How much to charge?

Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will reimburse me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

I have sewed costumes for a ballet school too------I decided what I wanted
to make per hour...then I figured out the fastest, most efficient way to
make the same thing over and over........then I make 1 and keep track of my
time........That is your price!!!!!!!

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

But how do I decide how much I want to make per hour? I have no clue what's
fair and reasonable.
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Pat" wrote in message
...
I have sewed costumes for a ballet school too------I decided what I wanted
to make per hour...then I figured out the fastest, most efficient way to
make the same thing over and over........then I make 1 and keep track of
my
time........That is your price!!!!!!!

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of
experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a
fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

What do the local alterations people charge?? How about $15.00 an
hour.............
"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:znHkb.185298$%h1.175623@sccrnsc02...
But how do I decide how much I want to make per hour? I have no clue
what's
fair and reasonable.
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Pat" wrote in message
...
I have sewed costumes for a ballet school too------I decided what I
wanted
to make per hour...then I figured out the fastest, most efficient way to
make the same thing over and over........then I make 1 and keep track of
my
time........That is your price!!!!!!!

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year
old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of
experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a
fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will
reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

Oooh, good idea. I'll make some calls tomorrow. Jeez, I hadn't thought to
actually pick up the phone, I've gotten so used to doing everything on the
computer! :-)
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Pat" wrote in message
...
What do the local alterations people charge?? How about $15.00 an
hour.............
"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:znHkb.185298$%h1.175623@sccrnsc02...
But how do I decide how much I want to make per hour? I have no clue
what's
fair and reasonable.
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Pat" wrote in message
...
I have sewed costumes for a ballet school too------I decided what I
wanted
to make per hour...then I figured out the fastest, most efficient way
to
make the same thing over and over........then I make 1 and keep track
of
my
time........That is your price!!!!!!!

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year
old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of
experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone
a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges
a
fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will
reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for
my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

What is fair and reasonable depends so much on you! My rates reflect on how
much I enjoy or dislike doing an item, the technique involved (i.e. can
anyone do it or does it take a certain level of expertise?) and what time of
year it is. At peak time an item is going to cost more than during my slow
periods because I have less time to spare. You have to look at the big
picture and decide how you are going to approach your business: if you are
going to work at it a set number of hours per day then figuring your rate on
purely an hourly basis works fine. If you are sewing in addition to other
commitments then the impact the sewing has is also going to reflect in your
rates. To complicate matters further, I have a two-tiered rate system of
casuals and established clientelle. This is because my established
clientelle is much easier to sew for and so deserves a break. It might take
time and a little bit of fine tuning, but you will soon end up with a good
idea of a basic set of rates for your items. I charge $10 to make a pair of
jazz pants (unembellished) which works out to $20/hour. I charge $15 for a
basic leotard or $20 for one with a keyhole or zip: That works out to
$10/hour. I charge $3 to make a scrunchie - which works out to
$75 -90/hour! When I changed my rates (which is straight labour - all
notions are additional), I informed people before starting their item what
the cost would be. That way there were no surprises...
Cynthia
"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:znHkb.185298$%h1.175623@sccrnsc02...
But how do I decide how much I want to make per hour? I have no clue
what's
fair and reasonable.
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Pat" wrote in message
...
I have sewed costumes for a ballet school too------I decided what I
wanted
to make per hour...then I figured out the fastest, most efficient way to
make the same thing over and over........then I make 1 and keep track of
my
time........That is your price!!!!!!!

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year
old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of
experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a
fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will
reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL

How much to charge?

(Cynthia=A0Spilsted)
large snip
charge $15 for a basic leotard or $20 for one with a keyhole or zip:
That works out to $10/hour. I charge $3 to make a scrunchie - which
works out to $75 -90/hour! When I changed my rates (which is straight
labour - all notions are additional), I informed people before starting
their item what the cost would be. That way there were no surprises...
Cynthia ---
"Lori Reynolds" wrote:
But how do I decide how much I want to make per hour? I have no clue
what's fair and reasonable.
snip
---
In all the discussion of what to make an hour, I see no mention of
the additional costs you will incur when you operate a sewing business.
These costs come off the top of your per-hour charge: basic supplies
(thread, needles, sewing notions, gas and time to buy supplies:
Machines, repairs/maintenance to machines; electricity, insurance rider
(if you have clients coming into your home) heat, the use of a room in
your home, office supplies, etc. The list is fairly long, and most
beginning sew folk fail to take them into account when figuring out a
pricing scale.
If all you were making and selling was hair scrunchies, you don't have
to worry about it-- you are doing quite well. ; ) Most of the time,
though, you certainly must consider the expenses, or you'll wonder why
you still aren't making any money.
Once more, may I recommend Barbara Brabec's book, 'Homemade Money'.
She has a newly revised version, I think it is a two volume set, or two
books on the subject. I'll look up the ISBN and post it, if anyone wants
it. Well worth owning, or at least checking out of your local library.
NAYY.
Another excellent reference:
'Working From Home', Paul and Sarah Edwards, ISBN # 0-87477-457-8
(bought my copy at Office Warehouse.)
Cea

Another one of those really difficult to answer questions.

Back when I was sewing heirloom christening dresses I set a specific
fee for a 'style' of dress - and if it was to be made out of
silk-batiste added an additional $100 to the number.

End result, I paid for the privledge of sewing.

Don't get me wrong, I loved what I was doing! I even sold two dresses
to Georgina Frontiere - then owner of the LA Rams.

The point is, I didn't factor in the sheer hours of work these dresses
took. I was afraid that if I priced them too high, no one would order
one. They were all custom made too. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

You have GOT to determine a real time frame per garment; add in an
extra hour or two for problems. Figure out a basic overhead cost
(electricity, wear & tear on your machine), it doesn't have to be
exact, but you need a rough average.

Don't sell yourself short. It's a hard lesson to learn - I'm still
learning. Bottom line for me was no longer designing and sewing the
christening dresses. I simply couldn't make money with my prices and
I'd already set the precident.

Make sure you have all your numbers double and triple checked BEFORE
you quote a job.

Annie
Wildly Wonderful Wearables
Why be boring? Embrace change!
www.wwwearables.com

Annie spray painted on a boxcar:
Another one of those really difficult to answer questions.

Back when I was sewing heirloom christening dresses I set a specific
fee for a 'style' of dress - and if it was to be made out of
silk-batiste added an additional $100 to the number.

End result, I paid for the privledge of sewing.

Don't get me wrong, I loved what I was doing! I even sold two dresses
to Georgina Frontiere - then owner of the LA Rams.

The point is, I didn't factor in the sheer hours of work these dresses
took. I was afraid that if I priced them too high, no one would order
one. They were all custom made too. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

You have GOT to determine a real time frame per garment; add in an
extra hour or two for problems. Figure out a basic overhead cost
(electricity, wear & tear on your machine), it doesn't have to be
exact, but you need a rough average.

Don't sell yourself short. It's a hard lesson to learn - I'm still
learning. Bottom line for me was no longer designing and sewing the
christening dresses. I simply couldn't make money with my prices and
I'd already set the precident.


Do you know of this person...?
http://www.elizabethstewartclark.com/

There's no such thing as charging too much for that kind of work. I think
you are right in that you didn't charge enough for your specialty work.

Penny S

Make sure you have all your numbers double and triple checked BEFORE
you quote a job.

Annie
Wildly Wonderful Wearables
Why be boring? Embrace change!
www.wwwearables.com

Thanks for the input, everyone. I've made some calls to local bridal shops
and found out that seamstresses make $8-10 per hour. I think I'll charge
$10 per hour as a flat rate rather than making a price list of different
items.
--
Lori in Peoria, IL

"Lori Reynolds" wrote in message
news:4WBkb.831108$uu5.146744@sccrnsc04...
Hi there -- I've been asked by our local ballet (at which my 10 year old
daughter is a student) to make some costumes. I've had lots of experience
making things for my own family's use, but have never charged anyone a
fee,
so I don't know what I'm worth, so to speak.

I'd love to have some input from seamstresses or anyone that charges a fee
for their sewing services, so I'm not taken advantage of. They will
generally provide the fabric and anything else I need, or will reimburse
me
for anything I buy, so I just need some idea of what to charge for my
time.

Thanks very much --

--
Lori in Peoria, IL