I have been interested in how other crafters price their merchandise. I'm not completely sure a set rule is always best. I have been doing this a lot of years and I have found that the market area, other crafters, and eye appeal all have a lot to do with what we can get for our items.

I always look around at others and see what they sell items similar to mine for, and also I visit craft shows and shops and notice pricing, quality,& materials.

I wholesale many items I make to shops and those prices are usually doubled for retail.  Therefore we have to be careful about the cost of the materials in those items.

As a rule, craft show prices are about 75% of what a shop retail would be. Also, if an item sells too fast, then the price may be a little low. If it doesn't sell, then it may be a little high.

I have also found eye appeal is very important. If an item catches the eye of the customer - that is more important than the price. Display often helps eye-appeal, too. If your space looks good and draws people to it, then your merchandise will sell and you should be able to make a good profit.

Quite a bit has been said about tags and this is also important. They don't have to be fancy, but eye-appealing. I started out cutting tags out of brown grocery bags with pinking shears and printing each one separately. I have finally advanced to computer-made tags which look good and I can have a variety of tags - one for each different item or category of items - and many different colors and print styles.

I feel that we should all make our crafts of high quality materials and workmanship,then charge a fair price. The consumer will buy when the item is good and the price is fair.

SHOP KEEPER

When you have finished a project and the finish feels rough, use a piece of brown paper bag as you would sand paper.  It will remove the roughness, smooth things out and not remove any varnish or paint.  Works for me!

Shop Keeper - Dixie

HOUSE PAINT - If you have a project that is bigger than your bottle of craft paint, don't be affaid to use left over house paint.  If the project is an outdoor item, don't forget to prime the bare wood first.  I have even used house paint on cement outdoor items.  No need to prime them.  But if you spray them with a sealer first it will take less coats of paint.

IT WORKS FOR ME!

Dixie