The Cost of Handmade

$620 for THIS?  I bet I can get it for $20 at Target...

I recently read an article in the "New Yorker" about an artisans fair in New York where craftsmen from luxury brands like Hermes (you know, the one that makes $1500 handbags) demonstrated their art for the public.  The author describes how while watching the complicated process of individually screen-printing each Hermes scarf by hand, an avid collector of the brand remarks, "I used to think these scarves were expensive".

There are a lot of guides out there to help artists price their handmade goods, but nothing I've read really hit home like this did.  I do have a hard time pricing my items, for a couple of different reasons.  One, I'm making the mistake of comparing my pieces to those you'd find in a store.  Two, I'm pricing them based on what I myself would pay - the problem here is I'm CHEAP.  Seriously, Ebenezer Scrooge would be proud of my penny pinching skills.  Which is a good skill to have when running a household or small business, but it's bad to base my profit margins on it.

The rich lady paying $400+ for her handmade silk scarf is someone my cheap side laughs at, but my artistic side needs to embrace.  Each handbag I make is 100% constructed by me from start to finish, from the actual pattern pieces I use to cut the fabric, to the little metal clasps that I squeeze on with a pair of pliers.  Even with the steps I've made to streamline my process, each item can take anywhere from 1.5 - 5 hours to complete.  Not to mention the time it takes to develop each pattern, since I don't use commercial designs.

So wake up call to me:  Your stuff is worth it.  That $620 Hermes scarf is made out of just one piece of fabric, and the design is mass-produced meaning there are hundreds of them out there adorning the necks of ladies with too much money.  Your items are complex little pieces of fabric origami, and each is one of a kind!  I probably can't get people to pay $600 for one of my bags (yet), but there's no reason I should charge bargain-basement prices for a unique handmade item.  In the words of the great and wise Stuart Smalley: "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me."  My work is worth it!  Now I'm off to re-price my Etsy shop!

Handmade with love, from me for you!