Get crafty and raise money for a good cause!

If you’re looking to raise some money for a good cause then making and selling something is a great idea!What to makeThere are LOADS of things you could make and sell, from fabric bags and hair scrunchies through to cakes or body lotion bars. Pick something that you feel confident making and that a few people can help make together. You may need equipment to make some of the items that we’re suggesting, but you should be able to enlist the help you need from your friends, relatives, teachers or others in your community. It’s a good idea to have a few practice runs to make sure you’ve got it right, and this will help you get familiar with the process too so then you’ll be able to make things much quicker - practice makes perfect!A few ideas of things you could try making are:

1. Cakes! (Always popular)
2. Reusable fabric shopping bags
3. Hair scrunchies and bows
4. Home-made body lotion bars
5. Jewellery

We’ll get a selection of how-tos ready over the next few weeks so you have step-by-step guides to help you make the suggestions above! If you’ve got any other ideas, let us know!Where to sell your productsThere are lots of ways of getting your products to new homes and raising cash in the process. You could organise a sale, join a sale that’s being organised by someone else such as a local craft fair or car boot sale. You could also sell items by word of mouth; for example, letting your friends and family know what you’ll be selling and asking them if they’d like to buy some. If you’ve made something like a bag, you could see if local businesses would be willing to sell them for you for charity. This works because it’s exactly when people are likely to think about the fact they’ve forgotten their own bag, or would choose to buy yours rather than use a plastic bag. Or how about linking up with an event that’s got a similar focus or topic? If there’s someone giving a talk about the environment or a bookshop has a new book coming in, they might be willing to have some of your product available to buy alongside it. The people who come to that type of event are likely to be interested in what you do, and are hopefully more likely to buy your product as a result!Some examples from Roots & Shoots groupsMaking and selling items to raise money for a good cause is a very popular way of helping the planet. It’s fun and rewarding!These are a few examples of Roots & Shoots groups who have done it before.https://coherent-dev.in/school/blog/2018/07/08/raising-money-for-a-nature-area-and-pond/https://coherent-dev.in/school/blog/2018/09/13/marnie-raises-money-for-four-paws/https://coherent-dev.in/school/blog/2018/11/22/damers-first-school-eco-friendly-decorations-made-from-recycled-materials/https://coherent-dev.in/school/blog/2018/11/28/fundraising-for-four-paws-uk/