I've been dabbling in Cryptocurrency mining and trading which has been an eye opening introduction to market trading for me. The market trading side of things has been an eye opener mainly because I've dollar cost averaged into mutual funds my entire life so placing sell/buy orders was unnecessary and foreign to me. The hardware side of things has always been an interest of mine, and with less time for video gaming during the summer its a nice way to make use of idle computing power.
My SO has been making use of her idle time by producing crocheted cat beds and wreaths for sale at a local mom and pop shop.
The cat beds are made from a crocheted pattern she came up with, it cups our fat cats belly and keeps her inside the bed like a muffin. Our fat cat is the QA/QC inspector, she only likes to use the newest bed under construction, as soon as a new bed is made she loses interest in the old one and won't use it anymore.
The wreaths are made from glycerin preserved fall leaves and ribbons with a wire frame. She's also made some crocheted wreaths that sold very well.
In the future I plan on
-starting up a greenhouse geared towards landscaping contractors.
-making oak barrels for aging vinegar, liquor, etc - anything that won't hold water would be repurposed as a container for planted flower arrangements.
-constructing BBQ smokers, smoke houses, and smoke pits for sale.
-producing sauces (hot sauce, tomato, BBQ, etc) for sale.
-selling the best damn pulled pork you've ever tasted in frozen 2-3lb packs.
-raising grass fed cows to sell high quality beef.
I really like that people are making money on pet sitting, this was a childhood hustle that paid for much of my insurance and gas after I invested my income over the years. Unfortunately my current housing situation means I can't host dogs, and don't have the time to walk pets during the weekdays when its most needed.
I am considering a niche screen printing business. Mostly online, possibly some while customers in select locations. Anybody know any screen printers? Artists?
My MIL has been successful in screen printing towels, sheets, and table cloths and selling them at the same local shop that my SO sells the cat beds/wreaths at. She makes designs that are printed repeatedly in a pattern, and may even be dying cloth. We got her some Aluminum frames this winter and she's made some great new designs. Selling online is great if you can get some momentum, but it seems like quality hand made stuff like this sells best in person.