How much should I charge for this painting?

[Former_Member]

Okay so my step mom wants an 8" by 10" watercolor portrait of her maltese for her kids christmas gift. The supplies cost me somewhere between $10 and $20. I already had most of the supplies and I just had to buy 1 $8 bottle of masking fluid but I'm not sure how much my canvas and paitns were. I don't want to charge too much since its my stepmom but I still want to make a profit. I was think somewhere around $30? Is that too little or too much?

[Former_Member]

$25.00 seems to be the median price on Etsy. I've seen them as low as 15 and as high as 115! But most sell thiers for 25 so that's what I'd charge.

[Former_Member]

Okay. I'll tell her $25 and see what she says.

[Former_Member]

Paintings are so hard to price. (for me anyway and I'm a painter), You can't just use cost of supplies and materials. What about your talent? The time you spend on the painting? I know, those are difficult things to put a price on. But, you have to think about it.... afterall, if it was something she could do herself, she wouldn't be asking you. And, then there is the family discount thing! LOL.

[Former_Member]

The painters I've been around have used the square inch X $1.00 method. Multiply the width times the length of the painting then multiply times $1.00 (or less or more if you want). If the buyer balks then tell them to think of art as furniture and ask them if they were shopping for a sofa and they saw one they liked and it cost say $600 would they squabble with the sales person? Or would they calmly pay for the item in installments? Art (especially paintings ) can be treated the same way.