Emiliano: I have given several pieces to Auctions for Charities and found they do not sell for what they should. I participate in woodworking shows, competitions etc and let the buyer know that the 100% of the money for the turning goes directly to a charity. The customer gets the turning and also gets the write off for the donation. This has led to some customers to write their check for more than the asking price. It feels very good to be able to do this, I guess you could say it is a "paying it back" for life being very good to me. I have a past customer who is interested in purchasing this turning, but I have several competitions coming up so he will have to wait until they are over in a few months. Thanks again for the Honor.
Andy
Unfortunately I am a bit of a tax nerd having taught that topic for several years. You say "The customer gets the turning and also gets the write off for the donation" yes the customer gets the turning and your assurance that the proceeds are donated to charity BUT they do not get a "write off for the donation". First you would have to be a registered charity with a IRS number so that they could get an official receipt with that tax number on it. Second, if they get something of value (your bowl) then their payment is for a purchase and not a donation. Tax law changed several years back and if you itemize your deductions and have over $24,000 in itemized deductions (married couple), this include charitable giving (with receipt and IRS charitable tax number) you can claim those deductions including charitable giving. Otherwise you simply take the standard deduction of $24,000 - no receipts or proof.
So you are able to claim a charitable deduction if you have itemized deduction greater than $24,000. The good news is is that for the IRS it is all small potatoes and it is not worth their while to check this sort of thing.
I think what you do is excellent and telling your customers that their money is donate to charity is good, but telling them that they can write it off is not wise.
Hope that helps and I don't offend you in anyway.
Alan