My newest hobby could begin to bring in some money! When my husband and I were cleaning out our house and getting ready to sell tons of craft projects I have purchased over the years, he finally got up the nerve to break it to me. I am no good at crafts, he said. He wants to be supportive, and that is why he has never told me, but he cannot bear it any longer. He cannot stand to see me upset when one of my craft ideas does not work.
We had a big laugh about it because the truth is that he is right. Well, up until that point he was right. I had tried needlepoint, basket-making, painting, and all kinds of hobbies. I actually love the painting, but I cannot do anything beyond the basic painting something one color. Those one-color objects look great, though!
Although I agreed, I was secretly plotting. I would search to the ends of the Earth, or the edges of the Internet, until I found a craft I could do. There has to be something out there, I thought. I searched and searched. I realized that I was looking for a hobby that did not require close-up detail work. I am not patient enough for that.
While I was looking around one morning, I found it! I found an article on making bath and body baskets. It had information about making bath salts, massage oil, gel potpourri, and more. Now here is something I can do, I thought!
I was so excited that I immediately printed the list of recipes, grabbed my son, and headed to the store. We picked up all of the items we would need along with some little bottles for them. I even got fabric and ribbon to make little tags. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law are coming down this weekend, so it will make the perfect gift basket for them.
I came home and got to work. Lo and behold, I can do this! What is more exciting is that I enjoyed it. I had fun watched my bath crystals turn a rich shade of turquoise and seeing my massage oil come out looking as if it could be sold in a salon.
I frequent a board for work at home moms. We chatter about our businesses and our personal lives. I got on the crafts section and was talking about a new craft. I wanted to know if it would be possible to see if other people like my crafts without going through the trouble of setting up a website. I could, but I just do not want to set up a site if I am not going to do anything much with it.
I got a private message from someone who asked if my products were baby or mom related. I said that they were not; they were bath and body products. She responded back to tell me about a project she has going. I would be able to sell my products on her site, and she would take a small commission. She would set up the site for me and handle all of the site maintenance. I would just sell my stuff. There is really no downside of this plan for me.
I told my husband about it when he came home today. He is excited, too! He said he thought I had done great on my new hobby so far, and he thought I should give it a try. After all, he reasons, what do I have to lose? Well, for starters I could lose the reputation of being a complete klutz with crafts, which would not be a bad thing.
I am really excited about this prospect. I am hoping that when my relatives see the baskets this weekend that they really will like them. I need them to give me honest feedback because I want to be able to get start selling my bath and body baskets. It is so funny because had you asked me a few years ago, or even one year ago, if I had any desire to make or sell crafts, I would have thought you were nuts.
By Julia Mercer
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