Curiosity .. being a cross stitcher business

[StaceyS_ox]

So I’m just wondering & this is something I’ve been really interested in before but I falling back into the interest big time again.

Has anyone or does anyone know of anyone that has done cross stitching as a business for example if someone is looking for a handmade personalised gift could you offer what you could stitch them & charge them per stitching you done? Or if someone was wanting a personalised birth sample stitched could you do that for them and charge?

If so how would I go about doing this? Am I able to?

[Mabel Figworthy]

This question comes up every now and then, and I think generally the answer is "unless you really enjoy stitching for other people, don't get into this" - because financially it will definitely not give you a reasonable hourly rate.
People don't realise how much time it takes to stitch even a small piece - and that's not counting materials etc. If you really had to charge for your time, you very likely wouldn't get any customers I'm afraid

[StaceyS_ox]

That makes sense thank you

[richardandtracy]

If going strong, I can do 100 stitches an hour.
At £10/hr, that works out as £0.10 ($0.125) per stitch. I doubt if anyone would ever pay that rate, so to be able to do the work, I'd be going to get under minimum wage. If you don't need to live off it and stitch as slowly as I do, it may be acceptable, but there will be a lot of effort for the money.
Now, you may be much quicker than I am, and it may be economic to do. But.. turning a hobby into work can sometimes be a good way of draining the fun from it.

I get hand aches, finger joint aches & elbow pain from more than 300 stitches a day. It may be worth factoring that in too if you get something similar. Over time it could become quite painful if you suffer from it.

All factors you need to consider.
But, if you want to do it regardless - forget us miseries, and go for it.

Regards,

Richard

[wendywombat]

I was asked once...just once!! ...to make a waistcoat for a hand made Teddy Bear.
These bears were beautiful and they were made out of mohair fabric and cost around £80- £100 each depending on the finish.
I was promised that i would be paid for hours spent plus materials and the costing was agreed up front.
I duly made the waistcoat for the bear, embroidered with flowers and lined accordingly.
I charged the lady £20 for said waistcoat.
She was appalled at the cost! Then said that it would "have to be a Very Special Bear to warrant such a cost"
That bear was sold for £125 and I didn't feel guilty at all at the charge for my time and materials!

Do you know what? She Never asked me again!

It's a very sad fact that unless you know how much time goes into making and stitching then people are shocked at the cost and will refuse to pay.

[Podolyanka]

Richard, I am a really fast stitcher, but I would not earn my daily bread with stitching for someone else. As Mabel has said, people will never pay the real cost for this kind of work. When I am asked why I dont sell my stitchings, I explain that when I give(as a gift, that is for free) my tablecloth or tablerunner to someone I care about, and who will value it, I am "paid" better by his/her attitude to the thing than if I were selling to strangers. Both, I and they would be disappointed- they would think they paid too much, I would be unhappy knowing I got times less than I put into it- my time and health.

[Serinde]

Cast an eye over hand-made cards for sale, and you will see that they have very little stitching on them, really. Lots of them are machine stitched. Nothing wrong with that, and it's quick. Otherwise not cost effective.

[Mabel Figworthy]

There are embroidered cards which I can do in a couple of hours (especially if I were to do many of them and get into a routine) - a Hardanger cross, a Quatrefoil flower with gold detailing, a small Christmas wreath, and one or two others - but although I could probably squeeze two into an evening (in fact I did do that once, when I unexpectedly needed cards for two friends) I wouldn't like to, as the level of concentration needed is tiring.

And even then - say I get the stitching time down to one and a half hours; even at a measly £6 an hour that makes the card £9 without even taking the materials into consideration.

No, like Lyudmila I will make these cards (or other items) for loved ones who appreciate them; much more satisfying

(I did once stitch several dozen coasters for our Church's building fund; the definitely did not cover my time, but I enjoyed making them and it raised money for a cause close to my heart.)