Selling Items
 

I have been reading all the threads on selling our items and craft fairs etc. I was really hoping to use my stash up and make some money to buy new fabric etc. it would seem that I may get disappointed by having this idea.

Then I thought about all the quilters out there that have huge stashes out there do you care if you never use it up? While I don't mine to give my quilts and other things as gifts or give away I don't think I will ever use it up and I can't justify buying more.

Don't even know what I am asking because I am really confused now as to what to do about it. I didn't care about making ____$ just wanted to get something for my fabric. I am also thinking that a person should maybe not have a stash. Do you just give away so that you can continue to quilt?

Sorry for rambling.

I continue to quilt no matter what -- I do give away my quilts to family and I keep a lot myself. It doesn't matter what I end up doing with them -- piecing and quilting is soothing to me. It keeps me busy and I feel productive when I finish a piece. I like to try new techniques and experiment with color combinations. And I will probably never use up all my stash but that is ok!! One can always just buy fabric for a specific quilt if you don't want to have a stash.

Some ladies at my guild bring the fabric---NOT made up stuff--to the guild to sell. They give a percentage to the guild. Last one priced all her fabric at $3 a yard. As long as you can stand the hit you will take on this you could also sell fabric here I believe.

There is a Yahoo group - Sew It's For Sale - people sell everything sewing related on there - fabric, patterns, books, magazines, software, machines - I mean everything!

My babies school does a boutique once a year, and it was proposed to have a table of things made by people who were involved in the school to help keep table cost down. I thought it was a neat idea

I find it is good to have a stash, but I need to keep it under control. I do lots of sewing for charity, but I also try to keep my stash fresh (or at least appealing to me). I give away fabric or trade with sewing friends. It would be wonderful to have a warehouse to keep a lot of fabric in, but it is just not possible for me.

I have been doing craft/art shows for a long time. Pick your show carefully. Low table fees don't necessarily mean you make more profit... it may mean they have trouble getting crafters because the attendance is low and no one wants to come back and sell again. Pick a well attended show one that has been around for many years that has a good following of customers. Juried shows ( one you have to submit work samples) are nothing to be afraid of... it means the organizer can be picky as to who gets a table because all the crafters heard its a good show to sell.

Give it a try just do a bit of research ahead .. FYI the big( most successful) fall shows are putting out their applications now.
Maybe find a buddy to split a table .

Juried shows are the way to go. Don't be afraid to send them pictures. You can ask for the pictures back. This keeps the show really nice. Remember it is a craft and art show, not a crap show. I totally agree with all Lori S said. Good luck

A creative idea from our LQS is that they are having a "garage" sale inside their shop. They are allowing people to rent a table for a set $ amount and bring in whatever they want to sell that is fabric/quilt related. Wonder if your LQS would do something that? Personally, I am trying to use up my stash and what I can't use, I'll take to my guild where there's a table of "cast offs" that folks can pick up and take home. It doesn't bother me to send the fabric elsewhere to be used, and it makes me pay more attention about NOT buying fabric. :-) I do not want to make items to sell, but know others do that and enjoy it.

http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2005/...ters-will.html

:):):)

Another option might be to find a fellow quilter and exchange fabric.
Occasionally, I purge my stash and give it to someone that I know will use it. Sometimes they do the same. I don't mind (and think it's a good idea) to have a stash. To me, it's like money in the bank.

I searched for that group and can't find it. Can someone direct me to it?

I used to feel guilty about spending money on my hobbies but now I do not.

About 12 years ago I was very much into soap making. OBSESSED with it, more like. I made (literally) hundreds of bars of soap and spent hundreds of dollars on supplies and materials in the process. I loved every minute of it and I actually got to be quite good at it (if I do say so myself).

Then I decided I needed a way to "get rid of" my soap and also gain back some of my expenses. I had been giving it away to friends, families, and charities (women's shelters, specifically) but I figured I could sell some of it instead and at least recoup my expenses.

So I launched an online shop. Got a business license and a retail license and the whole 9 yards. Spent hours building my site, integrating a shopping cart, networking and getting the word out online and amongst family and friends...hours and hours and HOURS of work.

And orders rolled in! I had customers as far away as the Netherlands. People were buying entire batches of my soap and I was selling out all the time. I was actually turning a profit my first year in business! Not a HUGE profit, but profit nonetheless, even after expenses and paying myself a (minimal) salary. Success!

Problem was...it became a CHORE. A HUGE chore. I was rushing to make soap to meet a demand, not taking my time and being creative and enjoying the process. It made me leery of trying new things because I didn't have time for failed batches. I was always at the post office, always answering email, packing boxes, replacing lost orders, tracking down billing problems, updating my site, trying to get decent photos, shopping for packaging.... It didn't make nearly enough money to become my full time job or to even hire an assistant, so I was still working a full time job, so now instead of having a job and a really fun hobby I just had two jobs. It was exhausting.

It was no fun at all and I burnt right out and closed the business in less than 3 years, despite making a (small) profit. I haven't made soap in years (although I do still have my equipment and my custom recipe books!) We have actually just recently used up the last of my soap stash and I'm not at all interested in making more. I will go to a local craft show and BUY soap instead! (I do still firmly believe that properly made handmade soap is the BEST soap, so now I'm happy to put some money in another soapmaker's pocket.)

So for quilting...I refuse to even THINK about making money from it. It's my hobby, it's my "fun thing", it's my get away from the work-a-day world. I have a stash and I love it! I refuse to feel guilty about it. I only buy what I can afford and if this is how I chose to spend my extra time and money, this is how I'm going to spend it!!

So...long story short...I firmly believe that it is 100% OK to have an utterly profitless hobby. As long as you're still paying your bills and keeping food on the table and a roof over your head....do NOT feel guilty about having a stash. Create a ledger line for happiness and chalk up your profits THERE. And if the stash becomes a tiresome burden, sell it or give it away and don't look back. Life is too short to be burdened by things that are supposed to bring you happiness.

Sorry for the long post...this topic is very near and dear to my heart. This was a hard thing for me to learn; that it's OK to "waste" money on something if it makes you happy and you have some money to spare.

Sewnoma, I love your philosophy, hobby should not become a chore!

yes, thank you for your candor.

Sewnoma. You get my award for the BEST post of the week. This is SO TRUE! Keep your quilting a hobby, not a business. I burned out doing quilting for everyone else so I didn't have any time to make one for me !! Now, I am disabled and can only piece tops or quilt small items. I made 2 dozen mug rugs giving them around Christmas time to all my neighbors. Everyone enjoyed them. I have a charity quilt I am currently working on and I am making a bed runner for my neighbor who because of being 95, her son has built her a small apt behind his house so the move is good for her. I am going to miss her dearly but I want to send her off with a very special quilt That fills my life. You can always try to sell your stash on eBay but remember, that is NOTHING MORE than a huge garage sale. I participated in the first local craft show where I move 6 months ago but the traffic was non existence. But I found JOY in having $20.00 extra in my purse. There are so many charities out there for people and for dogs and cats. There are also charities for Africa with the Dresses for Africa comes to mind. Make a Quilt of Valor quilt. You will find that giving a little away will bring such fulfillment into your life. But keep searching thru friends for crafts shows that will work for you. Christmas time is the best when people are searching for items to give family and friends.

Have you thought about just selling the fabric as is? You will have to decide how much you charge per yard and- you will have to practically give it away,probably $3-4 . Measure and mark each piece ie. 1 yd, 4 1/2 yds. etc maybe cut a few fat quarters. Iron and neatly fold each piece , put it in a SEALED plastic baggie use a label with "1 yd $4.00" etc Then as others have mentioned go to church bazars, local craft shows and rent a table. At least this way you have not invested hours of your time in making something that may or may not sell. If you haven't used it in forever, you probably won't ever use it . Sometimes our tastes change and thing we liked a few years ago we aren't that crazy about now, other fabrics we wonder, "What was I thinking???" Good luck.

The yahoo group is listed as Sewitsforsale. I was able to find it by going to yahoo groups and searching for the word sew.

For several years I made quilted items to be sold at my church's Harvest Fair in Nov., and those items were donated by me with the money going to the church. I've lost count of the number of bed size quilts I have made and donated, but I have also sold a few to the church to be raffled, one in particular was to be a wedding gift for my son; but since she called the wedding off one month before they were to be married. I had used more expensive quilt shop fabrics and since my DH was unemployed at the time, they were happy to pay me for the quilt and the church made a little over $2,000 for the quilt. When the church decided to offer tables to crafters, I opted to do that and I was thrilled with the extra money that I made, so I could do something special for myself that we couldn't have afforded otherwise. I don't know what I would do without my stash, especially when my DH became disabled and I was unable to find work. Quilting is my sanity and DH says I get "grumpy" when I don't quilt. I just finished a full size quilt for our DGD and only had to purchase fabric for the backing. I have also made many, many gifts for friends and family. I would suggest that you try getting a table at a craft fair, bazaar, etc. as suggested by Tartan. Go for it, you really have nothing to lose.

local churches/schools/senior centers often have fairs with low cost tables. Get some cards made at vistaprint for very low cost with just your name and email. If you feel comfortable with a potential customer, you can always hand write your phone number. Also, try a bunch of new blocks and put them on tote bags. Since their pricing is much lower, it is a great draw for your table. If you sandwich rip stop nylon or very thin vinyl, it becomes a beach/pool bag. Make sure you have a couple stuffed as an example I like to do this when I am trying out new block ideas or new color combos.
I also use my scraps to make smaller bags and fill them with nice soaps or a wine bottle(empty!) to show them as gift bags. They are from scraps - so no 'real' cost. Even if you don't make a lot of profit, the feedback from the patrons can be very helpful.

I just took a lot of fabric to my local Senior center. The women there make items to sell. They were very happy to receive the fabric and I was very happy to make space at home for newer fabric.

At our quilt retreat every spring and fall, we have a silent auction where we get rid of our extras (not all sewing related) and the profits go to the camp for some project they are working on. One of the more recent projects was a water fountain for the hall where we all sit and sew or eat our meals. They just remodeled the kitchen and some of our money went towards that too. It's been a lot of fun!