Making money through a hobby is a dream for most people because it means they can earn doing something they love. Many people hate their jobs because it isn’t something they are passionate about.
When you have a hobby that can make you money, you will enjoy the process, and you won’t feel like you are working on a job at all.
There are many hobbies out there that you can use to make a lot of money. While you might not make enough money to replace your day job, you can reach such a point if you remain consistent.
Making money from your hobby is not going to be a walk in the park either. You have to put in the effort. The amount of work you put in is going to determine how much you are going to make. What you choose is also going to determine how much you can make.
The best thing is to put in the time and effort and see how much you can make. It might take some time before you get the hang of it, but it is not going to be that complicated.
How To Start Making Money From DIY Hobbies
Before you can start making things and selling them, it is important to know how much it is going to cost and how much you can expect to make from each sale. People want to see a return pretty quick.
This is why it is a good idea to focus on things that you can make in bulk fast. Note down how much the product is going to cost you, including costs like business licenses and adding your profit to that.
This is how you are going to come up with the best price for your products. You need to check out your competitors’ prices because the last thing you want is to market yourself out.
If you do the math and realize you cannot source and create for cheaper, then it is better to look for another thing to sell.
Handmade Items
The good thing is there are a lot of items that are attractive, fast, and made in bulk that you can make pretty fast. Below are some great examples of products you can make during your free time and sell for a profit.
If you are a DIY person, the following products are going to be fun to make, and you can make a good profit.
Bath Bombs
You can make them as simple or as complicated as you want. Using a couple of cheap ingredients, you can make a base that you can add botanicals, essential oils, cosmetic glitters, and more. It is common to find a “secret surprise” in the bath bombs, so make sure you put something in the center.
Take your time to do product research so you can know what customers are expecting and how you can be better than the rest. It is common to find gifts embedded in the center, like jewelry and other surprises. The contents you put into it are going to determine how much to sell it for.
The good thing with bath bombs is you can make them in large quantities, and that makes it easier to scale and become a small business. Anyone can do it because it is simple.
If you don’t know how to make bath bombs, don’t worry because it is easy. It doesn’t take a lot of time, and you will be happy with the results. It has a good margin, which is pretty impressive given it doesn’t cost a lot in materials and time.
Bath bombs can resale for up to $5 each, which makes it an attractive business idea. You need to be creative and try out different things and see which ones give the best results.
It can help to be a little unique but be careful so you don’t end up messing things up. There is a lot of information online that will help you become good at making bath bombs.
You don’t need to have a lot of space to start making bath bombs. A small room is enough to make bath bombs. This is a room that is enough for two people to comfortably work in and access the materials easily.
The goal when starting a business is to cut down on start-up costs. With a low start-up cost, you have the luxury of building your business and customer base, which is important for the growth of your bath bomb business.
You will be surprised at the number of bath bombs you can comfortably produce in your home.
You can expect to spend as little as 25 cents making bath bombs. The quality of ingredients and recipe is going to determine the total cost. When you buy materials in bulk, you can achieve a lower cost and increase your profits. Start small and expand when you get more orders.
The price of the bath bombs is something you shouldn’t get wrong. You need to factor in your time and expertise. How much does it cost you to make one bath bomb? There are times when it is easier to calculate the cost of making ten bath bombs and then divide it by ten.
Once you know how much each bath bomb costs, find out how many you can make in an hour. Add your time and expertise to the cost, and you will have how much it costs to make each bath bomb. You also need to consider the packaging costs.
Carefully do the math because you most likely don’t want to waste your time doing something that isn’t paying you enough.
Pillows
People like pillows and cushions. There are many people out there who usually switch their pillows depending on the season. If you are good at sewing, this might be a good DIY hobby that makes you good money.
Sewing a pillow is simple because the design isn’t complex when compared to clothes. There is a wide range of fabrics and patterns to choose from, which means you have endless options.
If you do it right, you can easily end up developing a niche market for specialty throw pillows pretty fast. The fabric and design are going to determine the cost and how much profit you end up with.
Before you start a pillow business, you need to know your limitations. Before cutting fabric, sit down and make a good business plan. Some of the questions you need to ask yourself include:
- Is this a hobby, a full-fledged small business, or a part-time endeavor?
- What is the budget? How much are you willing to spend on inventory?
- Are you going to focus on just a single design, or are you going to branch to different sizes, styles, and price ranges?
- Are you going to do it by yourself? Is there someone helping you?
Take the time to know your prospective clients by studying the market. Who is interested in handmade pillows? Decide the sizes and styles of pillows you can create and determine if you will make custom designs for your clients.
Know the costs of production so you can charge the right price for the pillows. Just like other items, you have to consider the costs of labor, materials, shipping, packaging, and advertising. There are also the selling fees many platforms charges.
The right price is key because it determines whether you make a profit or not. Make sure you invest in marketing so you can sell your pillows.
Jewelry
Jewelry will always be in demand because it is something most people love. You can easily start your own business if you are crafty and enjoy making jewelry. In the past, it was a challenge to get your products to the customers, but this has changed.
The internet has made things easier, with sites like Etsy providing an easy way of selling. People had to set up displays at vendor shows and craft fairs to build a name in the local market and then hope for referrals from their previous customers.
You don’t have to do this anymore unless you want to do it. You can easily do it from the comfort of your home.
You need to decide what makes you unique. There are many jewelry sellers out there. What makes you stand out from the rest? What makes your business special? Are you the best price around? You need to have a unique selling proposition if you want your brand to succeed.
It is important to pay close attention to the costs involved when making your jewelry because you can easily lose money in the process. You need to add up the total cost of materials, your fee, shipping costs, and other costs involved.
The information is important because it will help you determine the profitable price.
There are many options for selling. There are those who choose to create their own website aNd then market to consumers from there. You can set up a seller profile on online marketplaces like Etsy, eBay, Zibbet, etc. Go through the fine print carefully, so you know the fees you need to pay.
When working on your jewelry, make sure you do your best work on each of them. Your customer service and products are your reputations. When people love your work, they are going to buy more and refer their friends.
You also need to take beautiful pictures because people cannot pick the jewelry and examine it themselves. Try capturing all relevant angles.
You don’t need an expensive camera to take quality photos. A newer model smartphone takes quality photos. Check out online tutorials for help with this.
Art and Prints
If your hobby is art, then you most likely have heard about struggling artists. This might have been the case before the internet, but it isn’t now. There are a lot of opportunities for people passionate about art to make money and support themselves.
There are many platforms that have made it easy to sell art and prints. You can make a good profit from this because you can sell the same design many times over. This is the beauty of digital art. If you want to go further, you can print your art on t-shirts and hoodies.
There are sites that will let you submit your design and start making money from it. They are the ones to print the design on the t-shirt or hoodies and then sell them.
You don’t have to worry about inventory because they handle everything. All you have to do is market your t-shirts or other items with your design.
Furniture Flipping
It is possible to make money flipping furniture, but you need to know the right way to do it. The goal is to look for great deals and make a profit on them.
Your work will be to find furniture being sold for cheap, repair and renovate them, and then sell them for a profit. If you are good with tools, you can easily turn something worth 5 bucks into 200 bucks.
Solid wood pieces have the best-rehabbed value, and items from the 70s and 80s are great finds. The easiest furniture to get started with is dressers. You can paint it in a short amount of time. You are going to get more money without spending a lot of time on it.
You need to avoid particle board furniture or fake wood. Antique furniture comes with a lot of risks, and it is best to stay away from it. Sellers are going to ask more for them than they are actually worth.
Stick with simple furniture items when you are getting started, don’t complicate things.
Final Thoughts
Above are DIY hobbies that can make you good money. When you choose to turn your hobby into a side hustle, you have to be disciplined and make sure you make the best products possible.
Things are not going to be rosy all the time, but it is easier since it is something you enjoy doing. Give the above hobbies a try and see how much you can make.