Yes ~ that necklace that I linked to on Amazon includes a chain. I buy those same chains and even buying wholesale, I am lucky to find them for $5.00 each which means I should be selling them for $10.00 minimum. I have to configure my work to include chains so usually I am sourcing the cheapest ones I can find…
Not only is it fun . . . “But you’re so ***good ***at it!”
Both of my parents were artists, and I was always very good at art in school. But every time we had to do an art project as homework, all I heard was “Oh, your mother did that for you!” Little did they know that I occasionally gave my mother ideas for ***her ***art.
And now . . . my artwork is extremely detailed, and assembled very meticulously. I use unique techniques that I’ve developed over several years. It sometimes takes me 2 or 3 months to finish one piece. And people are indignant that I don’t sell them for a few hundred dollars.
And then there’s:
“Oh, I can’t afford your prices. But I have a flair for art. Could you teach me to do what you do?”
Have you ever seen the site RentACoder? Millions of people not willing to pay what good programming work is worth.
Every time someone new learns I am a Web designer, they ask “what does a Web site cost?” I tell them that’s like asking “What does a house cost?”
Maybe, if you are really dedicated. Your unpaid apprenticeship will last several years.
A friend of mine suggested recently that I should (or at least could) sell my knitting. She was sure I could get $500 for this shawl Um, no. $72 worth of yarn, $8 of beads, $100 worth of needles (although I can and have reused them, so that’s not really fair to count as a cost), and three months worth of labor? Not likely.
Five hundred dollars is a deeply flattering amount of money, it’s just not a reasonable payback for the effort that went into the shawl.
I might someday knit a shawlette or socks for a fee, if I ever catch up with all the stuff I want to knit for me and mine, but never a masterpiece like that.
Most people who don’t knit or crochet have no idea how expensive quality yarn is. I get people asking me if I will knit them socks or a scarf all the time. First thing I tell them is how much the materials will cost. That usually floors them right there.
You want a pair of handknit, wool socks? It’s going to cost at the very least $8 in yarn but likely more. If I sit down and knit dilligently, it would probably take me 10 hrs or so to make a pair of socks. At minimum wage, that’s almost $90 for the pair of socks…and that’s not even cashmere!
I limit my services to those people to whom I am close enough to give the gift of my time.
This one almost makes me go postal. I have a Master’s degree with an emphasis on jewelry and metalwork. A standard master’s degree is 40 unites (two years) but an MFA is 60 units and takes three years. It will take me years to pay off the student loans involved in obtaining this degree and it is unlikely I will be able to ever do it making $12.00 earrings.
BTW, for reference, here is a crown that I created several years ago which has been shown in a number of exhibits around the world and here is some of my jewelry which has been shown as a set in art exhibits as well.
That crown is beautiful! and the rings are very cute! I love them.
My answer to this is, “No, I’m a terrible teacher, but I can give you the names of a couple of shops that hold knitting classes.” The only people I’ve said I would teach to knit are my best friend and my kid.
Another crocheter here. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard, “Wow, that afghan you made is gorgeous! You should sell those on Ebay!” Well, now… how much do you think it’d be worth? “Oh, at least $100. No doubt you could get more!” Hmm. Lemme think. $50 for the supplies, and 80 hours of handwork? $100, huh? Where do I sign up!
A lady at a baby shower, a stranger to me, was so taken by the gift I’d made (a Raggedy Ann doll) that she actually tried to order one from me. She said she needed it by Christmas, and that she would buy the materials, and how much would I charge her. I laughed and told her she wouldn’t be interested. She persisted, and finally I told her I’d make her one for $1000.
She was actually **angry **and thought I was insulting her. I explained that I worked on the doll for nearly 200 hours, and came up with the design myself, and that it was a labor of love for my soon-to-be niece, and of course, no handmade doll was worth the kind of money I’d have to get to make it even marginally profitable. The lady was still pretty pissed off though, and clearly thought I was being a bitch.
I personally think the only way someone talented at knitting / crochet could ever make money at it would be to sell the patterns they come up with to other crafters, or possibly by giving private lessons by the hour. Never by selling the finished projects. There’s just no profit there. No way, no how.
My thoughts exactly…
I do three creative things that people are always trying to get me to do free or cheap. 1. Web design. 2. Knitting 3. Sewing.
It’s hard for me to say no to people. That is why most of my web work has been done free or cheap for people who have taken advantage of me. Or I get attitude when I submit an invoice with the agreed-upon rate.
Every time someone sees a scarf I knitted or a dress I sewed, they want one too, for free or deeply discounted. It’s not even the materials… it’s the sheer amount of labor that goes into creating a handmade item.
Wow, great story! I just recently finished a handmade Raggedy Ann. Boy was she a lot of work! Her face and heart and clothes were all hand-embroidered. A lot of her body and clothes were hand-stitched. Her hair was hand looped and sewn. Little details like eyelet lace accents, etc.
You’re exactly right, $1,000 is about the right price for such a labor-intensive craft. That lady was a bitch to act insulted at the price. If she wants a cheapo Raggedy Ann, tell her to go buy a mass-produced one at Target. In the meantime, our handmade Raggedy Anns will be heirlooms in 100 years.
I think the problem is that artists have an over-inflated sense of the value of their own work. An artist’s work is worth exactly what people are willing to pay for it and nothing more.
ah, nm
<pulls up chair, puts popcorn in the microwave>
The recording studio business is different today than the late '70’s
I have been an engineer and producer and studio musician for a long time. I have studied, practiced, and performed, and become very good at my jobs.
Now, anyone reading this can use Garage Band or Audacity and make a cd.
Many of these homebrew projects don’t sound very good.
People don’t want to spend the money for the experience and skills that I have spent so much time working on. They have the technical tools, but not the tuned and soundproofed rooms I have built. They don’t have the trained ears, the creative shortcuts, the editing chops.
My studio is dark most of the time these days.
It’s because of these issues I am looking for a day job for the first time in 13 years.
David
And many people posting on bulletin boards and chat lists have an over-inflated sense that their thoughts and ideas are worth anything yet the drivel continues ad nauseum.
I’ve posted about this before, but many years ago, I used to do calligraphy. It was a nice supplement to my income, though I’d occasionally do small works at no charge as favours for friends–filling in the name on a certificate of some sort, for example. But those were easy and never took too long.
So one day, a friend asks me if I could render a long Shakespearean soliloquy as a gift for another friend. He wanted a certain style of lettering, and decorative inked and painted borders, and all kinds of other things that take a lot of time in planning and whatnot. I was thinking we’d be talking hundreds of dollars at least, if not more, especially since he wanted it in a hurry.
Nope. He offered to buy me a couple of beers. When I said I’d charge a lot of money for this, he said, “But you’re a friend!” :rolleyes:
My mom used to do craft shows selling hand-made painted paper lampshades. She quit as the shows were slowly being taken over with all resale stuff. She couldn’t afford to compete with China.
The still occasionally sells one off her website, but they’re not cheap. The smallest ones, the ones that fit on a candle lamp, are $26.
That is actually more accurate than some of you may know. As a sculptor I can put days or months into a piece or knock it out in an afternoon of creativity. It all depends on materials, size, complexity and finish. So here is the conundrum. Let’s take two pieces as an example.
HERE (go to galleries, click on masks) is a link to some masques I’ve been doing this month. Some are more, some are less. Even the most simple ones take about two hours and 6-10 dollars in materials. The more complicated ones can be far more time consuming. Sculpting all those features etc, plus pain and many layers of lacquer all takes time. Now if I charged properly, each one would be quite expensive. Most likely starting at around 50-75 and running up into the hundreds for the complex ones. The problem is nobody will pay that for what they see as a fun piece of wearable art. Jewelry people will know what I’m talking about here. You have to fight against mass manufactured alternatives that will not be as cool, but they will be loads cheaper.
So until you get the big break, or gallery show that garners you a following, Dio is right. That art is worth what they are willing to pay for it; and that is usually determined by their subjective pricing they’ve figured out from shopping similar items. It sucks, but if you want to sell you have be reasonable on your pricing, at least at first.