Giving up

[JudyL]

Also remember that if you're listing on ebay, whether or not someone bids, you're still going to have to pay listing fees. They're almost so small as to not even matter but it is another expense to consider.

And, if I were to list my quilting, up to 90" square for $100, why would someone choose me? There's a listing on there now for up to 100" square with a buy it now price for $50.

I'll never understand how/why someone would quilt a 100 x 100 quilt for $50 but I'd definitely sell my machine before I'd do it.

[Melody]

Amen to the Ebay comments.... I would rather work than try to keep up with that....

[Jess]

Jan,

A couple of things,

1) Try www.vistaprint.com for business cards & brochures. You can design online with some of their graphics or your own if you like. Usually you can order business cards 250 for free with s&h of $5. I'm not sure what the brochures would cost, but they do a good job on my business cards & they are reasonable.

2) Ebay is where I started out because I knew that I would not be able to find enough of a market for art quilting in my area & I was not about to play the pricing game where many quilters in my area will do any size for $35 including batting. I needed a larger market to see my work. I've sold several quilting services in the beginning on ebay & still have many repeat clients from those initial sales. I still won't play the pricing game & won't lower my prices to be "competitive" with the really cheap quilting that is sometimes offered on ebay. I think of the fees that I pay for an Ebay store as advertising. I can't think of a way to reach more potential buyers.

I also put my first website up right away & then started to talk about it on other chat & message board sites. People went to see my site, & often ordered quilting services & those that started out from Ebay would go to the site after they got my literature with their quilts & order more quilting that was more complex & pricier. You do need to time your listings right & do a good job in a timely manner if you are going to do ebay.

My first year of quilting I did appx 250 quilts (not that I recommend that ) for customers & while only a portion of it was directly from ebay sales, alot of it was repeat business & referrals from those customers.

3) Start a referral reward system. I offer my clients 10% off their next quilting for every referral that buys quilting services & mentions where they got their referral from. I've gotten many new clients this way.

Well, not that it's been easy but if you are afraid of stepping on local quilters toes, then go global. Only about 5% of my quilting comes from local clients & to be quite honest only about 10-15% from within my state. Of that about 75% is arranged for through my website information.

I guess take the info for what it's worth. It's not for everyone to do it the way I have. I just couldn't think of any other way to really make a decent living within my niche.

Although since starting, I've begun teaching nationally, expanded into doing custom tops (dye-painted) for clients, & we've recently started a digitizing business & pattern business with the addition of our CQ. So keep your eyes open for all types of opportunities.

[JanR]

I just wanted to say again, thankyou to all who have given so much advice. I am printing everything and keeping it all. JudyL....I did see your advice to those of us who are sturggling, and I do appreciate it. I have that printed also. The good news, somebody did call. The bad. . .I actually got a job out of the house. He called asking if I could do industrial sewing, so, at least right now there will be income. I just hate feeling as tho this will be it for me. I can say tho, that I get to spend my days sewing and I am learning many new sewing skills.

[Marion]

After reading all of the comments, I feel so stupid. I have completed 35 of my 45 tops.(all my own UFO's). I donated one to a church festival for raffleing off. (Did not label it or identify myself) Sold one of my very first tries for $50.00 and another for $100.00 but it was to one of my regular sewing customers (I do alterations) and I would have given them to him but he insisted on paying for them. Neither one was very professional in my eyes but he thought they were beautiful. Was giving one to his mother and one to his friend (girl I think). I can see some improvement since I received my Millenium in March. But Monday night at Sewing Guild Susan from Quilting Corners in Mountaintop PA gave a demonstration of her quilting experiences, from starting out to the present. She now has 14 employees and is international. She made the suggestion that you should sign and date all your quilts. So now I will start making labels and putting them in for posterity. I never thought they were good enough to sign. I still have trouble stitching in the ditch. and when I tried to turn a quilt to do the side borders I did not trim the threads on the bottom and they kept getting caught under the machine. Even though they were trimmed by the thread cutter they kept the machine from moving smoothly. She showed a lot of Mctavishing and very fine meandering and I doubt if I will ever be good enough for that fine a work. I still have ten tops to do and will try and be a little more patient. I bought a digital camera and if I can figure it out will try to show a picture of a quilt I gave to a friend as she kept admiring it the whole time I was piecing it. I do not ever think I will do quilts for other people, I am not that good. I never took a class with the machine just figured it out by doing stuff. I also found out why there are no five pointed stars in circles, it is a demon sign called a pentacle and supposedly by devil worshippers. I have completed five quilts with that design on them. My DH had to figure out the degrees for me for the stars. 72 degrees. So maybe a wiccan might be interested in those quilts??? I did four of them in red white and blue and one in Christmas colors with candy striped stars and binding. To me they are fine but after reading about the government refusing to put the pentacle sign and a soldiers grave I found out what it meant. I had all this fabric with five pointed stars and glitter and thought it would work out so good. Well I have a brides dress to fix and a bridesmaids dress to make so better get to it.

[JudyL]

Marion: Why do you doubt you will ever be good enough for the fine work you saw? Why do you think others can do it and you cannot? You have a Millennium! You can do anything you want to do but first, you have to believe that you can do it and you have to practice, practice, practice! It's easy to reach a comfort zone and stay there and not progress any farther. I honestly believe that we (you, me, anyone else) can do anything we want to do. The question that comes to my mind is . . do I want to put forth the effort and time it takes to learn and become proficient with new techniques. We are only limited by the restraints we place on ourselves.

It's ok to say "I don't want to ever do that fine work" but I don't think it's fair to you to say "I doubt I can ever do it".

Tomorrow's a new day! Wake up believing you can do anything you want to do!

[Bonnie]

Marion,

I'm not so sure I understand why you feel stupid....donating and selling quilts to customers are good things.

I will admit that we are our worst critics and I'm sure that with your being an alterations person your quilting is just as perfect as all get out....I think alot of us started out as garment sewers and picked up quilting for whatever reason...mine was a stress relief from a very stressful job in advertising and the 80-90 hour weeks that one puts in as a traffic manger.

I've been quilting professionally for almost 9 years and I was in a very closed off world and I didn't get out much so its only been in the last few years that I too have started to learn how to do formal feathers and McTavishing....they are not perfect, but until it is I won't be offering to a customer, but I don't feel inadequate or stupid because of it....so you shouldn't either.

I also never had any formal teachings until the spring of 2005 when I attended my first MQX and thought I died and went to heaven....I didnt' have anyone to help me learn my machine and I did okay...in fact my machine had warped rails and the wheels weren't balanced for almost 6 years before I knew it...it wasn't until my wheels started to break that I figured it out...it always jumped off the rails at a certain point...I would just pick it back up and go again. Never thinking something was wrong...always thought it was the operator.

As far as the star goes....well that is sort of true, but go look at the original Texas Rangers Star its a 5 pointed star in a circle so tell them that's what it is and don't worry about it. And there is a widow in Reno Nevada that would love one of the quilts...Her hubby was killed while in country last year and she is fighting to have a wiccan star put onto her husband's grave stone...they are both wiccan's.

Please please don't feel stupid or inadequate...you will be fine and you will do well...it all takes time. Your alterations didn't happen over night now did it?

We all learn at a different speed...we all have some doubts from time to time, but we all know why we are here and that is because we love our craft not to mention the stashes of fabrics we all have. I've even been known to go shopping at a friends stash. Don't ever feel stupid....its not nice to beat yourself up.

Now go finish the wedding dress.....and have a great day.

[Mary Beth]

Marion,

For goodness sakes, you do wedding dresses and brides maid dresses....quilting will be a piece of cake!! Like Judy said PPP. I took some classes in March and felt totally inadequate compared to the other quilters. That was my first mistake - comparing to other quilters. Last night I sat down at my machine and tried to practice - the first time since my March classes....second mistake. I have been quilting, doing pantographs, some custom but none of the stuff I learned it class. Of course everything I did las night looked absolutely terrible. I finally took it off the machine and will load a quilt today to do what I have been doing. My plan is to get caught up - I'm behind because of my daughter's wedding - the start practicing on the things I learned in class so I can do some fun stuff on customer quilts. It will come in time. But don't give your work away, my goodness you have worked too hard on it to do that!! Would you give away your alteration work...probably not, so don't give away your quilting.

[Ferret]

I too find plenty of people say they are interested, and say they will sow me the quilt or send me pictures so I can discuss designs with them. So far not one has actually done it.

So far even a 3 page article in a national quilting magazine has had no response at all. I've put work into every show this year and done well.

I am hoping that people are just short of cash and things will eventually take off.

Ferret

[Marion]

Thanks all for your encouragement. I just finished the alteration on one of the bridesmaid dresses and now have to make a copy of it as they could only get four and needed five. I am also burning the edges of circles to make two flowers to attach to the dress. Red Satin. I do have to practice a lot more. But I don't have too much time. Wasn't even sure at 75 if I should have bought the Millenium, but I want to finish all my tops while I can still see. I did some with embroidery in the squares and thought I may try to do some of that real tiny scrolling around to make it stand out. I guess I should have taken some classes but there are none nearby. The closest is in Hershey, which is quite a drive from Jermyn PA where I am. Well back to work. Wedding dress next.

[Bekah]

Marion, boy I wish you lived closer to Oregon. I would love to come and hang out with you just so some of your energy would rub off. There is no way that you aren't a fantastic quilter if you can do wedding dresses. Been there done that and that is way harder than quilting.

As a newbie I can tell you that having been in the "what have I done" stage of Millenium, that the people who visit this forum are the best ever. I now am at "let me at it" place and am excited to see what these hands can do. Please keep us posted and I would love to see a picture of your dress with the handmade flowers.

[Stagecl]

Jan,

One way to get more exposure and customers is to attend a sit and stitch at your local quilt shops (also take quilting classes even if you don't need the class. Most of your customer basis is going to come from new quilters...easy quilt classes are where you will find them.) This is a way of getting to know other quilters. Bring with you a quilt you have quilted and are in the process of binding it. At least have business cards with you if you don't have a flyer. I don't have a flyer...never had and business is just fine. Attend your local quilt guilds and bring your quilts for show and tell...enter in to the local quilt shows. Eventually, you will have quilters giving your name to others.

When I started 3 years ago...I quilted for less because I lacked experience then raised my prices over time.

I know this is a late post, but I just want to give you some ideas too.

Cheryl Mathre

Stone Creek Quilting

Sandy Hook, VA:)