The following are bootstrap business ideas readers came up with after reading articles in MOTHER EARTH NEWS.
MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ article on “Fine-Feathered Hatbands” helped me establish a rewarding home business in less than one week’s time!
I live in a region that has a large pheasant population, so I did a bit of investigating (after studying your hatband write-up) and found that there were quite a few out-of-town hunters who needed help dressing pheasants they’ve killed. I let it be known — in the local filling stations and motels — that I was interested in providing such a service . . . and within two days I’d received a batch of 18 pheasants to prepare.
I set my rates at $1.00 a bird, but my first customers were so pleased with my work that they paid me $30 — a $12 bonus over the fee I’d requested. In addition, my clients left me the pheasants’ plumage, which I put to good use in my experiments with hatband designs. I invested $7.00 in a variety of suede scraps at the local shoe repair shop, and promptly sold five handmade headwear adornments at $7.50 each . . . for a profit of $30.50!
Well, that was just six days after I’d first read MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ article, and already I’d established a pretty steady income. Word of my new service spread throughout the community, and before long I acquired a number of regular customers. I’ve come to count on a pheasant per day, for example, from one fellow who’s made a habit of hunting along the lengthy route from his home to his job here in town. And, on occasion, I dress out chickens and ducks in addition to the more exotic birds. (Recently, one load of barnyard fowl earned me my fee plus two ducks … and, while cleaning the birds’ gizzards, I found four tiny pieces of gold!)
Meanwhile, I’m saving up feathers for my hatband handiwork because Easter is on its way; since that holiday causes folks to look for fashion finery, I know I have a booming business to look forward to. Thanks, Mom . . . this sure beats sitting behind a desk!
Lorri Ides
Corning, Iowa
I recently put MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ “Sun-Burned Art” idea into action and It’s been bringing in money ever since.
First I purchased a small, $4.00 magnifying glass and began to experiment with the art form on some lumber scraps that I had around the house. After a number of tries, when I felt I’d mastered the skill, I set out to find a way to peddle my wares. As luck would have it, an outdoor craft bazaar was soon scheduled to be held nearby. So I bought a $2.00 piece of 318″ x 4″ x 8′ cedar and set to work with my 3″ magnifying glass singeing wooden buttons.
By the time the festive day arrived, I’d completed enough art objects to set up a nice display … but I continued to make the sunburned buttons In order to demonstrate the process to potential customers, and soon folks began to request custom-made slogan pins (many with anti-nuclear and pro-solar themes). I was able to fashion 21 buttons from one piece of cedar, and-after all the accessories (Including glue, pins, and varnish) were accounted for-I calculated that the wooden masterpieces had required just 30¢ (and only half an hour) apiece to make.
I sold 17 buttons at $3.00 each during that first fair and earned a profit of $45.90 for about 8 1/2 hours of work. The money was promptly invested in more wood and accessory supplies, and I spent the next weekend sun-burning a new stockpile of slogan buttons. Then I made the rounds of the local gift stores in an effort to peddle my product on consignment . . . and two shop proprietors took me up on my offer. I let the stores display my handiwork on a couple of stands that had been made to order by one of my welder friends (I returned the favor by doing some delivery work for him in my pickup truck) . . . and I was in business.
My pyrographic art enterprise now has a steady flow of sales and orders … and though I’m studying full time, my part-time occupation has been helping to pay my living expenses by earning me an average of $150 per month!
Lance Ollenberger
Burnaby, B.C., Canada
While looking through a local flower shop for a bit of colorful cheer to take to my hospitalized wife, I noticed some delightful glass terrariums of varying shapes and sizes that were selling for up to $35 each.
What interested me most about the plant containers was that I was certain, after studying them awhile, that I could put together equally appealing indoor gardens myself. After all, MOTHER EARTH NEWS had already given me the glass-cutting experience I needed when she’d taught me to build a greenhouse in the article entitled “Joseph Orr’s Fabulous ‘Mud-Heat Storage’ Solar Greenhouse.”
I’d mastered a number of useful glass-cutting fundamentals while building my own version of that structure: I learned to [1] protect my blade from striking against hard surfaces, [2] clean each piece of glass before beginning to score it, [3] lubricate the line to be severed with motor oil mixed with an equal part of either kerosene or fuel oil, [4] position myself so that each incision could be made with one continuous sweep, [5] use a wooden straightedge as a guide in cutting, [6] apply firm but not excessive pressure on the carving implement (to keep the glass from “flaking,” which results in a coarse split), and [7] lightly rub the razor-sharp edges of each glass break with sandpaper or emery cloth.
I had a cutter and plenty of extra scrap glass at home, so the only material I needed to purchase was a tube of silicone bathtub seal (at a cost of $1.98 … which provided me with enough for about four terrariums). Then I designed, laid out, and cut the pieces for a pyramid-shaped plant holder. . . devised a jig to keep the glass in position … applied a neat bead of silicone bathtub caulk to each of the container’s joints … and let it set overnight. Next, l trimmed off the excess silicone seal with a single-edge razor and cut the terrarium’s door. In addition, to provide added strength and waterproofing, I ran an extra bead of caulking along the joints on the inside of the terrarium and allowed another day for curing. Finally, I took my finished demonstrator model around to the local flower and gift shops (florists, I discovered, usually prefer to arrange their own plants in the decorative holders) … and I began to take orders.
To my surprise, almost every shopkeeper that I approached was interested in selling my handiwork. I was offered an average of $16 per unit for an investment of less than $1.00 and only two hours’ time … and with a little more salesmanship, I figure that before long I’ll have a downright busy business!
Ed Hayden, Jr.
Germantown, Wis.
I’ve always done a good deal of sewing for myself, my family, and my friends . . . so Edith Kilgo’s article “it Pays to Be an Old Sew-and-Sew” was right up my alley.
However — although I’d made lots of clothing, cushions, and stuffed animals over the years and had even worked a bit with leather — the few occasions when I’d tried to sell my wares had been quite unpleasant for me (and I was often left with much more merchandise than I’d managed to vend). Consequently, when Ms. Kilgo’s story convinced me to turn my hobby Into a full-time enterprise, I determined to sell only by order.
Coincidentally, our village seamstress was, when I was ready to “open shop”, on the verge of retiring after 20 years in business . . . and she was kind enough to take the time to show me a number of tricks of the trade. Then — with my confidence bolstered — I posted an ad in the window of a prominent grocery store and displayed a box of handmade business cards in a popular clothing shop.
My initial investment in the enterprise was only $44: $40 for a secondhand zig-zag sewing machine and $4.00 for an invisible hem attachment (a real time-saver!). I used Ms. Kilgo’s price list to determine fees for my sewing jobs . . . making an attempt to set the rates at approximately $3.00 per hour. (For example, I charge $7.00 to make an A-line skirt, $4.00 for a child’s blouse with cut-in sleeves, $3.50 to hem a pair of pants by hand, and $3.00 to replace a zipper.)
Within my first three months In business, I obtained 15 customers and was sewing an average of three days per week. And, as word of my enterprise spreads, I expect I’ll soon be stitching full time. After all, sewing is a service that’s always In demand . . . and I can’t imagine a more satisfying and profitable venture for me!
Louise Drouin
St.Urbain-de-Charlevoix, Que., Canada
Though I live in Camden, New Jersey, I am able to receive Philadelphia’s station WRTI (the voice of Temple University) … which carries THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS Radio Show daily. Consequently, I tune in to MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ program on a regular basis … and one recent presentation on the basics of making essential oils from fat and flowers inspired me to turn the idea into a moneymaking enterprise.
The show was based on an article entitled “Let’s Enfleurage!” . . . and as I listened to the discussion of using fats to extract the fragrance from flowers, I became convinced that it held the key to an enjoyable source of income.
I began my enterprise by purchasing a 55-galIon drum of fat . . . which I rendered myself, and used to produce a variety of scents from blossoms, herbs, and even a number of spices taken right out of my pantry.
Then I set out for the swamps and collected a garbage bag full of cattails. I let the plants dry . . . sorted them into groups of large and small . . . and left them to soak overnight in the aromatic oils I’d accumulated.
When my “cattail incense” had dried for a day, I packaged it up into bags containing either two large or three small scented sticks and headed over the bridge to Philadelphia to sell my wares. I kept a cattail burning alongside my incense display so that customers could “sniff out” the quality of my handiwork for themselves … and in only five hours’ time I’d sold $80 worth of the sweet-smelling product!
All in all, I spent $97.50 for the spices, plastic bags, and fat that I needed to set myself up In business. But it took only about $4.00 of that initial investment to produce the first batch of incense that I peddled, netting me a total first day’s profit of $76! I’m convinced that MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ advice and information is not only of value to back-to-the-landers . . . it works for us “city slickers” too!
Phil Smith
Camden, New Jersey
