[Ansteorra] The Cost of Time

Lisa Sawyer ysabeau.lists at gmail.com
Thu Jul 23 14:39:00 PDT 2009


A couple of years ago I was returning from Pennsic and the airlines lost my
luggage. I had almost every piece of SCA clothing I own in those suitcases,
not to mention jewlery and other accessories. Around week two of them still
not able to tell me where my stuff was or when I might get it back, I
started making a list of the items. When I started putting monetary value on
the clothing alone (cost of fabric +  trim + time to make + cost of
maintenance for sewing machine), I was easily over the allowance the
airlines give you if they lose your luggage.

At one point, I got a customer service agent who "got it". After I
explained, once again, that the bags were full of custom made renaissance
costumes that could not be replaced at Target, she paused and said "You were
coming back from Pennsic, weren't you?".  She made me feel better because
she told me that my bags would be found and they were probably still sitting
in Pittsburgh. Apparently, SCAdians tend to pack heavy for Pennsic. For
safety reasons they airlines can't put everything on the planes and it takes
a while for the bags to catch up. Considering that I helped a woman who was
trying to put a big period pavilion on as excess baggage (poles and all), I
can believe it. They finally delivered my bags with nothng missing 3 weeks
after my flight, much to my relief.
So, long story short, I totally agree with JP. We tend to underestimate how
much the items we make are worth because we are making them. If you had to
be reimbursed for your materials and time spent, how much would you charge
for that dress or spear? Probably not $1250 on average, but more than you
think.

my thoughts,
Ysabeau
On Thu, Jul 23, 2009 at 3:44 PM, Jean Paul de Sens <jeanpauldesens at gmail.com
> wrote:

> The recent shield discussion, and the responses to the costs, has just
> reinforced my belief that we (the SCA) and society in general have forgot
> how much it costs to do *one* of an object.
> Case in point, that shield probably has around $40-$50 of materials (glue,
> wood, hose, maybe hidden u-channel, rope, bolts, nuts,primer, paint, finish
> coat).
> It also has (if I had to bet) around 20 hours of labor (cut shield,
> laminate, sand, prime, outline pattern, paint, clear coat).
>
> So if I were to pay some guy $10 per hour to do this, it would cost me
> around $250 to do this shield.
>
> If I had to run a business doing this, where I had to pay for construction
> space, taxes, perhaps even health, insurance, etc etc, well, that $10 per
> hour worker will cost around $25/hour.
>
> Now the cost of that custom shield goes to $550.
>
> Often, I feel that we in the SCA don't appreciate the monetary value of the
> art works that people make.  The scrolls on our walls, the clothes, the
> weapons, shields, what have you, are custom made works of art, and when we
> dismiss the price on something as "too high" and "not worth that" we
> diminish the effort of the artist.
>
> I don't know who made that shield.  I know that someone probably put a lot
> of energy, money, and effort into it, and might be a bit offended at some
> of
> the comments made.
>
> I know of many generous artisans in our kingdom and our game, who donate
> work and craft and art so selflessly that is astounds me.  Let us make sure
> that we keep in mind both the spiritual and the monetary value of their
> work, and thank them accordingly.
>
> My apologies for rambling, but this issue always bothers me a bit.
>
> JP
>
> Qui mieux fait, mieux vault.
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