These sixteen sewing crafts have a history of selling well and suit a small home-based business. The post covers baby items, toys, home and kitchen textiles, bags, cases and organizers, with tips on fabric, design and pricing, and the US safety and state rules that apply to children’s items.
Tag: sewing business
From First Stitch to First Sale
A sewing business can start at home with the machine you already own. These posts cover choosing a specialty, equipment, pricing, selling and the rules to know.
Choose What to Sew
Products, alterations, custom clothing and home goods each have different demand, costs and customers. Check demand locally and online before you commit to one specialty.
Start with one specialty and test it with a small first batch or a few first clients.
Equipment, Fabric and Patterns
Learn which sewing machine and tools a business needs, how to buy and manage fabric, and how to coordinate colors and prints.
Read a pattern’s license terms before selling anything made from it.
Pricing Your Work
Work out prices from your own costs, materials and hours, then compare them with the market. A price that ignores your time leaves nothing for profit.
Where to Sell
Craft shows, local markets, online shops and direct clients each suit different products. Choose the channels that fit your products and your time.
Clear photographs and a memorable business name make every listing easier to trust.
Selling from home in the US can involve local licenses, sales tax and product safety rules, especially for children’s items and clothing. Check what applies where you live.
Rules differ by state and city, so confirm the details with the offices that apply to you.
Tailoring and alterations suit sewers who prefer services to products. The posts here cover the services to offer, finding clients, tools, pricing and how to learn the trade.
Alterations can start with a short list of services and grow with your skills.
Looking for paid work instead of a business of your own? See the sewing jobs posts for the types of jobs, pay and where to look.
How to Sell at Craft Shows: Choosing Shows, Pricing, Payments and Permits
Craft shows are a quick way to sell handmade items and learn what buyers want. This post covers how to choose shows, what to prepare and carry, how to set up a stall, how to price at a show, how to take payments, and the sales tax and permit rules to check before you sell.
Sewing Pattern Tips: Modify, Trace, Organize and Check the License
A sewing pattern can be used for more than one project. This post covers how to modify patterns and test the changes, trace patterns to protect the originals, keep notes, organize paper and PDF patterns, and check a pattern’s license before selling what you make from it.
How to Coordinate Fabrics for Sewing Projects: Colors, Prints and Combinations
How well you coordinate colors, patterns and prints decides much of a sewing craft’s potential. This post covers two ways to combine fabrics, five steps for building your own combinations, and how to plan reorders and product lines around the combinations that sell.
How to Buy and Manage Fabric for a Sewing Business
Fabric is the largest recurring expense for a sewing business. This post covers how to plan purchases, test fabric in small amounts, build a useful stash, use up leftovers, and save money without lowering the quality of what you sell.
Essential Sewing Tools and Accessories for a Sewing Business
A sewing business needs fewer accessories than the number on sale. This post covers the machine accessories that matter most, which needles and presser feet to keep, the thread to buy, and the cutting and marking tools every sewing shop needs.
How to Choose a Sewing Machine for a Sewing Business
The machine is the main investment in a sewing business. This post covers whether to buy at all, the features a business machine needs, mechanical and computerized machines, sewing knits and thick fabric, domestic and industrial machines, buying used, and what to budget.
Don’t Know What to Sew? How to Find Ideas for Your Sewing Business
Starting a sewing business without knowing what to sew is common. This post covers how to find your interest zone, where to look for inspiration, how to avoid too much of it, what to check before selling items made from a pattern, and how to create a craft of your own.
What to Sew and Sell: How to Choose Products That Sell
Sewing to sell differs from sewing as a hobby. This post covers how to improve your craft for sale, choose what to sew, check demand, stand out with fabric and design, price your work with a simple formula, find customers, and check the US rules on children’s items and clothing labels.
Best Sewing Business Ideas to Start From Home: Choose a Specialty
A sewing business can offer services such as alterations and custom clothing, or sell products such as bags and home items. This post covers eight specialties, how to check demand, what you need to start, how to price your work, and the US rules that apply to a home-based sewing business.
