Handmade Crafts for Income

I met a lady who made wreathes and baskets. All she did all year long was weave them together, and when I walked into her house to change out some receptacles I was confronted by a canopy of wicker. Apparently she sells them online and at craft stores.

Things like this can be viable, but you have to know your market. I also met a man who made reindeer clothes pins, cheap looking things with plastic googly eyes and felt cutout antlers. He said he nearly sells out every fall.

I got into blacksmithing 2 years ago, and have made 6 knives. None of them are super high quality, but all are hand forged and hardened by oil quenching. Oak handles, brass holding pins, walnut Danish oil, and mirror polishes... and I can't sell a single one of them. It's all about marketing, knowing your clients, and finding a niche market.

Turns out people don't really want high quality knives. They want a flattened out railroad spike with a twisted handle that is not hardenable and won't hold an edge - because it looks like something a blacksmith would make.

If you try to sell locally, figuring out the market is a matter of going and seeing what is available for sale. Not easy when you think about all the businesses there probably are in your area. If you decide to sell online, you can use sites like Google Trends to check out web search patterns.

I'll just leave this here: A hobby metalsmith got arrested for showing off his handmade pennies. What was he charged with? Indie-cent exposure.

You know you love it.