If you’re asking yourself what crafts to make and sell online to make some extra money…you’ve already lost.

I mean, I see what you’re getting at…you’d love to make some side cash (or more!) by making crafts at home, right?

…and you want to make sure that what you pick is actually going to sell, so searching around online for a list of crafts that are guaranteed to sell makes sense.

In fact, I’ve bet you’ve probably already read 17 listicle posts telling you the “95 best diy crafts to sell” and perhaps even picked up a few ideas.

The problem is, you’re asking yourself the wrong question.

Instead of picking a random craft that looks easy to make off of a list that claims to know exactly what will sell (in reality, there’s no actual way to guarantee that ANY craft will sell…), you need to ask yourself:

“What am I EXCITED to make?”

Because if this is something you want to do for the long haul, or even for a medium amount of time…you really want to make sure you’re selling something you love and enjoying yourself so that you actually stick with it!

Otherwise, you may as well be back at that desk job, am I right?

I love crafting and all, but if I had to sew baby clothes all day because some list told me that baby clothes would for sure make me money, I know I wouldn’t last a week because I don’t like sewing and that sounds incredibly boring to me.

That being said, there ARE better ways to help increase the chances that you will eventually become profitable.

So here’s a more sustainable 3 step approach to figuring out what products to sell so you can make some extra cash, still have fun, AND maybe even build a profitable side business while you’re at it.

How to Decide What Crafts to Make and Sell

1. Pick an area where people LOVE to spend money.

Babies, dogs, weddings, kid toys, jewelry and accessories, clothing, home decor, artwork, holiday items, personalized items and gifts are just a few places where people don’t mind spending their hard-earned money over and over again.

By creating a craft in an area where people are ALREADY going to be spending, you’re making things much easier on yourself because you’re just taking advantage of the traffic that is already there.

Think about it as if you’re trying to sell lemonade on the side of the road. If you set your table up in a slow residential area, fewer people will see you, therefore fewer people will stop and buy from you.

If you set up shop on a busier street where there are always cars going by, more people will see you and you’re going to be much more profitable…makes sense, right?

Do yourself a favor and consider making products in areas where people are already buying.

2. Pick a craft that EXCITES you

You can pick a random craft and sell it, sure. But if you’re not excited or passionate about what you’re selling, you may end up burning out or quitting later on.

Even worse…imagine if you became very successful! Imagine making and selling a craft you didn’t even like every single day. Seems kind of silly to me!

(Don’t worry if it’s a common product that a million people are making, we’re going to get to that next.)

When you’re excited about the product you’re selling, you’ll not only be way more inclined to continue working on it for the long run, but you’ll also enjoy coming up with new ways to promote it, design it, and can start to create an actual brand that people will remember.

You’ll also be more likely to expand your work down the road. For example, consider brainstorming other related crafts you could make that might pair well with your main product.

3. Decide how you’re going to make your crafts stand out

This is the important part. Contrary to what you might think, it’s totally fine to make and sell a craft that is in a saturated market.

Yes, it might be a little more difficult to get seen, but it’s nothing that a little creative brainstorming sesh can’t tackle if you are dead set on selling a popular or trendy craft item.

Here’s the thing…if you’re making what everyone else is making, you’re going to blend in. That’s just how it goes.

Go over to Etsy and type in “gold ring”. What do you see?

I see 1,829,954 (I copied and pasted that number) results that almost all look exactly the same if I squint…gold ring on a white sheet, gold ring on a hand, gold ring in a pile of other rings…

The point is, even though this is an insanely common craft to sell, there is still a HUGE opportunity for a craft artist to stand out. This could be as simple as adding a hot pink backdrop. You can’t squint your way past that ;).

So, if you decide that you want to sell something that everyone is already selling, that’s ok, but it’s now your job to make sure that your crafts stand out and you make people remember you.

You don’t need a super unique product that no one has ever seen before. You need a creative angle and good branding.

So these are a few simple ways you can start deciding what crafts to make and sell in your shop.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to enjoy what you’re making as well as the process, and the way you’re selling it because crafting as a hobby versus crafting for money is very, very different.

Crafting for money can quickly become repetitive and boring over time if you’re not careful, and if you don’t like the crafts you chose to begin with, it will make it all that more difficult to stay motivated, even when you’re making money.

This is the exact reason that I stopped selling at craft shows and switched over to teaching my block printing process and doing large custom pieces…because I no longer enjoyed the process.

Filling large orders was great for my bank account, but it took the soul out of the making process for me. I much prefer to make larger, unique pieces that don’t require any assembly line style tasks.

*end rant*

So, I hope you learned something today, if only I gave you a little something to think about.

If you’re here because you’re wanting to make some side cash by selling crafts in an Etsy shop, this guide should be all you need to get started in your selling journey.

However, if you’re thinking about starting an actual craft business and creating a sustainable part-time to full-time income, what you really need to do is pick a niche, not just a craft to sell.

In this case, make sure to read my ultimate guide on how to pick a craft niche and fill out my free Niche-in-3 workbook inside the post to get you moving in the right direction.

Need a little more guidance? Sign up for a free Creative Clarity Call with me and we can talk 1:1 about what steps you’ll need to take to hit your crafty goals!