Salted fish is traded for fur and feed grains. A block of wood is whittled into a toy horse and sold at an artisan market. Watermelon seeds, sowed and tended, become full-fledged fruit before exchanging hands at a roadside stall.
These inceptive transactions planted the seeds for commerce as we know it today. And, countless small businesses still produce goods made by hand, selling them at craft shows and pop-up shops, through online marketplaces, and in their own ecommerce stores.
Selling handmade goods is an ideal first business for aspiring entrepreneurs. In most cases these businesses can be started from home with minimal upfront investment. Ahead, explore ideas for things to make and sell online, with suggestions for every skill level, from beginner to advanced craftsperson.
24 things to make and sell
- Bath bombs and handmade soaps
- T-shirts and printed merchandise
- Jewelry
- Curated subscription boxes
- Candles
- Sweets
- Art and prints
- Digital products
- Enamel pins
- Traditional handcrafted goods
- Lip balm
- Pottery and clay objects
- Pet supplies
- Music
- Photography
- Woodworking projects
- Tote bags
- Sauces and condiments
- Fragrance and essential oil blends
- Paper products
- DIY tutorials and online courses
- Personalized gifts
- Gift baskets and boxes
- Natural cosmetics
When you’re a creative looking for things to sell, it’s easy to start your own DIY craft business once you find the right product. Browse these ideas to discover what’s best for you to make and sell based on your unique skills and interests. You’ll soon be ready to open your own online store and start selling handmade items to your target audience.
1. Bath bombs and handmade soaps
Bath bombs and soaps have a low barrier to entry as a craft to make and sell. Online tutorials are a great place to start to learn the ropes, and commercial molds make assembly easy, even if you’re not creative. Start with simple recipes for products like bath salts before trying more complicated formulations with emulsions and preservatives.
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Get started: How to Make Bath Bombs
💡 Tips:
- Keep your inventory tight—fresher bath bombs have more fizz, and natural ingredients in handmade soap can expire.
- Investigate your raw ingredient sources to ensure they’re beauty grade and safe for skin.
- Check with your local government that your production facility (even if it’s your own kitchen) meets health standards. In the US, for example, the FDA sets guidelines for ventilation, air control, and surfaces.
- Packaging and branding are important for beauty brands, so don’t skimp on brand strategy and hire design help.
2. T-shirts and printed merchandise
This is a maker business for the non-maker. If you’re looking for a (almost) hands-off product to make and sell, a t-shirt business could be the route for you. Your digital design can be printed onto various goods—including t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, keychains, and dog bandanas—and shipped to your customers. Looking for a more handmade feel? Consider learning the art of screen printing and print your designs at home or in a studio.
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Get started: How to Start an Online T-Shirt Business: Everything You Need to Know
💡 Tips:
- T-shirts and printed merch can supplement an existing business. Gyms, musicians, and charities, for example, can sell branded swag to existing audiences.
- Not a designer? Use services like Prittyday Experts to find talent who can turn your ideas into t-shirt designs.
- Use a print and fulfillment app, like Printful, Lulu Express, Gooten, or Teelaunch. These apps integrate with your Prittyday store and automatically print, fulfill, and ship each order.
3. Jewelry
Jewelry is another business idea that can range from simple and low-tech (say, beaded necklaces) to specialized (think silversmithing). It’s a saturated market, so doing your homework is important. How can your designs stand out? Is there a niche market to cater to? Success in this field will rely on solid branding and craftsmanship.
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Get started: How to Start a Jewelry Making Business
💡 Tips:
- Validate your idea by tracking trends in jewelry—use Google Trends, and follow popular fashion creators and influencers.
- Photography is important but also difficult, because of the scale and reflective qualities of jewelry. Invest in great photos by hiring a pro. You can save money by partnering with complementary apparel brands to share the cost of lifestyle shoots.
- Jewelry making is an ideal DIY craft business for budding entrepreneurs. Woven bracelets and beaded necklaces can appeal to makers of all ages.
4. Curated subscription boxes
A gift or subscription box business is the perfect idea for those who are less crafty but still interested in making items to sell. If you have an eye for curation, assorted gift boxes could be an excellent business idea. Since subscription boxes are usually packed all at once, at the same time each month, and in the same size box, the shipping process is simple.
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Get started: How to Launch a Subscription Box Business
💡 Tips:
- Calculate your storage and assembly needs. Can your home accommodate your business, or do you need to rent additional space?
- Ease your customers into commitment. Offer a substantial discount to those who pay upfront for subscriptions, or offer the first month free.
- Use a subscription management app, like Bold Subscriptions, to keep everything organized.
5. Candles
It is estimated that the global market for candles will be worth $16 billion by 2031. While it’s a crowded market, there are several niches to explore: religious, birthday, eco-friendly, scented, beeswax, novelty, and more. There are plenty of online DIY tutorials for novice candle makers to get started. And basic melt and pour methods require no previous craft skills, making candles one of the easiest craft ideas to make and sell online.
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Get started: How To Start a Candle Business
💡 Tips:
- Get insured and use safety labeling. Due to the nature of candle use, and the increased risks of injury or fire damage, be sure to protect your craft business from civil suits that may result from the use of your product.
- Tap into a niche to stand out in a crowded market. Frostbeard Studio appeals to book lovers with cleverly named candle scents and copy filled with literary references.
- Pay attention to branding and packaging. Candles don’t differ much from an ingredient perspective, but your product can stand apart with ecommerce packaging and strong branding design. Even inexpensive Mason jars can be dressed up with creative labels.
- Consider offering customers customization to make personalized gifts or wedding favors with their own messaging, scents, or labels.
6. Sweets
Candy, cookies, baked goods, chocolates, and jams. Sugar can be spun and dissolved and baked into endless things to make and sell online or in person. This is a category with unique complications—legalities, labeling, and shelf life—but also with lots of room to get creative. Niche markets include: holidays and occasions, custom, novelty, catering, pet treats, and gift baskets. Local craft fairs are the ideal testing grounds for your new sweets business.
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Get started: How to Start an Online Food Business
💡 Tips:
- Trace the supply chain. Carefully select your raw ingredient suppliers to ensure that what’s on your label matches what’s inside.
- Consult with a lawyer or food inspection agency to be sure your labeling meets local requirements for nutritional content, ingredients, and allergy warnings.
- Rotate your inventory and stress the importance of doing so to everyone who handles it.
- Investigate the viability of selling your product online when considering any food business ideas.
7. Art and prints
It’s never been a better time to be an artist. Creator tools and selling platforms let artists make and sell their creations directly to fans. Paintings, digital printables, photography prints, sculpture, and textile art can all be sold online. Whether you’re looking to sell original fine art or reproductions, find the business model that works best for your business.
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Get started: How to Sell Art Online
💡 Tips:
- Work with an established gallery to show your work in person and help build an audience for your online store.
- For product photos, have your work professionally photographed or scan it on a flatbed scanner. For lifestyle photos, show wall art within the context of a room.
- Consider reproducing your art in multiple formats, like prints, cards, t-shirts, and mugs. Do it yourself through a print-on-demand company, or license your work to other ecommerce brands.
8. Digital products
Digital products like font licenses, wedding invitation templates, webinars, or Photoshop actions are all things you can make and sell from home—or anywhere with an internet connection. There are several benefits to selling digital products, including low overhead costs and no dealing with physical inventory or the shipping process.
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Get started: How to Sell Digital Products with Shopify
💡 Tips:
- Choose a delivery method. Apps like Digital Downloads and Sky Pilot integrate with your Shopify store to automatically deliver digital goods, or provide a download link to each customer.
- If you’re hosting files on Shopify, make sure files are each 5 gigabytes or less (for faster downloads). For larger files, try compressing them into .zip archives.
9. Enamel pins
Enamel pins remain a solid business idea, as the accessory trend is holding strong. You’ll usually work with a manufacturer to make enamel pins, but the creative part is up to you. Design your own, or work with a designer to bring your vision to life and build your own business.
Get started: How to Make and Sell Enamel Pins
💡 Tips:
- If you choose to design your own pins, you can use software like Canva or Photoshop. Stick to solid colors (no gradients) and avoid fine details. Check with your manufacturer on the acceptable file format for your designs.
- Research manufacturers before committing and ask the right questions: What are the clasp and material options? Can they send physical samples? What packaging options do they offer?
10. Traditional handcrafted goods
Leather tooling, wood carving, furniture making, and embroidery are all traditional mediums with thriving markets. The backlash against mass production is driving trends back to slow food, one-of-a-kind and bespoke goods, and artist craftsmanship. Many of these disciplines require skills honed over time, but access your inner maker and learn a new trade via online tutorials or local college workshops.
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Get started: How to Sell Furniture and Home Décor Online: The Ultimate Guide
💡 Tips:
- Much of the appeal of crafted goods is the maker’s story. Weave your own story into product pages, a compelling About page, and even packaging.
- How will you scale when you make and sell crafts? If your idea takes off, consider how you will maintain the handmade nature of your goods while producing in large quantities: Can you hire contract makers? Can certain components of the process be outsourced to a manufacturer then finished by hand?
- Consult Google Trends to determine how to use your skills to make and sell things that are in high demand.
11. Lip balm
Lip balm is one of the easiest products to make using tools you may already have in your home. Simple formulations of beeswax and natural oils require little more than a heat source to assemble. While you don’t need fancy equipment, you should ensure your setup meets industry and safety standards.
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Get started: How to Start a Lip Balm Business
💡 Tips:
- Research the sources of your ingredients to be sure you’re using those that have been rated for cosmetic use.
- Understand the labeling laws of any country or region where you plan to make and sell your products. In some countries, the word “organic” is regulated and can’t be used unless you’ve acquired the proper certification.
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