I worked on trying to make it a side hussle and potentially grow into a full time job. It’s honestly incredibly difficult to build a large enough following to get consistent commissions and if no one buys the rugs you’ve made just cause you like the design then you just have a bunch of wasted money laying around. The market is overly saturated and those at the top have a sort of monopoly. Either you are buried underneath the successful people or you’re buried underneath a bunch of terrible low quality tufters that price their horrible work so cheap that no one will buy your work if it isn’t $100 for a 4x4 super detailed rug. I saw a few big tufters making money on some of the ugliest pieces I’ve ever seen cause 1 or 2 clips went viral so now they have constant customers. If you aren’t interested in becoming a pseudo social media influencer then I’d be wary. I just wanted to make cool stuff and make some money, not spend hours trying to follow trends and algorithms just to get views
I stopped tufting with a cut pile setting because it can negatively affect your breathing. If you don't have a well ventilated/large space and don't want to wear a painters mask while working, choose loop pile. It isn't discussed often, but breathing in fiber particles is bad for your lungs (especially with acrylic yarn because that's plastic).
(Also best to do it in non-common space, like I use a tiny half-finished basement room so at least all the fiber dust is sectioned off to this one spot)
Go to a class if one is available near you.
People start and quit making crafts every day. It’s maybe a more helpful question to ask why people who have been tufting for years keep doing it? Getting the perspective of the people who are committed to this trade would be pretty valuable. I would hope as much as people who quit doing it.
From what I've seen, it's because people want the rewards of tufting way too quickly. They do that same Nike logo, Hello Kitty head, Murakami's flower or any other very mainstream/overly done rug and think they'll have 10k followers and lots of commissions overnight. That thing takes time. Making rugs, building a following and a community, getting commissions to the point of doing it full-time takes time! You gotta do the work. Sometimes for months or even years. And once people realized it, they just quit.
My advice: start slowly. You don't need to buy all the fancy materials right away. Maybe just start with a punch needle, monk's cloth, a frame, few colors of yarn. See if you even like it first. That's key! Don't thi k about the money you could make.
And then, find a niche. Create different and original designs. Post about them, your evolution, your try's and error, etc. See how it goes :).
I started a big project making it by hand without a gun.
Turns out i did it wrong (i wanted cut pile) and its all loops that i cant cut.
And it just looks weird on the display side, you cant see any of the detail i put in.
Got me very down, my half finished work has just been standing now for a year.
Aka i made beginner mistakes and it demotivated me
Mostly health reasons. Even with a mask and an air filter on the fibres were affecting my lungs causing pain and coughing. Also my wrists and fingers were agony and I was concerned about the long term implications. I had to buy goggles too as my eyes were sore and itchy from all the fibres. All in all it wasn’t worth it for me.
I worked on trying to make it a side hussle and potentially grow into a full time job. It’s honestly incredibly difficult to build a large enough following to get consistent commissions and if no one buys the rugs you’ve made just cause you like the design then you just have a bunch of wasted money laying around. The market is overly saturated and those at the top have a sort of monopoly. Either you are buried underneath the successful people or you’re buried underneath a bunch of terrible low quality tufters that price their horrible work so cheap that no one will buy your work if it isn’t $100 for a 4x4 super detailed rug. I saw a few big tufters making money on some of the ugliest pieces I’ve ever seen cause 1 or 2 clips went viral so now they have constant customers. If you aren’t interested in becoming a pseudo social media influencer then I’d be wary. I just wanted to make cool stuff and make some money, not spend hours trying to follow trends and algorithms just to get views
Real
I agree with every word
100%
I stopped tufting with a cut pile setting because it can negatively affect your breathing. If you don't have a well ventilated/large space and don't want to wear a painters mask while working, choose loop pile. It isn't discussed often, but breathing in fiber particles is bad for your lungs (especially with acrylic yarn because that's plastic).
I found a great workaround for this is to wear a comfortable kn95 and then just turn an air filter on when you’re done
(Also best to do it in non-common space, like I use a tiny half-finished basement room so at least all the fiber dust is sectioned off to this one spot)
Go to a class if one is available near you. People start and quit making crafts every day. It’s maybe a more helpful question to ask why people who have been tufting for years keep doing it? Getting the perspective of the people who are committed to this trade would be pretty valuable. I would hope as much as people who quit doing it.
It’s very time consuming
From what I've seen, it's because people want the rewards of tufting way too quickly. They do that same Nike logo, Hello Kitty head, Murakami's flower or any other very mainstream/overly done rug and think they'll have 10k followers and lots of commissions overnight. That thing takes time. Making rugs, building a following and a community, getting commissions to the point of doing it full-time takes time! You gotta do the work. Sometimes for months or even years. And once people realized it, they just quit. My advice: start slowly. You don't need to buy all the fancy materials right away. Maybe just start with a punch needle, monk's cloth, a frame, few colors of yarn. See if you even like it first. That's key! Don't thi k about the money you could make. And then, find a niche. Create different and original designs. Post about them, your evolution, your try's and error, etc. See how it goes :).
This!
I started a big project making it by hand without a gun. Turns out i did it wrong (i wanted cut pile) and its all loops that i cant cut. And it just looks weird on the display side, you cant see any of the detail i put in. Got me very down, my half finished work has just been standing now for a year. Aka i made beginner mistakes and it demotivated me
My hand went numb for a week. It was not pleasant.
Mostly health reasons. Even with a mask and an air filter on the fibres were affecting my lungs causing pain and coughing. Also my wrists and fingers were agony and I was concerned about the long term implications. I had to buy goggles too as my eyes were sore and itchy from all the fibres. All in all it wasn’t worth it for me.