Sad about Etsy

[stitchgirl]

I think that crafters as a general rule of thumb just have to be realistic when it comes to pricing their work. I don't think most people ever get what an afghan is truly worth, but I also don't think most people who don't crochet realize the blood, sweat and tears that goes into making one. This is why I don't sell items. Also, I agree with previous posters who have said it depends alot in what venue you are trying to sell your products. I think this is very true, I think you could ask a higher price on an item placed in a consignment shop than you could at a craft fair, but then at the same time it may take much longer to sell too. That's why for me it's just safer to make things for people who I know will love and appreciate it rather than try to use my craft as a second income.

[mellybelly]

This may be a TAD off subject...but I also agree that its a shame that places like WalMart, etc has put so many 'mom and pop' type places out of business. There used to be a little 'country store' a few miles from where I grew up. They pumped your gas, smiled, conversated, cleaned your windshield, and had THE BEST plate lunches you would EVER eat. But, places like that can't compete in this day and age. I catch re-runs of the Andy Griffith show and just WISH I could live in Mayberry

[Amy]

Since I have noticed a couple people talking about selling items made from patterns, I need to add our standard disclaimer on this subject.

 

To respect copyright and licensing laws, Crochetville's guidelines state that we can only allow discussion of selling finished items that are made from patterns that specifically give permission for finished items to be sold OR when the seller has obtained express written permission from the copyright holder to sell the finished items.

 

So if you are selling items made from patterns copyrighted by others, if you want to discuss your activities here (via post, private message, or email a forum member feature), please be sure you have permission to sell your finished items. Also be sure to include that information in your post, so that everyone is clear you are complying with the pattern designer's requirements.

 

If you are selling finished items made from a pattern copyrighted by others and you don't have permission to sell your finished items, please refrain from discussing sales of those items here.

 

As always, if you have any questions about our guidelines, feel free to PM me.

[ManfaMae]

About 40 years ago, my grandmother paid a lady $75 to crochet a ripple afghan for a full-size bed out of wool. Back then, that was probably a pretty fair price. To this day, that afghan is still being used and loved. If an afghan like that was $75 then- with inflation- afghans should be sooo much more now! A couple years ago, someone offered me $25 for an an afghan for a twin size bed. I was completely insulted- especially since the yarn for it cost me $12!

 

What makes me sick is when I go into a store and see a doily for $1. Others may be able to whip up a doily in no time, but it usually takes me 2-3 days to complete one. There are no doily machines that I know of, so how much do you think the people that make those $1 doilies are compensated?

[badrhinogillett]

I just think it's such a shame. I value my work too much to be willing to accept those prices for it.

[RoseRed]

A couple years ago I was raffling off 2 afghans for a fundraiser. I was outside Walmart selling raffle tickets. One lady walked up and said her daughter went to FSU and she HAD to have that afghan. She offered me $50 I think. I opened it up and showed her that it was a full 4x6 foot afghan and she offered $75.

 

I looked her dead in the face and told her I would throw it in my burn pit before I took $75 for it -

that her offer was an insult.

 

 

I don't try to sell my work. I am more than happy to do custom orders with half paid up front.

 

Even patterns are hard to sell because there are so many free ones online.

[EEE_mom]

What makes me sick is when I go into a store and see a doily for $1. Others may be able to whip up a doily in no time, but it usually takes me 2-3 days to complete one. There are no doily machines that I know of, so how much do you think the people that make those $1 doilies are compensated?

 

OMG I have thought the exact same thing - or going into babies r us and seeing little halter tops crocheted with thread and theres like 20 on the rack and I'm thinking..okay, if theres 20 here in all different sizes and theres how many babies r us stores??? WHO is making these things..how long does it take them...how much are they compensated for each piece ...and HOW THE HECK ARE THEY SELLING IT FOR $7.99????

 

It just reaffirms the feeling that I ENJOY giving my crochet to people I KNOW will love and appreciate it for the fact that

1 I made it

2 I made it for them

3 I took the time needed out of my (fairly) busy life to make it for them

 

I attended a baby shower for my cousin over the weekend and I'd given her an afghan- simplest of things - sc ch1 repeat with a ruffle edging that took up two skeins of yarn.... when she took it out of the bag, for some reason everyone applauded (?)

THAT is why I crochet - no one would hve applauded had she pulled that little crocheted halter from babies r us out of a bag EVEN THOUGH I KNOW someone somewhere MADE it........

[EEE_mom]

I looked her dead in the face and told her I would throw it in my burn pit before I took $75 for it -

that her offer was an insult. .

Good for you!

[badrhinogillett]

I looked her dead in the face and told her I would throw it in my burn pit before I took $75 for it -

that her offer was an insult.

 

 

I would have loved to have been there! Good for you!

[jenuwhiner]

Several years ago I was going through a divorce. I started my very first graph pattern at the same time. It turned out great but for some reason I couldn't make myself weave in the ends. I came to realize that I held that afghan as a sort of symbol of my transition. I transitioned from doing simple afghans into harder ones as well as transitioning from married life to life on my own.

I had several people offer me $100 for it. I couldn't take the money, even though I was basically homeless and could have used the money. I wasn't ready to weave in the ends yet because I knew I would get rid of it as soon as that happened.

After a year or two I finally got a home all on my own. Got my own electricity, my own p.o. box and everything was just mine. I finally weaved in the ends. My boss saw the afghan and offered to buy it as a gift for his sister. I gave it to him.

He started hounding me to name my price. I finally said $500. He looked at me like I was crazy so I said you have 3 choices: 1) you take it for free; 2) you pay me $500; or 3) I'll give it to your sister myself.

That has now became my standard answer when anyone wants to pay me for anything. I just feel weird taking money for things when I know it is something I would make even if no one wanted it. I much prefer to just give it to people.

[rascalsmom]

What's even sadder, to me, is when you see handmade things at places like a flea market. Our church has a flea market periodically (raising funds to renovate), and I've seen afghans, doilies, you name it, there.

 

Last time, my 11 yo dd went to the flea market and came home with a jar filled with potpourri and topped with a DOILY! She said, "Look Mom, I rescued it!". I threw out the old potpourri, washed the jar, washed the doily, and it looks great now. Somebody put work into that, and there it was at a flea market.

 

I have instructed my daughter to NEVER let my crocheted things end up in a flea market. I don't think she will.

[badrhinogillett]

I saw an afghan for sale on Craigslist this week. The headline was "Estate Sale Afghan" or something like that.

 

Turns out, they were selling an afghan that their recently deceased Grandmother had made for $8! This poor woman's family didn't even realize that by keeping it, she would be able to give them a hug even from beyond the grave.. but they only thought it was worth $8.

 

Sad sad sad.

[EEE_mom]

...or that they get something from you as a present and love it sooo much they are afraid to use it and it just sits untouched...

 

I made my nephew a baby blanket when he was born - my sister has told me a thousand times how much it's been washed, dried, dragged, pulled, chewed, hugged, cuddled and still going strong!

 

that makes me happy

[pasteeater]

I've seen those low prices and I wonder how people cannot understand the work that goes into things like that. But then, I've seen hats for over 50 dollars!!!! I think that's a bit crazy too. But to make a beautiful blanket and only get 20 dollars for it is sad.

[rascalsmom]

I saw a crocheted afghan, the flag one, for sale at our town's local "festival". The price on it was $300!!! I believe in pricing things for what they are worth, but I thought that was way too high....

[Ellie 13]

I can't remember how many times I've seen crochet afghans, scarves, doilies, etc. in yard sales (even worse, on trash piles ). I've rescued quite a few things. I got a baby blanket at a yard sale for free because I said all this needs is a border and Project Linus will take it (I bought some yarn because I felt guilty ). When I sell my own designs, I get the price of the yarn plus $30 to $40 depending on size and how long it took. My twin size afghans are $50 - $55 and baby (36 in. - 45 in. squares) afghans are $35 - $40. If people want special orders, they buy the yarn and I charge $5 per hour (more for difficult patterns). I know it's not minimum wage, but I do it for fun.

Ellie 13

[close2myheart]

absolutely right on girls...people seem to think that ebay and etsy are "bargain bin" when it comes to handmade...I really doubt people know the time and effort like we do...we are really underappreciated in the selling world on the 'net...I have sold blankets for $15 and sometimes its just to get it out of my house, but I know that they are worth so much more because of the time and effort I put into them...

 

so sad

 

Cheryl

[EEE_mom]

Well, here's one..I just finished a RR for my friends mom -

This is after doing a RR for my friend

BOTH of these were done for them to give as gifts to other people - AND in asking they also offered to pay me for them..

 

Now, keep in mind, this is my best friend and her mother who i've know for over 20 years

 

When I gave my friend her blanket which was a giant granny ( i think it measured about 35 x 37 or something) - she asked me if I had done the granny because it was the easiest and fastest to do ( I was mildly insulted for some reason) and I said yes, pretty much - so when she asked me how much, I told her just to pay for my yarn ( pound of love NOT on sale $6.99 a skein 2 colors) she gave me $20.

 

This morning I told her I was done with her mothers blanket.

It is a RR (posted in show and tell and RR cal) It measures about 4 feet across - now, everytime i've spoken to her in the last week and a half she asks what are you doing and I say working on your mothers blanket she says you're awesome...I say I know...

She asks me how much to tell her mother - I told her flat out I have NO IDEA what to charge her mother - I said if it was a total stranger it would be an entirely different animal so she asked if telling her $25.00 would be enough to cover yarn and all and I said fine

 

Now, I love my friend, I love her mother and I dont think I COULD accept more than covering my cost from either of them...

Neither of them are crafters of any kind and I don't think really understand what goes into making something like this...

 

So why do I still feel mildly insulted?

(is it cause i'm PMS-ing?)

[Alaina]

These are lean times and handmade items with their price tags are a luxury, so yes, most people want them cheap or they simply can't afford them. Personally, I wouldn't bother to try to sell my work at this point if I was looking to make money. It's got nothing to do with China. You gotta have what people need and apparently, people don't *need* handmade items. They need food, gasoline, heating fuel, a roof over their heads... Some people still have money. They would be your target audience for handmade items, not the average Joe.

 

I disagree slightly. People were underselling their work long before the economic times we find ourselves in now. And the ability to get craftwork mass-produced in China or any other country will always cut into the market normally available to American craftworkers, in the same way manufacturing and other industrial jobs get sent overseas.

 

In times of economic "challenge" people still buy things to make themselves feel good. In business it's referred to as the "Lipstick Index" because it's been shown that even during the Great Depression, one of the commodities that continued to soar was cosmetics. Crafting is still big business, whether you are the one making the item, taking a class to learn HOW to make an item, or the person buying the item.

 

So when you see local yarn stores or other smaller craft stores going out of business, it's not totally because people aren't buying those items. They are most likely just buying it online. Most online retailers don't require a wholesaler's license and if you spend enough, you will most likely get free shipping. So you end up SAVING money by not having to burn gas to get to a brick & mortar shop.

 

You can do well on Ebay and Etsy, you just have to have the time and commitment to make your money over MANY items, instead of expecting to get the full value on one or two listed items. The way you outpace China is to match their volume and exceed their quality. Matching the volume is where we as crafters fall short (not enough crocheting hands, not enough hours in the day). But our quality is there.

 

So it's up to you to find the magic formula...easily made, short-time-duration projects that are unique and customizable. Is there something you make that can be cranked out 5-10 an hour? If you can make 2-3 an hour, how many hours a week can you commit to that? If you can only make one a day, are you willing to make one every day for 6 months until you have a volume inventory that can be constantly refreshed on Ebay? Find that product and it will sell like hotcakes!

 

Good Luck!

[Alaina]

So why do I still feel mildly insulted?

(is it cause i'm PMS-ing?)

 

I learned a long time ago to say "No" to custom requests from friends/family. I decided I wanted to cultivate a business and not a craft-farm.

 

Time invested in one place is time away from another. The time you spend "answering the mail" is time away from pursuing other creative efforts that serve your ultimate goal (whatever that may be). And you know you're not getting paid what you are worth and what the product is worth. All that breeds resentment.

 

When I was selling jewelry, people would ask me to make something, but in another color, or with a different gemstone, or gold instead of silver. I nearly drove myself nuts. And never really got paid for my aggravation.

 

I started saying NO and sending them to my website, which at the time, I tried to update daily. I told them that I had a long list of new projects and items to create and I would add their request to the list, so in the meantime, they could search my website for something else they may like, or I would send them an email when their item came up in my queue.

 

9 times out of 10, by the time I got back around to making something in a different color or whatever they requested, they had forgotten about it! People will ask you to do a million different things just to see if you'll say yes. You don't have to.

 

That really freed me and it helped me stay un-mad at my friends/family.

 

They know this is BUSINESS for me, and not personal. And they are all thrilled at holiday/birthday time when they get that special something they thought I would never make them as a GIFT.

 

When I started crocheting/knitting again in earnest, I got tons of requests. I simply said "I don't knit/crochet for money." Since January, I have been making items weekly and tossing them into my Christmas Closet. I intend to have a party and invite loved ones over with everything on display (scarves, mittens, fat-bottom bags, afghans, shawls, hats, etc) and letting them select their gift (using a number-system, cuz I don't want fights! LOL!!!) This worked really well last year with my family for Christmas when I made over 75 pairs of earrings and had them displayed on the Dining Room table. Each person got to pick 2 pairs. They want me to do it again! LOL!!! We'll see.

 

So all that said, you have to get firm in your mind what you are and are NOT willing to do. People won't hate you or disown you if you tell them no. They will start respecting your craft and your time, however when they see you treating it with deference and respect it deserves!

[CroJulee]

I learned a long time ago to say "No" to custom requests from friends/family. I decided I wanted to cultivate a business and not a craft-farm.

 

Time invested in one place is time away from another. The time you spend "answering the mail" is time away from pursuing other creative efforts that serve your ultimate goal (whatever that may be). And you know you're not getting paid what you are worth and what the product is worth. All that breeds resentment.

 

When I was selling jewelry, people would ask me to make something, but in another color, or with a different gemstone, or gold instead of silver. I nearly drove myself nuts. And never really got paid for my aggravation.

 

I started saying NO and sending them to my website, which at the time, I tried to update daily. I told them that I had a long list of new projects and items to create and I would add their request to the list, so in the meantime, they could search my website for something else they may like, or I would send them an email when their item came up in my queue.

 

9 times out of 10, by the time I got back around to making something in a different color or whatever they requested, they had forgotten about it! People will ask you to do a million different things just to see if you'll say yes. You don't have to.

 

That really freed me and it helped me stay un-mad at my friends/family.

 

They know this is BUSINESS for me, and not personal. And they are all thrilled at holiday/birthday time when they get that special something they thought I would never make them as a GIFT.

 

When I started crocheting/knitting again in earnest, I got tons of requests. I simply said "I don't knit/crochet for money." Since January, I have been making items weekly and tossing them into my Christmas Closet. I intend to have a party and invite loved ones over with everything on display (scarves, mittens, fat-bottom bags, afghans, shawls, hats, etc) and letting them select their gift (using a number-system, cuz I don't want fights! LOL!!!) This worked really well last year with my family for Christmas when I made over 75 pairs of earrings and had them displayed on the Dining Room table. Each person got to pick 2 pairs. They want me to do it again! LOL!!! We'll see.

 

So all that said, you have to get firm in your mind what you are and are NOT willing to do. People won't hate you or disown you if you tell them no. They will start respecting your craft and your time, however when they see you treating it with deference and respect it deserves!

I really like the idea of a christmas box then letting the family pick their gift out.

That's brilliant!! Thanks for the idea!!!!

 

Julee

[SlowCrocheter]

I only sold one piece and I sold if before I made it. I'll never do that again. I did not enjoy making it.

But I was looking at some of the pricing to see it is was worth making stuff to sell later and nope wont do that. People way underprice and then I noticed a lot never sells.

[EEE_mom]

I would love to be able to create patterns but since having my last baby, my brain just seems to be mush and I can't concentrate on anything - let alone chart and crunch numbers...

[crochet4ever]

What the buyers would want to pay wouldn't even pay for the yarn to make the afghan.

[Alaina]

I only sold one piece and I sold if before I made it. I'll never do that again. I did not enjoy making it.

But I was looking at some of the pricing to see it is was worth making stuff to sell later and nope wont do that. People way underprice and then I noticed a lot never sells.

 

Well one thing is for sure. The minute it becomes WORK, most crafters are lost. Most of us do this for fun and therapy and stress-relief. Hobbies generally don't MAKE you money, the drain you of it! LOL!!!

 

But there are some people who can balance the creative joy with the business demands. It can be difficult finding that place though.

 

On Ebay, if you do consistent (weekly) completed items searches for a category of crafted items, you will see about 30-33% of what's listed selling. This is about right and to be expected.

 

So if you want to sell 3-4 a week, you should be listing 10-12 a week. Set a financial goal for yourself and price accordingly (ensure you can get to that goal number by selling the 3-4 items, not all 10-12).

 

Oftentimes, though, I find the easiest way for crafters to ease themselves into the for-profit zone is to sell enough to merely "pay for their habit." Help me buy more yarn! If they are consistent putting new things out there, on sites like Ebay/Etsy, over time they can slowly increase the price.