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Succeeding at Weaving
A tea table conversation led Anne Stephenson to take up
weaving. Specializing in table mats, she began selling what she made within a few months.
A Banker Turns Woodcrafter
Deciding to see what he could make from the scrap wood
left from his new house, a Wisconsin bank cashier bought some tools and now is filling a growing
demand for various gift items.
Chinese Food - American Favorite
An expert on Chinese cookery explains exactly how you can
emulate her by preparing many delicious oriental foods not only for yourself but for a hungry public who'll
gladly pay for something different.
Novelties Built from Bamboo
Bamboo grows in varied sizes, which makes it a useful material
for attractive unbreakable products such as those made by a Florida bachelor, who will also supply you
with the raw material.
Dolls from the Ozark Country
Remember radio entertainer Bob Burns? He recently died
but the characters he created live on in the dolls made by his old friend Vina Smith.
Moving Nature to Merchants' Windows
A Canadian looked around the rural tract where he lives
and discovered rich sources of natural materials to add interest to store windows.
My Words Win
Ever wonder who wins contests and how? Dorothy Peyton
wins a lot of them by following methods which she shares with you here.
Woodworking is for Women Too
Why shouldn't a woman operate a turning lathe? asks Nelle
Davis. She does and the resulting plates, platters and bowls are in use all over America.
Enameling Beauty on Metals
Although not a full-fledged professional enamelist
like his mother, Jim Peck isn't an amateur either, for some of his copper pieces decorated with enamels
bring him as much as $60 each.
Calligraphy Comes Back
The art of beautiful penmanship, which flourished twelve centuries ago,
is regaining popularity. An outstanding practitioner is a Californian who is kept busy executing commissions
from Hollywood celebrities and others.
I'm Assigned to Ask What You Think
Ever wonder who asks the questions in public opinion surveys?
A New York woman who's asked a lot of them explains that it's probably somebody like you.
Putting the Prairie on Lamp Shades
Dried vegetation and the feathers of game and domestic fowl
form the designs on the shades of the unusual lamps made by a North Dakota couple.
Cocker Spaniels are Hard to Resist
It took burglars to convince Al Meyer he should get his wife
the dog she yearned for. Now the Meyers are mutually enthusiastic partners in a successful dog
raising enterprise.
Giving Permanent Beauty to Tiles
Versatile is the word for the tiles hand decorated by a California
woman - and the designs last as long as the tile.
Builder for the Birds
G. W. Randall has found a way to have fun earning money
in retirement. At 'birdhaven' in the Ozarks his birdhouses, feeders and novelties bring in $1,000 a year.
Artist in Tapestry - Modern Version
A California woman has devised a method of turning
ordinary prints into tapestry-like pictures valued for as much as $1,300.
Dolls that You Bring to Life
The simply constructed finger puppets devised by two
Kansas women have brought pleasure to many and now are beginning to bring dollars to their creators.
Carving Beauty into Plastic
Half the fun of carving plastic is experimenting to attain
striking effect such as a California man achieves in double sheeted surface carved pictures.
Glass Sculpture - Easier than it Looks
The figures formed from glass rods by a California woman
look difficult to emulate but her experience shows virtually anyone can achieve a creditable object his first try.
Bird Models from a Contented Carver
Jess Blackstone knew the sort of life he wanted but didn't
find it until he settled down in New Hampshire to carve and sell lifelike wooden birds.
I Wouldn't Give Up on Shellcraft
All thumbs when she first tried handling shells,
a Colorado woman stubbornly persisted and today she's their complete master.
Expert Engraving always in Demand
When people in El Paso, Texas, want anything metallic
engraved, they think of Mrs. Edith Roth, a housewife who does more than keep house.
Monogramming Sweaters with Beads
After a day of secretarial work a Tulsa woman finds it relaxing
to adorn sweaters with beaded monograms. The $18 a sweater she receives doesn't spoil the fun, either.
Twisting Wire into Pleasing Shapes
Name plates, figures, jewelry, household gadgets - all are
formed from stainless steel wire by a Baltimore man who helped develop the industrial process
that produces his hobby material.
Jewelry from Beads and Buttons
Read this Ohio woman's article, then dig into your button box,
hunt up that outmoded beaded bag and start turning out costume jewelry with built-in sales appeal.
Bantams are Booming in Back Yards
For twenty-four years Doc Campbell has been raising bantam
chickens and he's glad to note that today more people than ever are following his example.
He Plated His Way to Florida
By electroplating shells and marine life Bob Parker
has not only given a novel twist to shellcraft but has achieved the kind of life he'd dreamed of.
A New Barrel Role
'Roll out the barrel,' says a popular song and Ken Snow
does, but when he gets through with them they've turned
into attractive serving bars.
Stuffed Toys Out of the Scrap Bag
A California woman started making stuffed dolls and animals
for her young friends during wartime toy shortages and now finds the peacetime demand
for them greater still.
My Scrapbooks Pay their Way
A Colorado woman finds that the scrapbooks she has made
through the years are a valuable reference source for magazine articles.
He's Proud of His Pelargoniums
In a small, city back yard a 76-year-old Californian carries on
a gardening project which reached a peak last season
when he sold 9000 pelargonium plants.
Clocks Strike a New Note in His Life
At 60, Nelson Kriebel didn't want to quit work but he did
want to quit hurrying. So he took up clock repairing, which won't let you hurry.
The Lady of the House of Weeds
Plenty of garden clubbers are willing to pay a Texas woman
fifteen cents for a single stalk of vegetation and her prices for other dried materials useful in flower
arrangements are on the same scale.
Beauty Blooms on Her Woodenware
Friends and relatives are too limited a market for your craft
products, says a Colorado woman who concentrates on placing her painted woodenware in as many shops
as possible.
Toymakers for Parakeets
In three years the Bradleys of Tulsa pushed sales of their
parakeet toys and accessories to the point where Mr. Bradley quit his regular job.
Cartoonists Follow His Lines
Ever wonder where cartoonists get all those funny ideas?
A Pittsburgh man has provided some 1,000 of them and in return has received everywhere
from $1 to $50 apiece.
Out of the Red with Black Birds
Members of the crow family are ideal pets, says a
Californian, whose trained raven has earned his owner $2,000 in two years.
Plates Painted to Order
The plate painting partnership of two army wives produces
the income that provides little luxuries for themselves and their families.
Cards that Carry Merry Messages
Her hand-painted greeting cards for a variety of
occasions bring a New York woman about $2.50 for every hour she spends making them.
Birds of Wood that Seem to Live
In the face of adversity a Canadian started wood carving and
now specializes in thirty-five varieties of lifelike birds that perch on lamps and book ends.
Through College Through Taxidermy
By mounting birds and animals for sportsmen in his native
Virginia, a college boy earns an income that has increased fivefold in five years.
We Sell Our Popcorn by Mail
Too shy to meet prospective buyers for your hobby product?
Then emulate this Indiana family which started a mail-order popcorn business.
Jewelry from Deep in the Sea
Abalone steaks are considered a delicacy, but to a California
man the shells of the mollusks are more valuable, for he turns them into jewelry that even the
Indians prefer to their own.
Perpetuating the Penman's Art
Only a comparatively few people are carrying on the ancient
art of engrossing. One of them is a Seattle furniture salesman who earns more than $4 an hour with
his decorative writing.
Parade of the Wooden Dolls
Five hundred dolls a year come into being through the wood
carving skill of a North Carolina woman who 'just couldn't stay around the house doing nothing.'
Weaving Rugs the Easy Way
A Montana woman modestly calls what she does, 'twisting
up' a rug, but virtually everybody who sees one of her products wants to buy it.
Dutch Bulbs Flower in Pennsylvania
When relatives in Holland sent John Rutchie 5,000 begonia
tubers in return for wartime kindnesses, he planted them on a quarter acre and changed the
Rutchie family's whole way of life.
Leaves of Clay the Majolica Way
Combining their talents, two South Dakota women draw
on their 'leaf file' to produce useful and decorative ceramic pieces patterned after nature.
Winning Favor with Wrought Iron
Making and selling a variety of handsome wrought iron
articles has become a family enterprise for the Watkinses of Fort Worth.
Trays that You Wear
A budding family business got the stimulant it needed
when Edna Jamnback hit on the idea of making miniature metal trays in the form of pins and earrings.
Something Frilly for the Girls
The success of a New Orleans woman with hand sewn
lingerie demonstrates that underneath women like the dainty touch.
Lamps from Wood Cast up by the Sea
Sun, water, wind and waves all have a hand in forming
the driftwood from which a Florida man makes distinctive lamps wholesaling for up to $67.50
They've Proved Good Earth's Worth
To city dwellers good rich dirt for flower pots isn't always
as available as you might think, which is one reason why a Seattle couple sold $6,000 worth of it last year.
Costumer to Brides
As long as there are weddings there will be a demand for the
services of somebody like this Idaho housewife who specializes in dresses for brides and bridesmaids.
I Write About Where I Go
C.A. Nicholson's first travel writing consisted of letters to his
friends; that gave him an idea and now he tells thousands of newspaper and magazine readers about his trips.
Mrs. Panks Banks on Her Handknits
A Washington woman who couldn't knit a stitch six years
ago discloses the practices she has followed to establish a successful business in knitted goods.
Your Face in 3-D
Making plaster life masks is easy and selling them is no harder,
says a California woman who relates just how she would go about reproducing one.
Lamp Shades from Photographs
Using translucent film, a New Mexico couple will photograph
your children, a favorite landscape or anything you choose and turn it into your own highly
individualized lampshade.
Rustic Chairs Out of the Past
After sixty-five years of making them in his spare time,
Guy Scroggins, Ozark resident, still finds a ready market for straight chairs and rockers built to last.
Giving Discards Another Chance
A quarter is Johnny Ott's top bid at the many auctions he
attends, but what he takes home he turns into useful and attractive merchandise that brings far
more than what he paid for it.
A Policeman Turns Jeweler
When disaster struck Eddy Cousineau, a constructive spare
time activity became imperative. The ex-patrolman found it when he started mounting gem stones to
produce jewelry of striking individuality.
Here's How Coral Gardens Grow
Finding herself with a collection of coral on her hands, an
Oklahoma woman combined it with sea shells to create miniature gardens that bloom the year 'round.
You Feel at Home in the 'Guppy House'
Tropical fish helped Vincent Ryan forget years in a Japanese
concentration camp and then led him into a successful business based on a few fundamental principles of
customer-relations.
Stocking Dolls with a Mission
The dollars she receives for her dolls are welcomed by a
Maine woman but equally welcome is the knowledge that the toys cause sick children to smile.
A Giddy Touch for the Commonplace
When two New England women turn loose their imagination,
such things as dish mops, fly swatters and screw drivers are turned into frankly frivolous gifts.
Ash Trays from Oyster Shells
Thousands of oyster shells are thrown away every year,
but a Tulsa man has figured out a way to turn them into dollars.
A Housewife Turns Potter
A Massachusetts woman demonstrates that a house and
children to look after needn't deter you from conducting a little business in your home.
Turning Nuts into Flowers
When an Indiana man noticed that nut shells resembled
foliage, he began experimenting and now he produces three dimensional flower plaques from nuts that
bring as much as $30 each.
Copying Coats of Arms
Just for fun a Georgia woman painted her family coat of arms
and now finds her services in demand by scores of other families.
Renewing the Beauty of Classic Chairs
A Virginia woman restores as nearly perfectly as possible the
designs which originally enhanced the attractiveness of the famous nineteenth century Hitchcock chairs.
Fooling Fowl with Old Inner Tubes
Dissatisfied with all the decoys he used, a South Dakota hunter
devised inflatable rubber ones. Now other hunters have swamped him with orders at $100 a dozen.
Getting Started in Silversmithing
A New York college official has followed a definite course
in learning to make silver jewelry as well as in selling it.
Houses Built on Plates
Like to hang your house on a wall of your house?
A Minnesota woman has enabled 1,000 families to do so in the last five years.
Leather Adorned by Carving
A California gardener has developed an interest in leathercraft
acquired in a service hospital into an avocation that brings him $200 to $300 a month.
Lamps that Appeal to Young and Old
A Washington couple's free swinging wall lamp and their
cap pistol lamp for young 'cowboys' catch the fancy and dollars of almost everyone who sees them.
Fish Bones - Novel Art Medium
A Canadian woman discerned the artistic possibilities in lowly
fish bones and scales and the result is paintings and costume jewelry that win prizes and buyers.
Bright Centerpieces for the Yule
Imaginative use of crepe paper will not only enable you to
turn out holiday decorations for your own home but may lead to a home business, as it did for Kay Bowe.
My Camera Gives Just the Facts
If you want to emulate him and sell photographs of accidents,
principally for legal purposes, follow one fundamental rule, says Robert Skeetz: Don't go anywhere without your camera.
Selling Parakeets by the Hundreds
If you maintain high standards, you can sell all the parakeets
your breeding flocks will produce for as much as $10 a bird a Michigan couple has found.
Seeds in Bloom on Trays
There's more than one way to get flowers from seeds,
as an Oklahoma woman proves by combining a variety of them into floral forms on trays which bring her $10 each.
Lures that Fish Can't Resist
So many fishermen are buying the artificial bait devised by
a Tulsa, Oklahoma, fireman that his whole family has pitched in to help him keep up with the demand.
Preserving the Shapes of Babies' Hands
Few parents can resist an opportunity to get a permanent
imprint of their children's hands, so a Minneapolis woman's plaques prove an effective group or
individual money-making project.
Flowers that Never See the Sun
Ever hear of house plants flourishing in a dark corner of the
basement? They will, as African violets do for an Iowa woman, if you expose them to fluorescent light.
I'm Glad to 'Bother' with Beads
As long as bead strands break, bead strands will need restringing,
so the service offered in her home by an Illinois woman appears to have a long future.
Dolls with Clothespin Bodies
Making an amazing variety of tiny dolls with clothespin
skeletons not only whiles away the hours for a California shut-in but brings such tangible rewards
as dollars and blue ribbons.
Octogenarian Woodcrafter
George Thompson tried retiring at sixty-five, but now,
twenty years later, producing and selling wood novelties keeps him too busy even to think of retirement.
Lamps that Start in the Mountains
The lamp a Wyoming woman wanted was too high priced,
so her husband made her one from mountain scrub cedar and now people pay him his prices for all he can produce.
Signs that Tell Who Lives There
A Minnesota packing house employee uses his spare time to
make decorated name plates for homes and if a customer asks him, he'll even include the family dog's silhouette
in the decoration.
Putting Beauty Back Together
Restoring vases damaged in the great San Francisco
earthquake is only one of the 'mending jobs' handled by Trudy and George Wesley, who have become
experts at restoring art pieces.
She Paints with Crushed Rock
With many colors of crushed rock for her 'paints' and a
teaspoon as a 'brush,' a Colorado woman has given a new facet to rock collecting by developing
a unique artistic medium.
News about the Nutria
A Californian, in on the ground floor among American
breeders of the valuable fur-bearer - the nutria - tells you how you can also be a pioneer nutria raiser.
Recreating Guns that Wrote History
A Kansan finds that those who share his interest in famous
American guns of former years will pay up to $50 for the wooden models he makes in miniature.
The Cup that Overflowed into a Business
A Texan's success in selling cups symbolic of Texas A&M's
'Old Sarge' points the way for other ceramists to capitalize on institutional and other local symbols.
A New Lease on Life for Rickrack
When rickrack earrings became too commonplace to sell,
a Colorado woman devised new uses for the material and her craft sales zoomed.
Fiesta Dresses that Charm
Whether you call them squaw dresses or fiesta dresses, the
garments made by a New Mexico housewife have such instant appeal that people try to buy
them right off her back.
Teen-Age Table Maker
In Sullivan, Illinois, a sign of spring is the appearance in Bob
Ingram's side yard 'show room' of the picnic tables he has turned out during the winter in his home workshop.
Imitating Nature in Wax
A California woman's wax flowers and figures not only have
reached customers in half the states but helped her forget the pain that threatened to disrupt her life.
The Softest Paintings in Texas
Leola Moss finds that velveteen makes an ideal 'canvas' for
her paintings, featuring flowers and animals, which have sold by the hundreds.
All's Well with Her Wishing Wells
Coffee cans, plywood and twine are the basic materials from
which a Minnesota minister's wife builds miniature wishing wells that right from the start have
sold as fast as she can make them.
Sea Scenes on Sea Shells
A man who lives by the sea and has sailed the sea
portrays the moods of the sea using shells from the sea.
Zodiac Zanies for Textile Painters
Saucy caricatures of the signs of the zodiac brighten the
hand-painted handkerchiefs which an Oregon woman sells to collectors and followers of the occult.
Success that Starts with Seeds
A Wisconsin couple started raising garden plants for
themselves and their friends. Today they count their season's sales by the ten thousands.
Telling Children How to Make It
Elma Waltner explains how she takes advantage of the
steady demand for how-to-do-it articles for children's periodicals.
Junior Jewelry Maker
A discarded box of beads and sequins started an 11-year-old
California girl on a costume jewelry enterprise that has flourished to the point that she 'employs' her parents.
He Built a Better Slingshot
A retired Michigan man isn't trying to get rich from his
modernized slingshots but they're selling and he's having fun making them in his home workshop.
A Lady and a Jig Saw
Strangers express astonishment that a young woman could
make the wooden novelties on display at an Ohio farm home, but Helen Luczak does, now that she
has the proper tools.
Carnations - Two-Way Cash Crop
Fred Greene started with twelve carnation plants. Last year he
rooted 40,000. This year he's aiming at 50,000. Here's how he's done it.
Siamese - Feline Aristocrats
In four years the Magnans of California have developed
a strain of show class Siamese cats, some of which have sold for as much as $100 each.
Dolls that Work in the Kitchen
The wide skirts of the mammy dolls made by a South Dakota
woman are concealing small appliances and adding color to kitchens throughout the Midwest.
A New Career in China Painting
A retired Tennessee teacher finds that decorating china
and teaching others the art not only augments her pension but maintains her human contacts.
A Goldfish Farm in Virginia
When school principal C. F. Noble saw how fast a few
goldfish tossed in his backyard pond multiplied, he decided to raise them for sale and now produces 300,000 a year.
Creators of Prize Winning Furniture
Two Californians who make distinctive functional wrought
iron furniture outside of business hours are shooting for gross sales of $25,000 in 1955.
Key Charms that Speak for a Town
Ever hear of Dove Creek, Colorado, 'pinto bean center of the
world' and uranium hub? If not, don't blame Ruth Stringer, who has embedded beans and uranium ore
in thousands of plastic key charms. Her church, her town and Mrs. Stringer have all benefited.
Irises by the Acre
When the Bob Oshlos moved from Iowa to Idaho they took
along enough of the family irises to plant two short rows on ground where 20,000 bloom today.
Boarding House for Birds
If you're looking for a source of steady income in your own
home, try emulating an Indianapolis woman who takes paying guests - with feathers.
In the Steps of Stradivarius
His interest in working with wood led a Minnesota fireman
to remaking violins, which increase in value as much as twenty times through his efforts.
Handbags from Paper Tubes
Seeking a way to utilize discarded Christmas wrapping paper,
a Colorado woman discovered that rolled into tubes it was ideal for the sides of unusual handbags which sell for $7 each.
Riding the Trend to Pipes
An Ohio man who is helping to meet the growing demand
for pipes urges fellow woodcrafters to do the same.
Jewelry Adorned with Enamels
Seeking a saleable product she could make at home while
convalescent, a California woman tried enameled jewelry and now is producing it for fashionable West Coast shops.
Father-and-Son Cricket Project
As fish bait, crickets seem always in demand, and to help
fill that demand a Georgian and his son raise a half a million a year.
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