Why is cane (miniature mosaic glass) so expensive?

I do get asked this all the time so I took a minute this morning, while waiting for the kiln to ramp up and ran some numbers, which I hope will help to explain:

in the short of it:

by time it is finished I am out about $500 worth of expenses and up to 400 hours of work

in the long of it:

for franchini (shaded) style of large size (30-40 mm dia) portrait cane:

three tanks of propane $66
pounds of glass?
15 pounds color $100-150

10 pounds clear $60- 80

electricity bill goes up $150-$200/ month
(example: 4 consecutive days in the kiln for ONE large component only)

two dead oxygen concentrators (machinery depreciation) $ 600

cutting blade #35

felt belt $35

cerium oxide $25

tools in need of replacing ?

grand total low end : $541 (not counting the dead machinery, damaged tools )

Optimistic, ideal timeline:
engineering: research, drawings, breakdowns, strategic planing  7 days

component building (5-6, +couple of redos) 14 days

coldwork 1 day

component assembly 2-3 days

25 days @ 8 hours a day = 200 hours
25 days @ 10 hours a day = 250 hours
25 days @ 12 hours a day = 300 hours

final cutting and polishing

coldwork 5-7 days

aprox 60 hours

I do take my time, I like them to be detailed, to my liking, sometimes the work gets stretched over couple of years even.

last but not least:
-skill building for over ten years (for me)
-rarity of an image ( I work small = low edition / production numbers)
-artistry, esthetic, mojo, spirit, Lucie touch (as my dear husband calls it)

-ten ears of extensive classical art education / training

than there is also:

-minor and major burns (comes with the territory, do not mind those)

-agonizing pain in my hands, wrists, elbows and shoulders
 (this is very personal, and I am tough as nails, not a complainer kind)

-severe allergy to cerium oxide polishing compound (this one is really lame!)