Craft for Profit: Choosing Products that Will Earn Money

When we craft with gift-giving in mind, the cost of our materials and the time involved in the craft itself is a moot point. We don't care, because it's about the gifting. There's love behind that item, which makes it worth much more than anything you could buy.

When we craft with sales in mind, the cost of materials and the time involved in the craft is all-important. Unless you don't care about paying your bills, you're going to want to earn a profit off of your work. And most of us really value our craft as an art - which means that a "profit" isn't enough. It needs to be a good profit, or everything starts becoming more work than pleasure.

Choosing craft products that will earn you money doesn't take a lot of work, but it does take some time and thought as well as a little bit of experimentation. You'll need to consider a few key points that really determine whether you will make money from your craft, or just spend it.

Labor of Love

In the end, most of us continue to craft - to sell or give - simply because we love the process of creation. The amount of money we earn isn't anything compared to that overriding desire to create, that monkey on our back that whispers taunts in our ears and often tugs at our hair if we aren't making something.

But let's face it; everyone is in business to earn a living. Most of us are in business to earn a comfortable living.

This, then, is the first thing to consider when choosing a craft to sell. How long will it take you to create? This is also where the little bit of experimentation comes in. Here's what to do in this step: