Have you ever knitted a scarf, made jewelry, or sewn clothes for your kids? Can you build a bench, take intriguing photos, or make a picture frame from scrap wood? Or do you have a good eye for vintage styles and know where to find them at a bargain?

Tori started her Etsy shop when her second child was a baby, and says the flexibility it affords is a key requirement at this point in her life. It brings in a supplementary income and fulfills my creative urges. According to a survey. But make no mistake — selling handmade items on Etsy is a business, and a big one at that. Successful sellers learn to balance the creative side of the process with bookkeeping, buying supplies, customer service, and marketing.

So what should you sell? What about that fun embroidered hat you made that everyone raves about, or the stylish-but-practical coin purse you gave your friend? Sometimes, the right product just makes itself known.

Another option is to resell vintage items.

If you have a tasteful eye for trends and enjoy spending weekends at flea markets, yard sales, and thrift shops, you could consider buying underpriced retro items and reselling them on Etsy or elsewhere. The most successful sellers offer something unique: They either put a new spin on a classic product, come up with an entirely new look or idea, or simply sell in a more customer-friendly way than others — with lower prices, a wider selection, or more striking photography, for instance.

That patronage may not be sustainable, but it can give your shop a valuable kickstart and some helpful positive feedback. You can start with something simple, but if you have a graphic designer friend, now may be the time to call in a small favor. Choose a profile picture.

Etsy shoppers are on the site because they want to buy something unique from an individual person — not a generic plastic gizmo from Amazon or Wal-Mart. So show them who that person is.

10 Ways to Earn Money From Home

Set up your profile page. Tell customers who you are, what you make, and why and where and how you do it. Fill out your shop policies, including returns and exchanges and shipping fees.

Signing up as a seller is free, but it costs 20 cents to list an item for four months or until it sells, whichever comes first. Etsy also collects 3. When creating a title for your item, consider what keywords a buyer would search for when looking for your product or something like it. This includes physical descriptions of the item itself — e. Remember to tag items with keywords, as well as alternative search terms used in other parts of the country or world. For example, what one person calls a teapot someone else may call a kettle.

One of the biggest factors in driving sales is attractive photography. For years, Etsy has offered free photography workshops online and at its Brooklyn, N. So your photos have to show all of those things.

Paparazzi Accessories: making money with $5 jewelry - Sugar Bee Crafts

Many successful crafters establish their own visual style that permeates everything from their listing photography to their logo, banners, and the products themselves. You need to photograph it, write up a description, and list it for sale. But you also have to consider customer service, packaging, shipping, and restocking.

All of this factors into your pricing. When trying to set a price for an item, consider the cost of all the materials you need to make it.

Include other expenses, too, like shipping supplies, equipment, even the electricity to run the space heater in your garage workshop. Then, add in your labor costs — what you should be earning per hour. Finally, add a degree of retail markup — your desired profit plus a bit of wiggle room for seasonal sales or promotions. But as I established a reputation, I began selling higher-priced items and custom orders for sets of things. Of course, there are other places to sell crafts.

Some sellers set up booths at craft shows, farmers markets, concerts, and holiday fairs to sell their goods and bring their brand to a new audience. When you display your work at a fair or show, concentrate just as hard on branding yourself. This means earnings can vary drastically — from nothing at all to a respectable full-time salary. Jessi VanGundy echoes that sentiment, though she hopes to earn enough to be a full-time potter before long.

Impossibly Easy DIY Crafts to Make and Sell - MoneyPantry

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