BellaBoo

After thinking about this I decided the only way I would make quilts for business would be to make a lot of them and have those for sale. No custom work at all. This way I could make the quilts I wanted and not have to fret over deadlines.

crashnquilt

Your main problem is getting people too pay the prices. As mentioned, product seen in stores is much cheaper. People are not considering the QUALITY of the product. Using your own example of making a dog bed which will end up being a toy for a child. At a discount department store, the average dog bed sells for $30. Now lets look at your costs.
Fabric will be a minimum of 2 yds. Unless you can find decent $1.00 fabric, discount store price averages $5.00
Fabric cost is now $10.00 30-10=20.
Now consider the filling. If you use poly fill and you purchase the bags you probably will need at least 2. These can be from $4 to $7 per bag. Taking the lower cost there is another $8. Now you are down to $16. Thread and needle will be about $1 or $2. Now you are down to $15. To make this really easy, let's say it takes 2 hours to complete the entire project (not factoring in the amount of time and gas it took to purchase said supplies) Not knowing the sales tax rate for your state, you have now made less than $7.00 per hour.

Whenever I am asked to make something for someone this is how I determine the price. Whenever possible, I have the customer pick out the fabric KNOWING what the fabric prices are. If the customer is still wanting the project to be made, before I start any work I give them a detailed work order. On the work order is the time used for each step of the process. I tell the customer that I do pre-wash the fabrics (no exceptions). When the project is finished it is washed again (no exceptions) and I include everything in between. I also include a pay rate. At the end is the statement THE PRICE QUOTED WILL NOT BE ANY HIGHER BUT IF COMPLETED PROJECT IS LOWER PRICE WILL BE ADJUSTED ACCORDINGLY.

Sorry to be so long winded over this but I really want you to consider all angles.

ckcowl

if you do 'choose' to give a {business} a try make sure you keep very good records, have everything written out, for any 'finished item' always get a deposit (I always get 50% deposit) before buying a single thing-or cutting a single piece of fabric--with the understanding that the balance is due upon completion= and the deposit is not refundable--since it is used to purchase the supplies needed to complete the project. there should be no surprises for the customer-if you find something that changes things part way through it is your responsibility to contact the customer right away and discuss it- whether it is needing more time, an increase in price, what ever the issue is- communication is very important. set realistic deadlines- if I am commissioned to make a quilt for someone I always (try) to allow myself at least a month longer than I really think I can get it done- customer's are happy when you call them & let them know their quilt is done faster than they thought it was going to be. if you plan to long-arm quilt for your business- have samples to show, have set pricing- covering all types of quilting you offer- have policies and guidelines in place (and in writing) --- if you are going to do it as a business you need to treat it like a business...regular hours, regular rates, deadlines, services offered, records, taxes, a business plan, everything written out. this protects you as much as the customer and will help you have a positive outcome...but remember- you will not be 'making a living' at it from the beginning- it takes time to build a business.

ckcowl

I've noticed some of the posts here have stated- 'people will not pay a fair price' ... I disagree with this --- maybe in some locations, but I have found over the years that people are more than happy to pay when they know what they are getting. sometimes you have to find 'venues' that are outside your area= once I sold my first $2700 quilt I started receiving commission requests frequently- I can charge $800 for a twin sized quilt and get it= without question; I do tend to have {2} sets of prices=== local and long-distance=== but local is easier (for me) so I do not need to charge as much- but my long-distance customers do not have any problems paying the prices. people will pay for quality if you can give them what they want- and they know they can not get an 'original, custom' quilt from walmart.

mshollysd

I am a long armer and do it for others, however, I have been long arming for quilts of valor foundation and found that has given me more pleasure than anything. I put down that I would long arm 1 a month, however, with the local requests I average about 3 quilts for them a month. For long arm quilting for paying customers, I do have a contract that I purchased off of quilting university and I recommend that highly. All expenses for the long arm up front, and then they sign it. That way there aren't any surprises and they can't come back and say "I hadn't any idea it was going to cost that much". Thread is a huge factor too, because none of the cheap thread can be used very easily with a long arm.

quiltingshorttimer

I attended a 'quilting for business' class by Sally Terry at the AQS show in Des Moines--she agreed with many of you, saying that you need to list what is a given in your long arm business (i.e. anything that is typically done for every incoming quilt); and then what type of quilting will be done (all over, custom, heavy,etc); batting and backing. And listing all inventory and cost of inventory used (i.e. batting and backing); and extra services such as attaching the binding, etc. She said that you need to know how long arm quilting is typically priced in your area--by the sq inch or by the sq foot. she then gave us lots of ideas for marketing and she obviously loved that part of the business.
Seems like quilting for a profit is like any small business--you won't really make much $$ to start with and you'll have some expenses getting it off the ground. I've already spent $$ for classes, the long arm machine (LOTS!); thread, templates, business cards and samples--both of my quilting and quilts that I can use to hang in LQS so they can refer to me. I can do this cause I've got a pension to pay the bills--would think the the OP could probably supplement her income with quilting for others, but probably not in a position to dump her job and support a family on quilting if she's like most of us. But who knows--she may become the next major designer!

zozee

My gut feeling is that you'll get to see and enjoy your kids a lot more if you stick with your regular job where (I assume) you have set hours. Most small business owners I know say their hours during the first year are about 80/week. No family life. No social life. Stress, stress, stress. It takes sometimes 3 years to turn a profit in many businesses. It sounds like you enjoy quilting for your pleasure and the pleasure of others. I would think long and hard about whether I would still enjoy it if I were under time and financial pressure. I tried a party-sales type job from home when my kids were little and found out, when all was said and done, I was making 2 bucks an hour and always telling them, "Not now, honey. Mommy's busy." I was there physically but so distracted it was not like I was there emotionally like I should've been. That lasted about 5 months until I had the 2 buck revelation.

Silvia75

From what I have seen, the only way to make a living at quilting is to write/sell books and patterns. All the quilter "celebrities" that make $ aren't la's for a living. They make a name for themselves and money from publishing their work.

BellaBoo

If you go to the popular quilt teacher websites, look what they charge for a program, workshop or lecture and then add up the dates that are filled, book sales, patterns, well I did this with one popular teacher and she made a six figure income. Of course you'd have to travel about every week to everywhere and be gone days at a time. It is a full time demanding job to make a good income with quilting. It certainly won't be a 9 to 5 job.

Plumtree

I am trying too, but like others have said there will be no way I could live off it. I do however want to make enough to support the machine and maybe my hobby. I tried to find a job recently but because I haven't worked in over 20 years, raising family doesn't count, finding job that would pay decent and not be fast food seemed just as difficult as starting my own business. I chose my own business over fast food. I hope to get busier as the holidays get closer and Christmas quilts need to get done but I also know I need to work on my marketing its not going to just happen because I wish it so. Marketing is where I struggle but I know it and I am working on it :-) Good Luck with whatever you decide :-)