Thursday, 06 August 2009
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The Cost of Fun: Hidden Costs in Your Hobbies
The other day, my dad was talking about possibly getting into golfing, a sport he has no experience with. He initially thought he'd only have to worry about club fees and renting some golf clubs. But as we talked, we came up with more and more expenses he'd want or need like shoes, clothing, his own clubs, etc. It made me think of how most activities entail hidden costs you don't think of at first.
For sports, you have to get all the proper equipment like pads and cleats. Dancing requires shoes and clothes on top of the class fees. And crafting hobbies require the equipment (such as the knitting needles or sewing machine) and the supplies like yarn and fabric. Of course, the more involved you get into the hobby, the better quality of materials you're going to want to use. It's one of those situations where the expenses can pile up out of nowhere.
Shopping around for used equipment is a good way to keep these costs down. From yard sales and Goodwill to consignment stores like Play-It-Again Sports, there are plenty of opportunities to save on the essentials if you're willing to do some hunting.As long as you don't compromise your safety with defective or overly-worn safety equipment.
Have you experienced any hidden costs associated with your hobbies? What have they been? How do you keep down these costs for your favorite hobby?
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Comments (5)
You forgot the best component: Craigslist. My hobbies don't cost a lot because I am not that into it.
My exercise hobby can be expensive (clothes, shoes, accessories, bike, etc.), but it's usually only a one-time expense. My jewelry making hobby can be pricey (but at least that makes money in return). Photography isn't bad, especially since my camera was a gift and I rarely make prints. Most of the prints I do get are from some freebie specials going on at Shutterfly, and sometimes, I make money from photography, too. Drawing doesn't cost me very much, and it's probably my favorite out of all of them.
If you consider journalling a hobby, there's the cost of pens (depending on how fancy you buy) and the journal itself....but like I said before, it's about how fancy you go for. You could write in a .99 composition notebook with cheap pens if you really wanted to..
My three biggest hobbies are cooking, baking and photography, both of which aren't bad. The cooking & baking costs money but since we eat it, its money well spent. As for my photography habit its not as bad as it could be. My fiance got me my digital SLR back for my birthday a couple years ago and he bought me a second lens for it for Christmas. So the only things I've had to buy are a tripod, and some filters. Then since its digital most of the photos just stay on my computer, and if I really like one I get it printed, which doesn't cost alot.
Hmmm, cooking, running, and tennis.
Cooking: food supplies... utensils... gas etc etc. It's money spent well though.
Running: Hmmm... nothing.
Tennis: Tennis racket/balls (I usually buy a new racket every year or so) and outfit is basically what I wear for running lol.