Handmade Wooden Toys
- Woodworking for profit!

Good at woodworking? You might want to consider making and selling handmade wooden toys to supplement your retirement pension.

Traditional wooden toys are still much in demand, whether they are trains, dolls' houses or toy trucks and will certainly last longer than the cheap plastic variety on offer in the shops nowadays. You can be sure that they will be treasured and loved for many years.

Feed their imagination

Children have an infinite capacity for imagination. One stick can become a galleon crossing the ocean, two sticks can become an airliner. Think then, of the hours of pleasure obtained from a wooden train with carriages they can fill up with goodies and "drive" around the chair legs and other obstacles. Or from a wooden fort, capable of holding back the hordes of Vikings, Romans or whoever happens to be the baddies that day.

Parents will be delighted to find someone that can turn their hand to making wooden toys at a reasonable price. Toys that will stand the test of time and not go out of vogue before the holiday season comes around again.

Comply with the rules

The best thing is that these toys do not need to be over complicated. Simple woodworking skills can be used to produce sturdy toys which can be either stained, painted or left in a natural state.

If the toy is for a younger child you may wish to round off pointed edges to make them safer. And of course do check up on any rules and regulations in your part of the world to which items made for children must comply.

Plans for handmade wooden toys

I am not going to go into details about how to construct handmade wooden toys - the subject is far better covered elsewhere.

Instead, I just want to get you thinking about the concept, and the "potential" of profitable toys.

You might want to start by using someone else's plans and instructions, until you find your own methods and come up with your own ideas. There are many sites offering plans for sale at a reasonable cost. My advice? Just buy one from each designer to begin with, until you can test out their directions and make sure the measurements they give are accurate. Once you find a designer that you like, by all means purchase more from them.

Shop around for good wood at a sensible price. Take advice if needed on which woods to use for which purpose. Make sure your tools are in good working order and your off!

Marketing your toys

Once your first product is complete you will want to take photographs for marketing purposes. Don't just settle for one picture, take a few from different angles with some closeups of the details. As the old saying goes, "A picture is worth a thousand words".

Start your advertising campaign in the most economical manner. Put a photo of your toy, some enticing wording, and your name and contact details onto postcards for display in local shop windows, or put an ad in your local freebie newspaper. Mention that your toys are "Hand crafted" and that you are taking orders. If you have timed your launch right, maybe a few months before Christmas, then you should start getting some responses quite quickly.

If you are unsure of what to charge for your toys, you might find The Woodworker's Guide to Pricing Your Work a useful addition to your library.

Taking orders for your handmade wooden toys

Some people will be happy to buy an item you have already made and take it away with them.

Others might have their own ideas on colouring or decoration and will be prepared to wait. Always ask for a deposit if you are taking an order. It will sift out those customers who will never come back to collect (and pay for) the finished item. If they have handed over money, they are more than likely a serious buyer. Explain that it might take some time before their toy is ready. If you finish it earlier then that's great, but try not to be too optimistic. Saying it will be ready in a week, and it ends up taking three and they are not going to be too happy!

It is worth keeping at least one of each type of toy in stock to show potential customers. But then, as you start to build up stock, you might also like to consider taking a stall at a local craft fair. Be aware that you could end up being swamped with orders, and if you only want to make a few in your spare time, this may not be desirable.