Value - Or, Just Say NO!

I read an opinion piece today about artists and their value.  While it specifies those in the artistic industry such as photography and videography, I find this applies to both my crafting and my work.

I am frequently asked to knit, sew, craft, etc...items for friends when they see what I've made.  Some offer payment, others offer to buy the materials, and still others just expect me to do it for the fun of doing it and offer it as a gift.

Before I began to sew and knit seriously, I often thought that hand knit items were ridiculously overpriced; that was until I sat down and knit my first sweater and sewed my first dress.  Then I realized that people offer handcrafted items for sale are woefully underpaid.  My tastes run towards more costly items like fine quality yarns and stylish fabrics so when someone sees something I've made, they don't realize that my handmade item cost maybe twice what it would have cost if I'd picked it up in a store.  After factoring time to craft the item, well...it's a hobby as I tell people, and I don't make things for fun and profit, just for fun.  I do knit and sew for others as gifts, but when I have requests, more often than not I will say no.

That's hard for me, saying no.  I was raised to give of myself and then give more, but I rarely have time for the crafts that I love so much and having to do them for other people makes it onerous.  I actually will put off crafting an item for other people's requests until the very last minute because I am just not feeling it.

As for work, that's a very hard one for me.  I have learned to accept rejection of my rates, hard as it may be, and to refuse to offer services when potential clients attempt to haggle me down.  I've done favors before, but I've often found that the favors are seldom returned and rarely appreciated.  They also tend to lead to multiple requests for favors.

The other day I had such a request.  I would normally charge about $280 plus, given the condition of the home, a $40 wear and tear fee on my equipment and sanity.  I was offered less than half my standard rate, and as much as I wanted to help a person I like, I politely declined their offer and told them my rate is my rate, friendship aside.

Of course, there's a part of me inside that thinks that extra money would be nice, I could do something nice with the kids or invest in some hiking equipment for my big fall trip, but I have to value myself and say no when someone attempts to undervalue me.  I offer a service, and I expect to be paid for that service in a profitable manner. While I truly enjoy what I do, it's very hard and dirty work, and I do a damned good job.  That's why I charge the rates I charge, you get what you pay for and you get a lot from me when I work for you.  I've had housekeepers in the past, and I've come  home from a long, hard day only to clean up the mess the housekeeper has left behind: puddles of cleaning fluid, smears on my windows and doors, and worst of all...Pledge furniture polish buildup on my bathroom tiles.

I am not a charity, I'm not looking for an "opportunity" to get my business name out there.  Out of all the favors I've done for others, I've never seen a referral or money that I was promised in the future.  It was an opportunity for the person whom I helped to save money and get a great deal, and it has always left me feeling angry, bitter, and used.

So I don't do favors.  I reject low ball offers of payment.  I accept rejections from potential clients who feel my prices are too high.  That's life and I will not undervalue myself.

Natural Cleaning Products

I own a small cleaning business that uses only natural cleaning products I make myself.  My main ingredients are vinegar, water, baking soda, soap, and essential oils.  That's it.  I do make furniture polish as well, and those ingredients are a little more dear (beeswax specifically) but only one of my clients actually has fine wood furniture that requires waxing/polishing and my stuff is mostly IKEA crap, so I don't have to mix that up very often.

I started using natural cleaners shortly after I was pregnant with my son.  I'd become more interested in natural living and honestly, I was sick of cleaners that irritated my sinuses and eyes, not to mention my skin.  Over years of fiddling and messing around with ideas I found online, I finally found a system that works for me.  When I stopped using harsh cleaners like Pine Sol and bleach, I realized that I just felt better.  I didn't have sinus issues following a deep clean of my house and I began to appreciate things smelling clean by a lack of scent, not an overpowering smell of an agent.

For most everything I clean, I use my all-purpose spray.  My spray consists of vinegar, water, a dash of dish soap (Dawn, sorry, I use nothing else), and tea tree essential oil.  It cleans everything except granite and marble.  For granite and marble, straight rubbing alcohol is my go-to.  I simply spray, let it sit for a minute, then wipe and go.

If there's tough grit or cooked on food on the stove top or inside the oven I make a paste of baking soda and soap, rub it in, and let it sit while I clean the rest of the kitchen.  Then I go back and scrub with a scrubby sponge and wipe away with clean water.  I finish it off by spraying down the surface with my vinegar based mixture, this usually helps finish off the film/residue.

For bathrooms I use straight vinegar with tea tree oil and a dash of soap in the toilet. I only scrub toilets on my hands and knees with a dedicated toilet sponge.  I also wipe the walls, cabinets, and floors around the toilet to make sure it's really clean.  The tubs get a baking soda/soap paste to scrub and scour away any residues or build ups, I love love love my clients that have clear glass shower doors because it is so satisfying to leave a cloudy glass door looking brand new and shiny again.  Of course I'll never own a glass shower for that specific reason, it's a LOT of work keeping glass looking that good, but I do admit that when kept up with properly, glass doors are attractive.

The ace up my sleeve for my home and business is elbow grease.  I get very aggressive and scrub hard when cleaning.  I always laugh to myself because I lost over 50 lbs when I started up my business.  Cleaning an entire 2000+ sq ft house in 4 hours is better than one hour at the gym.  Even at my most gym-rat stage of gym rattiness, I never got such a good workout for such a consistent period of time.  The only thing I can think of that's a better workout is a 10 mile hike in rough terrain (and I am eagerly awaiting warmer weather so I can start up hiking again).

For floors I sweep and then vacuum with my dyson on the hard floor feature.  I use the wand to get corners and baseboards (though sometimes those need wiped down), and I try to hit the ceilings about once a month with my brush attachment to make sure cobwebs are kept down.  Carpets get sprinkled with a baking soda/essential oil mixture to reduce carpet odors and leave them smelling fresh.  I put this down before I start cleaning anything, it's my first cleaning step, and vacuum before I walk out the door.

Hard floors are steamed with my haan floor mop that has reusable and washable pads.  In my home I just use it without any oils added to the pads, but my clients enjoy pretty smells so I'll put several drops of essential oils onto the pad prior to starting it up and as it steams it produces clouds of lovely smelling vapor.

And that's it:  water, vinegar, baking soda, soap, and essential oils.  Those are my keys to a clean, healthy home.