More free time due to COVID-19 lockdown has led to a rise in Australians pursuing hobbies.
According to the 2020 Families in Australia Survey, 46 per cent of Australians took up hobbies like arts and crafts and baking during last year’s lockdown.
With two-thirds of Australians forced to work from home this year, the art of learning a new skill to cope with lockdown stress has risen in popularity.
Carly Turner, 21, from Canberra, turned her spare bedroom into a crafts room when she was forced to work from home due to the pandemic.
“I began renovating furniture, doing mosaics and sewing patchwork because I didn’t have any prior skills in them and a lot of spare time,” says Carly.
“Being creative gave me a good balance between work and personal life. I was able to switch off from working from home and do something.”
She isn’t alone.
Twenty-five per cent of Australians between the ages of 18-29 learned a new skill, language, or hobby during last year’s lockdown.
Campbell Miller took up the ancient art of bookbinding during ACT’s two-month lockdown this year to cope with lockdown stress.
“It was something I could do that could take my mind away from hours on end,” says Campbell.
“The nature of bookbinding is very methodical, and I think that it uses a space where you can have complete control over a moment whilst the rest of your life is completely out of your control.”
Watch Campbell’s story here.
Alongside arts and crafts, the hobby of gardening has risen in popularity by 25 per cent during the pandemic.
Sian Wright, 27, from Wollongong, started gardening to brighten up her living space while she worked from home.
Now, she has a mixture of indoor and outdoor plants decorating her apartment.
“I got hooked on the feeling of seeing a new leaf or harvesting a vegetable,” says Sian.
“Because I was working from home, it was very helpful to get away from my computer and build some better work to home boundaries. There is also only so much Netflix you can watch.”
In a survey by SUSTAIN, 72 per cent of respondents stated that gardening during the 2020 lockdown improved their mental health.
Of these respondents, 98 per cent said that they intended to continue pursuing gardening activities.
According to the Australian Psychological Society, people with hobbies are less likely to suffer from depression, low mood, and stress.
“Spending time on an activity that you enjoy can improve your mental health and wellbeing. Activities that get you out and about can make you feel happier and more relaxed” states Head to Health.
Alongside creative hobbies and gardening, 54 per cent of young Australians reported that they played games and puzzles in lockdown. 32 per cent stated that they exercised indoors or outdoors more often
Feature image source: Pavel Danilyuk, Mikhail Nilov and Cottonbro
Mikayla McGuirk-Scolaro 