Made-to-Order framed mirrors from home

Homeowners, home stagers, interior designers, small cafés and boutiques, and buyers of wedding or gift pieces.

You sell each mirror at a price covering glass, frame materials and your time. Extra income comes from custom sizes and finishes, and from trade orders from designers.

• Basic woodworking or framing
• Eye for design and finish
• Online selling and photography

• Home-based business licence and zoning rules, check with your municipality
• Commercial general liability insurance, and check how your home insurance treats business use
• Safe handling and storage of glass, and careful packing to avoid breakage in shipping
• Collecting the right sales tax (GST/HST, plus PST or QST in some provinces), check the rules once you pass the small supplier threshold
• Dust and noise from a workshop, check shared-building or neighbour restrictions

Startup costs are typically estimated at around $1,500 to $6,000, depending on your tools, frame materials, hanging hardware and how you set up your workshop and online selling. Your product range and finish level will move the figure.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $500 to $2,500, depending on your prices, how many mirrors you finish and where you sell. The estimate assumes roughly 8 or more hours a week.

Check your municipality's home-based business licence and zoning rules, and how your home insurance treats business use. Also look at commercial general liability insurance, sales tax collection (GST/HST, plus PST or QST in some provinces), and workshop dust and noise restrictions.