Everyone can use a little extra cash, but no one really has the time to work two full-time jobs. Besides, who would want to?
However, most people do have hobbies, and there are actually many hobbies that can earn you a little extra money. Here are some ideas to get you started.
Part-Time Hobbies To Make Money
Handyperson
Do you like to tinker around the house? If you have the skill to fix things to make them work better, your talents are actually high in demand. A lot of homeowners do not have the skills or the time to fix up their houses.
Homeowners who are elderly are physically not able to do things around the house. This is not a major remodel that we’re talking about, but just minor repairs. Here is where your “handyperson” skills can help.
It does not matter if you are a man or woman. You can help a neighbor fix a sticky door, mend a fence, patch up small holes in the wall, repaint a room, fix a leaky faucet, etc. You can charge by the hour and use that time to work on whatever little projects that your customer has for you.
Before you agree to a job, it is a good idea to take a look at the fix-it chores, then give a good faith estimate on how long it will take you. If you do not have a contractor’s license, be transparent about that.
Some local regulations limit handyman services to a maximum dollar amount before a license is required. So, check with your local licensing board.
Gardening
If you have a green thumb and you have beautiful flowers or scrumptious fruits and vegetables in your garden, you can be a gardening consultant to homeowners who do not have a green thumb.
Sometimes all they need is advice on how to make their soil more fertile and conducive to growing things. You can provide advice on where in the garden to plant certain plants to get the appropriate amount of sunlight because some prefer full sun while other prefers partial sun.
If you have the skills to go a step further, you can draw up a landscape plan for the garden, including an irrigation map. The homeowner can hire someone to install the irrigation system, or if you know of someone, you can make a referral.
You can sit down with the homeowner to see what type of garden is desired (e.g., to attract butterflies? Drought tolerant? etc.) before you make suggestions.
Event Planner
If you enjoy planning parties and events for your family, and you are familiar with all of the local services that a typical party requires, you can leverage that experience and become an event planner.
A lot of people do not like to plan big events like birthday parties, weddings, anniversaries, etc., because it takes a lot of time calling places and booking services. However, if you have been doing it for your family and enjoy it, why not offer that service to others?
You probably already know the best places for catering, party venues, party supplies, etc. You can advertise your services on your local Craigslist or community directory.
Create a website for your business and promote your services on social media. Start offering your services to friends and colleagues, then have them spread the word to their social networks.
Dog Walker
Do you enjoy walking your dog? Why not help others walk their dogs at the same time! Many people work all day and don’t have time to take their dogs out as much as they would like to. Having a dog walker would be a nice convenience for them.
Since you are already out walking your own dog, walking a few others would not make much difference. You can extend that service to dog-sitting also for times when your customer is out of town for a few days.
Some dog owners prefer not to board their dog at a kennel because it is an unfamiliar place and can create anxiety in the dog. If you can dog-sit while the owner is away, that would be a really nice service to offer.
Baking Desserts
Are you the one who always makes fantastic cookies and cakes for parties? If you have the talent for baking fancy desserts, you can use that skill to make some extra money. Big cookies that are decorated with a theme are really popular now, and in the bakeries, they are expensive.
If you do this on the side, you can price your treats competitively to attract new customers. You can even customize them to your customer’s liking.
Large, fancy cakes are also in demand these days, thanks to the popularity of baking competitions on TV shows. If you have that talent, make customized fancy cakes for special occasions.
If you want some free advertisement, see if your next county fair has a baking contest that you can enter, and put your name out there. Even better is renting a booth and selling your prebaked goodies.
Compile a photobook of the fancy cookies, cakes, and desserts that you have prepared in the past, and place it in your booth so visitors can look through your amazing masterpieces.
Have a bunch of business cards on hand to pass out. This is an effective way to get some exposure for your baking business in the local community.
Tutoring
Are you strong in a particular subject? A history buff? Know a foreign language? If so, and you like to teach, you can be a tutor. It is a great part-time job if you have spare time in the afternoons when most schools let out the students.
Along the same lines, you can look into teaching English to foreign students online. A lot of students in other countries want to learn English, but their local schools do not offer that opportunity.
There are online platforms that make it possible for these students to learn English from a native speaker in the U.S. If you are a native English speaker and have a good command of grammar, you can consider becoming an online English tutor in your spare time.
Refurbish Furniture
If you have good woodworking skills, you can leverage that and breathe new life into old wooden furniture. A lot of furniture made many decades ago used solid wood, so the wood quality is good.
But over the years, the furniture might have damage on the finish, scratch marks, stains, wobbly legs, or broken drawers. With your skills in woodworking and refinishing, you can make an old dresser look like new again, then resell it.
A lot of people advertise their old furniture on Craigslist that are free for the taking. See if you can find old furniture made from solid wood that you can refinish.
An ugly old oak bookcase that has water damage might be heading to the dumps, but you can sand it down, fix the shelves and refinish it, so it looks like new again. Price it reasonably, and you will have buyers lining up.
Doodling
Do you like to doodle and sketch? You can turn that into something that can earn you money. People have earned money drawing webcomics. If you have an idea for a webcomic, you can monetize it in a couple of ways.
You can submit your webcomic to a hosting site where your comic can gain exposure from readers. When you have built up a good following, you can use Google AdSense to sponsor ads from which you get paid if a reader clicks on it.
The other idea is to create a website on WordPress to host your comic and offer a subscription for people who want to view future editions. If readers like your style, you can start a nice side business with your webcomics.
Aside from webcomics, if you like to make cartoon sketches, you can do caricatures of people from a photograph. Your customer can send you a photo, and you can create a unique caricature out of that.
People like to give these as gifts. You can also consider having an actual booth at the next county fair in your community, where you can do caricatures of people on the spot.
Music Lessons
If you play an instrument well, you can give lessons. You may not be able to charge as much as a certified music instructor, but you can still charge a decent amount that is fair to you and budget-friendly for the students.
A lot of parents want to start their children on music lessons but get sticker shock when they see how much a professional music instructor charges. As a music hobbyist, you can lower your rates and still be able to provide good quality lessons on the basics.
Another way that you can earn an income from your music hobby is by performing. If you have jam sessions with friends just for fun, see if they want to look for gigs.
You can also play in the park or at bus stations and solicit donations. Just make sure you check local policies around street performing before you set up your band.
Writing
If you love to write, there are people who will pay you to write. You can create web content for website owners. You can write press releases for small companies. You can write product descriptions for sellers that have a web store.
Writing does not come naturally to a lot of people, so they rely on others who have a good way with words to write good copy for them. You can advertise your services on gig sites like Fiverr.
Art
You can make money from your art in many ways. If others like your work, you can sell your original canvas for hanging on the wall. You can create custom greeting cards. You can produce vector art and sell them online.
You can use your art to customize t-shirts. You can create a logo or graphic that can be applied to t-shirts for a business client. There are t-shirt printing services that can take your graphic and produce t-shirts in bulk.
Sewing
Your sewing skills can help you make money on the side. You can make custom home decor like pillows, bedspreads, furniture covers, etc.
Homeowners often like to have something unique for their home instead of purchasing something mass-produced from a department store. You can customize a set of pillow or cushion covers that your customer can change out periodically.
You can make safe, soft toys for youngsters. These can also be customized with an embroidery of their name or initials. You can embroider their name on their blankets and towels as well.
Knowing how to sew can allow you to have a side business making alterations for people. Sometimes a new pair of pants might need hemming up, or a shirt might need the sleeves shortened. Your sewing skills can make the alterations so the clothes will fit your customer perfectly.
You can go a step further and custom make special occasion clothing for people. Your customer might see a dress style she likes, but not in the color or fabric she prefers. If you know how to make a dress pattern, you can custom make the dress for her.
Sometimes an easier way is to get a pre-made dress pattern from a fabric store and make alterations on the pattern to the customer’s liking. The finished product is a dress that is one-of-a-kind, perfectly fitted for your customer.
Ladies always want a dress that compliments their figure. If word gets around that you have the skill to custom fit their clothing, you will soon find a line of women waiting at your door!
Conclusion
The good thing about hobbies is that you can work on them whenever you want, at your leisure. They are something that you enjoy doing. The extra money that you bring in is just icing on the cake.
So, take the ideas above and see if any of them inspire you. You might have a treasure trove of possibilities that can create another income stream.