Wanda L. De Coteau

My Etsy Native American Style Drum Beater Listings Pricing

Over the years I have based my craft item pricing mostly cost of materials in the item and used in the construction.

The Time it takes is a whole other ball game
almost all of my drum beaters have ether all or a major art of the bark peeled off. Since I age the sticks before I peel the bark
it takes between 30 and 70 minutes to get he bark off.

Then I sand the sticks, dust them off and apply an oil based wood preservative like Watco’s finishing oil – 1 or more coats depending on the stick.

after the stick is dry- Then I wrap the padding, put on the “T” shirt , “under shirt”

Then I cut & stitch the leather “Skin” for the beater head
next is a soak and stretch out
then pull on ( like a wet bathing suit)
then I let it dry

so my actual working time (doing something) is in excess of 2 1/2 hrs for each beater

time to complete is longer because of drying time

My Prices have pretty much Not Changed for over 5 years
what Has changed is the cost of shipping
I charge a Flat Rate- frequently I “eat” the cost of the packing materials

I do not offer Free shipping because the Post Office charges me for shipping And I usually Offer you the Choice of Priority or 1st Class ( I need to ship priority of the package weighs 13 ounces or more, may happen is multiple beater orders)

I continue to use the US Postal Service either First Class or Priority shipping Insured

I hope to be able to hold my prices through this coming year.

I do enjoy working with the “sticks” and the rest of the materials.

I hope my beaters bring joy to whoever uses them