chickenscratch Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 finished-- 2 hours 20 minutes to piece. 2 hours to quilt. abotu 15 minutes to mark the roses. Still have to do the binding. She wanted traditional, that's what she got, but for me it's a little bit boring. There's a picture of the center block at the bottom of this list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbWetzel Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Teresa.. I think it would a personal choice... Good luck.. Barb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Teresa, I sent you a U2U. Sandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Theresa, I would do a 9-patch alternating with a snowball block. That would give you lots of open space and they stitch up in a snap! Can't help on the fabric choice but I'm anxious to see what the experts say! Heidi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigletaz Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 I can't really give you advice on the first quilt. The baby quilt - is she providing the fabrics on top of the $50. If you shopped at a quilt shop for the fabrics you might get out of there with a little money left for the actually jobs of piecing, quilting it. Or do you have fabrics you can use? Gee, I don't know, you are a wonderful quilter and this must be a great friend for $50 bucks!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramona-quilter Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 I agree with Heidi, keep it simple. I bet the $50 is for the fabrics, piecing and quilting, isn't it? People just don't get it. You can just barely buy quilt shop fabric, batting and thread for $50. So your labor (cutting, piecing and quilting) will be car-hop wages. I would let the fabrics do some of the work and not put any whiz-bang baby pattern into this. Simple and fast. And hope that she does not tell her friends what the quilt cost her or they'll be beating down your door for cheapo quits. :mad: We had a secretary at work. She was always doing nice things for folks. She would go out of her way to wish you happy birthday and make sure workers had all the supplies they needed. She loved cats. So I saw this fabu fabric with cats wearing subglasses and holding umbrella drinks and I thought of Tara. So I made her a simple snowball and 4-patch quilt that was lap size. She was thrilled. She showed it to everybody that came near her office. It really made me feel good. If that was the end of the story, it would be good. But she told me how she lays it on the sofa for the cats (she has 4) to lay on. Hmmm. Then she told me that she thought that I should make more quilts and sell them on eBay. Her words "I bet you could get $30 a piece for them". Yeah, right. OK, I'm stepping down from my soap box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katydids Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 $50.00 to do a whole baby quilt start to finish... oh dear, Teresa you have GOT to stop giving your time away like that. No one will pay what you are worth if others find out about this. I hate to say this, but you are digging your own hole and will have a horrible time getting out of it. I am not trying to be harsh, but you are worth more than that and these people need to realize it. Let them buy a 50.00 baby quilt commercially, if that is all they appreciate. Now I have a question for you.... where are you finding the 108" sateen? Is it online somewhere? I searced for some before, but came up emtyhanded. Patty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CucumberQuilting Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 When my little guy was about 18 months old I went down to the local quilt shop to buy supplies to make him a little quilt. I pushed him through the aisles in his stroller and let him pull out the bolts of fabrics that he seemed to like and that's what I made his quilt from. I was SHOCKED to find out I had spent $50.00 to make a "baby" quilt! I just about fainted to see I spent $5.00 for a spool of thread! It had been about ten years since I had made a quilt and the last time I bought fabric it had been about $2.00/yard not $10.00. I saved the receipt but you can bet I never showed it to my husband. Good to hear the latest reports that Americans made more money, spent more money and actually saved more money last year! Hooray for us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadows4 Posted September 1, 2007 Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Patty: I've found 118" wide white sateen at FabriQuilt. They have other fabrics that wide also, and some 108". I live about 20 minutes from them and have a wholesale account with them, but they also have a website, though not sure how to use it. If one of you needs help getting it, maybe I could get a bolt and ship it to you. Even with the shipping it'd be cheaper than paying retail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katydids Posted September 1, 2007 Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Thanks Jeanne, I sent you an email privately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Patty, www.fabricshack.com has the fabric. I was also told that Joanne's carries it. The $50 is for the whole quilt making process, and sadly, that is what the normal is here. Maybe we are just in a very poor part of the country, but there is NOBODY out there locally who is going to pay me $100 to make a baby quilt. And it is looking like my quilting prices are also too high, now that others have posted price lists in the fabric store. Most are getting. .01 for pantos and meander, and .025 for custom. My prices are higher that than, I guess that explains no customers. And of course there is the little lady in Alamo who will do any quilt, any size for $25. She has a 6 month waiting list I was told by a person who called me wanting quilting done. They chose to wait on her rather than pay my prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigletaz Posted September 1, 2007 Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Teresa - where are you in TN? My relatives are in Maryville and I'm not familiar with Finley. Just curious.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 Husband's job led us here. Then he lost that job when they got rid of middle management. Of course by then we had bought a house, I had gotten my job, and kids are in school. We like it here, it's just a poor place to live. Even with my job I only make $29000 a year for a full time teacher. That's way below national average. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigletaz Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 Sorry to hear about the job/move then your DH loses that job! Goodness. Well, I do love eastern Tennessee, but that's where I spent all my summers as a child. Yes, well, the teachers out here just got an increase due to the governor giving a statewide pay raise. Teachers here start at about $26,000 for a new teacher. And I thought we were one of the most underpaying states for education. Good luck to you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judie01 Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 Teresa: Could you get something going with quilting by having a website and/or (i hate to say it) Ebay? Or checking out your larger cities & doing some advertising? How close are you to a major city? Is there an opportunity to develop a type of mail-order business -- we're pretty connected now what with the internet & email communications. How about your state teacher's association? Also your national teachers association; police, fire departments, unions, etc. etc. Networking & marketing. Lots & lots of business cards -- leave one every single place you go - grocery, post office, K-mart cashier --- I mean everywhere (& your husband too). Might sound corney but it is a most successful technique. I agree with others about 'not giving your beautiful work away'. Maybe some others would have different or better ideas of how you can develop your business & get more quilts. If you can't get the work locally -- expand your area -- & give thanks for the post office & UPS - Sorry; didn't mean to make this so long. Judie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2007 Okay, Y'all. Just to make sure my prices aren't way too low I've been doing some research. I've called three different quilters in West Tennessee. The closest one is about an hour and a half away. The others are further. I found their names in Longarm Yellow Pages, by calling quilt shops, and by searching the internet. Here's what I discovered. Quilter A would charge $5.00/sq. foot to piece and quilt a simple baby quilt. At 42 x 42 inches her price comes up to $61.25. That doesn't include fabric. Quilter B would piece and quilt a very simple baby quilt for .03 per sq. inch. That comes up to $52.92. Quilter C would piece and quilt a very simple baby quilt for $8.00 per hour. That would probably be around $40-$50. None of these include fabric, but I only spent $33.45 on fabric, and I bought extra so I can make two quilts; one for the lady and one to make and sell. SO, in this area at least, my $50 to piece and quilt it is not so out of line. And I'll make the money back on the fabric by piecing and quilting the second quilt to sell at the craft show. Just wanted to let you all know that prices are way different in different parts of the country. Something for all the new quilters to REALLY research and think about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bekah Posted September 9, 2007 Report Share Posted September 9, 2007 Teresa, thank you for the information about the pricing in your area. It gives me a good idea for when I get asked to make a quilt from beginning to end. And I am praying for your business. Just hang in there; someday you will look back on this season and smile and wish you had a few moments of no customers because you will be so busy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 9, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2007 What would you quilt on it? It took me 2 hours and 20 minutes so far to make it. I don't want to spend hours quilting it. Does anybody have an easy pattern for a cabbage rose or something to fill the white blocks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted September 9, 2007 Report Share Posted September 9, 2007 Teresa, I would either Terry Twist the chain or cross hatch it and then a simple stencil flower or heart...just something simple in the snowballs. I can photo copy my cabbage rose if you want, but its basicly a sqiggle in the center and three rows of bumps going around it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingupastorm Posted September 10, 2007 Report Share Posted September 10, 2007 Teresa sounds like your area will not bear more in the way of pricing. I am impressed that you were able to whip that out in around 2 hours! It looks great so far. I would just do a simple panto that you are good and fast at and send it out the door. Sometimes extra money is hard to come by and you do not get paid what you are worth but some money is better than no money. Prices in my area are not so high either and there is a ton of competition. I am slowly beginning to get people from my guild asking me to quilt for them. They like my style of work and that is why they choose me over the competition. It is slow and quilting will not pay the bills but hopefully it will pay off the machine and then I hope to close shop and quilt just for me and those willing to pay what I fell I am worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltjunkie Posted September 10, 2007 Report Share Posted September 10, 2007 Theresa, I always remind people that when they have to send a quilt off to be quilted for a cheap price, they usually pay shipping both ways and they run the risk of the quilt getting lost in the mail..so if they are paying $25. + shipping and waiting 6 months, paying you $50 for the same quilt comes out to be about the same and no risk of losing their quilt! This has made several people stop and think and I usually end up with the quilt. Not to mention..you get what you pay for.:mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laststitchstudio Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 Tersa I think the quilt you've made is beautiful and I understand about pricing here in TN. We maybe a little better here, but just the same it isn't like other states.........many people here don't have the money for luxuries like we offer. It's tough when you are as talented as you are.......love your work. Renee................I'm very close to Maryville.....25 minutes away and my place for food shopping, guild and lots of friends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2007 I just wrote the name in cursive and filled it in with pink thread. I hope it looks okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted September 16, 2007 Report Share Posted September 16, 2007 Teresa, Love it. I hope this person appreciates the quilt! You did a great job. Heidi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted September 16, 2007 Report Share Posted September 16, 2007 Teresa, that quilt is absolutely lovely! What a lucky baby she is to get to snuggle with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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