Thoughts on Busy Weeks

It’s been a very busy week. The Nampa Arts Festival was this past weekend, and I was nowhere near ready for it. I’d made a few purses earlier, but had nothing other than books to sell. So I kicked it into gear.

I sewed until late into the night several times last week. The pressure of having some crafts to sell pushed me on. I cut and sewed and pressed again and again. Very late this past Friday night, I finished the last project and called it good. I might be burned out on sewing, but I was ready for the festival.

Saturday was dry, but hot and muggy. The temperature got close to 100 degrees. I don’t do well in heat, so I took a LOT of water with me. I stayed hydrated, but it was still very hot. That made the day seem really long. The large shade trees around us helped us out for much of the day. Shade trees are always appreciated during the summer.

I didn’t sell a lot. In my opinion, people don’t realize how much it costs to buy fabric and materials to make things. They seem appalled at the price, not knowing that I price my things so that I’m making about 30 to 50 cents an hour plus cost of materials. That’s as close as I want to cut it with my budget.

I use good fabrics in my crafts which, if you go check, are about $12-$15 per yard. That’s why quilts cost hundreds of dollars. Just the quantity and cost of fabric to make one is very expensive. Fabric and batting for a baby blanket can easily add up to $100 or more. The same cost ratio goes for bags and purses. They may be smaller and cheaper, but they take a lot of time and effort to make. I don’t think my labor cost is an exorbitant hourly wage to ask for.

Consequently, I’ve about decided that for me, making crafts to sell is not worth the time, trouble, and expense. I’m not a good business person nor do I have the knack for selling anything. So I think I’ll leave making purses, bags, and decorative towels to large factories, other crafters that have “it” figured out, and sweat shops in other countries. Maybe that’s sewing-burnout talking, but I think in the future, I’ll concentrate on writing. I’ll sew for pleasure again. It’s much more fun.