Honestly… was having a conversation with my aunt about this last week. Knitting, crocheting, and quilting are all high-skill activities and no one charges enough for it.
I used to joke that I made some of the most expensive socks in the world: 20 hours per pair, and I’m a run-of-the-mill IT ops person in western Europe - do the math.
I have decided to up the cost by taking up fleece processing and hand spinning. Even on the wheel, it takes another twenty hours to clean, comb, and spin enough wool for a pair of socks.
If I were doing this for income, I’d definitely get faster at all the steps.
As I pick up more of the steps in making clothes, it’s mind-boggling how cheap even “luxury” clothes like the 500 EUR pants discussed above, much less my sturdy midrange jeans (Tom Tailor, 60 EUR, pockets that hold an iPhone 13 mini, even in a ladies’ cut), are.
Yep, lots of people doing knowledge work vastly underestimate the material cost, effort and skill associated with artisan goods. On one hand I blame modern manufacturing which justifies this ignorance somewhat but on the other hand I die a little inside when I hear about people willing to fork over large sums to something better advertised.
Though it's worth mentioning that some people are jumping into hand crafted stuff as a business first, cranking out subpar cookie cutter designs and while not terribly expensive and still a minority it's worth making sure you support people who care about the craft first. A category to watch out for is minimal leather wallets, while quality leather and correct thread selection practically guarantee the wallet will last, the care put into making it determines how enjoyable it will be to use.
The vast majority of people making handcrafted do not charge enough for their items. If they did, nobody could afford them. Most items are priced based on the cost of the material with little consideration to the time to make them. I have a friend that is a very skilled knitter, but for large items like blankets and sweaters, there are weeks of effort involved. When broken down, "kids in Chinese factories" make more per hour.
The great thing is that this type of person will tell you they are not in it for the money. As long as they can "buy more string" with the proceeds (or whatever their materials are), they are quite happy.
I don't think this is the answer you think it is. Every person that I know that knits or crochets is not doing it to make money, or even when selling items are not charging because they think that's all someone will pay. They do it because they like doing it. If they were doing it to make money, then the fun and relaxing nature of it is lost. If you've ever been to or around a stich-n-bitch, you'd understand. It's cheaper than a therapist. Plus, there's usually wine and baked goods. I'm in Texas, so it's not like the items knitted are used for more than 2 weeks out of the year. That doesn't stop them. To blame it on the "what people will pay" is grossly not understanding.
My friend made a rule that no new yarn could be bought until the same amount of yarn from existing inventory is used first. An entire closet was dedicated to said inventory. Receiving yarn as a gift does not count.
