13 Fall & Winter Pandemic Hobby Ideas

A lot of people have discovered new indoor hobbies during the COVID-19 pandemic, from knitting to yoga to full-fledged DIY. As the weather gets colder again, 13 people tell Bustle about the practices they're excited to pick back up.

"Engaging in any hobby that you enjoy and that focuses your attention can help mitigate the negative effects of stress," Dr. Julia Blank M.D., a physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center, tells Bustle. "Hobbies focus a person's attention away from the stressor and can be soothing."

"To ensure I would have a steady food supply throughout lockdown without going to the shops, I started doing Proper Cooking: I read recipe books, plan meals, and batch-cook. It’s become a highlight of self-care — it brightens every day to have good food that I made for myself."

"I was already starting to run role-playing games about six months before the country shut down, but I do it a lot more now. Also I’ve started DMing [running] actual Dungeons and Dragons games."

"Personally, I rediscovered watercolor painting and drawing, coincidentally after my mom started painting again during lockdown. I also started yoga and Pilates at home every evening, which really help me decompress after a long day at the desk."

"Tie dye... And I'm not gonna stop until everyone I know is clad in rainbows."

"I've become a humongous dork and regressed to my childhood to play video games (well, primarily Stardew Valley) and have picked up gardening. I’m definitely going to keep playing. I can’t handle the real world."

"Islamic geometric art/watercolor painting. It’s basically DIY coloring-in and following tutorials. Samira Mian’s tutorials are super beginner-friendly and Art of Islamic Pattern have been running amazing online classes throughout lockdown where you can learn to create seriously complex patterns."

"I’ve really started to enjoy cleaning. It's the one activity that brings me a sense of achievement and fulfillment, and helps me to feel calmer and more in control of my circumstances. Cleaning is the one time I don’t feel guilty about leaving the kids with dad so it’s my me time these days."

"As someone who thrives in a productive and busy environment, I struggled with lockdown. Naturally (like everyone else) I was baking away, and turned my hobby into a business. I'm now selling at a farmers market in Rye, NY."

"Finally figuring out how to play the piano! I finally love it, and I'm so much better than I ever was."

"Powerlifting! I can almost deadlift my own body weight, but can only lift half body weight in bench and squats. But I have consistently made progress each week, which feels AMAZING!"

"I started doing yoga daily and decided to get my yoga teacher training certificate as well."

"I learned to sew! I'm deep in it. Never leaving."

"I am very excited to start sewing warm clothes again now that the fall temperatures have finally arrived. Learning to sew can be pretty easy even without prior knowledge. I also really enjoy making small blankets for expecting friends with cute motifs."