One of my student's parents (actually I have her identical twin boys) wants to buy this 40x40 piece for her mother-in-law for Mother's Day. I picked a cool back I thought would make it reversible, and I just finished quilting it. Not too shabby, at least there are no puckers--but it's easy "almost" in the ditch stuff. I used green thread and stuck to the green fabric.

I'll bind it in the green from the top. It actually matches the back quite well.

1. Is that enough quilting? It will be used for the middle of a table--but removed when eating is going on. The quilting in the corners doesn't show up as well--but there is some. Warm and Natural batting.

2. Price? The only thing I can come up with is the table runners-which are about 1/3 the size--will sell for about $25-28, then maybe $70 for this? Is that too high? I have at least 5 hours into it--and some quality fabrics.

Throw some numbers at me!! I have to figure this stuff out for a future craft sale.

And don't say if her boys are easy sell it for an especially low price... they dressed alike for most of the year and can be a handful! Exactly why I'm not doubling the price. :lol: :lol: :lol: :wink:

That is REALLY pretty!
Love the colors/fabric!

Ok, figure out how much you actually paid for the fabric.
Then for your time.
If it took you 5 hours to make, figure $10/hour....$50
Maybe the fabric...about $20?

So, now you have $70 and that's pretty much what you figured, right?
Works good for me!!

You did a very nice job, machine quilting. The batting usually has a recommendation as to the distance the quilting shoud be, example, 4" apart. Isn't that quite the compliment that someone wants to buy your work? I can hardly part with mine after I've one all the work, not that anyone has wanted to BUY one, they just want 'em.

I saw one like this in a quilt shop it was on sale for 180.00

Jackie--the Warm and Natural says 10 inches!! :shock: But I'd never go by that. Yikes.

I just checked and this one has spots that are 4-7" with no quilting. I guess I should add more here and there, I just don't want to add a pucker!!! :?

This mom is determined to buy a quilt from me because she has a copy of the book I wrote, so says she needs a quilted item too. She wants something in blue. One year a mom paid me to make her daughter a ragged flannel because I was her favorite teacher ever and she thought it'd help her deal with leaving 5th grade. :wink: But I don't like to take orders. I have to squeeze quilting time in as it is, so I want to work on the 789 projects I have lined up. :lol:

$180??? :shock: Oh goodness, that one must have had something VERY special.

I think your is prettier.

Thank you, Catherine. :-) The fabrics are Debbie Mumm--I love them!

I just added more quilting so there are no spaces more than 5"and not many of those. So I'm happy with that.

I just want to be very fair with this price. When she asked what it might be on Friday--and said $100--I replied "Oh no it'd not be that high!" So--I guess I'll stick to $70-$80.

Now to get the binding on.

I'll use the $$ to buy 3 more fly masks for the horses. I just found one that works great. :wink:

The $85.00 it is!

I'm with $85. No lower maybe a little higher. The work and color choice are very pretty.

YOU WROTE A BOOK????

next time somebody offers a price that makes you want to gasp in guilt ... keep your gasp a silent one and ACCEPT. it isn't in any way wrong. it's business. :wink:

Patrice--you always have very good advice. :D

I was thinking today that the Talk-About Quilt I had/have for sale went for $120. My quilter told me not a penny under $100. And this piece is bigger. Live and learn. But I can tell her YOU gals told me not a penny under a $100. :wink:

Terri--how many times have you been to my website, woman?? Look at the last page.... And it's sort of in my signature.

That is lovely, Barnbum! Now me, I am always for more quilting!( Especially if somone else is doing it!) How big is the piece? It is hard to tell in the pic.

Ok, I FINALLY got past the pictures of the horses!
I keep stopping at that page.
So, you wrote a book! COOL!
Now I'm going to have to go find it in the store. Probably not here, since the book store we have sucks! I was in the "Craft" section and all they had was a book on knitting. UGH! Looking in the magazine section for quilting mags,... nope, none!

Lucky--it's 40"x40". I aded more quilting from that photo. I sewed the binding on last night--just have to hand part to go. I'm taking it to school to show the person who wants it--and see if she still does. :-) I'll say $85. But if I make more for the craft sale I'll make them $100. :wink:

if she offered $100, and you have not already said $85, then let her pay you $100. tell her you made a point to add the right amount of quilting to make it worth her offer. that is the absolute truth so you need not feel as though you're doing anything unethical.

another truth is that she sees value in your work that you have not yet allowed yourself to see.

if you have already quoted $85, then of course you must stick to it. a deal is a deal.

Such a nice table topper and reversible - maybe it should be $200 since they can use either side. LOL I still don't see how you get so much done. Amazing lady!!

Well--this is how it went. I showed her the quilt this morning--the binding is on but needs to be sewed onto the back. She LOVED the back fabric--seems her mother-in-law loves sunflowers. Soooo, I told her I asked on the forum what price was appropriate--and was told $75-$185, but I thought $85 was fine.

She said.... "Is $75 okay because I want to keep things even." Seems she bought $75 of stuff for her mom, so this gift can't go over that. :shock:

I was a bit shocked, but said it was fine.

Then she said I must sign it with the date and my name somewhere. Sign a quilt??? :?: :?: I still thing it's werid to sign my books, but a quilt. I guess that's not so bad. :roll:

It kind of bugged me that her need to keep things even was my problem, but when it's a parent of a student(s) I felt it best to be agreeable.

Well, you did sort of leave yourself open with the price, but I think she got a good deal and now you will know for next time, right? Live and learn.
I "sign" all my quilts that I make. It's done in embroidery, but it's signed. Some have just a heart, then my name and year, others have this little cat, then my name and the year.

BTW...Bill (hubby) was looking at your site and I never heard so many "oohs, ahhhs, and oh, so cute" from him before. lol
He's such a softy at times!

$75 for a 40 by 40 is a deal. Be sure to hit her up for donations when you need stuff for class activites and celebrations!

young lady, do NOT let anyone take advantage of you like that again.
she first offered you $100, which says clearly that she knew it was worth at least that much. then she backs waaaaaaaaaaaay off to $75? Never, ever, ever ... and i say again ... NEVER let a client know you had no idea what to charge.

if you want your work to get the respect it deserves, YOU need to start respecting your work and yourself.

now toughen up, cookie, or we're going to have to take a stroll to the woodshed. (hmmmm ... no emoticon that fits. just picture me with my hands on my hips, wearing my sternest "mother loves you and this is for your own good" face. :wink: )

She doesn't have a woodshed....you could take her out behind the barn! lol
I'll go with, just to move the "babies" so they don't see their momma getting a lickin'. ;)

Patrice--she didn't offer me $100. She was asking what the price of that piece would be. She said "I don't know what it would cost--is it over $100?" And I said "Oh no! It'd not be over $100." Much later I thought jeepers the 36" square baby quilt I did sold for over $100 and this one is bigger. :roll:

So--she didn't offer $100. I don't think she would have gotten it if it was that high. I just thought it was weird for her to say she had to keep things even.

This is the mom who organized the teacher gift at Christmas--and I'm positive she'll organize it at the end of the year. :wink: At Christmas the class gave me a $75 gift card to Tractor Supply :shock: (she so wanted to get it to a quilt shop, but moms from last year told her Tractor Supply was where I needed it) and she gave me money to Dunkin Donuts on top of that--another student gave me $25 to Borders (bought quilt books). I'm spoiled. :D

So--it's fine. The reason is strange--but it's fine.

Don't me mad--I hate it when anyone is mad at me. :(

silly, silly girl. what right would i have to be angry?

i just don't want you to shortchange yourself. :wink:

In my opinion...I don't think Patrice is mad, just disappointed. Many of us will undersell our things because we want to be nice.
I can understand why you did what you did.
I know way back when...I was making the decorated hats. Had one that I sold for $10, but put way more money and time into it. I just didn't realize it at the time, but I wanted to be nice, so I "gave it away" at $10.
The same goes for our quilts. We love making them, but when it comes to putting a price on them, we back down.
A guy on hubbys ship wants me to make him a quilt. Says he'll pay me $50 if I make it for him, but I have to supply the fabric. I almost said yes because he's a nice guy, but then I thought about it again and figured I'd put almost that much in fabric into it. I told him I would make him one for $100 (twin size) and he said that was too much. A bit later, I thought about it and almost called him and said the $50 would be fine, but I didn't.
It's taking me a while, but I'm not backing down on the things I make.
Does this all make sense?

Yes, you seem a bit spoiled when it comes to your class, but you also spoil them, so it works both ways. You are very lucky to have children/parents that care for you like they do. There are many parents out there that think of teachers as overpaid babysitters. I'm still trying to figure out HOW they think teachers are overpaid! But, that's another subject....

Now, go give your "babies" hugs and hug them for me too! :)

Well--you two got me all nervous about the woodshed talk. We have a woodshed. :lol:

I'm pretty careful about what I sell for. I got $300 for a large ragged flannel--it came to $15/hour. They bought the fabric. (Dana's quilt on my website).

I'm hoping to really get a lot of things made for the Nov craft sale. The woman in charge said they haven't had anyone selling quilted stuff! :D I guess last year there was too much jewelry.

I'll be good. I'll just say things like "Oh my if I ask any less for that one, Patrice and Terri will never let me forget it. Sorry, but the price is FIRM!" :wink: How's that?

Love the fabric on the back!!! I would be putting about $70-80 on it. Being Debbie Mumm fabric, I know that it wasn't inexpensive to buy.

Oh no...you have it wrong.
Patrice is going to take you behind the woodshed. I'm going to mind the horses so they don't see their mommy getting beat. lol

I wish they had craft shows/fairs here. I'd whip up a few quilts and such and try to sell them, but they don't. I know they do have a booth at the "festival" they always have on Wed that has "local style" quilts. They mainly look like store bought/mass made ones.

Terri, Wish you lived here. I have a show every weekend and I would love to have another quilter here. I helped organize a craft show in the mall (plus I organize all the other vendors too) that we run in the wintertime(Oct.-May). Its a great venue. Then in the summer, I have markets and festivals every weekend. Its alot of work, but also alot of fun to sell your stuff and have people just love it. :-)

tricia--having a sale that often and thinking aobut keeping up with having items made makes me weary. I don't know how you do that. I'd fold. :wink:

well if i have to do all the hard work myself, i guess i'll just take her for ice cream. :roll:

Karla, when I decided to do this full time, I quit my job(where I worked 60-70 hrs a week) and dived right in. I didn't think I would be organizing craft shows, but its been a blessing. I have made such great friends from all over the Northwest area.
Sure sometimes its stressful when I have alot of internet orders and I still have to get stuff done for the weekend too. But I wouldn't trade it for anything. I have 4 tables and some display units that are full. You can kind of see from my avator pic what my booth looks like!!!!

Right now I wished I lived anywhere but here!

just went to your website. do you have any free time? the quilts are awsome. and the horses are cute.

Thanks, dkbeck. :D Yes, I get free time. My computer time is my down time where I don't have to be moving... I just keep a steady pace--a lot can get done that way. :wink:

Karla I love the quilt! and I agree its soo hard to know what to ask and hard to not say oh ok you can have it for this. BUt I also find a lot of people Cheap! Its all the box stores and mass production on cheaply made stuff.

Can't help on the pricing, but it sure is pretty....... GREAT JOB!

I may be out of line here, but I'd start with $100.00. If she wants to bargain, you can always drop down a little with no problem. But I wouldn't sell myself short if I were you. It isn't an outrageous price and your work is definitely worth that much. But like I said, at $100., you at least have a little bargaining room.

Oh gohs, guys--this is an old post. I offered it to her for $85--she asked if I'd take $75--and I let her have it. The woman is the mother of a set of identical twin boys I had in my room last year--and she did a lot to help out--and bought me way too much stuff... so it was fine. I even received a thank you note from her mother-in-law. :D

Thanks for the ideas, though.... I have many more to price. tranquilty, The Wild Thing, Patriotoc Hearts.... at least I know what I'm asking for the table runners! and the Talk-About-Quilts.