Get the structure and clarity of software in an easy-to-use spreadsheet built for handmade business owners — without monthly fees or a giant learning curve.
That’s exactly what the 10-Minute Bookkeeper was designed to do.
It’s a handmade business bookkeeping spreadsheet system built for makers who want more clarity, less confusion, and a practical way to keep up with their bookkeeping without making it harder than it needs to be.
If your current bookkeeping setup feels like a mess, you’re not alone
A lot of handmade business owners are trying to piece things together with:
- random spreadsheets
- free templates
- notes in a notebook
- Stripe, PayPal, Etsy, or Square records
- a pile of receipts
- and a vague hope that it will all somehow work out later
And “later” usually shows up at tax time.
That’s when the stress kicks in.
Because a spreadsheet is not automatically a bookkeeping system.
Just because something has tabs, formulas, and category names does not mean it is helping you track your money in a way that actually makes sense.
A lot of DIY bookkeeping spreadsheets look organized at first glance, but they still leave you:
- guessing where expenses belong
- unsure what to do with inventory
- confused about cost of goods sold
- unable to clearly see whether you’re making a profit
- and scrambling to pull everything together at the end of the year
That’s not a real solution.
That’s just a tidier-looking mess.
Why generic spreadsheets keep letting handmade business owners down
This is where a lot of bookkeeping advice falls apart.
Because handmade businesses are not as simple as “money in, money out.”
You may be dealing with:
- materials inventory
- finished inventory
- cost of goods sold
- multiple selling platforms
- payment processing fees
- shipping and packaging costs
- overhead expenses
- equipment purchases
- tax categories that need to make sense later
That’s why generic spreadsheets and one-size-fits-all templates so often miss the mark.
They weren’t built for the way handmade businesses actually work.
The 10-Minute Bookkeeper was.
This is a bookkeeping system — not just a bunch of tabs
The 10-Minute Bookkeeper is not just a collection of spreadsheets. It is a system.
Everything works together on purpose.
The categories are set up with tax time in mind. The reports are designed to help you actually see what’s going on in your business. The spreadsheets are built to help you keep up consistently, instead of putting things off until you’re buried and overwhelmed.
So no, this is not some random spreadsheet bundle thrown together by someone who knows formulas.
This is a practical bookkeeping system created for handmade business owners who need something that is usable, flexible, and actually helpful in real life.
Take a Sneak Peek at What’s Inside.
Want to see how the 10-Minute Bookkeeper is set up before you buy?
Watch the quick overview below to get a feel for how the spreadsheets work together and how this system helps handmade business owners stay organized without complicated software.
What this system helps you finally get a handle on
Most creative business owners are not naturally drawn to bookkeeping. That’s normal.
So receipts end up in a pile. Or an email folder. Or scattered across Etsy, PayPal, Stripe, Square, and your bank account while you hope your bookkeeping fairy shows up and sorts it all out.
Then suddenly…
tax time rolls around and you’re trying to piece everything together looking like you just survived a shipwreck.
Here’s the hard truth (said with love):
Ignorance is NOT bliss.
Financial confusion can sink a business faster than you can frog your latest WIP.
With the 10-Minute Bookkeeper, you can:
- track income and expenses in a way that actually makes sense
- manage materials and finished inventory
- keep up with cost of goods sold without guessing
- organize your numbers by month, quarter, and year
- see where your money is coming from and where it is going
- stop wondering whether you’re doing it “right”
- make tax time a whole lot easier
Because when your bookkeeping is messy, it’s hard to answer important questions like:
- Is my business actually making money — or just keeping me busy?
- Which selling platforms are worth my time?
- What am I spending the most money on?
- Why does it feel like the money disappears so fast?
- Am I heading into tax time prepared… or panicked?
You can treat bookkeeping like a dreaded chore you avoid until the end of the year.
Or you can use it as a tool to make better decisions all year long.
Why “10 minutes” is more realistic than you think
This system is not about sitting down for three miserable hours trying to “catch up” on months of neglected bookkeeping.
It is about keeping up a little at a time.
That means you are not:
- recreating months of transactions
- sorting receipts into a million categories
- trying to fix your entire bookkeeping life in one weekend
You are simply building the habit of staying current.
That is what makes this work. Small, consistent action is a whole lot easier than waiting until things are a disaster. And yes, that matters even during busy seasons.
Especially during busy seasons.
What you get inside the 10-Minute Bookkeeper
Inside the 10-Minute Bookkeeper, you’ll get a complete handmade business bookkeeping system, including:
Core spreadsheets
- Bookkeeping spreadsheets with 12 monthly sheets
- An automagic Profit & Loss Report
- Equipment Purchases spreadsheet
- Materials Inventory spreadsheet
- Finished Items Inventory spreadsheet
Bonus spreadsheets
- Project Cost of Goods Sold & Pricing Calculator
- Pattern Pricing Calculator
- Fair Hourly Wage Calculator
- Business Use of Home Worksheet
- Money In & Money Out Register
Training included
- Step-by-step video training that shows you how to use each spreadsheet
- Bonus training on how to categorize expenses and what belongs in “Other”
So you are not left staring at a spreadsheet wondering what on earth you’re supposed to do next.
Why makers choose this instead of piecing things together themselves
Because they are tired of guessing.
They are tired of trying to patch together free trackers, random spreadsheets, sales platform reports, notebook scribbles, and “I’ll deal with this later” energy.
They want a system that:
- gives them structure without complicated software
- helps them stay organized without a huge learning curve
- makes their reports easier to understand
- works with the realities of a handmade business
- and helps them feel less panicked when tax time rolls around
This system is based on:
- 30+ years of bookkeeping experience
- real conversations with handmade business owners
- and the way creative businesses actually operate
It was built for handmade, creative, and craft businesses.
Not generic small businesses.
Not corporate accounting departments.
Not people who have never had to think about materials, inventory, pricing, cost of goods sold, and taxes all at the same time.
It includes a pre-built, tax-aligned chart of accounts that is flexible enough to customize.
- It helps you track multiple revenue streams.
- It helps you see which platforms are pulling their weight and which ones may not be.
- It gives you Profit & Loss reporting by month, quarter, and year-to-date in a format your CPA can actually use.
- And it makes inventory and cost of goods sold more manageable without turning your life into one giant spreadsheet nightmare.
Tried to DIY your bookkeeping already? That is usually where the trouble starts
Maybe you have downloaded free trackers.
Maybe you have found a spreadsheet online.
Maybe you have tried to build your own.
Maybe you have even asked AI to make one for you.
And listen, that does not make you foolish. It makes you resourceful.
But there comes a point where “good enough for now” stops being good enough. Because a spreadsheet can look tidy and still not give you what you actually need.
You do not just need columns and tabs.
You need a system that helps you:
- track the right things
- understand your numbers
- make better decisions
- and avoid a giant bookkeeping mess later
That is the difference.
This is for you if you’re ready for a real system
The 10-Minute Bookkeeper is a good fit if:
- you are not ready for bookkeeping software
- software feels like too much right now
- you want a spreadsheet system that is easier to use and actually useful
- you sell handmade, creative, or craft products
- you need help tracking more than basic income and expenses
- you want a practical system that helps at tax time
- you are tired of guessing
This is probably not for you if…
This may not be the right fit if:
- you want someone else to do your bookkeeping for you
- you are looking for full accounting software
- you do not want to enter transactions consistently
- you are only looking for a freebie and are not ready for a full system
And that is okay.
This system is for the handmade business owner who wants a clear, practical next step.
No subscription. No monthly fee. No nonsense.
One of the best parts of the 10-Minute Bookkeeper is that it is a one-time purchase.
No subscription.
No monthly fee.
No renewals.
You buy it once, learn how to use it, and reuse it year after year.
Ready to stop guessing and feel more confident about your numbers?
You do not need to become a numbers person.
You do not need a degree in accounting.
You do not need perfect bookkeeping habits.
And you definitely do not need to keep flying blind and hoping it all works out.
You just need a system that makes sense.
The 10-Minute Bookkeeper helps you:
- stop guessing
- stop dreading tax time
- stop putting bookkeeping off because it feels bigger than it is
- and start feeling more confident about what is going on in your business
If you are ready for a bookkeeping spreadsheet system built for handmade business owners — one that gives you the benefits of software without the learning curve — the 10-Minute Bookkeeper is ready for you.
If you'd rather be working with yarn, fabric, paint or clay than deal with a pile of receipts or bookkeeping spreadsheets, you're in the right place.
I help you get a handle on your numbers, make sense of what's coming in and going out, and actually feel confident running your business -- without accountant-speak or guilt.
👉 Want help figuring out your bookkeeping (without overcomplicating it)? Join the free bookkeeping community.
I am a coach/educator, not your bookkeeper or CPA.This information is for educational purposes, NOT financial or tax advice.
[…] If you want help actually setting this up in a way that makes sense (without complicated spreadsheets or accountant-speak), that’s exactly what I walk you through here in the 10-Minute Bookkeeper: Handmade Business Spreadsheet Bookkeeping System. […]
I sell made-to-order jewelry that I make, as well as resale a few products I do not make (I purchase them wholesale and sell on my website). Would this allow me to track both COGS for my made-to-order jewelry as well as ready to sell inventory?
Hi Meghan – great question! (And I’m going do do a little out loud typing as I think through your situation).
First let’s talk about the items you purchase at wholesale & resell.
The “inventory” part of the system has two spreadsheets – one for materials and one for finished items – in your case, you wouldn’t use the Materials spreadsheet and could simply use thee “finished items” spreadsheet to track the wholesale items you purchase and resell (you’d just rename that spreadsheet).
On the actual “bookkeeping spreadsheet” in the COGS section you easily “rename” the current category called “Materials from Inventory (Used in finished items sold)” to something like “Premade “X” (X being whatever those items are).
Now let’s talk about your made-to-order items.
I’m going to assume that you only purchase supplies for that specific item and have nothing leftover. When you make those purchases, you’d assign them to the existing COGS category called “Materials & Supplies”.
IF you had leftover materials – then you would add them to the materials inventory spreadsheet.
I know this is all “words” and you don’t get to actually “see” what I’m talking about – but I think with just a couple minor tweaks, my system would work for you.
Hi there,
When entering my materials inventory, will the software average the cost of (exact) materials?
I look forward to your response.
Hi Dawn
Not quite sure I understand what you mean by “average” (everyone has their own definition and so does accounting terms), so let me give you a couple of examples:
On the YES side if you buy a skein of yarn that has 190 yards and you paid $2.53 for it the spreadsheets calculate a cost per yard of $0.0133 per yard. The spreadsheet will do the same calculation if you use Ounces, grams, meters.
On the NO side – if you buy 3 skeins at $2.53 per skein ($7.59) and 3 months LATER buy 3 more skeins of the EXACT same yarn at $2.00 per skein ($6.00), it would NOT tell that you have 6 skeins valued at $2.265 per skein.
If you want your inventory valued at 6 skeins at $2.265 then you would need really inventory software and not a spreadsheet.
If you have additional questions, please feel free to shoot me an email through the “contact page“.
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Does this also work with the Canadian Tax system?
Hi Donalda, thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.
Yes, this will work with Canada as well as the U.S. tax systems. Both countries track the same things, they are just in different locations on the actual tax forms.
Have a great day!
This sounds great! How soon do you expect it to launch?
Hi Kristen, thanks for dropping by. I’ll be launching the 10-Minute Bookkeeper System on 11/22/24. Stay tuned for more details 🙂