"Can you make one for me?"

One of the biggest challenges I’ve encountered in my approximate 18 years of crocheting is really 2 issues intertwined.

1) There is an assumption that because you are able to make one type of object (a scarf, for example) means that you are also knowledgeable in making ALL other types of items (such as a stuffed animal). This also applies cross-craft; if you know knitting, the assumption to the untrained eye is that you can also make that cute crochet item they saw.

2) The presumed value and cost of the items you are making.

How are these intertwined? They seem quite different!

When people you know or meet find out that you can crochet or knit, and are at least somewhat interested, they will ask a question similar to:

“Oh man, have you seen [this popular item that’s been shared on social media]? Can you make one for me?”

This is where my anxiety kicks in. “Can you make one for me?” feels like I’m about to walk into a trap. Anything I say to this I feel needs to come with a disclaimer. Do any of you other crafters out there also experience this?

First of all, the item in question might be completely beyond my skill level. Personally, I spent 8 years only knowing one stitch and not much confidence to learn more nor was I around others who were fiber artists to help me learn anything beyond that. I didn’t get the bug to ravenously research until I moved away from the Midwest and, ironically, to Southern California, where my warm crocheted items were less needed. Until that point, I had little faith in making pieces that were not scarves.

Let’s walk through the steps of the actual question, plus the most common discussion and potential assumptions that could be buried in that seemingly innocent inquiry..

Actual question: Can I make it?

Simple Answer: Yes, most likely.

HOWEVER, it is when phrased as such, which makes it feel like a trap:

“Can you make one for me?”

While only slightly different, the implications of the way this is phrased ratchets up the stress level significantly.

“Can you do [X] for me?” is phrased as a favor. This is like asking a buddy to help you move a couch. Or asking your significant other to do the dishes. Something that is somewhat inconsequential and almost expected to be done without much complaint.

Unfortunately, some knit and crochet items take A LOT of time and A LOT of effort as well as A LOT of materials. The frustrating trope that yarn-crafted, hand-made items are only made by grannies and given to mostly unwilling recipients has created an environment where people who want these items do not know or appreciate the amount of time, effort and materials these items require. Those items that “granny” made--those are a labor of love. Those are honestly heart-felt gifts and the new emergence of “ugly sweater” parties personally irks me beyond what is seen as acceptable to most people enjoying them.

This brings us to the amount and cost of materials. Let us consider a blanket. The sheer size of a blanket. And then people who look at a skein of yarn in the store. It is hard to picture how much blanket one skein of yarn can make. Let me give you a hint: You need more than one skein.

I recently finished a blanket for my brother. The yarn is about $6 per cake (a cake is just a different way of wrapping the yarn--cake, skein, hank are all ways of just describing the SHAPE in which the yarn is wrapped up when you get it). I wanted this blanket to be about 6 feet by 4 feet, so it would be a great choice for wrapping up while watching TV and not having cold toes or cold shoulders. For this size, I need about 6 cakes. That is $36 in materials.

Update: The yarn I chose was $6 per skein when I bought it 3 years ago. Yes, it took me 3 years to finish the project. It will actually take longer because I made a mistake, but I digress. Looking up the rates now, that same yarn, Lion Brand Mandala in Centaur, is now $9 per cake. We are looking at over $50 in materials now.

At this point, we have not taken into account skill nor time that it takes to complete the project. I have no idea how many hours I have put in, I’d guess around 30 hours. At any minimum wage rate, that would be over $200 for labor. And that is MINIMUM wage, which is supposed to indicate unskilled work. Imagine if we took years of experience into account. I bet there are not many grandkids out there who realize the worth of grandma’s blanket is probably near $500 if we were to value the handicrafts properly.

Handmade goods are becoming more popular and highly sought after. This is the backbone of sites such as Etsy and Amazon’s Handmade section. While looking at the goods, it is probably best to not scoff at the prices, but perhaps understand there are many steps and that these are most likely prices in a way that provides a living wage for the maker/seller.

In order to ease the mind of someone you may be talking to and interested in having them make something for you, instead of asking, “Can you make one for me?” a better set of questions would be, “Do you take commissions? Is this something I could commission from you?”

A small re-phrasing is much appreciated!

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Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.