Nanoo

I totally agree with you. I quilt for pleasure. I may give some away, but I do not sell them. I quilt what I want, when I want and how I want.

FabStripper

I got $7.83 per hour for their quilts. I think that is a fair wage for what they do.

LyzeeBee

Yeah that's a bit out there...

Sewnoma

I don't track time spent on quilts, because it's my hobby and that wouldn't add to the fun! But I think I'm a pretty fast worker, I'm weirdly obsessed with efficiency in all things so I am constantly deconstructing tasks and figuring out ways to do them faster - what can I combine, what can I do simultaneously, what can I skip...

You guys should see me cook...my dad once commented to me that he'd "never seen someone cook with all four hands before"! (I cherish that as a huge compliment, by the way! I WISH I actually had 4 hands!) I'm always thinking 10 steps ahead; breaking steps apart if I can do parts conveniently "now" to shave a second or two "later"...it often doesn't make sense to watch what I'm doing, until you get to the end and suddenly everything is done. It's fun, for me, to be juggling so many tasks and constantly jiggering them around...cooking is a boring chore otherwise! And I get done faster AND most of the dishes are already washed before the food is even done cooking.

Sewing, though, I take more time with...it's not a chore so I relax and only use two hands at once. LOL But even so, there's a little monitor in the back of my mind pointing out where I'm wasting effort. ("If you're going to cut that, cut this too and save three minutes. If you're going to walk over there, bring this too, you'll need it in a half-hour. If you're reaching into that drawer, take out this too, you'll need it in 20 minutes. Set this next to that, they go in the same cupboard that you'll be passing on your way to the ironing table.....")

laurilli

Rubesgirl- I totally get what you are talking about. I made 17 baby quilts & 4 queen size quilts and took them to our local womens shelter, they sent me a tax return donation form for $200. I could have cryed(sp). I felt so devalued(not sure if that's the right word) by their value of the quilts. Of course, I didn't make them for the tax deduction, but it made me feel like my quilts had no value to them.

grandmasieg

I don't sell my quilts, I give as gifts, or to charity. I make an average of 50-75 quilts for the NICU unit a year. According to the IRS you can deduct donations of handmade goods, but you can only deduct what it cost you to make the item, not its fair market value. You can deduct only the cost of the materials. You are allowed to deduct out-of-pocket costs but not the value of your labor. If you itemize this might be a good idea. However, keep receipts of your materials used in your charity quilts. The NICU unit gives me a yearly donation form. I've never used it for a tax deduction. The feeling of pleasure I get is priceless!

I've also have gone to yard sales where people were selling or giving away handmade items. One time I saw a beautiful crocheted afghan and when I asked "how much" was told "free...my MIL made it for us and I hate it". I have this afghan on the foot of my bed and use it to cuddle up with on frosty days. It is a shame people don't realize how much love is put into making a handmade gift.

sdeaaz

Wow Jan, that is interesting.