Starting a small BusinessFollow

Yep, out of my many hobbies I found I can make money selling my jewelry at a good price that it's cover the cost of my weekend at an campground and left me with enough profit to invest in better materials to make more. 9 of the 49 pieces of jewelry I had made since Memorial Day. sold and I would have sold more if I had more copper pendants and wire bracelets made. I think the photographer left early upset at the banner between me and the gong masseuse who sold singing bowls.

Still with the small attendance of the 4 day event I did very well for a first time vendor. The sales were of mostly of the more expensive pieces I had for sale and at future events I will charge more for similar work. It was all designs I created and make by hand. I'm sure if more people there could afford to spend money on jewelry, I could have sold more, for the interest in my work was very high and I got great complements on how lovely so much of my work was.

I will be making far more jewelry and ornaments out of copper before the next event I vendor at. Meanwhile I will get up photos on an Esty account that I had for months now, to sell things I make. Look for Elne Clare Designs once I get the trade name from the State of Maryland. Once all the paper work is done I'll be working to get Social Security approval for having a small business and open a bank account, that won't count towards the limit on liquid assets that Congress set at only $2k for those on SSI. Right now all profit is getting invested in the business. Other then meals and a cash box, only expense I had was my entrance fee. I did treat myself out of the money I brought for expenses on a green singing bowl that I'll be using for meditation and pain relief.

Well I'm beat and have to be able to get up for group tomorrow morning. If things go well, I expect to not need to see therapist and doctors as often.

Glad to hear things are going well for you!

I'm looking at both with preference for an LLC, but with current budget it may have to start out as an sole proprietorship.

I'm way too tire for I'm missing letters as I type right and left. Imagine this post without every 5th pr more letters.

Queue rabid radical conservatives.

photos are on my Facebook account. Send me a PM if you want to Friend me.

It's all about liability protection. Your friend is an idiot, and since he's "not doing the paperwork" as you put it, if something backfires he can lose absolutely everything he owns. Does his business default on loans? Ruins his credit. Does his product or service hurt someone? He can get sued personally into oblivion. Someone trip and fall outside his small home office? Say goodbye to everything he owns.

The price of not getting completely wiped out if the worst happens is getting taxed twice (well, he gets taxed and so does his business).

Best advice I can give is to replace yourself as quickly as possible. Keep in mind there is a big difference between working on the business and working in it.

Surprisingly, great advice from varus. Now's not the time to follow it, but something that should be kept in mind if you actually want to grow it down the road.

Filling out all the re tape is a fact of life and I'm not about to get fined for not paying taxes or finding out that some city code prevents me from installing a piece of equipment I want, in my home. 6% of everything I sold is going to the state for taxes, just so they can afford a pittance of my medical coverage.

Moe, I can't hold down a job working for someone else, which is why I've been thinking of starting a business and be self employed for a few years now. Biggest worry is how I'm going to afford medical insurance once my sales reach a level I no longer qualify for Medicaid. Then with the Republicans want to end all the current social programs that have prevented disable and aged from staving to death, in some 3 world shanty town. I didn't go begging the moment I became ill, instead I put off going to social services as long as I could to ask for assistance because I had 2 girls at home, that were 11 and 16.

Depression causes one's will power to be near nil and until I got it under control with medicines, along with the chronic pain, starting a business would have been foolish. I don't expect things to be all unicorns and faeries, now that my muse has been doing overtime for the last few weeks, but I finally took a step that I should have done years ago while still in college. I waited far too long to try selling something I made. Last time I tried, I went about things wrong and let the failure pull me down too. I went and set up my work Thursday, with the thought that even if nothing sold I could get feed back on what people liked or wanted to see more of. Selling not just one but 9 items was icing on the cake. I have two orders for custom orders now and will do what I can to prevent self doubt and depression from taking away from what I did this weekend.

Jewelry is something I can do at home without taxing my strength like sitting at a desk at some office that takes 2 to 3 buses to get to and back. I have friends willing to help get me to events and help me sell if I cover their entrance fees. Still at some point I plan to hire sales staff to man booths for me, so I can focus on the creative side of the Jewelry business. Right now I plan on using as many free or low cost business counseling services I can such as Score and Maryland's services for disable persons. Even if I just do research on the internet, I feel better about myself as working even just for is much more satisfying, then sitting around playing games on the computer or watching TV.

Wouldn't she want an LLC for this?

I'm not too sure of the finer details either. The impression I got about the two is that even if you don't co-mingle funds for a sole proprietorship, it still counts as "your" money, whereas LLC you'd at least be able to keep the funds separate. Would be interesting what someone who actually has experience about the two has to say.

It was that $2000 limit of liquid assets she mentioned previously that made me think about that.