Things at Patch are ticking along nicely, which is fab but leaves me no crafty time...I have finally finished my nieces Easter quilt even if I haven't posted it off to her yet....
Please excuse the creasy pictures...my excuse is that I will be telling my sis in law to wash and tumble so no point me ironing it *blush*!!!
I didn't quilt it - just tied it in with embroidery thread in a few places...
yes Mary P that is THAT fabric and the offer still stands ;) xxxthe binding stitching is well erm rustic but that adds to the handmade charm yes???
On the Patch blog I have talked about the craft fair I did on Saturday. It wasn't a total flop however.....wasn't a massive success either!
I think it was the first one the school PTA lady had organised and there was a wide variety of stalls. The lady doing Tarot did quite well... she was in the same room as myself, my friend selling beautiful jewellry and nappycakes, the Virgin Vie lady, a lady selling cardmaking supplies and another selling..well a bit of everything!!!
I think I would have put the beauty things including the alternative therapies in one room..the Body Shop lady was in the main hall....the readings that the tarot lady was doing weren't very private and the bell she used to cleanse the cards took some getting used to!!!
I made sales, and if I work it out as a percentage of actual browsers versus customers it was a great result..except there just weren't enough bodies through the doors.
Each stallholder said the same..but anyhoo..nothing ventured etc etc!!
One thing we noticed looking at some craft stalls was the ridiculously low prices some people charge..as crafters my friend and I know the work and money that goes into making and we got a little annoyed to see some prices. We felt it was doing fellow crafters a disservice. I like a bargain as much as the next person but I think there is a huge difference between a reasonable price and underpriced!!
I know we all want our products to sell, thats the whole point.....I only had Patch things at the fair so made no difference to me but one other stall was selling beautiful handcrafted things at very reasonable but still sensible prices and we really felt for her as it appeared she was overcharging copmpared to some others....
Am I just not experienced enough in the craft fair department??!!
Does anyone else get irked by this?? I know pricing is always a thorny issue!!!
11 comments:
what a shame there weren't more people x
pricing is so tricky, such a balance between affordable, not making a loss on your materials! and making someone think it's worth what you're asking xxx
it's tricky I think - if you want a bargain you go to a charity shop, if you are specifically looking for something you will pay a fair price for it and you should consider that the price isn't just the materials but also the time taken to make. Having said that there's nothing wrong with bartering and if I wanted to buy, say, 6 of the same item, I might ask politely if I can have a discount. On the other hand if something is underpriced I think the seller has no confidence in their product and it is taking advantage not to tell them they are underselling. I am not sure if I could be honest enough to tell them before buying their wares myself though! greed and temptation would probably prevail!
Pricing is so hard, espeically when people want the mass turned out stuff and the silly prices to go with it. I would rsther save and suy what I can afford.
The other issue is when people just make as they enjoy it they are the ones that low price
I've been reading a book about the history of lacemaking (see my blog for some interesting snippets once I finish!) and the author of that book reckons that all handcrafts are underpriced these days - way back in the 16th to 18th centuries, handmade lace could be more expensive than gold jewellery! She reckoned (in the 1980s) that we had lost the ability to value the time and skill that goes into handcrafts, perhaps because of mass production.
Not sure if that helps..? But nice to hear frol you, anyway.
Craft selling is a strange thing, there seems to be no middle road. Go the the village/school craft fair and items are priced quite low, go to a high class craft fair in the grounds of a stately home and whooooosh, they're the other end of the scale. I made something for my nephew last week, took me quite a few hours and then I saw a lovely version in Dunelms today for £5 or £6. Crazy.
I think that I may be guilty of undercharging? I am very new to selling my goods and I'm not sure that it's for me. I try to ask friends for advice on pricing but as they are not crafters they may not realise quite how much time these things can take. Mrs Yappy Dog is right, it is a question of confidence I guess.xx
He He on THAT fabric ;0) Looks gorgus well done clever lady, and actually I prefer the rustic look, is a wonderful family heirloom :0)
Eeek at prices, wish I knew what prices we were all actually meaning, eg I sell my pwetty lavender hearts at craft fairs for £4.00-£5.00 depending how they have been made size etc, they fly out. Is that about right, undercharging, overcharging. They are also for sale in a shop for £9.95, where the fly out rate is alot lower.
I have to admit I am not too hot on the accounting of all my costs etc, like chine electricity and all that, time spent going to post office, etc etc I kind of think of a price I am happy with and bobs your uncle ;0) I think what irks me more is peeps overcharging, or selling pretties very similar for alot more, more expensive does not always mean better quality. I see items all the time in shops that are selling for mucho £££. though of course there is the mark up.
Hey ho tis all very personal I guess and pricing shall forever baffle me ;0)
hugs and love
XX
Thanks ladies for your comments....I know its the trickiest tricky thing and definately a confidence thing...one of the items that irked was £1.50 for a heart hanger and the other lady was selling for £3.50 still low but more like it for cost covering x
Such a shame and getting the price right can be the hardest thing.
Love the quilts by the way all pink and girlie.
take care,
Nina x
ps. hope you get to make yourself something. Nxx
Pricing is tricky and I do agree that most crafts are underpriced for the amount of work and time involved. I sell my cards starting at £3 and I think some people think it's too expensive but each one takes quite a bit of time and is hand made and hand embroidered. I would rather keep them that sell them for a song!
I can really relate to your pricing thoughts! When I ask friends what they would be willing to pay for different items (with a price in mind), they always offer prices that they think are generous but that would barely cover the cost of materials let alone the time involved in making them. It's definately a thorny issue, but I think it's wrong to under price yourself, regardless of what other people are doing. I think it's really important to belive in your skills, and not to be embarrased to charge what your time and skills should be valued at. x
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