Money-making ideas?

[NigheanRuadh]

My husband lost his job on Labor Day weekend.  It was the sole source of income for our family.  So far, he has been unable to get into another position, and I'm trying to come up with ways of generating money from home while I look after the little ones.  (We have three small children.)  I know MLM stuff (essential oils, Jamberry nails, Mary Kay, etc.) is popular with a lot of people, but I am not the kind of person to do well with that.  (I have no friends, for one thing.)  I'm thinking more along the lines of making (sewing, crocheting, possibly knitting) stuff to sell. 

So what sort of handmade thing would YOU buy?  Any thoughts?

[ponyqueen]

You're in Metro Portland? Look into airbnb-ing a room in your house. Huge demand in your city. My husband is flying into Portland for a convention in October and will be paying $55/night.

Depending on the amenities and space you can offer, you can probably expect anywhere between $45-$75 per night.

I've set up two airbnb host listings myself, lmk if you have any questions.

[NigheanRuadh]

We have no extra space.  We rent a two-bedroom duplex, and it's already getting too small for our family. 

Thanks for the idea, though!!

[joce]

Could you work at McDonald's off hours while husband is looking? That we he can still make interviews.

  I have friends that have made decent money doing uber, house cleaning, even picking dog poop up. One even hired people to help with the dog poop business.

  I think selling things can be really hit and miss. You can try reselling cheap clothing you find at goodwill etc. I know I think someone here does that??

[Cutekitten]

What if you babysit? When I was growing up, my mom would babysit for this family (2 extra kids). It was fun for me and my brother and my mom was able to make some extra money. Selling something: what if you offered your services as a seamstress?

[Taxel]

Selling things, especially if you plan to do it online and open something like an Etsy, requires a LOT of time/money to be invested. If you open up an Etsy store its a legitimate business and there's so much you need to do to even be legal, and of course success takes even more. Craft shows/farmer's markets/etc tend to be almost as bad since you need to invest in a good setup and pay for booth fees, plus some require you to already have a business presence in the area or online.

If you can make cute pony plushies or maybe some Hasbro pony clothes/accessories you might be able to sell those here, but there's no guarantee. I think the suggestions of some sort of simple temp job are best. Things like babysitting, cooking, cleaning, lawn care, walking dogs, etc would be pretty easy and not require too much time investment (which could be difficult to do with the kids).

[ghouldilocks]

Some agencies for phone-based customer service agencies offer work-from-home set-ups that would require (I believe) just an internet connection and possibly a phone that's a landline. Some of them may even have pretty flexible hours, so that could be worth looking into.

You could also possibly look into online tutoring positions, or registering on Care.com to offer your services for childcare, adult care, and/or pet-sitting.

[Mainsail]

Since I'm currently looking for a job myself, in the meantime I make things to sell. I'm just starting out, but the things I've made are decorative pillows, fleece hats, and I'm currently making pouches for phones(but can also be used for small items too ) as well as Mickey Mouse ears to wear to Disneyland/World.

[Dragonflitter]

Selling things, especially if you plan to do it online and open something like an Etsy, requires a LOT of time/money to be invested. If you open up an Etsy store its a legitimate business and there's so much you need to do to even be legal, and of course success takes even more. Craft shows/farmer's markets/etc tend to be almost as bad since you need to invest in a good setup and pay for booth fees, plus some require you to already have a business presence in the area or online.

If you can make cute pony plushies or maybe some Hasbro pony clothes/accessories you might be able to sell those here, but there's no guarantee. I think the suggestions of some sort of simple temp job are best. Things like babysitting, cooking, cleaning, lawn care, walking dogs, etc would be pretty easy and not require too much time investment (which could be difficult to do with the kids).

Taxel is right that it can be hard to start selling hand-made things online, especially using Etsy (it seems like there's just so much supply and not enough demand on that site). But I have several friends who make a bit of money selling hand-made things on Facebook. There's MANY groups you could join that are all about selling hand-made products. If you make under a certain amount per year, you don't have to claim yourself as a legal business. (Google search to find out what the details are for your area, or talk to HnR Block, etc.)

The things my craftsy friends sell online that seem to sell well are anything for infants (like tiny beanie caps, blankets, socks, etc.) and cutesy things for young kids (especially bows/ribbons for little girls that go in their hair like barettes). There's some good tutorials online for learning that sort of thing.

[FantasticFirefly]

My husband lost his job on Labor Day weekend.  It was the sole source of income for our family.  So far, he has been unable to get into another position, and I'm trying to come up with ways of generating money from home while I look after the little ones.  (We have three small children.)  I know MLM stuff (essential oils, Jamberry nails, Mary Kay, etc.) is popular with a lot of people, but I am not the kind of person to do well with that.  (I have no friends, for one thing.)  I'm thinking more along the lines of making (sewing, crocheting, possibly knitting) stuff to sell. 

So what sort of handmade thing would YOU buy?  Any thoughts?

Ugh, the MLM. Great way to make everyone distance themselves away. Even people I adore who's facebook is a constant MLM presentation I just... can't.... (I unfollow to be spared).

Ok, unfortunately for crafts/art.

I went to an art school, and I'm an excellent painter.  MIL is an amazing quilter.  People will want stuff, boy do they want stuff. They usually don't want to pay what the supplies cost though! It's not malicious, they just don't get how much supplies add up and time so they ask me for something based on prices of canvas prints found at winners/homesense (us is marshalls?) MIL has people wanting quilts but at wall-mart prices. People are really cheap. they'll want awesome things, but why would they pay you $70 when they can buy it at the store for $10?

*IF* you already have the stuff, go for it in your spare time to see what happens. I would highly advise against buying materials when you NEED incoming money. Please don't do that!

-suggestions.
Putting out feelers, make an ad on local classifieds and doing interviews to watch a child you mesh with during hours their parents work. Look up how much childcare costs in the area (if you don't know current rates for various ages). Some of my SAHM friends earn a decent wage just taking on one additional child during the workweek.

-other tasks.
Mowing lawns, raking leaves, shoveling snow, clearing and salting walkways, house cleaning. There's tons of tasks that older people really struggle with, but will happily pay for.  See if anyone local to you needs anything like that done on a regular basis.
It's how I made a lot of pony spending money when I was 10-14, and sometimes later on. (I was helping with my disabled brother a lot too, so I had a very messy schedule. and I was able to actually do this vs. a set job with set hours).  Again, look up how much people charge in the area for these types of services.

[ponyqueen]

Here's another one I'm trying:

Rent out things that you own. For example a tool or piece of kitchen equipment. Something that a person is likely to only need once for a specific project or event, so don't want to commit to purchasing something.

This weekend I am renting out my chocolate fondue fountain. They cost ~$140 new, can be bought on CL for ~$40, so I'm renting mine out for $20/day (plus deposit). It cost me nothing in supplies or advertising.

[ghouldilocks]

Here's another one I'm trying:

Rent out things that you own. For example a tool or piece of kitchen equipment. Something that a person is likely to only need once for a specific project or event, so don't want to commit to purchasing something.

This weekend I am renting out my chocolate fondue fountain. They cost ~$140 new, can be bought on CL for ~$40, so I'm renting mine out for $20/day (plus deposit). It cost me nothing in supplies or advertising.

This is a really good idea! I never would have thought of this, but hmmm...might need to think what I have around the house that I could try to rent out 

[Tak]

Doing yard work, house cleaning, babysitting, offering rides. You could look into the in-home care program. I've heard that it's very easy to get into. If you sew you can do alterations, hemming, repairs. Garage sale, resell kids clothing. I think that's all I've got.

[Taxel]

Taxel is right that it can be hard to start selling hand-made things online, especially using Etsy (it seems like there's just so much supply and not enough demand on that site). But I have several friends who make a bit of money selling hand-made things on Facebook. There's MANY groups you could join that are all about selling hand-made products. If you make under a certain amount per year, you don't have to claim yourself as a legal business. (Google search to find out what the details are for your area, or talk to HnR Block, etc.)

The things my craftsy friends sell online that seem to sell well are anything for infants (like tiny beanie caps, blankets, socks, etc.) and cutesy things for young kids (especially bows/ribbons for little girls that go in their hair like barettes). There's some good tutorials online for learning that sort of thing.

That's a good idea about Facebook! Dragonflitter is right about FB, it can be a great platform, but its not quite that black and white about what's legal. In some places /any/ income like that counts as a business and you need legal paperwork of some kind. Don't just blindly believe Google! Call your local government, city offices or whatnot. Call the county offices, if there are any. Call the state offices. Talk to people yourself and get answers straight from the source. There is a LOT of misinformation out there and I've seen people get slammed for trusting pages that were wrong. WAHM Tax Group on Facebook might be able to help give you some guidance, but I still strongly suggest looking into things yourself too.

I'd also suggest not getting into kid stuff if this isn't something you want to do seriously. If you're not compliant and something happens you could be in huge trouble. Its not worth it. People are getting more informed about compliance and more and more won't buy from shops/people that aren't so there's not even that much to gain.

[Tak]

The post office is hiring.