Earn Money with URNS

Yes, I said URNS---Those ginger jars that contains the ancestors. People can write their own memorial words that can be written on the jar that eventually would hold their last remains.  Of course, they will change their minds, and want a new one every now and then. You could even do portraits on the vase.  Angels, bible verses, inspiring poetry and words of wisdom could adorn an urn.

I once was asked to make a ceramic vase with a painting and a special poem written just for newly weds by the buyer of the vase. I used a calligraphy pen dipped in ceramic paint for the poem and surrounded the poem with flowers.  I covered it in glaze and it should last at least as long or longer than the marriage. It was truly a work of art and they really appreciated it as a wedding gift.

Open a gift store just at Christmas for the men in your life

                                                               Chicago Museum of Science and Industry photo            

What do men want for Christmas?

This Christmas I found plenty of presents for my female friends but finding nice inexpensive presents for my male friends had limited choices. Cologne, underwear and socks. Ties as gifts are a joke. And none of the inexpensive colognes were any good. What we need is good presents for men that don't cost a fortune. Which man wouldn't like a new computer or other gadget, but most people can't afford to give such gifts to friends.

Small appliances--for women
Perfume--for women
Dainties--for women
Jewelry--for women
Lotions--for women (insult to men)
Slippers--for women (couldn't find large men's slippers)
Flowers--for women
Candy--for women

So, it is obvious that buying for the men in your life, without a big budget, is a problem.  Tools are a great gift but some men don't use them---like most everybody in New York.

Your mission, if you decide to take it, is to create good gifts for men.  Please invent gifts that aren't jokes and gifts that won't get re-gifted back to you next year.  All, that you can price inexpensively and not lose money.

                                  Advent Calendar from Wikipedia

Basically, what do men want that's inexpensive.  I can't read minds, so you find out and I will look forward to the result next year at Christmas.


Joke gifts are fun for the moment, but unless it can be put on, used for some purpose or made for dinner, it probably will go into a closet or just add to the clutter on the coffee table. Things to play with on the coffee table are more appreciated.


Suggestions:

Jewelry: Silver whistles on chains to summon a cab.  A pleasant sound would be appreciated.

Good cologne in smaller bottles that we can afford for friends.

Flowers for men--terrarium with Venus fly trap with food. Make it decorative.

Things to make your life easier when the end of the world comes, to keep in apartment or car.
     Emergency kits with start-in-wet-weather matches 
     Camping equipment 
     Medical kits
     Maps of National Parks and nearby roads
     Survival and camping books

Older men want testosterone, so invent something for them that doesn't need a prescription.

Things of scientific and educational interest.
     Predator insects or spiders in plastic
     Useful things made from alligators and snakes
     Poisonous plants in plastic--poison sumac is very beautiful in fall
     Valuable rocks in their raw uncut state

Objects of art made out of colored shapes of iron behind glass with a magnet attached. Do it yourself art.

Something styled like old whiskey crockery and instructions on how to hold for drinking properly.

Canned unusual foods like squid or weird shell fish meat. I have a can of conch meat I have saved for years.  Include a recipe.  Wild game meat like deer or wild boar would be interesting. Don't endanger species, but dangerous and plentiful animals, canned, might be of interest.  The Travel channel is full of shows on the weird food people eat around the world.  Some people might want a taste of the unusual, once in a while.  Gifts is where savory spicing in a can is an asset.  Can it and gift it.

Strange spices from around the world.  Just add some custom Indian curry to rice and savor the heavenly taste and aroma. Spice mixtures from the South Seas are hard to find and are wonderful. Always include recipes.  They don't have to be spicy hot because these strange and tasty spices are not duplicated in the USA and don't have to be hot to be an unusual treat.

Spicy candy just for men.

Things with secret compartments. Rings, billfolds, key rings where you can stow emergency money or a treasure map.



    

Why eat the same old thing?

Actually, it is an excellent idea to eat the same old things, as long as you consume a variety of items that have been used for centuries for the normal human diet. 

But, did you know there are many items that were consumed by the American Indians for centuries that are ignored today.  Many of these native American foods should have been ignored, such as acorns, because of the effect on the pancreas. Ground acorns, washed of the deadly tannin, make an excellent nutty bread when used like flour.  Indians made a bread of it after washing the acorns by letting them rinse in a running stream.  Their leathery skin could have been a result of this food source.  Research on animals ( not humans) should be done

But limited consumption of such foods might be good for you because the tannic acid in acorns dissolves fat, I think.  Anyway, research on animals (not humans) should be done. 


Interesting foods that could be explored is
   Lamb's quarters: a ubiquitous weed that makes a great potherb. It has furry leaves that have to be washed to remove the fur.  This fur may be hazardous, but this potherb is hardy and very delicious.
   Sumac seeds: the red seeds that appear on the hardy sumac plant that last all winter actually taste like lemon and have been made into a pink lemonade type drink.  Due to it's furry nature it should be studied before consumed by the general population.  This may be an opportunity to grow lemonade  in a flat bed.
   Spice bush: early Americans made a tea of the leaves of this bush.  Tastes like dirt to me, but the brown unusual blossoms have a faint heavenly odor.
   There are many other wild plants that have been consumed by native peoples, perhaps leading to their medical problems, but also perhaps a great natural disease and bug resistant food product of the future.  Who knows.  Only research can tell.

Find an angel.  Rich people are sometimes looking for ideas to support.  Some rich people complain that they are inundated with "get rich quick schemes", so choose someone who is open to new ideas.  Investors will usually advertise their interests.  Ask around.  You might find someone willing to invest in your business for a percentage of your profits, if you have a good reputation.  Even if your idea is perfect, you need to have proven that you are reliable before people will invest in you.  A bad credit rating can destroy this for you, no matter how reliable and honest you are.

Sell stock in your company.

Years ago, that was the accepted way to raise money for any enterprise.  Even penny stocks can raise you money.  If you have a true, viable business, people will want to get in on it!  You will probably want to hold 51 percent of your stock so your stock holders don't kick you out.  The remaining 49 percent of your shares is money in the bank.  If people continue trading your stock, they can raise the stock price up, so you might want to keep 52 percent, so you can sell some stock and make a profit that way.  Information on how to make a stock offering is on the Internet.

When you decide on a promising money making idea and want to run with it, what comes next!  The idea needs to be developed, if it is an invention.  But you must also have an idea for how to market your idea to make money with it.  Many a great ideas sit on drawing boards waiting to be protected with a patent, while you could be just selling it and making money.  There are methods you can use to prove you came up with the idea first, if someone steps in to steal it from you.  It is up to you to decide if protecting with a patent is worth more money than just selling the thing.  Then when people steal it, which they usually will if your idea is a good one, you have to decide if paying lawyers is worth the money to stop them.  Sometimes, just a cleverly written letter is enough to stop someone from stealing your idea.

Don't let yourself be so fearful of theft that you don't put your product before the public.  It is usually the successful products that people steal, not the undeveloped products.  If you don't put it out there, what's the use?

So now you have developed your product and have set up the manufacturing process.  Is there a need for your product?  How can you let people know the product is out there?

A news release is a good way to introduce your product.  You'll have to think of some catchy ways to interest editors in your story.  A good photo or something funny.  Pretty girls or little children might catch their interest.  Editors receive tons of cooking recipes each day but not many product news releases.  Try to catch their personal interests and write your news release creatively.  Say you are a bright new green man who worked years...or you have discovered something that has perplexed mankind for centuries.  How would you break the news about the Hula Hoop.  Any interesting angle will do.  There is a form that is expected with news releases, so look that up on the Internet.

Speaking of the Hula Hoop, when that product first came out, we had contests in our school with prizes for the best Hula Hoop performers.  Wow!  That brought people out of the woodwork!  Everyone in my school had to own one and we practiced on it everyday!

Your product might be of interest to specialty magazines, so write articles with photos and send them to magazines.  Writer's Market will give you tips on how to get published in magazines.  Hire a writer if you need the help.  One article could make your business, so it is worth the effort!

Paid advertising works.  An advertising agency with a good reputation will help you with that.  You can waste a lot of money on advertising so choose carefully.

A staff of salesmen can go door to door or make phone calls.  It is according to what you are selling, whether this is the most economical way to sell your product.

The message is: the idea and the product development is just the first step.  You need a plan for how you are going to get your product before the public and sell it for profit.

October 11, 2011  8:30 PM

Avocado Eggs

Money making ideas

Cover avocado seeds with paper mâché, paint them like Easter Eggs with water proof paint, put them on top of the soil, water and watch them sprout right out of the eggs.  It will be fascinating but thoroughly confusing for the kids, but if animated movies hasn't confused them this will just be fun.

The end that sprouts roots first is the end opposite the flat-ish end.  The pointed-ish end is buried slightly in the soil.

What came first?  The egg or the tree.  This is be a sensation that will sweep the nation like Chia Pets.  Your kids will not be able to resist avocado eggs.  You work out the details and this idea is yours.