Full Time Quilters

[Mary Beth]

Just a question...How many of you are running a quilting business, full-time? Are you busy?

I quilt part-time, but want to go full-time. I work part-time outside the home, but feel like I need to be home getting my quilts done. DH and I are in negotiations . He doesn't think you make enough money at this to do it full time. Is he right? He wanted to know how many full-time quilters that I know, that have a successful business. In sucessful I mean that you make enough money to call it a job.

I'm not trying to strike an emotional cord here. I know you all are doing what you love and that counts for something or almost everything. I realize you are not punching a clock, or you are not answering to anyone but yourselves. And that you have a flexible schedule so that you can do things with your kids, yada...yada...I understand all of the emotional sides of this argument. I'm with ya...But DH is very business oriented and likes the security that a regular paycheck gives if only a part-time one.

I don't want to "trick" him into letting me quit my job so I can quilt all the time...not like I did with the wedding dress (Some of you know what I am talking about).

I just need some ammo!!

Thank you for your input.

Mary Beth

[BethDurand]

Boy howdy,

Good luck with that one. I'm looking forward to reading other people's responses. Between the "real" job, the quilt shop and quilting, I work more than full time. The quilt shop is to pay for the loan payments on my girl, once she's done, that money will start going towards the remodel of the kitchen. I'd also like to drop one day at work at that point, but we'll see how the finances look at that time.

Personally, I don't think I could quilt full time, I need the interaction with people, and dagnabbit, I worked too darn hard to get this degree! Of course, there are days when I just want to go home and quilt and feel like something has actually been accomplished. To quote the DH, "I guess that's why they call it work and not happy fun time."

Beth

[Guest Smile&nod]

Couple of quick questions (you don't have to answer it publicly but it may help put some things in perspective).

1) Does your family household budget require that you are bringing in a specific level of income?

2) If your quilt business goes "dry" for a few months, will the household be feeling the pinch?

I've seen and financed several craft based businesses over the past 7 years. Unfortunately, more often than not, I've seen several close down due to lack of business. There's a lot more inherant risk and stress if the quilt business is to be used as income replacement. Being able to run the business as a business is also key...too many people I've seen that run the business as just an extension of their hobby.

If though, this is an opportunity for you to use your hobby as a means of pulling in extra $$ and the household doesn't need the income replacement to meet the basic fixed costs, then you are in a better bargaining position with the hubby.

There may be other extenuating circumstances, but these are some basic things to look at when considering the notion of a business.

IMO, there is also a subtle but important difference between being self-employed and operating a business. (or being self-employed vs being an entrepreneur) A colleague of mine defines a business this way "a business is an operation in which a portion of the earnings are being re-invested into the business in order to make it expand and grow".

If operation is just intended to provide you some $$ so you don't have to work a different job, then you are self-employed and that's just fine too. But to be a successful business, you need to be growing and expanding and always planning to grow and expand.

If you want to try and win over hubby, show him the financials of your operation. Show him what it costs you to operate the business, and how its offset with your earnings. Show him your break-even projections, and (hopefully) demonstrate how you have sufficient demand to offset all your costs AND still bring in extra $$. Then translate the extra $$ into an hourly wage...hopefully its more than what you'd make at your regular job (less gas to drive to work, coffee break $, lunch $, etc).

Its a tall order, but that's what you'd need to do to convince him (or any financial institution for that matter) to support your business venture.

Good luck

[Grammie]

Mary Beth you can do this and with all the other advise given I must tell you that when I left my good paying job early in the year it took a few months to reorganize and learn to manage my time differently but I have never been happier. It is getting your family and friends to respect you are working and to not interrupt you all the time that is hard. They want you to do quilts but everytime they need something they expect you to just stop and see to their needs. Be sure and have a family discussion on this and clear them all up on the matter. Also you need time for yourself to clear the mind and get your creative juices back sometimes when burnout sets in and it does for all of us.

Yes the regular paycheck is gone but I don't miss it a bit. I save alot staying home and in reality spend less, also as I don't spend near as much in gas or other needs just to go to a regular job.

It is a risk to some degree. I believe to be really good at something you have to work hard at it and be devoting to improving your skills. This comes with time and patience. Just like any NEW JOB. You will work your way to the top.

Are you getting enough quilts? Are there other things you are willing to quilt? Decorator fabrics, jackets, shams etc.

All you have to do is let people know you offer these services to the degree you want. If you just do quilts that is fine to.

Bottom line is if it didn't work out can you get a comparible job earning what you do now or are you giving up something you can not return to. Only you know the risks and what your skills are.

Having met you I believe you can do this. You have the talent and work ethic. I hope your husband comes around for you. I am fortunate that my Husband just wants me happy doing something I love. I will say that my happiness has flowed to him as I am a better Mother and wife without all the stress of my routine job. It improved an already wonderful marriage just by me being happier.

Good luck. I hope your DH comes around and gives you nothing but total support and encouragement to succeed.

[gable428]

Smile&nod, you always have such great words of wisdom. The way you explained the definitions of "business" and "self-employment" makes a lot of sense. I think the Quilt Lady is lucky to have you around

Gable

[mrsbishwit]

Hi Mary Beth,

If you want some concrete edvidence to show your DH what this business can do you really need to look within your area to get the true picture of what a full time monthly income can be for quilters within your area.

I like to think of myself as being sucessful so far, been in bussiness 2 years and I have a good solid customer base that keeps expanding as well as having solid repeat/ loyal customers. I am a full time quilter and bottom line I make $1500.-$2500. gross per month. This is a great sublimental business but as a main income/ a sole income no (because there is no medical benefits, you don't pay into social security and there is no 401K plans).

I was a stay at home mom before I started my business so I was not contributing to the household finances. To be successful in this business you need to be able to focus and be driven. You need to veiw it as a business and not as a hobby. You need to be regestered as a business (paying taxes,seperate bank account than your households etc..) and you need to run it as a business with set deadlines, great bookeeping skills and organization. Having your own full time company is very diffferent than waking up everyday to go to work for someone else where when the work day is done you leave it behind and go home. With your own full time quilting business it is a 24/7 job with long hours, lots of stress and lots of networking to stay on top. You will find that you will be working twice as hard, and twice as long in order to be successful.

And as someone eles has said that you will need to continually put $ back into the business in order for the company to continue to grow if you want to increase your base and profit margin.

There will be sacrtafices that you and your family will have to make to be successful. There will be times when you won't feel like quilting but you have deadlines to meet, there may be times where you may have to miss out on some family fun because of the dealines you need to meet. You need to be flexible and be available when your customers are available.

I don't mean to scare you, but you need to approach it with open eyes and know exactly what you are in for. There are some great advantages of having your own full time business too. Such as the satisfaction that you built it from nothing, that you have a good rep in the quilting community not only known for your quilting skills but for your business ones as well. Seeing your skills and knowledge improve each year and seeing your income grow as you grow. You can't get this feeling from working for some one else because you don't "own" the 9-5 job. It's not the same as being successuful for someone elses' company.

In the begining my DH also thought that no one could make a decent wage from long arm quilting...now he believes that anything is possible and he is thinking if I could fit in a couple of more quilts per week I could make even more money per month...but I do have to reign him in because there is a limit of hours in a day when you are still raising your kids (5 in my case).

Good luck, think long and hard if this is the way you want to go especially now that Jen's baby will be here soon and the new baby will be taking up alot of your time (especially if you will be watching her from time to time).

Joann

[Mary Beth]

Joann, and all of you who have responded.

Thank you so much for your input. This is going to help me see and maybe give me some things to talk to DH about. Since I have been running a machine quilting business for 3 years I know what a balancing act it can be from time to time. Getting a clear schedule was the hardest part for me. Telling a customer that I was two months out, then realizing I was more like 5 months out. I knew then I had to get it together, and I have come up with a system that is working extremely well.

As far as being willing to sacrifice time, I have been doing that. I don't go to see my parents, or my son and his family, except when I can work it into the schedule. I do not attend graduation parties, wedding or baby showers or birthday parties, unless they are in my schedule. DH and I have both come to realize there are times we can do these things, but they have to be in the schedule or we don't go. We are planning a trip in September for my dad's 80th birthday - won't miss it. But I have scheduled my quilts so that it shouldn't be a problem. I am very good about sticking to it. DH wants to go to the ocean - any ocean, since we fly for free we could pick up and go today when I get off work...but we won't...he said let's check your business schedule and go from there...so he is getting it.

I know I need to work on the bookkeeping part...boy do I hate numbers. But I have Quickbooks, just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to work on that stuff. Keep thinking if I was quilting full-time it would leave me a window of time to get the bookkeeping done.

And I know about burn out. I have seen a local quilter experience burn out and it is terrible to see someone who is extremely talented go down the tubes. I don't want to do that, so I know I need a balance of promoting business, customer work, my own work and family time, without going up in a puff of smoke.

Because I have been working in coporate America all my adult life, mostly banks, I have taken a number of business classes and learned along the way. I think I have the business sense I need to run my business full-time, just need to take the leap.

Thank you all for your help. Hopefully I can talk to DH about this and not beg:D I really do want this to be a success.

Mary Beth

[Guest Smile&nod]

Great post. Joann, I'm glad you posted what you did...sounds a little less harsh coming from a quilter running a business, than it does coming from that "typical dumb male guy"

But its all valid...business is business, family is family, and its hard not to get the two mixed up together. Espcially the parts about attention to detail, flexibilty, long hours and sacrifice. If you are in business, you have to be a bit more hardnosed to make things work. And what Joann posted is essentially the stuff that differentiates between running a business, and just putting your name on an open sign and waiting for work to come to you.

[mrsbishwit]

Mary Beth,

Sounds like your eyes are wide open and you still want to do it, so I say jump in with both feet, hold on tight and don't look back. It will truly be an awesome experience that will make you feel so fullfilled on the success that you create.

Also remember that the sky is truly the limit with how successful you can be (let your gut instincts lead you) . Your DH has gotten use to the staus quoe and that's fine but once he takes this leap with you, he will really see you shine in ways he never has before. He will be your biggest cheerleader in the end

Also smile & nod you're not typical and your not a dumb male. You made several great points as well. A business is a business plain and simple, it requires alot of hard work and long hours to nuture it and to get it to grow (kind of like kids or a rose garden) if you don't work it on a regular bases than you will never enjoy the benefits of it.

There's a lot of people that think it will be easy to start a business (especially one that stems from their hobby) but there is so much more involved than just the initial cost of the machine. Once the decision is made to treat it as a business and not a hobby than it truly can be a very rewarding adventure.

Mary Beth tell your DH Karen McTavish's story, Pam Clark's story and all the others that have been very succesful with this business. Mine is not as great as theirs but I am still new and who knows where it's going to lead me. I think Judy L. posted a while back at her peak how many quilts per week/or month she was doing (actually there is a whole thread based on turnaround times and volume). Also Grammie's, Linda (stellar stitches-I think) have both made the transistion to full time quilters from other jobs.

It can be done, not immpossible.

Let us know how it works out and when your last offical day is at your current job is.

Joann

[Sandra Darlington]

Thank you all for this information. I am not in business and I don't have a LA yet, but I hope to have both at some point....when I have the money for the LA. I am not sure if I will have the drive to have a thriving business. I guess I will have a better idea after I get the LA and have a year or so to paractice, and have some refined skills. I guess then I would have the confidence I would need. I may be just a hobby quilter who makes some extra money from time to time quilting for others, and doing what I love doing, rather than a booming LA business. It is a huge expense for a toy, though. I have plenty of time to think about all of this, as I need plenty of time to save for it.

Thanks again for these great, informative posts.

Sandy

[Grammie]

Mary Beth how far or close are you to Coffeeville Kansas?

Just curious as I'm taking a trip to visit in a few weeks. If you were close enough I might could come visit.

Grammie

[pigletaz]

Hi, I am going to start out full time in September when my machine comes. My husband does not believe this is going to be a successful venture, but since my parents are footing the bill to get me started, he cannot say anything. Yes, DH's can be difficult to convince but even his mother is behind me! My parents are so great to do this for me (and my two young children). Since my kids will be in school together starting in august it's the perfect time to get this thing rolling finally. I haven't had a paying job in 8 years, so this will be really meaningful to me, generating income (slowly at first). I have had unpaid jobs - mom, driver of minivan, school volunteer, etc. etc. Good luck. I can't wait to start my wonderful adventure.

[TinaC]

Okay,

Here's my perspective coming from the partner of smile&nod. I started in 2005 and believe me it's been a rollercoaster. I've really only started to see the rewards in the past 6 months and that's because my DH has taken on a lot of the office stuff and is letting me do what I'm good at (quilting).

My reality was that I had to face the hard facts of what the difference was between being in business instead of a hobby. I knew I wanted to do this full time but had a hard time making the transition. It was difficult to say to no no people when they wanted my time and becasue i was in my home they didn't take my business seriously either. I let them push all over me. Now though, I find a schedule(which I'm still working on) is a must. If things don't fit the schedule well mabey it gets handled next time. I'm continually busy planning for quilt shows and trade shows. I'm also a quilt judge, I lecture and teach classes, all must be scheduled. Plus I need to plan for business discussions with DH, some alone time for me and let's not forget the kids and the dogs............................

If you are serious follow your gut but don't do anything behind your DH's back, especially if you aren't willing to accept the consequenses. Its better to have him on side, and since you say he's more business oriented you can even stroke his ego a bit by asking him to help out and offer his advice too.

In the end, you have to find some balance. Running a business is great, but I have to remember too that I'm a mom and a wife as well as a business owner.

[Mary Beth]

For me, my kids are all grown and out of the house, so that helps. I think, like Tina says, you should have other avenues such as teaching, etc. I agree nothing should be done behind DH's back...oh my gosh...this is not like buying a new toaster (or Circle Lord), this is your families financial future. It all needs to be discussed (no whining) and agreed upon, without the answer being coerced from your DH. He needs to be a willing participant.

I feel confident that I can do this...but until DH does, I will keep getting ready for work everyday and going in and doing my job. He is the level headed one in our house, I am the comedian/dreamer!!

[pigletaz]

My marriage has been in trouble for years and we are on the way to divorce --- so having his blessing is not essential for this to work for me. In fact, it's essential that I get this thing going so that I have a paying job where I can stay home and still be the kind of mom I need to be for the kids. I think if we were going to stay together then it would be important for me to get agreement from him. As it is.... we'll I feel this just can't happen fast enough!

[ramona-quilter]

Hey dreamer, five years ago did you think that you would be running your own business doing something that you love? Don't discount your dream, MB. Just keep working toward it.

You, well all of us, got some wonderful advice on this thread. Tammie talked for months about quitting her job. It was not a spur of the moment thing. She got her stuff together and when the moment was right, she was ready (well, sort of ready, huh, Tammie )

When I read your post, my question was pretty simple. "How many quilts do you have waiting to be done?" I just read that you had a 5-month waiting list. It sure sounds like you have enough business to keep you busy.

For me, with 25 years left on my California mortgage, quilting as a job is not an option. As attractive as it sounds to me, my DH keeps asking me if I am still having fun quilting. He is afraid that the quilting will turn into just another job. Gosh, I hope not.

My formula has always been:

1 queen a day X 5 days a week = ??

If ?? is less than your current paycheck, will you be OK?

Only you and DH can answer that one.

I am confident that you will make the right decision for your circumstances. And if now is not the time, consider your part-time quilting as a training ground for the future.

[quiltmonkey]

Last year, I bought the book "Make Money Quilting" by Sylvia Landman. In her book, she spends a lot of time talking about keeping a strong discipline on dividing your work schedule and your home schedule (interruptions, etc.) and other things like marketing, advertising, etc. I thought it was a pretty good book that covered a lot of information.

[Mary Beth]

Grammie Tammie,

I am about 3 hours from Coffeyville...

Mary Beth

[Judi]

Mary Beth - I hope that all works out for you! I am a stay at home Mom with

a 7 and 11 yr old. This summer time is tuff - because they always want to

play, go to the park, or go swimming, or have friends come over..... yeicks!

It would help if my machine was in a seperate place, but I am in the living

room. I do like to be by the family. Lately the girls have really been

into Legos and have a whole village built next to my machine. Wish I could

play too.... but I work. Not as long or as hard as I should I guess, but I do

want to have fun while I am doing it. I also do not want this to be just

"another job" one starts to hate to go to....

Still working on getting my schedule all straight, not good at keeping very

acurate times on quilt jobs. I'm sure I don't charge enough for my SID work

or custom jobs, but heh - I AM having fun! I love quilting! Thank goodness

my dear husband makes enough $$ to pay the bills. I do pay for "almost"

everything quilt related!!

[luv2qlt]

Grammie Tammie,

I have been thinking about you. Have you been affected by the flooding in Coffeyville? I hope the RV is parked up on a hill.

Since I am a native SE Kansas girl, I have been watching the news pretty closely.

I hope you are high and dry!

[Mary Beth]

Wow, the residents of Coffeyville were on the news this morning at a town hall meeting, they took one gal out in hand cuffs...emotions are running extremely high...I really feel for those folks.

[pigletaz]

What happened to take her out in handcuffs? Wow, I really feel for all the flood victims out there. We have the opposite problem in AZ - no rain. I think we are in the 12th year of a drought. And this season could have a record number of wildfires. Good luck to those in KS and surrounding areas.

[Mary Beth]

There is a lot going on in Coffeeville. They had an oil spill in the flooding so everything is probably contaminated. I'm sure the residents are not allowed on thier properties for safty sake and I'm sure they would like to go in and get their stuff. Of course the news people were talking and you could only hear the lady in the background yelling, but you could see the pictures of the police putting the hand cuffs on behind her back. She was very upset and causing a scene...they were just removing her. It is sad. I didn't live in Kansas City in '93 when everything flooded here. There are still lines on the buildings, even businesses with a painted line showing where the water line had been, just to put it into prespective. It is mind boggling when you see those marks. They just don't ever want to forget how bad it was. I remember seeing it on the news and thinking how terrible that was.

[Grammie]

Hi Mary Beth,

I hope to visit my DH in a few weeks after the smoke clears. Many last week were evacuated and the Refinery flooded and was of course shutdown. Now they are working on the repairs and such. Will take a great deal of work and time.

When we had the Rita and Katrina storm there was alot of crime so who knows what she did.

Luv2quilt we are not in an RV? Yes we were suppose to but posponed as my Husband may be leaving the Country for a few years. We hope to have more specific dates by the end of the year. Up in the air as of now. That will determine what we do. When you Husband travels alot to work the unexpected can happen at anytime.

Anyway after the Quilt Show in August I hope to go visit again and I was thinking we could all set a time and date to visit. I do not mind driving to have a GIRLS day out.

Just something to think about. I do have two quilts that I need to get started for our January Show. I can do all my marking and piecing there though and quilt once I am home.

Any let me know. My email is attached below. or use

quiltsbygrammie@hughes.net ( my home email. The yahoo is backup)

Have a good weekend everyone

[Melody]

I had to laugh at you post Judi.... I am in the dining room with my machine and I too have an airport, fire station and construction yard of legos next to my feet also!!!! I am glad to know that I am not the only one!

As far as my response... I work part-time 3 days a week in an Engineering firm as their bookkeeper and quilt a couple of days a week in addition to being mom to 13 and 10 year old boys. I am glad that I did not quit working to quilt full time right off the bat because with it being summer I have slowed waaay down! And honestly, I have had a couple of bad weeks also.... I have had the awful first time clients syndrome this week and last week it seemed like whatever I tried to load there was something wrong with it. And then I actually had to refuse to quilt two quilts because they were bad! So right now this week I am burnt out! I am trying to take a step away from quilting this week!