gsleader Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 How did you determine what to charge for this quilt? You can tell by the pictures that you put a lot of time, thought, and energy into the completion of this quilt, not to mention the thread and lose of time while it was on your machine being quilted when you could have been quilting other customers quilts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bekah Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 I have 6 minutes to spare and just had to sign in after lurking a few minutes. Oh my Teresa. THAT IS GORGEOUS I am in absolute awe. I cannot imagine ever being able to do something that beautiful but by gosh I can say I know someone who can. What wonderful advertising for your quilting business. Thank you for posting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovetwoquilt Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Theresa, What a gorgeous job you did! You turned her $150 quilting job into a $$$MILLION quilt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramona-quilter Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Teresa, This really is gorgeous. I do love those flowery feathers, so fresh. And that McT looks great to anchor that HUGE circle. You showed no fear in doing those arcs. What an undertaking and it is the perfect choice for that center. It makes the quilt sing. Great job. I also hope that this customer shows this quilt to all her friends; it is good advertising. A couple months ago, I did a lot of work on a block of the month quilt, pure custom, lots of hours selecting and quilting the design for each block. By the time I was done, I knew that I was only going to make minimum wage on that quilt. I had quoted $100 to the customer; it was 60 x 72. When I delivered the quilt, I handed the customer the invoice and smiled. She loved it. Then I asked her if she gets a question about how much she paid the quilter, "Tell them that you got a good deal, I will charge $140 for the next one". The piecer knew she got a bargain and she did tell her friends. I ended up doing 7 of those BOMs. Your work speaks for itself, Teresa. I bet they are knocking on your door with more quilts very soon. WTG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwltnldy Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 I bow to the great one.....$150 is insanely low for that marvelous work. Don\'t tell anybody else! Just show off the pictures and raise your price girlfriend! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmileandNod Posted April 7, 2008 Report Share Posted April 7, 2008 Very nice work there and you definately deserve to be proud of the effort. (Just noticed this thread now) And on the biz side of things: make sure you don\'t stiff yourself on the next job. Be fair, keep the flair, but don\'t let the clients take advantage of you when it comes to your effort vs amount paid. Use this as a jump point to show what you are capable of, and what you are worth (you can still offer a "deal" on the next job too, to keep the quilts flowing in) but you\'ll burn yourself out if they all expect something that intricate for basement pricing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted April 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 I guess it is just very hard for y\'all to realize how money is around here. This is one of the poorest areas in the entire United States. The average price for a home is 70-85 thousand dollars and a two income family makes about 40-50 thousand dollars. That is alot less than a lot of other places. For me to be making $150 to do a quilt is a big accomplishment here. As I get more well known I will charge more of what you might charge, but for now I\'m happy making a hundred or two doing what I love. I make $2000 a month doing something I hate. If I can get to that point doing what I love, then I\'ll be super happy. Not being nasty here, just justifying why I charged what I did- which I really shouldn\'t have to do. For the record, I picked up two more quilts from her this evening. One is her free job (pay for 9, 10th one is free). All over meandering or simple panto on a thousand pyramids twin size. The other one is a beautiful star that she wants me to do full custom. She said she wants thread changes, buried thread tails, the works. She is going to pay me .025 per sq. inch. I will post pictures of it for ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmileandNod Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 actually, from some of your past threads, I do remember you mentioning the financial situations out there. I\'m coming at this from a business standpoint though. What I mean was, if you feel your work is worth more, then you don\'t want to set the stage that you can\'t bump your price up later. Else you will be forever stuck at that rate. If quilting was just a hobby, that\'s different...but if its to pay bills, you sometimes need a harder look. Having said that, there\'s nothing wrong with offering a nice deal to this client on future quilts, if she is able to drum up more business for you But, depending on your business relationship you develop with her, let her know this is a deal for HER...not a deal for everyone. I\'ve read too many stories here, of a quilter getting taken advantage of by complete strangers because they "heard from a friend of a friend that their sister\'s cousin got a custom job for free" or something ludicrous like that. If folks are doing this as a business, they you have to treat it as such too. Its a fine balance between doing something you love, and maintaining a business mindset. And while the quilting comes from the heart, the business needs to come from the mind, to keep you on track, so that a year from now, you are STILL in business. You\'ve got some momentum now, so keep hammering at it. But make sure you take some time to see what is working well, what can be working better, and start working on that roadmap to streamline your business for the next quarter, year, etc. Its the most boring, finicky and depressing part of the biz, but it needs to be done. I can honestly say that 95% of the businesses I see fail in my program, fail because they don\'t have a plan, or didn\'t make changes to their plan over time. sorry for the soapbox speech. It still doesn\'t take anything away from the fact that you did an amazing job on this project, and if you feel you can charge more next time on a similar job for another client, then don\'t be afraid to negotiate for more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted April 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 No offense taken, and I do understand your point. The best thing for me is that this lady has given me 9 over the last year and a half and she is becoming more active in the contest scene. She entered Paducah, but was turned down. She won 2nd on one of her hand quilted ones at a show somewhere near Memphis. She is getting me information about that show so I can go and hand out brochures, etc. She has also given me this cool quilt to do for a show in Pennsylvania. It is called a Pennsylvania star. This is the one where she is willing to pay me more, and I have to do a perfect job on it. She is putting me down as the quilter on the entry form. For me, that makes it justifiable to give her a great deal once in a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Kuhlman Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 wow!!!!!!!! WHAT LOVELY QUILTING. You inspire me. Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merryjo2003 Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 Teresa, I think you did a wonderful job! The quilt and the quilting are beautiful. I\'m sure your customer got a very good deal. Around here, I think it would have been in the .04/sq. in. I think your customer got a steal of a deal! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollyc Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 you made a silk purse from a sow\'s ear. beautiful work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxooms Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 You slayed the dragon! This looks like a quilt that really pushes one...beyond sanity, perhaps, but you certainly rose to the occasion! Given that it was out of square so to speak, it started out at a disadvantage. Why is it that one gets a lot of satisfaction for conquering the most challenged quilts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calicokat Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 It\'s breathtaking! I wish I could see it in person I bet it is even more stunning!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TishMarshall Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 absolutely beautiful! BUT let me tell ya that if I but this much of my heart into a quilt and was paid $150. I would never quilt for anyone again. You did such a fabulous job.............I\'m wondering how much you earned an hour.....work like this should be charged by the hour not the sq. in. And in closing, I mean NO disrespect to anyone. Tish Originally posted by chickenscratch This quilt was nothing but trouble. The edges were waving, the backing kept stretching, and the batting was junk. But, it\'s done:P I wish I had told her 5 cents or 10 cents an inch,...but she wouldn\'t have paid that. The quilt is 94X108. The white part has white so fine with white bottom line bobbin. THe blue parts have clear monopoly with white bottom line bobbin. I think I have about a thousand starts and stops.. and they all look awful. Thank goodness she decided to enter a different one into the show when I told her about the ruffly borders and stretchy backing. Of course she loves it. SHe will have another one for me to do in a week or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RitaR Posted April 9, 2008 Report Share Posted April 9, 2008 Teresa, you nailed that one right on with the quilting.. terriffic job.. be proud of your progress and level of achievement. RitaR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajab Posted April 10, 2008 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 Great Job Teresa!! For your time and energy she got a great deal. But like you said she is bringing you more and entering them into shows. What great exposure for you. I understand about the income level in your area. You can only charge what the market will bear. But know that you are worth every penny you charge and more. Can\'t wait to see more pics of your awesome quilting. Angela Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmyhogan Posted April 12, 2008 Report Share Posted April 12, 2008 I agree with all of the posts ~ FANTASTIC QUILTING ~ and your quilting is worth Waaayyyy more than you charged. I hope that this quilt brings you all the business you desire. You have done a wonderful job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judi Posted April 13, 2008 Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 I agree Teresa - AWESOME quilting - too bad you can\'t get paid more for it... but in time. I do understand all of the points you mentioned too.... You will be doing better for this next one! Look forward to seeing it as well! Love what you did with this quilt - the center just makes it perfect!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busybee Posted April 13, 2008 Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 East coast, west coast, south , north and midwest all charge differently. Basicly because of cost of living in those areas. Here in midwest except in big cities cost for rental is about 450.00 to 650.00 average. I know there are places higher and lower. NOT including pay scale and what is businesses there. There is NO Way I could pay 1700. to 2000. for rent like the west or east. So it does depend also on how much $$ people make and how many quilters are in your area too. Teresa, you did a wonderful job and marketing is the game we have to pay for. Whether it is by an ad or word of mouth. It all works and discounts or specials work too. Just like Wally world does.If they did not have sales people would not come as much. Volume works too. Just think if advertising was not out there, how much would it be and how long would it take Not doing Perks. I don\'t mean cut throating each other, just good advertising or perks. I hope I am clear as a bell on this for all to understand and don\'t mean to step on toes. Oh, Teresa, what is that pattern the piecer used . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra Darlington Posted April 13, 2008 Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 Teresa, Which show in PA? Since Lancaster just past, it would be either Hershey or Harrisburg, unless there are others I don\'t know about. I may not get to Hershey this year (July I think), but I do expect to go to Harrisburg in the fall. I would love to look for something you quilted hanging up at the show. Good luck with that. Sandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted April 13, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 Sandy, I\'m not sure. She just told me she needed it back by August 1st so she can get it finished and photgraphed. I\'ll try to ask her. Nita, I\'ll ask her about the pattern. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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