7 Ways To Make Money Hat Burning

If you love hat burning and would like to expand it into a hat burning business, it is not only possible, but many people are already doing it. 

People around the world are finding creative ways to monetize hat burning. And some have even turned hat burning into a full-time income. 

There are many ways to make money with hat burning. Some involve selling finished hats, while others focus on teaching, hosting events, or offering custom design services. Here are seven practical ways to turn your hobby into an income stream.

1. Selling burned hats online. If you are the type person that enjoys hat burning and would like to make money without face-to-face selling, selling burned hats on line is a great opportunity. People are selling their burned hats from a low of $35 up to a high of several hundred dollars. While I would never recommend selling a burned hat for $35-$50, a price of $75 to $150 is reasonable. And people will buy your hats in that price range. 

2. Sell burned hats on Etsy. If I were starting a burned hat as a side hustle, I would start with Etsy. They have a huge number of people who are looking for novel things to buy, and a burned hat has great appeal due to it’s due to its growing popularity around the world and the fact that people love apparel that is unique. When pricing your hats, keep in mind that shipping is expensive, and you’ll need strong packaging to help ensure the hat isn't damaged in transit.

3. Sell hats on Facebook Marketplace. Facebook marketplace is a great place to sell. And there are a lot of resources on Facebook for hat burning.

If I were selling on Facebook Marketplace, I would  ask for local pickup. One of the hazards of shipping a hat is that it will be damaged. Building local clients is also a great way to grow your custom burned hats business, which is why hosting local events can be so effective.

4. Host a hat burning party. You may have heard of hat bars where local businesses have a retail establishment where their customers can burn hats. You can do the same thing but on a smaller scale by hosting a hat burning party at home. A great way to do this is by cleaning a space in your garage, set up a few tables, and invite former customers, family, and friends over for a hat burning party. At first you may want everyone to bring their own hats to burn. As you learn what hats people like, you can offer to provide the hats (at a cost, of course). You can also branch out into selling supplies like hat bands, feathers, and beads, as well as paint for those people who want to burn and paint their hats.

5. Sell at local fairs and farmers markets. I can pretty much guarantee that you will not have any competition at a local fair or farmers market, at least at first. Because your price point will be higher than most things at a venue like a farmers market, it will take a little time to get established. But once word gets out that you are selling burned hats, you may be surprised at the business you get.

6. Offer to create custom designs. This is an excellent side niche for our hat burning designs. We recently created a set of designs for a farm. While we don’t focus on custom designs, we love to create designs for people if they ask. And we have developed some wonderful designs based upon a custom design we’ve done for a client. 

It is tempting to undervalue your design work. People know that good design work takes time, so don't be afraid to charge a fair price for your creativity and expertise.

7. Host a hat burning workshop. This is different than hosting a hat burning party where people create their own hat design and burn it. In a workshop, you will be sharing tips and tricks that you’ve developed when hat burning. You’ll want to cover the basics of what tools to use and basic hat burning skills like outlining and shading. You’ll also want to cover accessories like hat bands, feathers, beads, and painting. And you’ll also want to include basic hat designs. 

New To Hat Burning?

Before you start selling hats, you'll need to learn the basics of transferring designs, layout, shading, and burning techniques. Our free Starter Kit includes:

• A free hat burning design
• Four practice sheets
• A quick-start guide

This gives readers a simple way to begin learning the craft.

Get you Free Starter Kit.

Final Thoughts

One of the questions that we’re asked when we talk about making money from our hat burning is, “But what if I’m not an artist?”. That is a fair question, and it should be a concern if you can’t draw a straight line. But we’ve solved that problem by creating over 700 unique designs that can be used as is or mixed and matched to create an entirely new design.

Keep in mind that people are not interested in what you can draw; they are interested in what they can create. Our designs are created with the beginner to intermediate hat burner in mind, so they are perfect for someone who wants to not only burn beautiful hats but also would like to make some extra money or possibly a full-time income. 

Take a few minutes to look through our extensive menu of hat burning designs. And if you decide to host a hat burning party, be sure to include us when inviting your guest. We have the largest selection of hat burning designs anywhere, and we’d love to be a part of making your venture a success.