Adulting · Money

Business Ideas for the Busy Mum

Business Ideas for the Busy MumAs a parent, you want to ensure your children have the best, whether it be food, clothes, toys, furniture, or leisure activities. Alongside this, bills still need to be paid, and all of the above can cost money.

To be able to manage this, you may want to consider taking on some work. For some, getting a traditional job may not be a possibility, especially with very young children to look after. This is where working for yourself can tick some of those boxes. This can give you the freedom to earn your own money, around a schedule that suits you and your prior commitments to your family.

Also, keep in mind that when you have found a selection of clients for your product or service, you may need an invoice template to be able to request payment on completion of each project. Always use the tools available to you online (click the link) to make your working life easier – you have enough to juggle already parenting and building your business!

Writing

If you have a gift with the written word, you may want to consider taking on some jobs involving the writing industry, such as writing articles, aiding with literature, and, if you understand another language, translating text. These jobs can be found on both job sites and social media, and can quickly give you some money to play with.

Since many writing tasks will have a day and time deadline, as opposed to requiring a certain amount of work to be completed each day, this means you can adjust the amount you are willing to work based on the hours you will be available. For the busy mum, that may be while children are at school or even when they are in bed.

Baking

Some mums find they spend a lot of time in the kitchen, either preparing meals or baking alongside their children. For those who are confident in their ability to produce some delicious goods, selling them may be an option.

Within this, you may be required to complete food safety qualifications, as well as to obtain business insurance. It may also be a requirement to display a list of allergens and ingredients on the boxes to avoid any illness occurring.

If you have a passion for baking, this can definitely be a good step forward for you.

Crafts

Some women love crafts, while others hope it can be banished from their home. If you are the former, you may want to consider creating items either in bulk, or made to order, to sell to the public. Many people sell their homemade crafts on websites such as Etsy every day. You can factor the cost of materials, as well as the time it takes to make the item, into the price, and potentially make a good income from your artistic nature.

Working for yourself from home can be extremely rewarding, especially if it means you get to simultaneously earn money while raising your children. Depending on how much you earn, you may need to declare this to the tax office, and pay any tax or NI contributions, as necessary.

Christmas · Crafts

Quilling Homemade Christmas Cards

Quilling Homemade Christmas Cards - Finished CardGiven the fact that it’s been a REALLY sucky year for most of us, Christmas will be a nice distraction from everything else. This year, us and our extended family have decided to keep the gift giving to just the kids of the family, so that we can make it all the more special for them. However, that doesn’t stop me from creating extra special Christmas cards for everyone, and this year I’ve even learned a new skill to help me – quilling!

Click on the image to see the quilling in action!

When I was researching the type of card I wanted to make, I stumbled across some festive greetings using quilling. For those who don’t know, quilling is a paper craft with uses coiled strips of paper to create shapes and patterns. I had a quilling kit when I was a tween and I loved it then, but I’d basically forgotten everything I’d learned by the time I tried it again. I also planned to use a graffiti font on the card, but my printer went kaput, right at the most inconvenient moment. *eyeroll*

As well as quilling strips and some papercraft tools, I used an 8x8in blank greetings card, some tacky glue (it’s stickier and dries fast for crafting), a gold marker, some gold edging stickers, mini Christmas bells and some Christmas pompoms. I also used a compass, ruler and pencil for sketching out the rough shapes before I stuck anything on.

Quilling the TreeQuilling Homemade Christmas Cards - Creating the Tree

I started by making the quills for the tree by coiling a whole strip tightly, then allowing it to unfurl a little. I then glued the loose end in place with a tiny dot of glue, held it until dry and then pinched one end of the coil of paper to create the shape. To create the star and tree pot, I shaped them after coiling in a similar way, and then I used the gold marker to write the message on the front. Finally, I just stuck all of the other bits on in the right place!

Adding the Text

Quilling Homemade Christmas Cards - Gold WritingIt took me a little under half an hour, from sketching out the final design to everything being done, and I think the overall effect is well worth the effort! What’s more, I really enjoyed making the card and I can’t wait to make a whole load more to send to the special people in our lives. I’m thinking of making a different design on every card, but that might just be a stunning case of me biting off more than I can chew, as usual!

I absolutely love making handmade gifts and cards for people. Now that I have a new skill, I’ll definitely be doing more of it. Have you ever tried quilling? Are you making handmade cards or gifts this year? Leave me a comment below telling me all about it, especially if you have inspiration for my next design!