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I found a list of 6 outrageously overpriced products this morning. This was listed as #2:
Greeting Cards
Since when does a folded up piece of paper cost $2.99? Since someone slaps a precious kitty picture and a cleverly written message on it and then stamps the back of it with a well-known logo. That's right - we're talking about those pricey greeting cards. Many consumers spend hours poring over the neatly arranged stacks in the greeting card aisle, searching for the perfect message for their sister's birthday, their parent's anniversary or "Just Because."
The average greeting card costs between $2 and $4, and we consumers don't seem to think twice about paying that precipitous price. The markup is between 100 and 200% - which is not quite as shocking as movie theater popcorn, but it adds up quickly. When you consider how many of those paper jewels you buy each year, it's enough to send you running for the construction paper and markers. After all, it only costs a few cents to create a home-made card.
The person writing that article is obviously NOT a stamper! Don't they know that our cards cost well over the price of store bought cards when you consider the cost of our tools???
Location: The Volunteer state....beautiful Tennessee!
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I think we all should print out this article and give it to our husbands. It's great justification for buying card making supplies, don't you think? ;-)
Hahahahahahaha! Yeah, right!! If it "only costs a few cents" then tell me why my stamping supplies (investments) are taken into account on my homeowners insurance??
Thanks for the laugh this morning!! ;)
__________________ ~ Laura
I have CDO. It's like OCD, except all the letters are in order like they should be.
All the time I spend thinking on a card, the cost of paper, copic ink, wear and tear on my cuttle bug, stickles, blades for my cutter, glue, embellishments, ribbons, buttons, brads, pearls. Shoot the average card we make should start at 25 Dollars
__________________ Daughter of a King My Blog
Rebekka
The last time my husband asked me to make a card, he loved how it looked and said "And, it was really cheap! Can't beat that!"
I waited a little bit, but I couldn't resist - I said "You realize that it probably cost more in materials than a card you'd have gotten at the store, right?" (He is fond of purchasing cards at the dollar store)
He said "I know, but it was money you spent out of your allowance to buy that stuff. I got the card for free, it looks 1000% better than anything I'd have bought, and didn't have to spend time at the store"
I laughed when I read this. I just received a store bought card that cost $6.95CDN! Where do they get $2-4? But we all know it costs us way more than that but it's cheaper than a therapist!!!!
Obviously written by someone who doesn't have a CLUE! Doesn't live with anyone who makes cards, and has never seen a card made from CONSTRUCTION PAPER???
Are you kidding me. That's cute when it come from your kids or grandkids but come on...
The last time my husband asked me to make a card, he loved how it looked and said "And, it was really cheap! Can't beat that!"
I waited a little bit, but I couldn't resist - I said "You realize that it probably cost more in materials than a card you'd have gotten at the store, right?" (He is fond of purchasing cards at the dollar store)
He said "I know, but it was money you spent out of your allowance to buy that stuff. I got the card for free, it looks 1000% better than anything I'd have bought, and didn't have to spend time at the store"
I think I might need to start charging him
Aye! ;)
Thanks for the chuckle this morning!
__________________ Julie Ebersole (JulieHRR once upon a time . . . )julieebersole.com"So shines a good deed in a weary world." -Willy Wonka
My mom still tells the story of her Christmas card from last year:
So I showed my mom this really cute Christmas card here on SCS and she decided that she wanted to duplicate it. So we first looked for the stamp. My mom quickly found out that it was a retired SU! set, and the only place that had it was Ebay. So she bid (and bid and bid and bid) until the set was won for the grand price of $25 or $30 (that money could have bought some really nice cards at the store). The next step was the embossed background - we couldn't quite figure out how it was made (cardmaking was still a relatively new field for all parties involved at this time). The source was finally discovered: a machine called a...a...Cutterbeetle..no that's not it...a Cutterbug...that still doesn't sound right...oh! a Cuttlebug!! The only problem was....they are $80. Well the stamp set was already purchased, and we couldn't return it, so of course the CB had to be bought! Now the cards totaled $105. We're still working on the card, and we find that SU!'s Top Note die just had to be purchased for yet another $25 (plus S&H). Add to that the ink, about 40 sheets of cardstock, and glimmer mist to spray over the image, and you have the Christmas cards totalling about $175! We could have had a decade's worth of storebought cards at this price! Oh, well... (we did get a lot of compliments!!)
Anyway that was a really long and involved story to show that cardmaking is not half as cheap as it sounds!! (unless, of course, you use the advocated markers and construction paper ;)) I am proud to say that my mom has enlisted me to make her cards for the holidays this year, and the total cost will be about $20
But, like 'piano 5678' pointed out, who needs a therapist when you have cardmaking?
__________________
~Rebekah~ My mind works like lightning - one brilliant 'FLASH' and it's gone!
Wow that person had no clue... My ink pads alone set me back $180. And those are just the pads from Stampin Up! I won't be admitting what the rest of my stuff has put me back.
But everytime I give someone a home made card, and I get to see them ooo and ah over it, I know that every penny was well spent. I had a friend actually STOP her daughter's birthday party to direct attention to the card I had made for Drea. She made sure that everyone had a chance to see and every single one of them oooed and ahhed over it.
My first card cost me $124.78 and then I had to pay extra for the postage because the envelope was oversized. LOL PS: I sent it to my sister's little dog for her birthday.
Yes it's all true, but buying store cards doesn't make me feel as happy as making the cards myself. I guess I get some joy out of the task which is worth something too. And there are family/non family members who get cards that come from the dollar store. I don't mean off the rack of the dollar store, I mean, out of a box where they are .10 each. They may or may not read them and then promptly put them in the trash. First time I see someone do that with a card I make. They go on the dollar store card list.
Well, I've certainly seen cards for sale in retail stores that might be about that price in dollars, but they look just what they are - cheap. And a handmade one is an extra part of the gift when it accompanies a present.
My first card cost me $124.78 and then I had to pay extra for the postage because the envelope was oversized. LOL PS: I sent it to my sister's little dog for her birthday.
I am in Christchurch, New Zealand where we have just had a 7.1 Earthquake last saturday and have had over 200 aftershocks since then, this thread gave me a much needed laugh, Thank you so much. BTW when the electricity went out and we were told to stay put, I said to my husband "Don't need electricity to stamp" ;)
My cards cost so much I have to quietly get extra money at the grocery store so my dh doesn't know quite how much they cost and cost and cost - it's kinda like the energizer bunny - it keeps going and going and going...!
I saw that article and thought the exact same thing - the only homemade card you can make for a few cents is with construction paper and a highlighter! Some friends of mine decided that a hand stamped card should start somewhere around $69.95 and go up from there! LOL
Isn't it funny how people will pay 5.00 at WalMart for a mass produced card that millions of people will recieve but won't pay that much for one that only a few will. Don't they want something that is original and that they don't have to worry about the person getting 10 of them. I must say when I put a card on a wedding gift I know that no one eles will put the same one on their gift.
I think we all should print out this article and give it to our husbands. It's great justification for buying card making supplies, don't you think? ;-)
I am in Christchurch, New Zealand where we have just had a 7.1 Earthquake last saturday and have had over 200 aftershocks since then, this thread gave me a much needed laugh, Thank you so much. BTW when the electricity went out and we were told to stay put, I said to my husband "Don't need electricity to stamp" ;)
Hope you are all OK in NZ. It takes more than a little old earthquake to keep a good stamper down!!
i never really added it up,but the people who i make cards for love them,so for me it is PRICELESS too and you are so right,it is much cheaper than a shrink!! hugs!
When I first started stamping, about 7 years ago, my DH was shocked at how much I spent at my first SU party. But then he decided we could really save money in the long run, since I probably had all the supplies I would ever need, hahahah! Now, he has not idea how much I spend on necessary supplies, but realizes that he was quite naive to think we would be saving $$$. It is cheaper than therapy. That's been my motto after I hit the $500 mark, many moons ago.
Yes, i repeat! Thanks for the laughs!! It reminds me of an email i saw recently about 2 men in a boat out fishing..... the storm builds up and it looks like they might go overboard.... one man says to the other... if i dont make it through dont let my wife sell my fishing gear for what i told her it is worth!!
i am a recently started stamper and i have to admit i am finding it very hard - to be self controlled and to allocate our budget where i should! - food, bills, etc. !! gradually learning. recently i decided to start making cards to raise money for a charity. figured it would be a good way to do the cards and really have it come to some good. i have raised almost $200 to fight against slavery - but yes, i worry about the wisdom of that as i know i have spent hundreds$$$$$ that i could have used elsewhere (we are on one income!).... but just when i get the guilts someone comes up to me at church and just exclaims how they love the cards and how they enjoy giving and receiving them so much. several people have actually called it my "Ministry area"!!! so the only way i can even close to justify it is to say..it raises awareness and money for the work against slavery, it makes the giver and reciever feel good, it gives me a passion, and an outlet, it actually helps my son - with his fine motor skills, visual perception, and business skills (we homeschool and he needs help in all these areas! - and he is so aware of slavery now!).... but then those are on the days i feel good, and i havent tried that rationale on my husband. he has been fairly quiet so far (and i may have my crafty m-i-l on my side!), so far he is supportive, though he frequently comments on how it seems to be growing - ouch!
so.... how does one exhibit self control???? or is it only when the cc is maxed?! (hopefully i stop before that, i try to budget some aside each month, i just get ahead of myself!)
Isn't it funny how people will pay 5.00 at WalMart for a mass produced card that millions of people will recieve but won't pay that much for one that only a few will. Don't they want something that is original and that they don't have to worry about the person getting 10 of them. I must say when I put a card on a wedding gift I know that no one eles will put the same one on their gift.
It depends where you sell your cards, Antiques mall/shops are a great place to get a good price for your cards! Try to find a place with a reasonable consighment (25-35%) and put out a basket, you will be surprised! Or you might want to rent a booth with a friend and sell painted furnature, crafts and cards. Fix up lawn sale furniture, decoupage it, and make it lovely. Those are great sellers and you already know how to alter stuff!
Of COURSE I can make basic cards cheaper than the store cards.
It's the bells and whistles that cost me: embellishments, machines and dies, special inks & colors. ALL worth it of course. (Unfortunately - I have YET to use some I bought YEARS ago.)
I have my "Den of Addiction - with a little bit of Glitter" insured for $60,000 (includes furniture and computer). So that's 30,000 $2 cards. I figure I've made 700+ since I started stamping 6+ years ago. So only 29,300 to go to break even! LOL
You realize we have to take into consideration if you BOUGHT a card, you leave a carbon footprint. I mean you have to drive to the store, pick it out and drive home. Gas at $3/gallon added to cost of the card then figure that card left a carbon footprint as it had to be delivered and a person had to put it in the display rack had to drive to work....(granted our stuff has to be delivered but that's besides the point).
I think I figured out a few years ago that you can make a card with an envelope (3 layers, no embellishments) for 35 cents if you bought the envelopes at Walmart. We have to consider our rubber a collection, like spoons, mugs or figurines...or guns, cars, tools like men do. (See we can justify this if we work hard at it..)
Oh and Julie G. I love you call your room the Den of addiction.
I loved reading everyones stories. I call stamping my therapy. My DH came into my stamping room one day looked around and asked how much I have invested in my therapy. I looked him right in the eye and said not a 1/4 of what you have invested in tools in your garage. Since then we have an understanding. Don't ask about my therapy and I won't ask about your tools.
__________________ You never know how strong you are until strong is the only choice you have.
Okay...so maybe the first card you make costs $500. But maybe a good therapist charges $500 for the first visit and you still have to keep going back until you're cured! I enjoy wallowing through my addiction everyday and every once in a while something good pops out..(a nice card silly). So I don't fight it anymore. LOL DH really doesn't understand but it saves him from being buried in the compost pile. His addiction is golf so to get him to understand how much I really spent at the last SU party I tell him I bought 'a new putter and a dozen Pro V's'. He gets it!!! ha ha
About 8 years ago I took some of my hand made cards into a gift shop for consignment. The owner asked me how much was I asking for them, and I told her I usually charged 3.00 each. She shook her head, and said no, and so I thought I was putting a really high price on them. Then the lady said "You should be charging 4.00 a card, and I am going to charge 8.00 for them".
Which she did, AND sold them.:shock:
One of my sisters was looking at my stamps one day, and the price tag was stick glued on one of them. She shrieked " You paid 9.00 for this?" Well, SHE plays Bingo.
I reminded her that once I used the stamp- guess what? I could use it again and again, but when you pay 40.00 to play Bingo- the money is gone and nothing to show for it. :rolleyes:
Outrageous??
