Pricing is so hard. A lot depends on what the market will bear. You can come up with a formula that reflects your labor and materials costs, add your over head, etc but if the other potters in your area are selling at a different price, you may not be able to charge what you think you should.

My approach ended up being that I would look at the going rates in my area. Then I came up with a formula so that I could be careful to charge consistant prices across my own line of products. So if I came up with a new item, I could plug it into my formula and come up with a price that made sense compared to MY other items. Here is a print out of my pricing below.

I used the Filemaker Pro Database App to create this pricing system. I see eyes glazing over, but here’s the explanation of the columns:

WT = the weight of the clay I started with to throw the body of the pot

Base $ per LB = a price per LB I came up with.
It goes up with the weight – 1-2 lbs = $12/lb, 3-lbs = $13/lb, 4 lbs = $14/lb, etc.
There’s some variation. Note that I made my plate per lb price higher.

Base + Adds = Weight x Base $ per Lb + ADDS (see below).

PRICE = Retail Price

Total $ per Lb = Retail Price divided by Weight – this allows be to notice items that are either too cheap or too expenisve compared to the list.

ADDS are handles. spouts, holes, notches, hassle factor