[Jewelry making - Article 00544] - Re: [Orchid] What do I charge for my cabochons?

[Rick]

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    The overall answer is "It depends." There are these factors to
    consider: Cost of the rough stone, time to cut it, waste in cutting,
    and misc overhead (i.e. wear and tear on your equipment,
    electricity, and rent). 

    Say you buy rough Lapis at $500 a pound. Breaking it down to carats 1
    pound = (1 lb = 453.592 37 gram x 5) = 2268 carats (rounded).
    Bringing the cost per carat to 22 cents per carat. Allowing for 50%
    waste in cutting that brings the cost per carat to 44 cents per
    carat. Now you have to add in your overhead. I work out of my garage
    and estimate my activities add $50 to the utility bill plus during
    the winter I use an average of $100 in propane for heat. I don't
    write off my garage studio on my taxes so I don't have a rent
    expense that can be calculated. Then we have wear and tear and
    maintenance on equipment and sundry other costs like tumbling grit,
    saw oil, paper towels etc. So let's ballpark my monthly lapidary
    costs at $200 per month. I estimate I could cut 1 pound of rough
    lapis to cabs in 1/4 of a month. So that puts my overhead as an
    additional 5 cents per carat. So your cost per carat is up to 49
    cents per carat without paying yourself anything for your time. So
    let's put a value of $10 per hour for your time. I estimate I can cut
    1 pound of Lapis in 40 hours so $400 divided by 1134 finished carats
    equals 35 cents per carat labor. So that puts your cost at (.49 +.35)
    84 cents per carat. Now if someone comes to my house and wants to buy
    finished Lapis cabs I'll sell them for $1-$2 per carat. If I take
    them to a show and add in all that additional overhead then the price
    is $2-$3 per carat. 

    Now if you are talking a less expensive stone that costs $5 per pound
    then you don't need to break it down at a cost per carat but your
    overhead doesn't change. Plus there is the asthetic value of the
    stone. For example this week 30 dendritic opal cabs came out of the
    tumbler. About 5 are exceptional and I will keep them for my own
    work but would put a price of $50 to $200 per cab. The rest I'll sell
    at a rock show for $10 to $30 a cab. 

    So for stone that costs over $20 per pound selling it by the carat
    would be acceptable. For stone that is less than $20 a pound sell
    for $5 to $20 per cab. For exceptional cabs it's whatever the traffic
    will bear. 

Rick Copeland
Silversmith and Lapidary Artisan
Rocky Mountain Wonders
Colorado Springs, Colorado
rockymountainwonders.com
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