Helping handmade, creative and craft business owners learn to handle their bookkeeping, one step at a time!
Helping handmade, creative and craft business owners learn to handle their bookkeeping, one step at a time!
If inventory + COGS makes your brain do the Windows reboot sound, start here. This January Reset round-up gives you the simple path: what inventory is, what to track, how to keep spreadsheets from turning into a monster, and how it all connects to COGS and tax time.
Materials inventory tracking can feel like a brain-melter for handmade business owners — especially if you’re using spreadsheets. In this post, you’ll learn what you actually need to track (and why), where spreadsheets get complicated fast, and how to make it easier with a system that has the formulas built in.
Inventory is one of the most misunderstood parts of running a handmade business — and it directly affects your expenses, pricing, and taxes. In this post, we’ll break down what inventory actually is, why you can’t deduct materials when you buy them, and which makers truly need to track it. No accounting jargon, no overwhelm — just clear explanations that finally make inventory make sense.
Originally written & published in 2020 – updated in 2026 for clarity.
Running a handmade business isn’t a “one spreadsheet and done” situation — no matter what the gurus say. Most makers are juggling pricing sheets, inventory lists, COGS logs, craft fair trackers, mileage logs, and at least one mystery tab they’re afraid to delete. If it feels like your business needs 15 different spreadsheets… it’s because you’re running a real business with real moving parts. Let’s break down why this happens — and how to make it easier.
Bookkeeping doesn’t have to be overwhelming. The 10-Minute Bookkeeper is a simple spreadsheet system designed for handmade business owners who want calm, clear, tax-ready numbers — without complicated software or hours of work.
Physical inventory is a must for handmade businesses — but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Learn how to count materials and finished goods with confidence.
This post was originally published on 1/5/2019 and has been updated to include clearer examples.
Handmade business owners often run into the same money mistakes — from underpricing to skipping bookkeeping to mixing up profit and pay. In this post, we’ll break down the top eight financial mistakes handmade sellers make and show you simple, stress-free ways to avoid them and build a more profitable creative business.
Overhead expenses are all those behind-the-scenes costs — rent, website hosting, shipping supplies, subscriptions, and more — that keep your handmade business alive… but often get ignored when you price your creations. This post shows you how to gather your expenses, calculate a realistic hourly or per-item overhead cost, and bake that number into your prices so you stop working for free.