keepsel
Keepsel for Woodworking

Board-feet in. Heirlooms out. Margins known.

Keepsel is inventory and production software for woodworkers. Cost lumber by the board-foot with waste and offcuts counted, track finishes and hardware, and quote commissions and market stock from numbers as solid as the joinery.

Start free for 30 days See how it works

Try free for 30 days, with 25 Suli messages once you confirm your email (all of Suli from Maker). No card.

A woodworking piece in Keepsel

Product

Engraved Cutting Board

SKU ENGRAVE-BOARD

Material

Maple Hardwood Board

tracked in board-ft · Lumber

Supplier

Timber & Tools Supply

Variations, from Maker

Wood, Size

Track everything that goes into a woodworking piece

From raw materials to the finished piece, Keepsel keeps woodworkers on top of:

  • lumber by the board-foot
  • blanks
  • finish and stain
  • hardware
  • sandpaper and consumables

Built around how woodworkers actually work

The board-foot math nobody writes down

A cutting board consumes more lumber than it measures: planing, jointing and offcuts take their share. A waste factor per species makes the recipe match the sawdust.

Species is a price, not just a look

Walnut runs multiples of pine, and figured stock more still. Per-species material costs mean the walnut board is priced like walnut, automatically, even when lumber prices move.

Finish and hardware ride every piece

Oil, wax, rubber feet, hangers, sandpaper: the quiet consumables of a woodshop. In the recipe, they're priced; out of it, they're a slow leak.

Commissions priced on the spot

The custom table inquiry deserves a confident number. Species, board-feet and finish in a recipe (and from the Maker plan, your shop hours too) turn 'let me get back to you' into a same-day quote.

Worked example

Engraved Cutting Board, costed line by line

This is the math Keepsel does for every product you make: every line from its recipe, updated whenever a material's price changes.

The same board in walnut costs $19.90 in materials. Species-level costing keeps both versions priced right.

Engraved Cutting Board

Maple hardwood (1.8 bd-ft incl. waste)
$10.80
Food-safe oil + wax
$0.65
Rubber feet
$0.40
Sanding consumables
$0.35
Box + insert
$1.10
True cost
$13.30
Suggested price
$55.00
Margin
76%

A day in Keepsel, for woodworkers

  1. Rack lumber by species

    Maple, walnut, oak and cherry tracked in board-feet at what the lumberyard actually charged.

  2. Recipe each build

    Board-feet with waste factored, finish and hardware give the piece's true cost, ready to price; from the Maker plan, your shop time counts too.

  3. Build, finish and log

    From the Maker plan, a work order for six boards deducts lumber and oil, and adds six finished pieces to sellable stock (up to 10 a month on Maker as a trial and 100 on Team, unlimited on Business and Enterprise).

  4. Quote customs from the same math

    Commission requests scale a proven recipe: bigger dimensions, same certainty.

Questions woodworkers ask

How do I price handmade woodworking pieces?

Cost the board-feet the piece really consumes (waste included), finish, hardware and packaging, add shop time at a rate that respects the skill, then margin. Wood pieces priced off the lumber receipt alone ignore the third of the board that became shavings. From the Maker plan, Keepsel counts that time in each product's cost.

How much waste should I figure into lumber costs?

Between 15% and 40% depending on the build and the stock: milling rough lumber loses more than working S4S. Track a few builds against actual usage and set per-recipe waste factors that match your shop's reality.

How do I handle different wood species in pricing?

Each species is its own material at its own board-foot price, so the same design quotes differently in maple versus walnut without separate spreadsheets. When walnut jumps at the yard, every walnut recipe updates.

How should I quote custom woodworking commissions?

Scale a known recipe: dimensions drive board-feet, species drives price, and your shop rate covers the hours. The quote lands the same day and the margin survives the build. From the Maker plan, Keepsel counts that time in each product's cost.

Can Keepsel track my woodshop consumables?

Yes. Sandpaper, glue, finish and blades can ride as per-piece allowances in each recipe, turning the shop's steady consumable spend into priced, visible cost.

Keepsel for other crafts

Leather GoodsSee all crafts →

Guides for woodworkers

All guides

How to Price Woodworking (Board-Feet, Waste and Species)

A cutting board consumes more lumber than it measures. Price wood pieces from real board-feet: waste, species and shop time included.

How to Price Custom and Commission Work

Custom work feels flattering, and it's quietly underpaid. One-offs take more time and more back-and-forth, so here's how to price them so they're actually worth it.

How to Reduce Material Waste in Your Production

Every gram of wax, inch of vinyl, or scrap of fabric you waste is money you already paid for. Here's how to make your materials go further.

Wholesale vs. Retail Pricing: A Maker's Guide

Selling to shops is exciting, until you realize you're barely breaking even. Here's how to price wholesale and retail so both actually make you money.

Run your woodworking business like a business

Know your true cost and margin and keep every material counted. Or try the free pricing calculator first.

Start free for 30 days See how it works

Try free for 30 days, with 25 Suli messages once you confirm your email (all of Suli from Maker). No card.