How I Turned a Hobby into My First Investment Portfolio

The Story

"I’ve always loved making candles as a hobby. One day, I started selling them on Etsy. At first, I made a few hundred dollars a month. Instead of spending the money, I opened a brokerage account and deposited my profits. It felt weird at first — putting candle money into the stock market — but after a year I had saved $2,000. Fast forward three years, my little candle side hustle turned into a $5,000 investment portfolio. What started as a hobby literally turned into my first step toward wealth."

Advisor Breakdown

Situation:

• Hobby (candle-making) → small extra income.

• No investment experience.

👉 I’ve seen many people overlook side hustle income. Redirecting it to investments is genius — it doesn’t feel like you’re sacrificing your main paycheck.

Task:

• Use side hustle income to build a financial foundation.

Action:

• Opened a brokerage account.

• Deposited all side hustle profits.

• Stayed invested consistently.

👉 I like this because it shows how “extra” money can jump-start investing without impacting your core budget.

Result:

• $5,000 portfolio within 3 years.

• Confidence to invest larger amounts later.

• Turned hobby into real financial progress.

Key Takeaways

• Side hustle money = perfect seed for investments.

• Separate “extra” income → helps avoid lifestyle creep.

• Small amounts add up fast when invested consistently.