January is National Hobby Month – the perfect occasion to explore a new talent or enhance your current interests. The month is also an ideal opportunity to share your interests with friends and family. Besides organizing a craft night with your children or hosting a craft party with your pals, consider some of the following ways you can celebrate National Hobby Month.
Learn Something New
If you’ve always wanted to learn how to paint, draw, scrapbook or complete any other creative endeavor, January is the perfect time to explore your hidden talents. It’s never too late to discover a skill you never knew you had in you. Need a place to start? Scan tutorials on Pinterest or explore the endless number of crafting bloggers that write ‘how to’ posts.
Splurge
Does it look like you need to replenish your paint colors? Are you running out of findings and Swarovski beads? Is it time to create a new scent for your candle or soap hobby? Devote just one day during National Hobby Month to splurge on yourself. Set a budget or a goal, such as leaving the store with something red, spending only $10, or simply using a 50% off coupon at Michaels.
Push Yourself
Pushing yourself in a hobby helps you unlock challenges that keep your skills and creativity sharp. For example, if you like painting model cars, perhaps you’d like to build your own and maybe add a motor to make them move. If you get good at this craft, they’d make excellent presents that could also become an entryway into the small business world.
Take a Class
During this month, craft supply stores (such as Michaels) will host a range of classes for the public. This is your chance to learn about a new craft, technique or material. Take the time to hone your craft, as well as mingle with other creative minds.
Make Money with Hobby
What better time to turn your hobby into a small business than during National Hobby Month. If you have a knack for sewing, perhaps you’d like to create scarfs for the wintertime, baby booties and hats, or colorful quilts. Put your creative candle making to good use by setting up an online shop through Etsy to sell your scented wares. Whether you make unique woodcrafts or theme magnets, there are endless opportunities to make money with your hobby.
Where do you go when you run out of fabric, yarn, paper, ink, clay, beads, ribbon, and all the other supplies you need to make your creations? When ordering online just won’t do and you need materials quickly, many local stores are ready and willing to help. Offering weekly deep discounts (with some providing 40 to 50% off coupons), the following craft supply stores can help you save on your small business expenses.