Ask me for something that doesn't exist yet

Price, minimum, and timing

Price: it depends on size, lining, and the fabric it takes, but as a guide:

• Totes — $50 to $100
• Book sleeves — $35 to $50, padded and sized to the book you actually carry
• Bows — $13 to $20
• Scrunchies — $8 to $12
• Pet bandanas — $22 to $35, and the more of them there are, the better the price gets — so every one of your babies can match
• Home pieces — $40 to $60. Tea cosies, appliance covers, mug rugs and the like; it depends almost entirely on size
• Christmas stockings — $40 to $65, lined and cuffed with a hanging loop. A name appliquéd on the cuff sits at the top of that range. Ask early if you want a set that matches; they're much nicer made together than one at a time
• Gift card holders — $12 to $18. A small lined envelope whose four corners fold in and cross over, so there is nothing to unfasten and nothing to break, for when a gift card is exactly the right present but doesn't feel like one on its own
• Quilts — from $350, and I'll want to talk about size before I give you a number; a crib quilt and a quilt for a double bed aren't the same object. Heirloom quilts pieced from someone's clothes start at $650 — a jacket, a favourite shirt, the things nobody can bring themselves to give away. That one is slow, careful work and I'd rather quote it properly than cheaply. One thing worth knowing before you ask: if the clothes are cotton — shirts, T-shirts, denim — the finished quilt washes like any other. If they're wool, a suit jacket or trousers, it can't go in a machine afterwards and becomes a spot-clean piece. I'd rather tell you that now than once I've cut into something you can't get back. It's also why a wool suit often makes a better wall hanging than a bed quilt — hung and admired rather than washed, which is what most people wanted from it anyway. Ask me about either
• Repairs and mending — from $40. I'd rather look at the piece before I give you a number, because a single worn patch and a quilt that needs three seams rebuilt are very different afternoons. Bring it to me and I'll tell you honestly what it needs, including if it's beyond me
• Matching sets — quoted together, and usually kinder than the pieces separately
• Something else entirely — quoted on its own, because it depends so much on the piece. I've made a padded Kindle case for travelling, a tote that hangs from a wheelchair, and a patchwork pouch, none of which were ever shop listings. If you can describe it and it's sewn from fabric, ask me — the worst I'll say is that it isn't my craft.

I'll always give you a price before anything begins, and you're free to walk away.

Minimum: custom orders start at $25. A single scrunchie or bow is happiest as part of a bigger custom order or a set — if you just want one on its own, the ready-made ones in the shop are the same lovely thing for less.

Timing: most custom pieces take 10 to 14 days to make, counted from the day you accept your quote — plus shipping time on top. Quilts are the exception, at 8 to 12 weeks, because a quilt is forty-odd hours of work rather than an afternoon. Everything is sewn by one person around a small child, so work is booked in the order it comes in. If I can't hit a deadline you need, I'll tell you before you commit rather than after.

Custom pieces are made to your specification, so they can't be returned unless something arrives damaged or wrong. See Shipping & Returns.