Making Money

Back in May (Of 2009) I decided I wanted to make this trip happen. I decided that I wanted to travel for the Fulbright as well as see some of the world. So I asked myself what steps I would need to take to make this happen.

First I figured out how much the whole trip would cost me (approx.):

Plane ticket: $900
College Loans: $1000
Food: $900
Hostel: $100
Place to stay: $1500
Travel around: $300

Total: $4700

I used the airfare at the time, I pay $300 a month in college loans, I figured I could make due with $300 a month on food pretty easily if I cook most of my meals. As for the place to stay, I booked a hostel for the first week and just estimated that a small to decent apartment would run me about $500 a month, but it's just a guess. And $300 for any extra travel, although more could be nice. And anything on top of this would be for souvenirs and other fun stuff.

From that list I knew a rough amount of money I would need to save and I started cutting my spending: I bought in bulk and bought cheaper products when possible (I still went for the softer toilet paper at an extra $.12 a roll). I've tried to eat out less, but it's one of my favorite things to do, so I just eat out at cheaper places. If you're ever in Philadelphia check out Nanzhou hand-drawn noodles on race st. between 9th and 10th. Big noodle bowls for $4.50. OR Paesano's on Girard ave. just west of Front st. Delicious subs from $6 - $8.

But still, how would I make enough money? The truth is, it's not easy. And as I write this I'm still about $1,000 short with six weeks to go. But I'm not too worried. I started to find as much paying work as possible, while keeping my studio (4 hours of work a week) and apartment (10 hours of work a week). That left me with three to four days a week (not including weekends) where I could make some money.

In May, June, July and August I did a lot of work for Steve Ford - One of three owners of a city - block of warehouses converted into studios - and I made some pots to sell online at my etsy site. The online sales are slow, even if you keep up with the updating. I also found two galleries (Or they found me) to sell my work through on consignment. This has also been slow, I think I've made about $30 over three months.

September until now have been a bit better on the financial side. Rob (My landlord) has had a few people ask him for work and he needed some help so I got to work on some big projects and save money off of that. I also started doing a few computer consulting jobs which is great pay, even if the work isn't very exciting. Once I get back from Brazil I'll probably avoid the consulting stuff if I can, I don't want to get sucked into i for the money.

For any artists fresh out of school or anyone wanting to travel but not financially capable yet, I would say try to have some computer skills, they can be really helpful in a pinch. Also, don't lose hope and buy a plane ticket as soon as you can. I bought mine in the beginning of August for $600 (woohoo! The recession helped me!), and now I'm locked into it. Whether I save up enough money or not I'm still going. And I have learned to be ok with that. If I need to I'll meet people in Brazil who will need some kind of help doing something, or maybe I can teach English a few times a week. Regardless of what happens, I'll still be in Brazil.