Cynthia, I drafted my own contract(s), but I am a paralegal by day. If your friend has any lawyer buddies, she should ask them for forms she can use. Or make a list of what her goods are, what she wants to charge, any detail she can think of, and her friend can tell her what she needs to state in her contract. If there is no such friend, there are a series of books by "Nolo Press" which are very helpful to folks who wish to "be their own lawyer" and in some cases it can be done without disastrous results. I'm sure she can find one for contracts for small businesses and adapt it. For most transactions, a simple fairly short (about two pages or so) document that is CLEAR about the biggies should be fine. My biggest caveat is don't be afraid to be clear and forthright. If a client is going to be upset about one of your condiions, much better to find out about that BEFORE you've done a bunch of work for which they do not pay. For selling garments you have already made, all of this will be less of an issue, as they will just buy it or not. But when you make someone a garment, you are working for them, and it is much easier if you are both on the same page. Essentially a contract for this type of work should be a list of what you want to provide, when you want to provide it, how much it will cost, and a payment schedule, and a few other things I'm not thinking of right now. Go through your list and think about all the things that can go wrong, where the stressers were when you've done this for friends, etc. For instance I find that payment is a stresser, so I list when I will be paid, how much I will be paid, and what I will do in terms of alterations or additions or whatever, before I will have to ask for more money. In other words, everything that is "included" and what is not. I always get a deposit for at least the full cost of materials. But these are terms that work for me. If your friend doesn't already have one, he or she should get a resale license for their state, so they are not paying taxes on the goods that they purchase to make into the garments, and can buy supplies and fabric at wholesale prices. The other side of that privilege is that they will have to pay sales tax to the state they live in on the cost of the garments, including labor. That's the extent of my "advice" (let me repeat I am NOT an attorney, so this is not legal advice, but personal opinion). I would also not avoid reporting income (including barter) because for me I feel I have to follow all the rules to really be a true professional, but that again, is just my personal opinion. Hope this bit was helpful. angela Angela F. Lazear Cabbage Rose Costumes Theatrical Costume Design www.cabbagerosecostumes.com
----- Original Message ---- From: Cynthia J Ley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, August 25, 2006 7:26:45 AM Subject: [h-cost] contracts Hi all. I was wondering if I could ask all you professionals out there for some advice. I have a friend who is starting to make high-quality SCA garb for sale, and is interested in doing custom work. She was wondering about the wording on contracts, whether these be pay for garment or barter for garment. Any suggestions that I could share with her? thanks! Arlys _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
