At my sons baby shower, after they showed the quilt I made for my grandson that is due in Oct. When they were told by my son that I made it,When the shock wore off. A man told me he would invest in my quilting. He told me he would buy my material and stuff and me make the quilts, we would sell them and split the money. I am on a fixed income and can only spend so much on my hobby. I know he is well off, God knows I could use some extra income, If he is willing to buy the materials and help sell them would you take a chance?

I'd be half way through the first quilt by now! DO IT! :)

Start slowly and see how it goes. Give him a couple first to see how they sell. I say GO FOR IT!! and good luck.

I would start with something small as having to give up 1/2 the profit is pretty high when it is hard to make a profit on quilts to begin with. Make sure you keep track of your time put in & set up an hourly rate that you both agree on.

Get every detail in writing

ditto

Sounds like a good deal to me, but recommend following all advice posted.

I like the idea - you invest your time but aren't out any money, and have an opportunity to do something you love and make money doing it.

Do you know this person? Whether you do or don't, a business contract is essential. It should include things like, what types of products you plan to sell, how many units per month are you expected to provide, what quality of materials is he expected to purchase, what costs will be deducted from earnings before profits and payments are determined... You get the idea.

The concern would be if he doesn't think you're working fast enough; if he has invested in materials that are now in your possession he could exert a lot of pressure on you. Perhaps it would be better for him to commission quilts from you and then sell them on his own?

Just thinking out loud. It's an amazing opportunity, just be sure to protect yourself while grabbing it with both hands. :)

All of the advice given is excellent! Especially if you are on a fixed income. You get to do something you love AND get paid!

But if he expected a quilt every time from you like the one you made for the baby (your avatar), would that wear you out? I don't know what other quilts you have done but this baby quilt is magnificent! I couldn't do that!!

Great advice by all- good for you!! Let us know how it works out :)

Also, you must see the sales slip !! This person saw your work, thinks it`s good, and I`m sure he wants to make something for selling them. He must have clients who can afford them. If every thing is out in front, you both should be happy. Asked every thing you want to know. Good luck, this could be a new career for you.

Sounds like a gret opportunity

Totally agree with this........ :thumbup:
Christmas coming up,WOW you could make a bundle!!!!

What a wonderful compliment to your talent! Best of Luck if you choose to expand on this opportunity!

awesome compliment on your work. I hope it all works out for you.

Susan

This may be a great opportunity for you to earn some money while doing something you love to do.

Something I think you should think about is how much pressure it will put on you to make X amount of quilts in a certain period of time. Also increased use of your sewing machine may mean the need for repairs. Do you have a back up machine?

I recently finished a queen size quilt for a family member who paid for the pattern and fabrics. It cost me more than I expected as I needed a special ruler, I used more thread pieceing than I expected and also I had to buy special colored threads for the quilting, things I should have thought and added to the price she would pay for me to make the quilt. Since she was a close family member I was donating my time. Largest problem was the constant pressure I felt to sew perfectly, work faster and complete the quilt quickly. Vowed never to do a commission quilt again, it took all the fun out of quilting.

Write down a list of questions you have about this arrangement and have a good talk with the man. Tell him how long it takes to make a quilt, what size does he expect, what does he plan to sell them for and what do you get out of this project. Make one and see what he does with it and get everything in writing, his share your share and find out the going rate for quilts. And like Barbshobbies said, expect to see the sales slips. This will be a business proposition so look for the legal aspects too. You would be setting up a home based business.

Carol J.

I truly hope that this works out for you. But I wonder whether the man who was wow'ed (as we all were) by your quilt realizes that handmade quilts don't usually sell that well, at least not at prices that reflect the fabrics and labor involved in making them. You need to make sure that he does his homework and understands the market before going too far.

I know he would have the contacts and be doing the selling, but isn't that money split a little lopsided? I would think after expenses, you should get more than 50% because you are the one creating ~ just my opinion... like the singing star who gives 15% to their manager, the singer is the talent.

I wish you luck with this new opportunity. Let us know what happens.

That you all for the useful information. I have not talked to him about it yet,just thinking about all the options, Like I said he would buy all the material and stuff. I would work at my own pace I would make them, he would help find a place to sell them. Keeping all the ideas coming making a list and praying about this too.

That quilt is so magnificient and creative...I am not the least surprised of the opportunity. Take it slow and be sure everything is upfront. Best wishes.

As in he actually does the shopping or he waxed poetic while talking & you do the shopping.

I agree with Moedeenie - Also I would do it slowly at first, just to see how it will go. Making things for $$ is a lot different than doing it for a loves one. Best of luck with it!!

Hey, you get to do what you love and supplement your income too. If he is paying for everything, what do you have to loose. BUT...I would take pictures of every quilt I gave him to sell and I would draw up some type of contract and get the signatures notarized...just as a precaution.

What a wonderful testament to your skills. One word of caution, though...are you sure you want to make a hobby into a "have-to"? That's been known to take a lot of the fun out of what you do. Other than that, this does sound like it might be a opportunity worth exploring. Please keep us posted.

Well once I started making money with my hobby, it wasn't fun for me anymore. It became a job with deadlines, demands, and comments, "oh, I ment the other red thread"............calla

In a heartbeat! I wish I had someone to help me that way!
You pick the projects and don't let it become a JOB, it doesn't have to.

Quilts barely make money for the maker. And you're going to let somebody else have half the profits for not much work? Plus once you figure out how much you actually have to charge to make a decent hourly wage for yourself with him taking half puts those quilts at a pretty high price. In spite of the fact that we all love and value quilts most people look at the price and only the price. Can you compete with Walmart or even Babies R Us? They generally sell quilts for less than your cost for the fabric.

Maybe. But consider from his side that his money is invested with her so there is an element of financial risk to him, and his money could be earning interest if he still had it. He also gets to do the legwork of advertising, working with buyers (and presumably businesses), handling queries and financial transactions... All this in one person, which is not equivalent to a singer's manager or agent; once the singer pays the manager/agent, the promoter, the buyer, the record label, the manufacturer and all the other costs of doing business, that's a heck of a lot more than the 15% for the agent.

You should make sure that this guy has a retail wholesale license and you may need to get one as well as a manufacture. Taxes need to be paid either way. There is more to it than you think to the partner ship and it is best to consult with a tax accountent on your behalf so you don't end up oweing money that you can't afford.

I had a partnership with someone and ended up paying 2,000.00 in back taxes and my partner cut out on me.

Go for it ! What do you have to lose ? If someone would make me that offer I know I would try. I'm trying to get in with some folks to do custom sewing; clothes, draperies, home decor, etc.....I too am retired and live on a limited income and really need a little extra.

Again, go for it !

Sounds like a great idea to me. Don't expect to get paid for your time, since you would probably be making quilts anyway. If you get too greedy it won't work.

Who's going to do the sales? Where? and all the other questions already posted. A contract is really necessary spelling out everything. You could have fun, but don't want to wear yourself out either. Best of luck!!

I used to crochet a lot - turned into a little cottage industry. I HATED to do that crochet. Took the fun right out of it.


Also, if he pays for material and your contribution is time how are you compensated if he never sells a quilt. He'll have the quilt and you'll have made it for free.

Hate to be a cynic but usually when something sounds too good to be true - it is.

Maybe you can give him samples of the type of quilts you would be willing to make and come up with a fixed price your time/labor and the fabric cost involved in the quilt. That way he will have an idea of what he needs to "market" the quilts and you don't have to stress yourself out creating one of a kind items for non-quilters who don't understand how much time is involved.

Let's just put a little math to it. Let's say you can make one baby quilt a week. That's 40 hours and you really should make minimum wage. So that's 290.00. Plus the cost of fabric, batting and thread. Quilt shop fabric is running at least $10 a yard these days and a baby quilt should take around 3.5 to 4 yards of fabric and we'll add another $20 for the batting and thread. So that's $60 dollars for materials cost plus your $290. for labor. So your baby quilt is already up to $350. And he hasn't added his cut yet.

That's way too expesive for a baby quilt so the cost needs to be cut. Guess what gets cut? Labor costs.

What is he expecting a quilt to sell for? I am thinking he has no idea the cost of quality fabric, batting, thread, or even the cost of a professional long arm. What if the venture doesn't bring in enough to cover his expenses? then what? This can become very sticky. I would have everything in writing before jumping in with both feet.

I say GO FOR IT....and I agree with the other comments go slow....