Sewing for $$

[Niele da Kine]

Folks pay big money for wedding dresses and each wedding usually has "the" dress plus a half dozen attendants dresses as well. Those are usually really fussy folks, though.

Depending on your zoning, you may be allowed to have a home based business. Check your local ordinance laws if you are concerned about it. I run a drafting business (house plans, blueprints, etc.) from my house. Since there are so few clients - one or two per month and I have the business license and pay taxes on the income, everything is legal. If I had more clients, I forget the exact number, then there would be more difficulty. If you picked up the sewing from somewhere and dropped it off, then you wouldn't have any clients showing up at your house at all and there probably wouldn't be any zoning difficulties at all. Well, as long as it's just you. If you had a dozen employees, then that would be a problem.

If you weren't sure how much to charge, you could do the repairs or alterations and let them pay you what they think it's worth. You could try it for awhile and see if they paid more than you would have asked.

 

[FarmerChick]

around my area, the few good places are gone
they charged what the market would bare, but people found it easier to buy new instead of repairing old

but a person willing to create new clothes, well, maybe there is a market but I am iffy on that one---wouldn't happen in my area

 

[abifae]

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[raro]

I used to do a lot of for-profit sewing. I made and sold Barbie clothes. Nobody likes to sew tiny stuff like that, but I loved it. People are willing to pay more for doll clothes that are washable, sturdy, and not sleazy!

I also did bridesmaids dresses and wedding dresses. I tell you, though, you have to have a thick hide to do those. The dressmaker is usually the last one to be paid, and I heard all the excuses. Once the wedding is over, they conveniently forget to pay the bill. I requested money up front, told them my for-hour price in addition to the cost of materials, gave them a rough estimate, and when they would gasp and say, "I could get something cheaper elsewhere!" I would tell them, "You're asking for something custom made that won't fall apart at the wedding. I guarantee my work. You want cheap, look somewhere else." More often than not, they accepted that.
I took pride in my work, and it was never "home-made," it was "custom designed"!