At first, she was self-employed part-time while working as a civilian for the Department of Defense at Keyport. “I sold travel evenings and weekends. I started to build up clientele, and that was the important thing,” she said. In 1997, she decided to go solo full time, sooner than she anticipated.

Newton is one of a growing number of people who are enticed by the idea of working for themselves, and doing it so from the comforts of their homes. According to the Home Business Magazine, home-based businesses in the United States are part of a $1 trillion sector that is seeing an explosion.

Although some home-based businesses don’t go beyond a hobby, the idea of having low overhead, getting extra tax write-offs, and having flexible schedules has enticed many Americans to pursue that dream. Some become so successful that they soon outgrow their home setups and must move out. Others become multimillion-dollar companies.

“I was ahead of the (home based travel agent) trend. Now, the trend in travel is not to have a storefront,” Newton said. Being computer literate, she said she “saw it coming.” In the old days, people had to come to a travel office; now the beauty of the Internet and technology has made that unnecessary. Recently, she took Travel Wi$e on the road to New Jersey for a month to help her ill mother, and booked travel for customers from her mother’s kitchen table.

Networking is the most important part for building up her agency. Newton has developed an effective way for it. Besides participating in fairs and community events as well as networking through the “Women in Networking Generating Success” group based in Kitsap (www.womennetwork.com), she hands out many of her business cards — everywhere. For example, a woman complimented her travel-themed blouse in an elevator once, and she told her how it related to her business. The stranger left with a business card.

“Maybe she’ll call me in the future, and maybe she won’t but I got noticed,” Newton said.

Other times, she would meet someone new to the area and offer to share what she knows about the community. Eventually, the conversation may touch on her business, and she’d hand out her business card. Often, she’ll leave her card with a tip at a restaurant. She also offers many specialty-priced cruises at her online eBay store.

One of the biggest challenges most work-at-home people encounter is the ability to separate themselves from their business. It’s not an easy task to focus on the job when the non-business line is ringing, kids are home from school and want attention, or the sun is so bright, it’s impossible to think “work.” On the other side, it’s not easy to call it a day, and some people find themselves working all the time.

Knowing she wanted to be self-employed some day, Newtown made sure to add a 600-square-foot office when she and her husband, Bill, built their home in Seabeck in 1994. Having that dedicated space is a must, home-based entrepreneurs like her believe.

Allison and Steve Summerday, owners of Summerday’s Awning Care and Shipshape Canvas Care near Gig Harbor, originally ran their business out of their living room when they lived in Seattle. That didn’t work so well, the couple said. When they moved to Gig Harbor and bought a new home, they converted a tool shed into a nice office space — and now they have the physical separation between work and home life.

“Some people use the commute as a way to let go off work,” Allison Summerday said. “The commute is a few feet so there is no time to decompress.” Yet, “you work in a beautiful environment” overlooking your back yard, she said.

Professional presentation, including logos and business cards, are just as important for home-based businesses that depend on name recognition. “It’s very important to make sure people know you’re not just a hobbyist,” says Sharon Soames, who owns home-based wreath-making business Rose of Sharon’s as well as Christmas in the Country, LLC, which organizes an annual arts driving tour on Bainbridge Island.

Soames’ home-based studio has a separate entrance for the public, and she’s tried to build name recognition by creating various public events and trying to get them publicized. She finds many benefits for running a business out of the home, especially tax advantages and lack of rental costs.

“I think it makes it more affordable when you can do it in your house,” she says.