Hockey is expensive and seems to just keep getting more so with each passing year. In the Facebook groups, I see a lot of posts from parents wondering how to pay for it as well as some cool things other parents have done. Personally, I have an Etsy shop selling hockey themed apparel and other products, and I sell on eBay, but those things aren’t for everyone. I still want to show you some cool things I have come across on Etsy in case it inspires you to put one of your own talents to work.
This mini tabletop hockey net and stick is one of my favorite things. I’m not sure if he’s a hockey parent or just a sports fan, but he has some other fun sports-related mini things that I think would make great stocking stuffers or little gifts.
These skate lace tumblers are pretty cool. I know a few moms who make all kinds of tumblers and sell them to friends and coworkers.
These personalized hockey puck ornaments are also neat. I have seen a bunch of other types of ornaments as well, and people like to buy them as gifts.
Now, if you’re crafty or artistic or a talented woodworker, you don’t necessarily have to make hockey related items. You also don’t have to sell them on Etsy. You could set up a table at a local craft fair or market.
Now, don’t get caught up in all the social media hype about side hustles. While there is some good content out there, not all who put content out are actually making as much as they say they are. Take their tips and ideas, definitely, but don’t get too discouraged if you don’t start immediately making thousands of dollars. It takes most people a while to build something up.
I know some parents who drive for Lyft or Uber or do deliveries for DoorDash or Instacart.
You could do surveys or focus groups. These typically aren’t super reliable and regular income, but I do them on occasion, and it usually pays for a meal out.
If you have a skill of some kind, you could start a YouTube channel or a TikTok account. Again, these take up a bit of time to build up an audience, but you’re just being yourself and filming it. I have a couple friends who have YouTube channels, and they actually make pretty decent money.
You could also freelance with those skills. There are sites like Fiverr to post your gigs, or you could get work by word of mouth. This could be anything from editing a term paper to designing a logo for a business, handling social media accounts for a business, bookkeeping, photography…..definitely worth checking out what people make money on to give you more ideas.
There are a couple folks in my small town who bake. I’m not exactly sure what the cottage food laws are, but I don’t think they’re overly difficult. One guy makes amazing cookies, and another person does cinnamon rolls, bars, and cookies, and there is one person who only does pie. At our farmer’s market, there is one vendor who makes all kinds of amazing breads.
I have a couple neighbors who mow lawns and shovel driveways, a couple who offer handyman services, and one neighbor who makes tacos on Sundays. She sells 3 tacos, rice and beans, and a can of soda for $15. They all advertise in our neighborhood Facebook group.
I have a friend whose son does car detailing. I know people who pet sit, walk dogs, and pick up dog poop.
If you are a notary public or are willing to become one, mobile notary services are often used (mobile meaning you travel to them).
There is a shortage of referees in most youth sports, so that can be an option. I can also note here that while this can be done by teenagers, they can also sometimes get gigs running score clocks or keeping score books. My son made $100 at one tournament by doing this while he wasn’t actually playing in the same tournament, and he was only 12 at the time.
I have another friend who is a seamstress and does clothing alterations and sewing on the side.
I have a neighbor who does junk hauling. Sometimes he refurbishes items he picks up and sells them, and other times he just takes metal to the scrapyard for cash, and he makes his entire living doing this.
I have had a couple friends over the years do photography on the side. Neither did weddings, but they did take senior pictures, family pictures, and children and babies.
A friend’s daughter started a vending machine business because he had found a used gumball machine for sale. They bought the candy to fill it and was able to get it into a local restaurant.
Babysitting/child care, but also elder care is an option. I have one friend who helps out a disabled man weekly by buying groceries, doing housework, and just keeping him company. Housework is an option as well. If you don’t have the schedule to allow for weekly jobs, maybe occasional deep cleans are more up your alley.
I have a couple of neighbors who take temporary seasonal gigs selling sweet corn on roadside stands, and know other folks who keep chickens and sell the eggs. I have another friend who keeps bees and sells the honey.
I have another neighbor who teaches community education classes. His classes are about metal detecting, but I have seen all kinds of classes ranging from arts and crafts to cooking to making charcuterie boards to woodworking or metal working to book binding…..many possibilities here.
If you are technologically inclined, I know people who make money repairing computers and phones and tablets as well as teaching people how to use them.
There are free things you can sell on eBay. When dropping my own packages off at my local post office, I frequently run into a couple guys who do this. One guy has a bunch of pine trees that produce the biggest pinecones I have ever seen, so he gathers them up and sells them as holiday decorations. The other has walnut trees, and he has the equipment to process them, so he sells those.
I have personally sold things like toilet paper tubes, paper towel tubes, cottage cheese containers, and empty 2-Liter bottles because people like to use them for crafts. I have also sold jeans and 100% wool sweaters by the pound. With the jeans, they can have a rip or small stain, and the sweaters don’t need to be any particular color or style because crafters just want the wool to upcycle. People buy things like leather scraps, broken jewelry, broken electronics, sea glass, driftwood, empty bottles and boxes like perfume bottles or ones with an interesting shape, old instruction manuals or power cords, empty gift cards (people collect them, especially for Starbucks), remotes, empty egg cartons, and magazines.
I know this is a lot, but hopefully it gives you some ideas for taking your own talents and turning them into some cash.