can do to make

As a Housewife Or a Stay-at-home Mom

By JoDee Mason

Thank you to my mom who is very creative

and passed that on to me- giving me creative

ideas as well, and to Tosha for telling me to

put my ideas into a book!

Index of Categories:

Anyone Can Do It

Cooking

Children

Holidays

Miscellaneous

Use Your Talents!

Be Teachable

Living on a Budget

Anyone Can Do It- In order to make money wherever you are you need to sit down with a pen and

piece of paper and map out your plan with these steps. The first two things you

need to figure out go hand in hand:

First: What is needed in your area-

That is to say, what is something that people would want or need done that is not

readily available or too expensive or would be inconvenient.

Second: What is something you can do easily and enjoy doing that other people

would pay to have done-

Figure out what you have or can do that someone else cant or doesnt have the

time/skills to do. For example- you may be a stay at home mom with some extra

time, whereas other moms are working- unable to get everything else done.

Third: How can you make it practical-

You dont want to go in debt trying to earn money. Anything you do to earn your

money should be at least 30-50% profit. To make what youre going to do

practical, and balance out make a chart or graph. Decide how much its going to

cost you in time and materials and how much you can reasonably sell it for. You

dont want your costs so high that when you double them its way too much for

someone to spend. For example- Make sure your final cost is cheap enough to buy,

yet high enough to cover your costs, and the time and effort you put into it.

Fourth: Find Uniqueness about what youre doing-

List how different, unique and of course BETTER your service or product is and

the reasons why. Let people know your offering something no one else can.

Fifth: Extra things you can do to increase your profits-

Even though they may be able to buy close to the same thing somewhere else-

yours is unique and people will often pay for uniqueness and the convenience of

having something delivered. For example- if your delivering something, have a

delivery charge. Always have those little extra things you are able to add on by

request and even though you only charge them an extra dollar or two, your cost is

already absorbed in the original order.

Sixth: What do you need to start your business-?

If there are legal issues such as- food handlers permit, licenses, etc. Call your local

City offices or search online to find out.

Seventh: What expenses are you going to have to start-?

Make a list of inventory needed, get prices for things. You can always go online

and find wholesalers to get things really cheap, the only down fall of this is you

usually have to buy in bulk- but if its something youll go through it will save you

money. Wholesalers will often send you a catalog if you ask for one. Also check

eBay. Become the online queen of research! The internet provides many tools

today take advantage of them, all you have to do is be willing to spend some time

doing the research. In the end youll save yourself a lot of money. Dont forget

added expenses most people dont think of - such as business cards,

advertising, fliers etc.

Eighth: What are you going to call your Business-?

You want a name thats catchy and lets people know what you do. Dont pick a

business name that only means something to you, your family or friends- arent the

ones you want all your business from. Look at other businesses, good names let

you know if theyre what youre looking for by the name.

Ninth: Make a To Do list-

List the things that you need to do in order to achieve your goal. The easiest way to

do this is to start at the top of the planning list youve just made and go from top to

bottom listing things to do, then start crossing things off that list!

Tenth: Have a timeline-

Create a timeline of when you want to achieve certain things. Give yourself

deadlines. Figure out the dates to have your business set up, order inventory,

advertising & any other things you need to get done.

Eleventh: Advertise your business-

Depending on what you decide to do, advertise in the best way for people in that

market to hear about you. In newspapers, fliers, ads or even just calling around to

your friends and family to let them know what youre doing and have them spread

the word! After all, word of mouth is the BEST advertising you can get!

As mentioned before, have a plan. This is a guideline to help you get started. In

this book you will find suggestions and ideas, feel free to use any of these or

modify and create your own. However as mentioned before, whenever you create a

new way to make money make sure you take care of all the legal sides of it to

protect yourself and your business.

Anyone can find a way to make money- use what you know best to earn the extra

cash you want.

Some of the following money making ideas are ones that I have tried myself and

have enjoyed doing. I hope you put these ideas to good use for yourself and earn

the extra money that is nice for all of us to have!

Dont forget to put your name, phone number and any other information on ALL

of your products. This way if they give it to a friend youve got potential new

business. There are many make your own things you can buy in the stores that

combined with a computer make life much easier and allow you to look

professional at a minimal cost. I use my computer and the things bought at the

store to make my own stickers, labels, business cards, and return address stickers.

All you need is a cute little logo and the font of your choice. This adds so much to

your product or service and makes you look professional. They also look like you

took the time and money to order personalized things for your business- only you

will know that you made them at a fraction of the price!

Also, make sure to remove any information about your wholesalers on any

products you sell- you dont want customers to be able to undercut you and go

directly to your sources!

Keep in mind, the price suggestions in here are only suggestions and depending on

the area you live in they may need to be adjusted.

No Matter what you end up doing, remember quality, quality, QUALITY! You

want people to know theyre getting their moneys worth.

Good luck with your future endeavors!

Cooking

Bread Orders- Most people love fresh homemade bread! Offer to deliver fresh homemade bread

one day a week to peoples houses. You can have standing orders or special orders

each week. You may even want to do a few different kinds of bread such as:

White, Wheat, Cinnamon Raisin, etc. You could charge a delivery fee on top of the

bread if they want it delivered, or they can come to your house and pick it up

saving you time and them the delivery fee.

Cooking Club- Start a cooking club! If you know how to cook really well and people are always

telling you that you make such nice meals, offer to teach a class once a week on

how to cook.- You could explore this from the basic learners (maybe someone

would send their kids to learn to cook basic stuff) to even doing special, deluxe or

gourmet food. The nice thing about this is you teach it right in your house at the

times you set. Have each person pay an attendance fee of maybe $5-$30 (or

whatever you see fit) and that would give them the knowledge of the night, recipes

of the things cooked and a taste of the things cooked. (or if you were doing the

whole meal- they would get to eat the meal)

Meals on the go- Offer to deliver a full meal to someone. Make up a menu of about 5 different

complete dinners of which someone could choose to order from you. Most main

dishes can be frozen easily- especially since youll want to freeze and sell them in

disposable (but oven safe) containers. So you can make up most of your meals

ahead of time ready to pop into the oven when someone calls. Salad, bread and a

dessert are easy things to put with a meal and fast to put together. I would suggest

having 3 different serving sizes such as serving for 2, 4, or 6 people. You could

also have individual things on your menu such as soup, bread and a dessert for one

person. Or a special dessert-like cheesecake or fried ice cream that a person could

order for just one. Maybe even have things like a meal of the week. Again with this

you could charge a delivery fee.

Pre-Made Mixes- These are so easy to make and easy to store! Put all the dry ingredients of a recipe

into a Ziploc or large bag, then place it into a decorative bag. (cellophane, sewn or

even decorated white paper bag) Type up a nice little label of instructions on what

to add to the mixture, and how long to bake etc. include a small ingredients list,

then tie it up with a ribbon and there you have it! You can do anything from

cookies, brownies to even breads! I know someone who sells these pre-made for

$4.50 each- theyre great gifts! And if you put your name and number on the label,

then give some away as gifts youll be getting calls when they want more!

Homemade Ice Cream & Root beer- In the summer time its always nice to have homemade ice cream and root beer and

even better homemade root beer floats! On a busy day during the summer have a

sign in your yard or go somewhere people will be to sell homemade ice cream, root

beer, or root beer floats!

Boxed Lunches-

Make up some boxed lunches for hikers or for a youth activity. You could include

in each lunch a sandwich, drink, apple or orange, and cookie or dessert. Most of

these things you can buy in bulk and save money. You could put the lunches in

boxes ordered online or even a brown lunch sack. Place some order forms where

hikers would go- supply stores, restaurants or gas stations close to attractions. They

may not order last minute when they see your ad, but theyll remember you for

next time. Also Boy Scouts and other groups that go on hikes would be a good

market to advertise to.

Create your own cook book- If you find you get a lot of compliments on your cooking, or even just have a large

collection of recipes compile them all together! You could go as far with this as

you wanted. If you were looking at little to no budget start by typing up all your

recipes, print on both sides of the paper to save money and put a cardstock cover

on top, staple them together, thats a quick, easy, and cheap money maker that you

could then sell for $3-8 depending on how many recipes are inside. You could

make a book for each category or start a series of books.

Saturday Morning Cinnamon Rolls- Every Saturday make cinnamon rolls and have your kids walk the neighborhood to

sell them. Who wants to cook breakfast on Saturday, besides its hard to turn down

a cute little face at your door with some wonderfully smelling hot cinnamon rolls!

Again you could do standing orders, or buy whats made type of orders. Tell

people you will guarantee them delivered by 8:00am every Saturday morning.

Wedding/Party Refreshments- Make silver dollar sandwiches, ribbon sandwiches, meatballs, mini chicken pieces,

sugar mints, or dipped Teddy Grahams. Each of these is very easy- Silver dollar

sandwich rolls can be custom ordered at any grocery store. All you have to do is

cut them in half, spread a mixture of mayo/mustard inside and then close it with a

slice of meat. Easy! Ribbon sandwiches are a little more work- custom order the

colored bread from a bakery, cut off the crust (an electric knife works best for this)

then with your squared off slices spread a mixture of fillings such as: Cheese

spread, pineapple mixed with cream cheese (you can also do this with cherries)

Ham (or spam) mixed with mayo & mustard, Etc. then layer the bread. The layered

loaf can be frozen and cut into sandwiches later. Once the one-inch slices have

been cut there should be 3-4 fillings in each slice. Meatballs can be bought at any

wholesale store- then in a crock-pot put them with a nice barbeque sauce and

theyre done! The same can be done with the mini chicken pieces. Sugar mint

recipes can be found about anywhere and are easy to do, once you have them

mixed up just roll a small amount into a ball, then roll in white sugar, and press it

into a mold. The molds you can find at just about any craft store and also some of

your Wal-Marts. Theyre reasonably priced at around $2-3. Another easy

refreshment is chocolate dipped teddy grahams. Get some colored chocolate (found

at craft stores) melt it according to the directions, then dip the head of each Teddy

Graham into the chocolate, set them on wax paper to set up and you have a cute

little snack specially made in whatever colors you want!

Cake Decorating- Most craft stores have cake-decorating supplies including books on how to

decorate them. Once you buy a few basic tools and get a good frosting recipe you

can do about anything! The best thing about making wedding or birthday cakes is

theyll taste much better then store bought! So find yourself a good cake recipe and

maybe a filling for layered cakes. Cakes are always easier to decorate when theyre

frozen so if you have the time freeze the cake before you decorate it. When

frosting the cake dip your smooth knife into warm water to help give you the

smooth look on the cake.

Children

Sell to your 2nd hand store- Most childrens second hand stores will buy clothing and toys that are in

reasonable shape. Take your kids out grown clothes and toys to them. Especially

bigger items like swings, cribs, and big toys are always in demand so they will

almost always take those!

Tutor- Be a tutor for the subjects you know well. If youve attended college use your

college class knowledge to your advantage and be a paid tutor for anyone needing

help in that area- you could tutor anyone ages 5 through college!

Paint a childs room-

Even if youre not very artistic you can still paint anything! Get an overhead

projector and project the picture desired onto the wall, from there you can trace it

on the wall and paint away! There are lots of ideas that are simple to do if you look

in magazines. You can paint stripes on the walls using painters tape between the

stripes. The simplest things usually look the best as long as you take that simple

thing and make it fun and unique- paint the window seals, door trims, and even

closet doors a different color then the rest of the room, or paint the ceiling a fun

color.

Kids Craft Day- One day a week have children of certain ages come over to your house for 2 hours,

in which time they will do 2 crafts. One kitchen craft and one art craft. (the craft

ideas are all over the web and childrens magazines) Each child pays $5 to come

and you have it on the same day at the same time each week. I loved doing this

because it was fun for my kids to have playmates over, and I was earning some

extra money. We did lots of fun crafts and games and the kids looked forward to

coming each week.

Kids Camp- In the summer most kids get pretty bored. Offer a kids camp where one day each

week you will do activities for the whole summer. Each time it will only be for 2

hours or so, but you will have a schedule of what youll be doing each week for the

whole summer, the cost is $5 per kid per week. Some weeks you may do

something really active like swimming, skating etc. and other weeks may be just

easy arts and craft activities, teach the kids a new skill like pottery, painting, or

maybe even have some field trips where theyll get a tour of a grocery store (stores

love to do this).

Home Preschool-

Start a preschool in your home. Find children at the appropriate ages and teach a

small preschool group in your home. Again you can find lots of lesson ideas on the

internet, and you will have to get the proper licensing. Keep in mind the average

cost to send a child to preschool is anywhere from $55-100 per month. And the

child attends from 2-3 days a week. If you run out of ideas for lessons, search the

web, there are tons of ideas for free! Remember you can always do 1 letter of the

alphabet each week- thats 26 weeks right there!

Make quilts for babies- Ok, not everyone knows how to quilt or sew so Im going to tell you the EASIEST

way to make a blanket that will look adorable and expensive. Buy some fleece

fabric at the store (its the soft fuzzy material on both sides) Cut out a piece just

about 3-4 inches bigger all around then you want your final blanket to be. Now, cut

out a square from each corner thats about 3x3 inches. Now cut 3-inch long strips

(1 wide) all along each edge making a fringe look. Take each strip and tie a knot

at its base leaving a little tail. Once the blanket is done it will have a cute little

border of knots and tails! You can do this to any size blanket, from baby size to

adult size, just adjust the size of your fabric and if desired the size of the cut out

squares and strips. For bigger blankets you can also only fringe the top and bottom.

You can even make a matching pillow using the same technique but lay one piece

on top of the other and tie the 2 pieces making a knot with 2 fringes rather than one

and fill the middle with stuffing.

Activity Packets- How many times do moms hear that a child is bored? Make up activity packets to

cure boredom! These could be chore charts to earn extra money, or achieve goals,

games, you name it! I have some games that I made up and put into file folders

after they were laminated this way they are easily filed away and when pulled out

theres a complete game all in one file. Theres a variety from color matching to

addition or word finding. Something for each level!

Family Home evening packets-

Make up a complete family home evening packet. Include a scripture for the week,

lesson, recipe for a dessert, and maybe even a game or role playing activity. Put

everything they would need for the family night into one decorative container or

envelope. The more work you put into this and the better you make it look the

better it will sell. Remember if you want people to buy it, it has to be good quality!

Birthday Party Packages-

Put together a collection of everything someone would need for a birthday party-

invitations, thank you cards, treat bags, noise makers, decorations, table cloth etc.

Have it all the same theme or colors. If you have access to stamps, or a computer

you could be really original with these making them all the same. You could even

include some game ideas and the supplies needed to play those games.

Personalized books- Write a personalized book for a boy or girl where all you have to do is change the

name and the rest of the story stays the same. You could have a few different

books to suite different age levels. Include the childs name, pets, age, siblings &

address. Print this book out and put it into page protectors in a binder or in a photo

book. There are also places online you can upload your book to and they will print

and bind it for you.

Learning Games- Create easy learning games for all ages. Some may be matching colors, some

matching numbers or words. You could have some to help with reading, math, or

science. Make them into a board game or a card game, even a memory game! Put

the game in a nice box and give it a nice label and kids will love them as much as

any other game someone would buy at the store. You could also create them with

your childs favorite cartoons- just be sure to check copyright info if youre going

to sell these.

Personalized Party Kits- For my daughters 2nd birthday I made personalized labels and put them on bubbles

bought at the store, and also on candy bars. It adds a neat touch and looks like you

paid a fortune to order them special made! I also made coloring books- you can get

lots of coloring pages off the internet, just print them up small and make them into

a little book with a cardstock cover. Offer to make personalized labels with

whatever cartoon character the child likes and their name etc.

Toy disinfecting-

Charge to thoroughly disinfect toys for people. You could charge $1 per toy and

clean them with disinfectant and q-tips. This would be a great thing to do during

cold season when germs are spread so easily. Preschools and Daycares would be a

great place to advertise this! You could make a sign to hang where the toys are

saying the date that the toys were last disinfected and cleaned. That would give

parents the assurance that their kids are playing in a clean environment as well as

remind the customers to call you again.

Theme Party Hosting- Bring the party to their house! Have themes such as dress-up, tea party, circus,

monster trucks etc. and bring everything for the party to their house. You bring the

cake, any dress-ups or costumes, party favors, games, decorations and anything

else that goes with your theme to the party!

Personalized name poems- Type up a personalized poem for someones name- you could have pre-made

sayings for each letter of the alphabet and just type them up with the name going

down. Make the first Letter of each saying large and in bold print so they see their

name down and the poem across. Print them up on cute paper with a boarder and

have 4-5 choices of boarders to order the poem on. You could also frame them and

charge extra.

Birth Announcements- Have a saying that you can use for everyone or one for boys and one for girls and

just add in the name. Something like: On Dec. 2nd 2004, the world was happy to

see John Smith enter the world landing with 8lb 4oz of love and cuddles at

8:03pm. This one could be themed around airplanes playing on the word

Landing have the saying written in calligraphy or a neat font and pictures of

airplanes around as a border which you could water color in or print out on the

computer.

Name Art- Paint the childs name and a saying on a 1x4 board for a decoration. This could

be anything from Billys Room to Princess Sadie Sleeps Here. Trace a fancy

border, or picture and make sure to add color. You could add knobs for hanging

things. Or add a 3D look by gluing on matchbox cars, or buttons etc.

Wall Hangings- Paint a board one solid color then paint or attach a vinyl saying on it such as

Twinkle, Twinkle little star, Thank Heavens for little Girls, Boys will be

Boys, or any saying. You could also paint these sayings onto store bought wall

hangings, coat hangers, mirrors, etc.

Dress-up Kits Make dress-up kits that have everything inside to dress up as a cowboy, Indian,

princess, ballerina etc. The costumes could be easily made and accessories can be

found cheap at dollar stores or picked up at clearances throughout the year if you

keep your eye out for them. After Halloween stores clearance their costumes for

50% off. You could sell these kits, or even rent them out.

Holidays

Valentines Day

Make Gourmet Desserts for Valentines Day- Most men dont know what to get their wives for Valentines Day, make this

decision easy for them! Most women love chocolate and what woman wouldnt

love a basket filled with deluxe treats! Chocolate dipped pretzels are easy to make

and you can always find amazingly easy truffle recipes online along with any other

creative but delicious ideas. Look in recipe books for some gourmet ideas. Carmel

dipped apples can be made fancy by dipping them in chocolate, then drizzling

white chocolate over the top.

Deliver Flowers Balloons, or Boxed Chocolates-

Take orders a week or so in advance, then for flowers buy bulk at a wholesale store

such as Costco. Divide the flowers up into amounts your selling (1 rose, 3 roses, 6

roses etc.) be sure to put some baby breath with each lot. (you may have to buy

extra baby breath from a flower store) Wrap the lot up with cellophane. For

Balloons, rent a helium tank and on the day of delivery start making your balloon

bouquets. For boxed Chocolates- you can buy them from any gourmet chocolate

store, or even find a wholesaler and order them before hand. Make some deals and

combos if youre doing more than one such as- $15 for 3 roses and a box of

chocolates.

Easter

Fill Plastic Easter Eggs- You can either provide you own eggs and candy and charge a per dozen rate, or

have them bring you one or both of those and charge a little less per dozen. You

can even have your candy prices vary in price range from the jelly bean/cheap

candy fillers to the candy bars and chocolate eggs. Also, if they need someone to

hide them- offer to do this for an additional $2/dozen or so.

Sugar Easter Eggs-

Sugar eggs are easy to make and fun to decorate. All you need is a mold, and your

basic cake decorating supplies. Once you make the sugar egg in the mold scoop out

the middle leaving the outer edge about 1 inch thick, then create your own scene

inside with pictures, or nick-nacs. Decorate the outside of the egg with the same

techniques youd use on a cake (using hard setting frosting) and you have yourself

a pretty decoration that could easily sell for $5-15 each. You can always add silk

flowers and ribbon for that extra touch. These keep well as long as they dont get

wet!

Fourth of July

Flag set up and Delivery- Go around and set up flags outside your neighborhood. This business is a good

idea especially for elderly communities that may not be able to put up a flag on this

holiday but still want to be patriotic. A simple fee is worth it to have someone else

put out a flag. Make sure you get a sturdy way or place to put the flags, Ive seen

them in cemented buckets, or you could screw a bracket in when they sign up for

the service on a place of their choosing so early on the morning of the 4th you

simply have to slide the flag in- this is a good idea if you are going to do this every

year. Have an arranged time to set up and take down- such as flags will be up by

5am and taken down by 10pm. You can also make this service a year round

business and commit to specific holidays you will put the flags up and charge a

yearly fee.

Pot Luck Cooking- This is also a time of the year people are going to a lot of BBQs and potlucks.

Those who may not know how to cook very well but still want to bring a nice dish

that doesnt look store bought could order and purchase a dish from you. Create a

menu of salads, side dishes, breads, and desserts. You could even sell them with

either disposable containers- or offer a higher quality plastic bowl with lid or

something that the buyer would keep if you think you could get your moneys

worth. Have maybe 2 different serving sizes- a medium that would feed 6 or so,

and a large that would feed 12. Be sure to do a cost evaluation before setting your

prices so you dont undercut yourself on the cost of ingredients.

Halloween

Make Halloween Costumes- If you know how to sew, or even if you dont theres lots of cute ideas you can turn

into a costume. Just look around and be creative! For example, you can turn a large

black plastic bag into a M&Ms costume. Childrens magazines around this time of

year have lots of ideas to get you started, or make you own ideas!

Face Painting- At Halloween time paint childrens faces. You can buy the face paint make-up at

the store pretty reasonable and it keeps for years if sealed in a Ziploc bag. Keep a

file or book of ideas you find in magazines or books- these could be shown for

examples.

Wacky Hair Styles- Be the neighborhood hairstylist, doing wacky styles for Halloween. Get a good

supply of hair spray, and spray on hair color. You can get lots of ideas from

movies, online or in magazines.

Thanksgiving

Be the Pie maker- At Thanksgiving time you can make a variety of specialty pies that most people

cant even buy such as candy bar, truffle, mint ice cream and many more. Search

your cookbooks and youll find recipes you never knew you had! Some pies will

freeze well, and can be made 1-2 weeks in advance; others have to be made fresh.

The faster you deliver the pies after making them the better (and more room).

Otherwise youll need an extra fridge or freezer to store them in. You may want to

get orders 2-3 weeks before so you know exactly what to make and how many,

then you can always make a few extra for those last minute orders, and if they

dont sell- youve got pies for your family for Thanksgiving!

Christmas

Santa Reply Letters- Have parents send their childrens Santa letters and wish lists to you and you will

reply as if you were Santa, personalizing the letter about the child including

mentioning the names of their siblings, pets etc. Charge $2 per letter and youll

have a lot of parents wanting them. Print them on Christmas paper to add the extra

affect.

Original Ornaments-

The clear glass ornaments are easily found at craft stores, if you take these you can

make some pretty fun ornaments. Ive put flowers in them before, and have seen

fishing flys dangled inside them. One time I just put a little glitter and rolled it

around the inside, it looked great! Selling them for $1 per ornament makes them go

fast.

Shop for someone- Older people who cant get out of the house to do all their Christmas shopping

would love to have someone do it for them, or even husbands who have a hard

time shopping for their wives. Charge an hourly rate including your gas, and travel

time. Have the gifts wrapped up if desired and ready to give.

Holliday decorating/un-decorating-

Help people decorate, or undecorated their houses for the holidays. This could

include lights, trees, any yard decorations they may have and inside the house

decorations as well. You can choose to charge either an hourly rate or a per job

rate.

Gift Wrapping-

Perfect for Christmas time when no one has the time to wrap up gifts. Have a

complete set up at your house that allows you to wrap up any size package. Have a

basic service that includes wrapping and a bow, then maybe more deluxe services

where you add on fancy decorations or a keepsake tied onto the bow.

Christmas Babysitting-

Have a set time 3-4 days a week where you are available to baby-sit for parents

who need to do Christmas shopping. In this time you could help the kids make a

Christmas present for their parents and have it all wrapped up by them! This could

be an easy craft, drawing or even a hand/foot print on a nice piece of paper.

Greeting Cards- If you have Stamps, a computer, or just some artsy skills put them to good use

making greeting cards for people! You can customize them for any holiday, or

reason you want. Charge a per card rate or value rate for every dozen.

Send Others Christmas Cards- Get the addresses of who they want cards sent to. Sign the familys name inside

each card then type or print the address on the envelopes and send the cards to their

Christmas card list. You could provide the cards ( have 3-4 for them to choose

from) or they could provide the cards and be charged less.

Miscellaneous

Wallpaper- Hang wallpaper in bedrooms, kitchens, or any other room in the house. This is

quite an easy technique to do and learn. Experiment by doing your own house first

and see if you enjoy doing it! Make sure you hang it level and match the patterns.

Sponge Paint Walls- This is a neat way to paint a room because it gives it texture and attitude rather

than just a plain colored wall, or overly busy wallpapered wall. Again, this is a

VERY easy technique to do and its fun to mix and match colors to get different

effects.

Be Willing to Help- A lot of women just need a helper to do a project, or have come to their house once

a week to do odds and ends. Even if you watch their kids for them one day a week

so they can get any errands done, or pamper themselves. Sometimes its nice just

to have someone available to help if they have family coming to visit- thats where

youll come in!

Dog Grooming- With the proper tools and love for animals you could make a lot of money

grooming dogs! There are books that will teach you how to groom and what hair

cuts to use for different breeds. Most of all its just having a love for animals.

Beginning Classes-

You dont have to be a master at something in order to teach basic classes. Piano,

Violin, Dance, Tap, Clogging, & Singing are all common things to enroll your

child in. Start a beginners class that you can teach from your home. For music

lessons you could charge $20/hour and charge a $45 monthly fee for dance lessons.

The good thing about the dance, tap and clogging lessons is that you can have

more than one child in the class making more money for you to earn, and less for

the parents to pay. More children in the class also takes up more of your time,

making it easier to fill the 1 hour lesson time.

Refinish Furniture-

Sand it down and paint it a different color. Re-Paint it, or put a sealer on it. You

can get antique, crackle or any other assortment of neat paints available today.

Shop for someone- Often times elderly or recently hospitalized people cant get their groceries for

themselves and would love to have someone to help them. Make sure you find out

the sizes and brands of the foods theyre used to getting so theres no mistake.

Reminders for Special Occasions- This one requires a lot of planning and organization on your part. You need a

really good filing system and a computer. How this works is you offer to remind

people of important dates throughout the year. Men are the best ones to sell this to-

for $20/year youll remind them of 3 dates (example: wifes birthday, anniversary,

& Valentines Day) Each time the date draws near they will have 3 reminders from

you. The first one will be one week before the day, for this they will receive an

email. On the same day you send the email, send a reminder letter in the mail that

way they will receive the letter 3-4 days before. And then for the last reminder you

call them the day before.

Craft Fairs- Craft fairs are held almost everywhere! And if there arent any in your area see the

next suggestion! Even if you think youre not a crafty person Im going to show

you how anyone can sell things at a craft fair. Many of the ideas in this book could

be sold at a craft fair, such as the baby blankets, Pre-made mixes, and Ill tell you

my secret- Go online and you will find HUNDREDS of sayings and ideas such as

the snowman soup and the holiday Poops. These are so easy to put together

and anyone can do them! Make sure to make them original to you so you wont

have a problem with copy writes etc.

Host a craft boutique- Depending on the area you live in you can host a craft boutique in your home or

rent a place to have one. Charge people a $15 fee to sell crafts there (or more if you

have to rent a place), and for this you will advertise, and put up signs & balloons

the day of. If youre holding one in your home you could collect the money at a

central checkout place and then disperse it afterwards, and if you rent a place, have

individual booth spaces where they collect their own money. This way if you sell

anything or not, youre still making a little money (from the booth fees) for the

hassles of coordinating it.

Scrapbook for others-

Most people enjoy looking at scrapbooks but dont have the time to do their own.

Once you already have all the tools to scrapbook you can have people give you

their pictures and charge them $2-3 per page to scrap book their pages for them! If

they want special things written in they can either tell you and have you write them

or you can leave a space for them to write it in when they have a chance. You can

even put together the whole kit for someone who wants a book made for someone

else, so you would scrapbook the pages and provide a binder, page protectors and

the pages you put together inside.

Stamp Stationary- Using your stamps, create personalized stationary. Even if you do 20 pages and 10

envelopes if theyre all matching and classy its something unique thats an easy

gift.

Be an organizer- Help someone organize their house, or a closet. You may want to include some

closet organizers or plastic bins with your service to help people get organized.

Labeling things is another great idea when organizing; this helps to keep things

organized. Label makers can be bought at most stores, or if you have neat hand

writing you can write on label stickers.

Catalog the house- Catalog someones house for insurance purposes. If the house were to burn down

they would have pictures from different angles for each room and a detailed listing

of everything in the house. Catalog anything of value over $5 onto 3x5 cards or

type them up on the computer and put them with the pictures to go in a fire safe

box.

Be a typist- Make good use of your computer! Type up things for people such as reports,

recipes etc. Give time for them to read through the rough draft print out and then

make any changes they see needed. You could charge per line, page, or word rate.

Create a book of ideas- Just like this is a book of all my ideas! Some are used and some I never put to use,

but you will! Make an organized collection of your ideas for whatever they are.

Examples: How to fix things, living on a budget, entertaining kids etc.

Housecleaning help- No one wants to do it, but its sure easy to do if you have someone to do it with.

Help clean a house, garage or yard. If youre funny about doing certain things have

a list of things that you will not do, or even just have a list of certain things you

will do, such as: vacuum, clean windows, scrub walls, scrub down doors and

cabinets etc. You could charge a rate per room, per chore, or per hour.

Service Gift certificates- Everyones seen those Good for one hug cards. Make a bunch of your own using

pictures you draw or get from your computer. Color and Laminate them and give

them as a set of 6 or however many you come up with, the possibilities are endless!

Examples: Good for massage, 1 hour of cleaning, bubble bath uninterrupted,

hug, kiss etc.

Be a Chauffer- When someone can still get around but cant drive, do the driving for them! If

theyre elderly, or just dont have a drivers license theyll appreciate you. Set you

rules such as your responsibilities- pick them up and drop them off or if youre

going to physically help them in and out of the car and go with them and be their

helper. This you could charge an event charge, or an hourly rate.

Print Pictures- If you have a scanner, scan pictures and then print them out using print shop or any

other program. Be careful not to scan and print professional pictures though as they

have copy write. This way someone could get an 8x10 of a favorite snap shot, or a

bunch of wallets for family and friends. Most print shop programs have the ability

to preset the picture to print in different sizes.

Make Personalized Iron-ons- You can buy the iron-on paper at the store and put personalized messages, pictures,

names etc. on them and then either sell them as is, or iron them on a shirt or

something and sell them as a finished project etc.

Old Fashioned pictures- You can create an old fashioned picture look by black & white coping a picture,

then lightly spraying the picture with Sephia craft spray (you can get it at any craft

store, or something equivalent) once you have this dry mount the picture on a

decorative frame and add nice touches like the corner inserts that give it that extra

antique touch.

Prom Hair Styles- Put your fancy hair knowledge to good use. Charge $15 to do a fancy hairstyle for

prom night, or any other special occasion. Look in magazines, movies, and salon

books for ideas on how you can do hair in a different way. You could even trade

this service for babysitting!

Teach a skill to others- Teach something you know how to do that may not be something too common for

most people to know how to do. Examples: Foreign languages, Sign Language,

Quilting, Bead making, etc. Have a weekly class for 6 weeks, and charge a flat rate

for the complete 6 weeks. $45/person for 6 weeks, 2 hours each week.

Make Signs and Charts- Make chore charts, emergency phone numbers, or basic information charts for

people to hang up in their house. You could have a basic chart that wouldnt need

any specific information such as an emergency phone number list that would have-

911, poison control, etc. on it, or you could get personal information and

personalize them such as lists for the babysitter that would include: childrens/pets

names, emergency contact, cellular phone number and any other important

information they should know. Basic chore charts are also easy to do, you could

make them for kids or adults- just list the daily chores and divide them however

needed (daily, weekly, personal chores etc.) The good thing about chore charts is

that every house needs to be vacuumed, dusted, windows washed, laundry folded,

swept, mopped, dishes done, and all the basic cleaning chores! Once you get a

pattern for your charts (make sure they have color!) get them laminated.

Be a Wedding Decorator- Make or buy tablecloths, backdrops and decorations for a few different colors or

themes. Rent your decorations out for weddings, parties, or other events. You

could also do custom color/theme requests. Make sure you stick to neutral colors

for backdrops, or things that you can put material or ribbon on making it versatile

for any color/theme.

File it away- Organize someones papers into an easy filing system. The easiest way to do this is

with 3x5 cards on which you write a subject or key word at the top of each card.

Then list all the papers your filing that go along with that subject or key word and

what file they are located in. From there you can have the papers filed into

numbered files. So if they were to look for a paper on gardening for example, the

3x5 card might have listed #35, #122 & # 409. From there they could pull out

those numbered files and they would all have to do with gardening.

Deliver Fliers-

This has got to be the coolest idea for stay at home moms! Deliver fliers from your

local businesses to each house. Divide the area you live into sections of 500, 1,000

or however many you want to be in your delivery route. Then tell the businesses

youll deliver one area each week. Charge $25/500 or if you decide to do 1,000

charge $50. Have each business print up their own fliers and have them ready by

the Friday before. It will take time for you to collate them over the weekend, but

then it will only take you a day or two to deliver them! Guarantee them delivered

by a certain day of the week. Let businesses choose which areas they want to

advertise in, and give them a discounted rate for advertising in more than one area.

Your packets that you deliver to each house could be stapled together, or put into

plastic bags.

Use your Talents! Everyone has talents, figure out what yours are and how you can use them to help

you make a little extra cash. I promise there is something you can do that no one

else can.

Dont forget any education you have! Go back and read through some college

books and remember the classes you took and what you learned, apply that. Even

in High School some skills were taught to you that you could put to use.

Help teach someone what you know and have learned through your experiences.

And in turn keep an open mind to the things others try to teach you, learn from

their mistakes and experiences.

Last of all I would recommend you talk to someone who knows you best and get

their input on what you plan to do, ask them for constructive criticism and be open

to their suggestions. View your plan from all sides, and even though its the last

thing you want to do have a plan to fall back on in case you dont succeed. (with

the right plan and enough effort you will succeed!)

Good luck with your business ventures! I hope you have enjoyed reading this book

as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Hopefully now you have an eager mind full

of ideas to start you on your way to making some money while still being a

housewife and a stay at home mom!

Be Teachable These days there are a lot of TV shows that will teach you how to cook, do crafts,

fix things, and decorate. Study the shows to learn new techniques and to stay

updated with the latest trends and styles. Be open to learning new things- you may

find a shortcut or idea you can use.

If you dont know how to do something- but desire to do it as part of making

money, seek out TV shows and internet information. There are a lot of resources

available for free!

Anything can be done when a person is willing to put the effort and time into doing

it- which includes learning and knowing all you can!

Living on a Budget Aside from making money you need to learn how to budget and save what money

you have. After all, what good is it to keep making money and then spending it

unwisely- youre not getting ahead this way.

Any of the suggestions in this book could be put to personal use in order to save

money. Do things for yourself instead of hiring someone else to do it for you.

When hosting a wedding, make your own cake, decorations, or refreshments. Make

activities and games for your children rather than buying them. There are many

ways to save money and budget aside from coupon clipping which is the first thing

most people think of. Here are a few examples of things not listed thus far:

Haircuts- boys especially are easy to do. This will save you an average of $8 for

boys and $15 for girls!

Dinners- When making a casserole, make an extra one and freeze it. Not only is

this nice for those days when you're too tired to make dinner, but its also cheaper

to make one double batch then it is to make two single batches. And time effective!

Because after all- Time is Money!

Buy Wholesale- You really will save money in the end. Buy the things that you go

through the most.

Make Snacks- Recipes can be found everywhere for childrens snacks that will

save you money, and chances are theyll be healthier than store bought.

Plan Meals Out- By planning your weekly meals and then making a grocery list

based on those meals you end up spending less in the store. Youll know exactly

what you need to make each meal and wont have to run back to the store during

the week for 1-2 ingredients.

These are just a few examples, the best way to come up with your own is to sit

down and write down all the places you spend your money and how much. Then

decide where you can make cuts.

If you make a money log for one week taking each time you spend any money and

writing down what you bought, and how much you spent, youll be surprised at the

end of the week how much you spend on certain things. You may not realize how

much soda you drink, or how much gas your car uses.

Cut down on waste by only cooking enough food to feed your family what they

will eat. Watch for sales in the stores. Usually off seasons is the best time to buy.

Tires for example may be $100 less in the summer, even if you dont need them

until winter, buying them at the right time will save you $100 on something youll

eventually buy anyway.

Childrens clothes are the same way. For years I would buy the seasons clearance

clothes for my kids in the sizes they would wear the next year. One year

specifically I remember my daughter had outgrown most of her clothes almost

overnight and I ran to the store in a panic and spent $80 and was only able to get a

couple outfits and pajamas. From that day I started buying clothes at the season

clearances and one year later as she outgrew her clothes I pulled out an entire

wardrobe I had bought on clearance 9 months earlier. I totaled the amount I paid

which was about $80 (for an ENTIRE wardrobe of MANY outfits and pajamas)

and then I totaled what I would have paid if I hadnt bought them on clearance and

it was over $300!! My savings of a couple hundred dollars was worth storing the

clothes in her closet for 9 months. Now that my kids are older and not going

through as many growth stages I can do the same thing for just a couple times a

year.

Being well organized and planed will save you a lot in many different areas. I have

a chart that lists every consumable item we have in our house. It then lists how fast

we go through each item. Using this chart I am able to have precise, organized

food storage and know exactly how many months supply I have of everything in

our house.

Good luck with your future business and financial planning!

For more information or to order other products email:

jodeemason@gmail.com

www.atozformomslikeme.blogspot.com

Some books available on amazon.com

Other products by JoDee Mason:

Little by Little

Food Storage Preparedness list

The Growing Up child book series

Christmas Gift Ideas Book 1 and 2

The Ugly Gift

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