Probably a controversial question but I’m not here for drama Im just very curious on what y’all’s opinions are on this.
Edit: Btw Im only asking about PATTERN pricing NOT item pricing, no offense to those who replied about item pricing!
Pricing finished crochet projects is not as difficult as I used to think it was and I’ve figured out my system for when I do markets and stuff, but pricing patterns is something I’ve never understood.
I’ve seen complex patterns for under $5 while others are selling super simple no sew patterns for 5+, it really boils down to what you feel is the right amount for how much effort you put into designing the pattern, but also are people even willing to pay your prices?
Im about to release my first pattern on here but I’ve “sold” patterns elsewhere before, they were free lol, so Im not well acquainted with how to price patterns, Im curious if yall have like a system for how you price or if you just pick at random based on other similar patterns, and have you ever had to lower your price because nobody is buying it?
I hope my brain dump makes sense, thanks for reading!
Materials: about a full yarn ball which cost me £3 and stuffing for £2 (I paid £30 for 4kg of stuffing so I’m just counting how much I used for this project)
Time: probably about 3 hours
Size: big and long
I priced this at £18
Minus £5 for materials, I’m gaining £13 (I don’t like to price my items too expensive)
$12, 1 hour, $2 in materials(I don’t always add the extra profit if that would make it too expensive)
Also note that I am a teen crafter, so the way I price does not give me a living wage
First, always price it higher than $2 because there are a lot of fees from Ribblr and Stripe so you would want to make profit. And I definitely agree, some of the prices are pretty unfair (honestly thinking of changing some of mine myself)
Some examples of mine (you can also check out more at my shop):
These geese took me hours upon hours to design and crochet so I think $12 is very fair for what someone’s getting out of the pattern.
This is definitely simpler than the previous one (I basically priced it based off vibes) and I think it deserves about $3.5 because it has a unique shape that isn’t really being sold elsewhere but isn’t super super detailed.
I think there are several factors that are relevant here:
The complexity of the pattern. If your pattern is comprised of uncommon stitches and techniques you can increase your prices.
Is it a unique pattern. If your pattern is the same or very similar to others already available in large quantities ie: bees, leggy frogs, ghosts etc, that are available for free all over the internet, I strongly suggest your pattern is free.
Your experience/the quality of the pattern. If you’re a beginner crocheter and haven’t yet mastered the basic crochet stitches and techniques, my suggestion is to not spend time writing patterns, but to focus on learning how to crochet to a quality that will make people want to purchase from you. One problem I’ve noticed on Ribblr is that beginner crocheters are trying to make patterns, when they don’t really know how to crochet yet. They then publish their “patterns” on Ribblr and wonder why people won’t buy them.
I personally only buy patterns if the item is unique, contains uncommon techniques, stitches and/or shaping, that I can’t easily replicate myself or would take me ages to figure it out myself.
