Hobbies are known for being money drains, but they don't have to be that way. Find ways to turn your favorite pasttime into a source of income, and get paid to play.Need a few ideas to get you going? Then consider these:
Art/Crafts
Teach art classes, either privately or at a local craft store
Sell your work at craft shows or on etsy.com
Sell your work in a gallery
Design pieces on commission
Design and submit projects for publication in books and magazines
Enter your work in contests with cash prizes
Do graphic design work
Paint business windows for the holidays
Photography/Videography
Get work as a freelance newspaper photographer
Sell stock photos online. Try: Shutterstock, fotolia, and dreamstime
Sell your videos online. Check out: Video Sharing Websites that Pay
Sell your photos to magazines
Do wedding and event photography/videography
Teach photography/videography classes
Turn your images into cards, and sell them
Sports
Umpire/referee
Coach
Be a scorekeeper
Be a statistician
Caddy
Become a personal trainer
Become a fishing guide, hiking guide or river guide
Teach others your sport
Taking Care of Animals
Walk dogs
Pet sit
Offer grooming services
Music
Give private lessons
Perform at restaurants, weddings, bar mitzvahs and other events
Cooking
Teach cooking classes
Sell your foods at farmer's markets and craft shows
Cater
Offer yourself as a personal chef
Take orders for birthday cakes
Travel
Sign up for hotel and resort mystery shops
Sell your travel articles and photos to magazines
Fitness
Teach exercise classes
Be a river guide
Lead hikes
Teach rock climbing, caving or other extreme sports
Be a tour guide – all that walking is exercise!
Become a life guard
Offer yourself as a personal trainer
Computers
Repair computers
Build and sell computers
Become a computer consultant
Design websites
Gardening
Hire yourself out as a gardener/ landscaper
Sell the extra fruits and vegetables from your harvest
Sell compost
Can foods from your garden, and sell them at the farmer's market
Help a farmer harvest his crops
Writing
Start a blog
Sell articles online or to magazines
Enter writing contests with cash prizes
Apply for a writing stipend
Write advertising copy for local businesses
Produce and sell an e-book
Shopping
Become a mystery shopper
Work as a personal shopper
Shop for things to resell at a profit