175 for 45x45 with warm and natural batting, Moda muslin on the back, rolled binding (back to front) and basic stippling, enough to secure it all.

Thank you everybody for all the feed-back. Very helpful, thank you, thank you :o
You all have definitely given me some ideas to ponder... I agree that I probably don't realize how daunting of a task this might be, considering that 1.) I am a new quilter, and 2.) the different types of fabric will be very challenging to work with. I didn't even consider how the different fabric types/weights would pose a problem..! (yes, I'm still learning)
So I'm just gonna keep it simple... I love the idea of using simple block and applique. I can definitely do that. And the quilting will be super basic; that is, if I don't decide to just tie it with yarn to save time.

It is very difficult to determine what to charge for a quilt. We do need the size. Is it a crib size or a car seat size or just a wrapping size? The other ladies can help you much better than I can.

I hate when someone wants to pay me to make a quilt! I have a neighbor that just found out her niece is pregnant, and has hinted about one! I agree that you just cant get what they're worth, even if they buy all the materials!

You mean $10 an hour, I hope.

I think you can do it. Charge between $10 to $15 since you are a beginner and you might spend......

Then, of course, you have to consider this is your sister and how close you two are. I don't have siblings so I could never consider charging them for anything. Possible encourage her to work together to make a quilt??

I made a T-shirt quilt for my granddaughter. Not fun! I've been sewing for 50 years and quilting for 20. Only way I'd make a quilt out of someone's clothes would be like men's/ladies clothes and then I would have to love them a lot.

When I am asked to make a quilt for someone, I tell them that I charge $10 an hour and if I have to buy the fabric then that is extra. Then I let them decide if they want to do the quilt.

Make sure she is very clear on what she expects. Show her what you want to do before cutting one bit of the clothes. It would be terrible if she was disappointed in the quilt, considering you cannot "fix" it by going to buy fabric.

I too have been sewing for many years and I would not touch this one.

your time and labor are valuable. If it is someone dear to you, charge form the heart. But you are taking on a big project.

I think it sounds like fun...since you are new - have here supply everything and then maybe have her decide on how much she would pay, or have her buy you a gift card to a fabric store. That way it also will be less stressful for you...have fun and enjoy it. I never take money for my quilts I make...but I also do not normally quilt when someone requests one. I have done it once and she bought most of the materials...money is not the issue...the stress of doing one when someone is expecting one is...to me it takes the joy out of it and becomes stressful...