Craft Pricing Sheet: Soy Candles, Beaded Bracelets & Crochet Coaster Sets (USD)
Summary: Your candles cost about $12.75 each to make once you pay yourself $18/hour, so you can charge $26.00, the top of your local $18–$26 range, and still make a healthy profit. The weak spot is wholesale. At the usual half-of-retail price ($13), a candle would barely cover its cost, so ask the gift shop for at least $16.00. Bracelets are your strongest item. The coaster sets are mostly labor (81% of their cost), so they need about $50 to make a fair profit.
Your Inputs and Assumptions
From you:
- Candle (8 oz): wax $45 per 10 lb bag (about 18 candles), amber jar $1.20, wick $0.15, fragrance $22 per 16 oz (1 oz per candle), label $0.10. Time: 20 min each in a batch of 12.
- Bracelet: beads $12 per strand (4 bracelets), elastic $5 per spool (about 40), charm $0.80. Time: 15 min.
- Coaster set of 4: yarn $6 per skein (2 sets), tag $0.20. Time: 1 hr 30 min.
- Hourly rate: $18/hour.
- Channels: Etsy, monthly craft fairs and possible wholesale to a local gift shop. Country: USA.
- Booth fee $40 per fair, about 30 items sold per fair. Etsy packaging about $0.75 per order.
- Local candle competitors charge $18–$26.
Assumptions (please check these):
- ASSUMED: 5% waste allowance on all materials (spilled wax, broken beads, yarn ends).
- ASSUMED: 10% general overhead on materials + labor. This covers tools, electricity, pouring pitchers, hooks and wear.
- ASSUMED: one tag per coaster set and one item per Etsy order.
- Channel-specific costs stay with their channel. The booth fee is spread only over fair sales: $40 ÷ 30 items = $1.33 per item. The $0.75 packaging only applies to Etsy sales. "Total cost" below is the base cost before these channel costs.
- Etsy fees (US): $0.20 listing fee, plus 6.5% transaction fee, plus 3% + $0.25 payment processing. Several sources agree on these: Craftybase, the Wix blog and Checkout Page. The 6.5% also applies to whatever shipping you charge. Here I assume the buyer pays shipping and that it covers your postage, so shipping isn't in the math. Not included: Etsy Offsite Ads, which add 12–15% on sales that come through those ads. On a $26 candle that's an extra $3.12–$3.90.
- ESTIMATE: about 3% card-reader fee at fairs. My search to confirm the exact Square/card-reader rate failed, so this is a labeled estimate applied to every fair sale. Cash sales would have no fee. Check your reader's current rate.
- Wholesale: no platform fees. I assumed you deliver locally at no cost.
- Profit here is on top of your $18/hour wage. Your labor is already counted as a cost.
1. Soy Candle (8 oz)
Cost breakdown
| Line item | Calculation | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Wax | $45 ÷ 18 candles | $2.50 |
| Amber jar | given | $1.20 |
| Cotton wick | given | $0.15 |
| Fragrance oil | $22 ÷ 16 oz × 1 oz | $1.38 |
| Label | given | $0.10 |
| Waste (5%) | $5.33 × 5% | $0.27 |
| Materials per unit | $5.33 + $0.27 (unrounded: 5.325 + 0.266) | $5.59 |
| Labor | 20 min = 0.333 hr × $18 | $6.00 |
| Overhead (10%) | ($5.59 + $6.00) × 10% | $1.16 |
| Total cost | $5.59 + $6.00 + $1.16 | $12.75 |
| Fair only: booth share | $40 ÷ 30 items | $1.33 |
| Etsy only: packaging | given | $0.75 |
Pricing
| Method | Wholesale | Retail |
|---|---|---|
| A: Cost-plus (×1.4 profit, retail = ×2) | $12.75 × 1.4 = $17.85 | $17.85 × 2 = $35.70 |
| B: Maker formula (materials ×2.5 + labor + overhead) | $21.14 ÷ 2 = $10.57 ⚠️ below cost | $13.98 + $6.00 + $1.16 = $21.14 |
| Recommended | $16.00 | $26.00 |
Why $26.00: It's at the top of your local $18–$26 range and is supported by Method B ($21.14) plus your quality amber jar. Method A's $35.70 is well above what you've seen nearby. For wholesale, half of $26 ($13) would leave you only $0.25 profit, so $16.00 is your floor.
Channels
| Channel | Price | Est. fees & channel costs | You keep | Profit | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etsy | $26.00 | $2.92 fees + $0.75 packaging | $22.33 | $9.58 | 36.8% |
| Craft fair | $26.00 | $0.78 card fee (est.) + $1.33 booth | $23.89 | $11.14 | 42.8% |
| Wholesale | $16.00 | $0.00 | $16.00 | $3.25 | 20.3% ⚠️ just at the 20% line |
Etsy fee math: $0.20 + (6.5% × $26 = $1.69) + (3% × $26 = $0.78) + $0.25 = $2.92.
2. Beaded Bracelet
Cost breakdown
| Line item | Calculation | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Glass beads | $12 ÷ 4 bracelets | $3.00 |
| Stretch elastic | $5 ÷ 40 | $0.13 (0.125) |
| Silver charm | given | $0.80 |
| Waste (5%) | $3.925 × 5% | $0.20 |
| Materials per unit | $3.925 + $0.196 | $4.12 |
| Labor | 15 min = 0.25 hr × $18 | $4.50 |
| Overhead (10%) | ($4.12 + $4.50) × 10% | $0.86 |
| Total cost | $4.12 + $4.50 + $0.86 | $9.48 |
| Fair only: booth share | $40 ÷ 30 | $1.33 |
| Etsy only: packaging | given | $0.75 |
Pricing
| Method | Wholesale | Retail |
|---|---|---|
| A: Cost-plus (×1.4, retail = ×2) | $9.48 × 1.4 = $13.27 | $26.54 |
| B: Maker formula (materials ×2.5 + labor + overhead) | $7.83 ⚠️ below cost | $10.30 + $4.50 + $0.86 = $15.66 |
| Recommended | $13.00 | $26.00 |
Why $26.00: It follows Method A, rounded down to a clean number, and it matches your candle price, which makes displays and bundles easy. You didn't give bracelet competitor prices, so watch how fast they sell and adjust. If they sell slowly, $22–$24 still leaves more than a 40% margin at fairs.
Channels
| Channel | Price | Est. fees & channel costs | You keep | Profit | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etsy | $26.00 | $2.92 + $0.75 | $22.33 | $12.85 | 49.4% |
| Craft fair | $26.00 | $0.78 (est.) + $1.33 | $23.89 | $14.41 | 55.4% |
| Wholesale | $13.00 | $0.00 | $13.00 | $3.52 | 27.1% |
3. Crochet Coaster Set of 4
Cost breakdown
| Line item | Calculation | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Cotton yarn | $6 ÷ 2 sets |