Mooloo's little tapestry of life, 2016

Savvy_sewing

jackyann wrote: »

Random thought Mooloo, based on experience in another field entirely!

Are you in touch with your local college or similar, where sewing / textiles / whatever it is called now, might be taught?

Could any of the students help, in exchange for practical experience? Or are there any other connections that can be made?

Good luck for 2016

I'm not sure how my insurance would work.
I have work experience girls come in the June time, last year I asked the girl to overlock a circular tablecloth I'd cut out. Erm somehow it got smaller and was not even a circle at all by the time she brought it to me! And I didn't have anymore of the fabric either, so it cost me to replace it. So other then helping with customer service I ended up getting her to help make things with remnants to keep her busy!!

ivyleaf

Mooloo I would certainly be happy to pay £6.50 to have a child's beloved toy mended, or to have a badge sewn on!

Remember, you are using a valuable skill If you don't charge because "it only takes thirty seconds" you are saying the time and skill involved isn't worth anything.
If you did a small job for me for free, I'd certainly think you were lovely, but it wouldn't be making you any profit

ETA I would certainly put £5 in the charity box though! The cheek of that man! :mad:

greenbee

You need to have the sign with the minimum charge very clearly displayed. And you also need to charge extra for 24/48 hour turnaround. NEVER do anything instantly, in front of the customer, unless they are a particularly good, regular customer who you know won't take advantage. If they say it's too expensive, suggest that they join your sewing classes so they can learn to do the job themselves (maybe you should have a 'mending' class as a one-off every so often, where people bring something they want to mend and you or one of your staff supervises them doing their own mending - and they have to buy the materials/equipment they need to do the job, as this will benefit them).

I regularly mend my nephew's favourite toy (there are actually 3 of them) because limbs are always threatening to fall off or holes developing. It takes time and effort. Not sure what I'm going to do about the fact that they are all slowly going bald...

Savvy_Sue

Actually a mending class sounds like an EXCELLENT idea. I have a pile of mending which sits around forever - the odd button to be sewn on I try to do straight away, but the pillow case which needs a seam re-doing, I'd get the sewing machine out for that and I simply don't get round to it.

Sewing the name labels into the boys clothes - I also used to do this by machine (when I wasn't using a rubber stamp!). So maybe a termly session of 'bring your mending, have a natter, swap tips with each other, pay £5 including coffee and use of sewing machines' - I'd be there occasionally!!!

trix-a-belle

What they all said! ^^

As another option for small fixes like the examples you give, sell them a pack of needles & thread to do it themselves (ETA this should be the minimum charge) & maybe you could have a short specific drop in session during the week, so you are not taking yourself away from the middle of something else, for items like that where it is all 5min jobs while you wait for a minimum of £3 or something?

dktreesea

greenbee wrote: »

You need to have the sign with the minimum charge very clearly displayed. And you also need to charge extra for 24/48 hour turnaround. NEVER do anything instantly, in front of the customer, unless they are a particularly good, regular customer who you know won't take advantage. If they say it's too expensive, suggest that they join your sewing classes so they can learn to do the job themselves (maybe you should have a 'mending' class as a one-off every so often, where people bring something they want to mend and you or one of your staff supervises them doing their own mending - and they have to buy the materials/equipment they need to do the job, as this will benefit them).

I regularly mend my nephew's favourite toy (there are actually 3 of them) because limbs are always threatening to fall off or holes developing. It takes time and effort. Not sure what I'm going to do about the fact that they are all slowly going bald...

Quite. Many people know how to sew. I've got two sewing machines sitting in the hallway. I still get the guy in the hole in the wall at one of the shopping centres near here to turn up trousers (£9 a time) because it takes time and effort and I just can't be bothered, even though I know how. So why is it less time and effort to drag myself up to the shopping centre where he is in town, pay through the nose for parking (it's Edinburgh; they do parking charges by the pound, at times it seems per minute!) and get someone else to do what I could have done in the comfort and warmth of my own home? Yes....well...I never said it's a logical decision.


Same with darning. I've got a sewing box with a darning ball in it. Even got wool. Cost of getting my wool coat darned, way too comfortable to ever throw away? £28 downstairs. A hole the size of a ten pence coin. No idea how it got there. Worth every penny. And I think she did a better job than I would have done.


I've got a theory about sewing machines. They know if the person loves sewing or thinks it's a chore. Back when I was in my teens and twenties, I used to make clothes for myself. They never, ever looked as good as those my friend made, who loved sewing. I swear, my sewing machine sparkled whenever she came near it, usually to rescue some of my more awful attempts.


Mooloo, don't undervalue anything you can do with a needle and thread, let alone a sewing machine. The lady downstairs charges £1.50 a button for reattaching buttons. Her thimble, her fingers at risk. Rather hers than mine. Worth every penny.

Savvy_sewing

Oo £1.50 to sew on a button. I shall remember that one.
Must admit I hate darning! Although one of my sewing machines does a darning stitch that I use on jeans a lot.

I probably wouldn't normally do the fix it jobs there and then but I didn't have any work left to do and was closing for nearly a week so just did them. But your all right, it's a skill I have etc
A mending class is a good idea.
I did post on my Facebook page about bringing in mending etc, and sorting through wardrobes and catching the repairs before they became worse etc.
Offering a mending class may be a good one.
I used to do a Stitch and !!!!! on a Tuesday morning but it didn't take off. Suppose it's the time of day.
I will try and launch it again in the new year.
Oops, next week!

DGD is playing Lego at the table, it's dark already, and I plan to read for a bit now. Have a bit of a headache, triggered I think by pain from my neck which is playing up the last 24 hours or so, and the left arm is also not good. Maybe I did too much clearing out DGDs bedroom yesterday.

Gintotmelinda

Mooloo just delurking to say that OH got charged £15 to provide and attach a new zip pull to his coat. This was a well known place that has branches in some supermarkets and shopping malls. Also a new zip would have been £25.


Gintot

dktreesea

Yes, I was a bit surprised at that - a new zip pull for free. It's a good job, Mooloo, you don't run your shop up here. Doing anything for free would get you a queue outside your shop in no time.


How about doing a multiple item discount, e.g. £10 for one pair of trousers turned up, a 10% discount if you bring in two items to be altered, a 15% discount if you bring in three or more items to be altered at a time?

dktreesea

Debt - I have business debts and have found this thread really useful over the years. This is the latest title for the 2016 thread:


Pay ALL your debt off by Xmas 2016!

Hopefully this link will work:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5381907