quilting for a living?

i have made up my mind and i am not going back to work . . .i just cant.

i have a 6 month old and i cant imagine going back to work a dead end job just to get by. i rather do something crafty just to get by . . .and mabe more.

i was really thinking of quiting small baby ones, simple but oraginal patterns. so i can go to fairs, with my kid, and sell what i have made. im sure its easier said than done but i have lots of faith. and i need the $

does andone else have any surgesstions they might be able to help me out with? something simple, but something that sells mabe some websites?

 

My mom has had a part time job selling her crafts at craft shows for a few years now... She actually quit her full time HR job to do her crafts full time... Anyway, point being, she's doing pretty well with it... so good luck to you!

 

My wife quilts,I wish I could say she does it for the income.She just gets very attached to the quilts that does,which is fine.Baby quilts are a good to start,since there is less time involved in them.
Since you are starting out at this,I might suggest going http://www.craftytrades.com they are group of people trying to get indiviual crafters together to help each other out.Just remember that you have to enjoy what you are doing when you craft for dollars,otherwise it becomes a job.

 

Baby quilts would be a good place to start. I just finished a quilt for my daughter this afternoon. I've got almost $200 just in materials in it, not to speak of all the hours of labor. I've been working on it since February. There is just no way I could get back what I've got into it. I've made several quilts for my kids. I can do a nice baby quilt in a couple of days. Hope it works for you. I would love to be able to quit my job and stay home with my 2 year old.

 

Dakotas mom;I have to ask,so slap me if you like,my wife would.But you are hand quilting aren't you?Do you make your own tops also?These are just curiousities since my wife is a quilter.Plus how long have you been doing it?My wife has only been at it for about two years,but she has had guidence from beyond the grave,as I refer to it.What I mean,is my mother quilted for as long as I can rememeber.When she died a couple of years ago,she had a quilt in the frames and my wife picked up where mom was at and finished it.I think she cried the whole time she was doing it,but never the less she did finish it.She has never looked back,and has made six different ones since then.
Just rambling now,but quilting holds a special place in my life,and even though I am a guy.I am familiar with quilting and find delight in seeing a lost art proceding into the future.

 

I made my first quilt when my oldest was born 34 years ago. I've made at least one for each of my children. And I've made some for my grandchildren. My little guy now has 4 quilts. I've also made fullsized quilts. The one in the picture is king size. I've made that same pattern 3 times now. Actually I must confess I don't "quilt" them. I never learned how. All of my quilts are tied. This of course is done by hand. I've always wanted to learn how to do the actual quilting but it's so easy to tie them that I never took the time to learn, or invested in the equipment. My dreams for the future are a decent size quilt frame and a serger. (Hear that honey, the holidays are coming.) I do a lot of other sewing for myself and my family. When my first family were little hippie kids in the 70's all of their clothes were handmade. Now I'm working fulltime so Dakota doesn't get as much handmade clothes. He does have some though. And as he grows now, he's getting more and more. I'll be glad when I can stay home with him and sew to my heart's content.

Here's a pic of Dakota modeling an apron top I made for his neice who is 4 years older than him.