Some Tassels, some thrift and $$!

It has been really nice this week making and filling orders.
The above garland is heading off to the U.S and the tassel twins are heading off to Sydney!
I think the arabian-blue and chartreuse are a great fit! 
I like making to peoples tastes, then they get what they'd like and I get to experiment with my colour palette and make tassels....not bored yet of making tassels!

This morning I floated an idea on insta for a dream catcher/tassel thingy. I popped up a pic pre-dyed and kindly folk offered their support and liked the image, that's what you do on instagram 'like it' if you like it or move on?

One follower expressed their 'love' for the new idea but that I was way too expensive.
I was fortunate that many of my insta pal were able to express eloquently, the reasonings behind handmade etc and money!

So am I too expensive?... well, interestingly Mr Ouch did the math, I don't do numbers but here's tassel pricing 101 in a nut shell!

1 x batch of twine = $7.00
Dye = $4.00

To cut, bind, dye and fluff up a single tassel takes one hour and 20 mins. Based on minimum wage of $19.00 an hour, I "pay" Mr Ouch $6.00 for his part in tassel making, whilst "paying" myself $19.00 for my part in designing, creating, measuring, cutting, assembling, dying and putting the finishing touches to the tassel.

So, that's $11 for materials, $6 to Mr Ouch, $19 to myself as my wage, which equals $36. Wow, $4 profit...

Hang on, they have to be packed and posted too... 

That's tissue paper, fancy sticky tape, business card, hand written thank you letter and a healthy dose of ouch-goodness. Plus the postage of $6.95.

So I'm actually more than $2.95 out of pocket! How'd that happen? Who's idea was it to make these stupid tassels anyway? You've convinced me, prices are going up. Right NOW!

Not really, because I love doing this and seeing my work make other people happy. 
I want tassels to be affordable and accessible to the design conscious, savvy shopper such as myself who has loads of class but on a budget! 
That's why I thrift and why I support the handmade community.

.....And whilst I won't be buying a new BMW with the proceeds (although I may have 2 sell the 2 Ferrari's to pay for the postage deficit, or employ a friendly pigeon or 3), there's a reason that handmade costs a bit more than machine-made in an anonymous factory in South East Asia.

 Here's some thrift!

Homemaker, UK, 1950's

Midwinter-Conran 'Nature Study', UK.

Zoo Line-Monkey

Spanish silver, modernist, brutalist ring.

Silver, Finnish, P Sarpaneva, 1975.

Thanks for reading!
Pippa x