Do you sell your stuff?

[--Tom--]

I will ask for a charity donation, lately to Campaign Against Living Miserably. Saves me having to keep track for tax, hopefully does some good for the world, and I pick and choose what I want to do.
It’s a hobby so I want to enjoy it and part of that is making things that interest me.

Best are always trades and swaps.

Hoping once I retire I can top up the pension pot but realistic that it’ll be mostly so I can break even on hobby costs

 

[LewisB]

I only sell when someone asks me to make something for them. Mostly cigar box guitar kind of thing. At times I whip up a bunch of tea light candle holders on the lathe when the wife's family history group are doing a charity stall. I have had people come and ask for particular things only to turn pale and back off when I mention just the cost of the wood. Like Blackswanwood has said if I can recover the cost of materials and its a project I want to do then all good. It is a hobby after all. I think most of us early on in woodworking have thought it might be good to make a bit on the side but then it would become a job. The hardest bit by far would be making it pay a profit.
Regards
John

Yeah true. God knows what some of the furniture makers online have had to do to command some of the prices they do today. Sebastian Cox for example, £5000+ for a cabinet...

 

[LewisB]

I will ask for a charity donation, lately to Campaign Against Living Miserably. Saves me having to keep track for tax, hopefully does some good for the world, and I pick and choose what I want to do.
It’s a hobby so I want to enjoy it and part of that is making things that interest me.

Best are always trades and swaps.

Hoping once I retire I can top up the pension pot but realistic that it’ll be mostly so I can break even on hobby costs

That's a good idea, I'd hopefully do the same if I ever got to selling.

 

[LewisB]

No I don’t sale things I make
It’s a hobby and I want to do it when and how I please, non of this must have done by..... time /date
Eg today I had planned on a day wood turning, I have just finished re shaping an oak bowl that distorted very Badly after turning. As much as 5mm out on the rim, having got that... as close as it’s going to get,, I decided that enough for today.

Yes I agree it's good to be able to pursue something without having a deadline.

 

[stuckinthemud]

Size matters. I can carve a netsuke and it will take a week or longer but who will pay a week’s wage for that jewel - it’s a very niche product. Or, I can chainsaw carve a penguin 2 feet tall and painted in a couple of hours, or an owl, or a couple of mushrooms, or whatever and sell for a fair price all day long - people go wow that’s good value, look how big that is, all that oak must have cost you a lot…. Also, there is very little competition once you go big as garden centres don’t import carvings over a certain size. I imagine it’s the same in turning, you need to go larger than ceramics: people will compare apples to oranges- can they buy an equivalent in a different material cheaper to do the same job?

 

[HOJ]

There has been quite a few new posters on here in the recent past asking the same question, but I cant recall anyone of them coming back to tell us of their successes.

@Stigmorgan has outlined the simplest form of pricing in saying:

price your items based on paying for the material and your time making it.

My caveat to that would be, then triple it.

As a full time woodworker, I can't say I have made many things, speculatively, I did make an Adirondack chair recently but that was a folly, and to be honest I've no idea what to do with it now, I have had quite a few "oh that's nice" but I know they wont pay well for it, so I won't offer it out

God knows what some of the furniture makers online have had to do to command some of the prices they do today. Sebastian Cox for example, £5000+ for a cabinet...

Please, don't knock it till you've tried making one, a cabinet maker I know, sunk 600 hours into a piece, I'll let you work out the value.

 

[Katomi woodsmith]

I made two chair for the front garden, I was asked if I could make one and how much.
I worked out the cost of the wood alone and told the person.. who then was shocked at the price
“Oh I thought it would be cheaper as it hand made.”
Needless to say he was not interested,

 

[LewisB]

I made two chair for the front garden, I was asked if I could make one and how much.
I worked out the cost of the wood alone and told the person.. who then was shocked at the price
“Oh I thought it would be cheaper as it hand made.”
Needless to say he was not interested,

Brilliant

 

[Stigmorgan]

I made two chair for the front garden, I was asked if I could make one and how much.
I worked out the cost of the wood alone and told the person.. who then was shocked at the price
“Oh I thought it would be cheaper as it hand made.”
Needless to say he was not interested,

I seem to be surrounded by people who are willing to tell me off for not charging enough but not so willing to buy my stuff

 

[Katomi woodsmith]

some of my bigger projects